United States Conference of Mayors
Encyclopedia
United States Conference of Mayors, sometimes referred to as the United States Council of Mayors, is the official non-partisan organization for cities with populations of 30,000 or more. The cities are each represented by their mayor
or other chief elected official. The organization arose from the shadows of the Great Depression
and coalesced under Herbert Hoover
until its original charter
was signed at the Mayflower Hotel
on the eve of the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The organization sets policy as the collective voice of municipalities and their leaders. Committees and task forces develop policies that the entire body votes on before sending their resolutions to elected leaders in Washington. They also undertake studies on issues related to their special interests and fund grants and awards to incent execution of their ideals. The group has continuously evaluated the landscape of public policy and has current issues related to homeland security
and economic recovery.
By standing as a unified voice through this organization, municipal leaders have influenced United States Presidents and United States Congress
es to enact legislation that has provided a legacy of benefits to cities. Mayors received relief from the Great Depression and later lobbied for 1970s relief. Community Development Block Grant
s (CDBGs) are a legacy of the later.
s accounted for 84 percent of the nation's gross domestic product
and at the same time generated 84 percent of the nation's employment opportunities.
In 1932, Mayor of Detroit Frank Murphy
called a conference of mayors to meet in Detroit, Michigan
in June. In the shadow of the depression
, he felt it was worthwhile to pursue federal aid for cities. 48 mayors of cities in excess of 100,000 attended. On June 3, two days after the Adjournment sine die
of the first conference, Murphy appointed a seven-person commission (including himself) to lobby Washington using the powers vested in him by the conference. Murphy along with Mayor of Boston James Michael Curley
, Mayor of Cleveland Raymond T. Miller
, Mayor of Milwaukee Daniel Hoan
, Mayor of New Orleans T. Semmes Walmsley
, Mayor of Minneapolis William A. Anderson
, and Mayor of Grand Rapids George W. Welsh traveled to Washington, DC to lobby the federal government for aid. The mayors that went with him urgently pled for relief. On June 6 at 10:00 a.m., they met with United States Speaker of the House John Nance Garner
(D), Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives Henry T. Rainey
(D) and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives
Bertrand H. Snell (R). They held out hope for a US$5 billion prosperity loan, but made it clear their true need for any relief for the despair of their constituents. At 11:00 a.m., they met with United States Vice President/President of the United States Senate Charles Curtis
and other Senate leaders. The presence of the Mayors was unprecedented and despite some Democratic defections, a band of 12 Republicans led by Fiorello LaGuardia enabled the passage of a relief bill by a 205–189 margin. Unfortunately President
Herbert Hoover
was not receptive to the $1.9 billion scale of the public works plan. However, the mayors were able to convince the President that federal support for local relief efforts was reasonable and this is considered a watershed event. 42 of the 48 states benefited from the newly empowered Reconstruction Finance Corporation
. After the Emergency Relief and Construction Act
of 1932 was signed into law by Hoover, the Conference wrote its charter at the Mayflower Hotel
on the eve of the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It held its second meeting in 1933 and formed the permanent United States Conference of Mayors with Murphy as its President.
In 1972, USMC President Mayor of Milwaukee Henry Maier led the crusade for municipal resources at a time when federal grants to state and local governments was escalating rapidly. Richard Nixon
started allowing cities to participate in federal revenue sharing. This source of municipal funding relieved cities until the mid 1980s. Jimmy Carter
capped revenue payments and Reagan discontinued everything except for CDBGs. The CDBG program has consistently allocated over $4 billion/year to state and local jurisdictions. Currently, CDBG's are being used by 1180 local governments and states. Using provisions in the 1995 Crime Bill, Clinton paid for municipal enforcement authorities on behalf of cities.
The current leadership of the conference is President Antonio Villaraigosa
(Los Angeles, California
), Vice President Michael Nutter (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
), and Second Vice president Scott Smith (mayor)
(Mesa, Arizona
).
in December 2008, The Conference held a news conference along with United States House Committee on Ways and Means
Chairman Charlie Rangel, United States House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar and Congressional Urban Caucus Chairman Chaka Fattah
. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
announced that the meeting sought support of the Conferences survey of 11,391 "ready-to-go" infrastructure projects that they hoped to see in a Main Street recovery plan during Obama's first 100 days. According to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
, the $73.1 billion projects had completed the design and approval process and met all political requirement except for the need for funding. At the same time the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
called for support for more 5,148 road and bridge infrastructure projects that they categorized as "ready-to-go." Many of the ideas in the Mayor proposal became part of the stimulus package.
