From today’s Post: “When co-founder Sergey Brin visited Capitol Hill two years ago, he had trouble persuading members of Congress to meet with him. The company didn’t bother to open an office in the District until 2005.” [Full article]

Say what you may about Beltway bandits and insider deals, but if a billionaire with a major stake in the technology sector has a hard time setting up meetings without a full-time presence in Greater Washington, it’s a sign that your company might need a Washington office. Especially if you want to provide some of the $55 billion in goods and services the federal government purchases annually from businesses in Greater Washington.

Though Google is presently concerned with some FCC regulations and access to the wireless market, the Defense Department is the largest spender in the area. Here’s a breakdown of 2006 procurements:

• Greater Washington: $31.1 billion
• Dallas metro: $16.3 billion
• Los Angeles metro: 13.4 billion
• Boston metro: $8 billion
• New York metro: $6.9 billion
• San Francisco-San Jose metro: $6.5 billion
• Philadelphia metro: $4.2 billion
• Atlanta metro: $3.0 billion
• Chicago metro: $2.1 billion
• Miami metro: $1.0 billion
• Source: Department of Defense, SIAD, 2006

Filed under: Economy