District of Columbia · NAICS 92 · Annual, 2025
Public Administration in the District of Columbia
Employment, establishments and average pay for NAICS 92 in the District of Columbia, 2004–2025, from DTG's QCEW-based estimates.
In 2025, Public Administration (NAICS 92) employed about 183,000 people in the District of Columbia across roughly 255 establishments, with average annual pay of $145,490.
Employment in Public Administration in the District of Columbia declined 6.1% from 2020 to 2025. The industry is 4.9× as concentrated in the District of Columbia as in the nation as a whole (location quotient 4.87). QCEW withheld part of this figure for the District of Columbia; DTG's estimate is shown, with a reliability score of 0.98. Quarterly values, full industry detail and projections to 2036 for the District of Columbia are included with a free account. County-level detail is part of every paid plan, or one county free for seven days.
- 183,000Employment, 2025
- 255Establishments
- $145,490Avg. annual pay
- 24.6%Share of District of Columbia jobs
- 4.87Location quotient
The 2025 figures above are a DTG estimate: Estimated · 0.98. † Not disclosed in QCEW; DTG estimate.
Employment, 2004 to 2025
Annual average · all ownerships
Annual employment, 2004–2025: 2004 176,800; 2005 178,700; 2006 179,100; 2007 178,600; 2008 181,400; 2009 187,600; 2010 197,700; 2011 199,400; 2012 199,000; 2013 195,900; 2014 191,500; 2015 192,600; 2016 194,900; 2017 195,000; 2018 192,800; 2019 192,100; 2020 194,900; 2021 196,100; 2022 190,200; 2023 187,700; 2024 190,200; 2025 183,000.
Last ten years
Annual · 10 years
| Year | Employment | Estab. | Avg. annual pay | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 183,003 | 255 | $145,491 | 3.8% | est. · 0.98 |
| 2024 | 190,188 | 253 | $138,920 | 1.3% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2023 | 187,710 | 252 | $135,427 | 1.3% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2022 | 190,242 | 264 | $128,283 | 3.0% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2021 | 196,116 | 281 | $124,367 | 0.6% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2020 | 194,929 | 280 | $121,472 | 1.5% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2019 | 192,073 | 277 | $118,871 | 0.4% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2018 | 192,781 | 277 | $117,938 | 1.1% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2017 | 195,003 | 279 | $112,110 | 0.0% | est. · 1.00 |
| 2016 | 194,936 | 277 | $108,688 | 1.2% | est. · 1.00 |
† Not disclosed in QCEW; DTG estimate.
The full history from 2004 and quarterly values are available with a free account.
By subsector, 2025
3-digit NAICS · 8 shown
| Code | Subsector | Employment | Share of public administration | LQ | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 921 | Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support | 48,245 | 26.4% | 3.07 | est. · 0.99 |
| 922 | Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities | 48,539 | 26.5% | 5.22 | est. · 0.98 |
| 923 | Administration of Human Resource Programs | 12,607 | 6.9% | 2.94 | est. · 0.93 |
| 924 | Administration of Environmental Quality Programs | 6,501 | 3.5% | 3.69 | pub. |
| 925 | Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development | 3,595 | 2.0% | 6.94 | pub. |
| 926 | Administration of Economic Programs | 36,891 | 20.2% | 12.06 | est. · 0.99 |
| 927 | Space Research and Technology | 917 | 0.5% | 10.80 | pub. |
| 928 | National Security and International Affairs | 25,707 | 14.1% | 8.89 | pub. |
† Not disclosed in QCEW; DTG estimate.
Where these numbers come from
Reading these figures
The figures on this page come from one named vintage, stated below, and are annual values for all ownerships combined. Where QCEW withheld a value, the marked figure is an estimate that DTG produced under the constraints of the published record; suppression is a property of QCEW, not of DTG, and a withheld value is marked rather than silently omitted. Two things DTG itself holds back, and says so where it does: an estimate that cannot be given a reliability score is not shown, and average pay is not shown where fewer than three jobs are reported. The row is marked withheld, with the reason in a note beneath the table. The mark is on every row that carries a value: the headline, the yearly history, the subsectors and the other states. An estimated value that rounds below one is shown as less than one, not as zero. Quarterly figures, county figures and projected years are in the app.
How this figure was built
Employment is the average of the three monthly counts in each quarter, averaged across the year, and establishments are averaged across the year the same way. Average annual pay is the year’s total wages divided by that average employment. Each of these is DTG’s value: QCEW’s published figure where QCEW disclosed it, and DTG’s estimate, marked, where it did not. How withheld values are estimated, and what the reliability score beside a figure means, are described on the industry data and disclosure and provenance pages.
Notes
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Public Administration in District of Columbia, quarterly, at full depth
This page shows annual figures for public administration in District of Columbia. A free account shows every detailed industry beneath it, quarterly, for every state, with projections to ten years. No card.
County figures, file export and the API are on paid plans.