Another issue that the Conference took issue with in 2008 include the misappropriation of federal funds for municipal anti-terrorism emergency equipment through the Homeland Security Department, which was created in 2003, instead of for municipal police forces and other enforcement officials. On this issue, they stood by the International Association of Chiefs of Police
who feel common domestic anti-crime expenditure might better serve the public interest. Since the September 11 attacks federally funded municipal purchases of bomb robots, chem-bio suits and other anti-terrorism equipment have often gone unused while crime is underserved. These organizations are calling for a re-evaluation of the federal grant system. Along with various foreign governments, United States Chamber of Commerce
and the Travel Industry Association, the conference also stood against the 2008 Homeland Security Department initiative to fingerprint
foreign visitors before they leave the country by airplane. These complaints came a few years after the conference complained that their cities were not receiving an equitable proportion of counterterrorism funding in the first few years after the attacks.
The conference has been active in fighting foreclosure
s and predatory lending
. During the formulation and debate of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
in response to the global financial crisis of 2008, a conference spokesperson was cited for being in support of the inclusion of $4 billion for the purchase, rehabilitation and resale of low- and moderate-income family distressed property. The money would produce profits that would be used to develop neighborhoods. Another important feature to municipalities was $180 million devoted to grants for pre-foreclosure and legal counseling.
Also in 2008, the conference unanimously both supported single-payer national health insurance
and City-coordinated drug overdose prevention efforts. After calling for a study on bottled water
in 2007, in 2008, the conference came out against bottled water which consumes 1.5 million barrels of oil per year to produce its plastic bottles.
) in addition to ad hoc meetings. At the annual meeting, members vote on policy resolutions. The results are distributed to the President of the United States
and the United States Congress
.
On January 11, 2007 the Conference leadership approved the annual ten-point platform called "Strong Cities, Strong Families for a Strong America", including positions on energy policy
and homeland security
, and support for Community development block grant
s (CDBG), government sponsored enterprises, the State Children's Health Insurance Program
(CHIPS), and the Workforce Investment Act. In 2008, travel
and tourism
were part of the plan for the first time.
In the past, the Conference has taken stances against Ronald Reagan
's 1983 budget. It has also through its president Fiorello La Guardia, spoken against cuts in the Works Progress Administration
on behalf of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The conference has actively pursued legislation to curb handgun violence by changing the regulations for purchasing, adding regulatory oversight, and suing manufacturers for unreasonable marketing practices and lax safety standards.
At times, the unified voice of Mayors has had significant impact on federal policies. An example was the controversy over the decision by investigators from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
, Federal Bureau of Investigation
and the United States Department of Justice
to carry out an examination of waste, fraud and abuse in the housing programs in three cities led by black mayors (Kurt L. Schmoke, Marc H. Morial and Willie L. Brown Jr.). Eventually, the housing subcommittee of the United States House Committee on Appropriations
Chairman, Jerry Lewis
, in response into the collective voice of the mayors, with the support of President Bill Clinton
and Andrew M. Cuomo, the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
, mandated a clarification of selection criteria for investigation subjects.
In determining their positions and policies, the Conference has had to balance difficult political choices. They once opposed the Environmental Protection Agency in a resolution which came out against enforcing stricter smog and soot limits. The conference members felt that the stricter standards for ozone
and fine particles would have hampered the economies of many municipalities, especially those that are steel-, automobile- and fossil fuel
-intensive.
, created in 2007 to provide support mayors in efforts to reduce global warming
in American cities. In June 2007, the Center awarded its first annual "Mayors' Climate Protection Awards" to leading mayors. The "U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement", initiated by Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels
in 2005, seeks the pledges of mayors from all 50 states to take action to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions by 7% from 1990 levels by the year 2012, in line with the Kyoto Protocol
. As of February 2010, 1017 mayors have signed the Agreement. In 2007, the mayors called for a multi-billion dollar grant to help cities fight global warming and declared global warming as first on their list of top-ten priorities. That year the conference and the city of Seattle hosted the "2007 Mayors Climate Protection Summit in Seattle", which featured Bill Clinton
and Al Gore
. Wal-Mart
has been a corporate partner in the presentation of the first two years of these awards.
The council has granted City Livability Awards since 1979 for mayors and governments as recognition for developing programs that enhance the quality of life in urban areas. Programs such as drowning
awareness and prevention programs earn such recognitions.
Since 1997, the Conference of Mayors in conjunction with the Americans for the Arts
has annually presented Public Leadership in the Arts Awards. The awards recognize "elected officials and artists or arts organizations that have demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts." Various classes of elected officials are recognized and various types of contributions are recognized each year.
The Conference has advocated for HIV
/AIDS
Prevention Grants Programs. Annually, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) it awards approximately hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants for HIV/AIDS prevention service to Native American
s as well as to African American or Hispanic Women at High Risk of HIV Infection. This was part of a broader 24-year partnership with the CDC in which the conference has awarded $23 million in grants to community based organizations and local health departments to promote local prevention and education efforts.
