The District of Columbia is divided into eight wards and forty-six neighborhood areas, each represented by an Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC). ANCs are groups of residents, elected by their neighbors, who work to ensure that their individual neighborhoods are well-served by city government.
Each ANC regularly meets to review pending and proposed government actions of interest. Meetings are held in public and follow established rules of order. In some cases, the ANC may vote to issue formal advice to DC government agencies based on its determination of the neighborhood’s best interests. The issues inviting ANC advice are diverse: taxation, transportation, liquor licenses, public safety, planning, zoning, historic preservation, recreation, and so on.