DC distribution franchises
Pepco and Washington Gas, full stop
Two regulated companies, two franchises, no overlap. Every DC address sits in both, for the wires you have no choice, for the supply you can shop.
Investor-owned · electric IOU
Pepco
Potomac Electric Power Company · Exelon subsidiary
Footprint: Entire District of Columbia, all 8 Wards.
~278K MD meters in PG + Montgomery counties. Regulated by DC PSC, SOS auctions every 6 to 12 months.
Customer service
1-877-737-2662
1-877-737-2662 (24/7) · text OUT to 48710
Investor-owned · gas distributor
Washington Gas
WGL Holdings (AltaGas subsidiary)
Footprint: Entire DC gas franchise + adjacent MD and VA.
Also serves the DC suburbs (MD + Northern VA). Gas commodity is shoppable in DC, distribution is not.
Customer service
1-844-WAS-GASS
1-844-WAS-GASS (24/7 gas emergency)
Unlike Massachusetts (2 large IOUs + 41 munis) or Georgia (1 IOU + 41 EMCs + 52 munis), DC has a single franchise area per fuel. No co-op, no municipal alternative, no second IOU.
Why one franchise per fuel
A 68-square-mile district, one wire network, one gas main
DC is small enough that running two parallel wire networks or gas mains would be wasteful. The DC PSC granted Pepco an exclusive electric distribution franchise and Washington Gas an exclusive gas franchise. Both companies are private, both are regulated as natural monopolies on the delivery side.
Pepco · electric IOU
Distribution monopoly for the entire District, regulated by the DC PSC. Delivery rates set through public rate cases. Supply rate (SOS) set at periodic competitive auctions.
- ✓Outage response 24/7, dedicated rate plans.
- !Customers cannot shop the delivery line, only the supply.
~286K meters across the District.
Washington Gas · gas distributor
Sole DC natural-gas distributor since the 19th century. Owned by AltaGas. Distribution rates regulated by the DC PSC, gas commodity is shoppable from licensed marketers.
- ✓24/7 emergency leak response, free at the meter.
- !Gas marketers exist but participation is limited.
~165K DC gas meters.
DC PSC · the regulator
A 3-member body that regulates Pepco delivery rates, Washington Gas distribution rates, and licenses every Competitive Energy Supplier. Hears every base-rate case in public.
- ✓Free complaint and billing dispute process.
- ✓Office of the People's Counsel (OPC) advocates for ratepayers.
Phone (202) 626-5100.
The two halves of a DC bill
What you get with Pepco vs what you can shop
A DC electric bill has two lines: delivery (the wires) and supply (the kilowatt-hours). Pepco runs the first, you choose the second.
Delivery: always Pepco, never optional
- ✓ Poles, wires, transformers, your meter. Pepco owns and maintains every piece.
- ✓ Outage restoration and emergency response, 24/7. The same Pepco crew shows up whether you shop or stay on SOS.
- ✓ Meter reading and billing. You get one Pepco bill that lists supply (yours or a CES's) plus delivery.
- ✓ Low-income discount programs like the Utility Discount Program (UDP) and LIHEAP support.
Supply: yours to shop, or stay on SOS
- → Default: Pepco Standard Offer Service (SOS). Auction-set, regulated, passed through at cost.
- → Or: a DC PSC-licensed Competitive Energy Supplier (CES). Fixed-rate plans, 100% renewable products, or month-to-month variable.
- → Switching is free, takes 1 to 2 billing cycles, and the meter never changes.
- → You can switch back to SOS any time, but watch for early-termination fees on fixed-rate CES contracts.
Quick answers
Common questions DC households ask about Pepco and the DC utility map.
Yes. Pepco holds the exclusive electric distribution franchise for the District of Columbia, granted by the DC PSC. There is no second IOU, no municipal utility, no electric co-op. Every DC address, in all 8 Wards, takes its delivery service from Pepco. The same is true for natural gas with Washington Gas. What you can change is the supplier of the kilowatt-hours themselves, see our Pepco profile for the full picture.
SOS is the default supply price Pepco charges when you have not chosen a competitive supplier. Pepco buys the power through periodic wholesale auctions (typically every 6 to 12 months) and passes it through at cost, with no profit margin. The DC PSC oversees the auction process. Because SOS reflects past auctions, it lags the current wholesale market by months. Check today's SOS rate on your latest Pepco bill or on the DC PSC website.
Call your competitive supplier first to cancel (watch for any early-termination fee on a fixed-rate contract), then call Pepco at 1-877-737-2662 to confirm the return to Standard Offer Service. There is no fee to switch back to SOS, and the change takes one to two billing cycles. Your meter, delivery service and account number do not change.
Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Door-to-door sales pitches often quote a low teaser rate that flips to a much higher variable rate after a few months. Always compare a fixed-rate CES offer to the current SOS rate, including monthly fees, and read the termination clause. When the spread is real and the contract is clean, DC households can shave 10 to 20 percent off the supply line.
Always Pepco's 24/7 outage line: 1-877-737-2662. Or text OUT to 48710 from the phone number on file with Pepco. Never call your competitive supplier for an outage, they have no field crews. If you smell gas, leave the building first, then call Washington Gas 1-844-WAS-GASS.
Keep exploring DC energy
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