, hunger
and homelessness
, unfunded federal mandates, youth crime and violence, high fuel costs, and brownfields. The "Poverty, Work and Opportunity Task Force," chaired by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
, was formed in January 2006.
. The councils supports initiatives such as handgun regulation, recycling
, defense funding and global warming
. Although the organization is domestic, its reach is international. It partakes in missions to worldwide locations. When the internet
blossomed and Bill Clinton
made plans for an unregulated and untaxed electronic marketplace, state and local officials objected. Their voice was represented by the Council. Mayors may also serve on one or more of the Conference's standing committees: Children, Health and Human Services; Community Development and Housing; Criminal and Social Justice; Energy; Environment; International Affairs; Jobs, Education and the Workforce; Membership; Tourism, Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports; Transportation and Communications; and Urban Economic Policy.
, one of its non-partisan presidential straw polls was determined to be contrary to a New Jersey Supreme Court
ruling because the court had determined that it was improper for any municipality to test public opinion outside of its jurisdiction.
Also, at the 2004 Democratic National Convention
, striking Boston Police Department
officers decided to picket a Conference of Mayors meeting. 2004 Democratic Presidential nominee John Kerry
, who was the invited speaker, decided to honor the picket line.
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
or other chief elected official. The organization arose from the shadows of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and coalesced under Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
until its original charter
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
was signed at the Mayflower Hotel
Mayflower Hotel
The Renaissance Mayflower Hotel, known locally as simply The Mayflower, is a historic hotel in downtown Washington, DC located on Connecticut Avenue NW, two blocks north of Farragut Square . It is the largest luxury hotel in the U.S. capital and the longest continuously operating hotel in the...
on the eve of the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The organization sets policy as the collective voice of municipalities and their leaders. Committees and task forces develop policies that the entire body votes on before sending their resolutions to elected leaders in Washington. They also undertake studies on issues related to their special interests and fund grants and awards to incent execution of their ideals. The group has continuously evaluated the landscape of public policy and has current issues related to homeland security
Homeland security
Homeland security is an umbrella term for security efforts to protect states against terrorist activity. Specifically, is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the U.S., reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do...
and economic recovery.
By standing as a unified voice through this organization, municipal leaders have influenced United States Presidents and United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
es to enact legislation that has provided a legacy of benefits to cities. Mayors received relief from the Great Depression and later lobbied for 1970s relief. Community Development Block Grant
Community Development Block Grant
The Community Development Block Grant , one of the longest-running programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, funds local community development activities such as affordable housing, anti-poverty programs, and infrastructure development...
s (CDBGs) are a legacy of the later.
Mission
The organization serves the following functions: Help develop and promote effective national urban/suburban policy; build stronger and more effective federal-city relationships; monitor the effectiveness of federal policy in terms of its service to urban needs; help mayors develop leadership and management tools; and to create a forum in which mayors can share ideas and information. By representing all large municipalities and their leaders in these ways, the conference is speaking for vast majority of the components of the nations economy. According to one of the Conference's own reports, metropolitan areaMetropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
s accounted for 84 percent of the nation's gross domestic product
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
and at the same time generated 84 percent of the nation's employment opportunities.
History
Frank Murphy
William Francis Murphy was a politician and jurist from Michigan. He served as First Assistant U.S. District Attorney, Eastern Michigan District , Recorder's Court Judge, Detroit . Mayor of Detroit , the last Governor-General of the Philippines , U.S...
called a conference of mayors to meet in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
in June. In the shadow of the depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, he felt it was worthwhile to pursue federal aid for cities. 48 mayors of cities in excess of 100,000 attended. On June 3, two days after the Adjournment sine die
Adjournment sine die
Adjournment sine die means "without assigning a day for a further meeting or hearing". To adjourn an assembly sine die is to adjourn it for an indefinite period...
of the first conference, Murphy appointed a seven-person commission (including himself) to lobby Washington using the powers vested in him by the conference. Murphy along with Mayor of Boston James Michael Curley
James Michael Curley
James Michael Curley was an American politician famous for his four terms as mayor of Boston, Massachusetts. He also served twice in the United States House of Representatives and one term as 53rd Governor of Massachusetts.-Early life:Curley's father, Michael Curley, left Oughterard, County...
, Mayor of Cleveland Raymond T. Miller
Raymond T. Miller
Raymond Thomas Miller was an American politician who served as the 43rd mayor of Cleveland, Ohio and the chairman of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party for over twenty years.-Biography:...
, Mayor of Milwaukee Daniel Hoan
Daniel Hoan
Daniel Webster "Dan" Hoan was a United States lawyer and politician. He became the second Socialist mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and his tenure is generally considered to be the longest continuous socialist administration in U.S. history...
, Mayor of New Orleans T. Semmes Walmsley
T. Semmes Walmsley
Thomas Semmes Walmsley was Mayor of New Orleans from July 1929 to June 1936. He is best known for his intense rivalry with Louisiana Governor Huey P. Long.- Early life and career :...
, Mayor of Minneapolis William A. Anderson
William A. Anderson
For others of the same name see William Anderson .William A. Anderson was politician and judge in the state of Minnesota.-Biography:...
, and Mayor of Grand Rapids George W. Welsh traveled to Washington, DC to lobby the federal government for aid. The mayors that went with him urgently pled for relief. On June 6 at 10:00 a.m., they met with United States Speaker of the House John Nance Garner
John Nance Garner
John Nance Garner, IV , was the 32nd Vice President of the United States and the 44th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives .- Early life and family :...
(D), Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives Henry T. Rainey
Henry T. Rainey
Henry Thomas Rainey was a prominent U.S. politician during the first third of the 20th century. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1903 to 1921 and from 1923 to his death as a Democrat from Illinois, and was its Speaker during the famous Hundred days of Franklin D...
(D) and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives
Minority leader of the United States House of Representatives
The House Minority Leader is one of the party leaders of the United States House of Representatives. This title is currently held by Democratic Representative Nancy Pelosi of California....
Bertrand H. Snell (R). They held out hope for a US$5 billion prosperity loan, but made it clear their true need for any relief for the despair of their constituents. At 11:00 a.m., they met with United States Vice President/President of the United States Senate Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis was a United States Representative, a longtime United States Senator from Kansas later chosen as Senate Majority Leader by his Republican colleagues, and the 31st Vice President of the United States...
and other Senate leaders. The presence of the Mayors was unprecedented and despite some Democratic defections, a band of 12 Republicans led by Fiorello LaGuardia enabled the passage of a relief bill by a 205–189 margin. Unfortunately President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
was not receptive to the $1.9 billion scale of the public works plan. However, the mayors were able to convince the President that federal support for local relief efforts was reasonable and this is considered a watershed event. 42 of the 48 states benefited from the newly empowered Reconstruction Finance Corporation
Reconstruction Finance Corporation
The Reconstruction Finance Corporation was an independent agency of the United States government, established and chartered by the US Congress in 1932, Act of January 22, 1932, c. 8, 47 Stat. 5, during the administration of President Herbert Hoover. It was modeled after the War Finance Corporation...
. After the Emergency Relief and Construction Act
Emergency Relief and Construction Act
The Emergency Relief and Construction Act , was the United States's first major-relief legislation, enabled under Herbert Hoover and later adopted and expanded by Franklin D. Roosevelt as part of his New Deal....
of 1932 was signed into law by Hoover, the Conference wrote its charter at the Mayflower Hotel
Mayflower Hotel
The Renaissance Mayflower Hotel, known locally as simply The Mayflower, is a historic hotel in downtown Washington, DC located on Connecticut Avenue NW, two blocks north of Farragut Square . It is the largest luxury hotel in the U.S. capital and the longest continuously operating hotel in the...
on the eve of the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It held its second meeting in 1933 and formed the permanent United States Conference of Mayors with Murphy as its President.
In 1972, USMC President Mayor of Milwaukee Henry Maier led the crusade for municipal resources at a time when federal grants to state and local governments was escalating rapidly. Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
started allowing cities to participate in federal revenue sharing. This source of municipal funding relieved cities until the mid 1980s. Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
capped revenue payments and Reagan discontinued everything except for CDBGs. The CDBG program has consistently allocated over $4 billion/year to state and local jurisdictions. Currently, CDBG's are being used by 1180 local governments and states. Using provisions in the 1995 Crime Bill, Clinton paid for municipal enforcement authorities on behalf of cities.
The current leadership of the conference is President Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa , born Antonio Ramón Villar, Jr., is the 41st and current Mayor of Los Angeles, California, the third Mexican American to have ever held office in the city of Los Angeles and the first in over 130 years. He is also the current president of the United States Conference of...
(Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
), Vice President Michael Nutter (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
), and Second Vice president Scott Smith (mayor)
Scott Smith (mayor)
Scott Smith is a businessman and politician, elected as the 38th mayor of Mesa, Arizona, in a May 20, 2008, runoff election after the March 11 primary. He began his tenure as mayor on June 2, 2008. His previous employment includes serving as president of both Great Western Homes and K. Hovnanian...
(Mesa, Arizona
Mesa, Arizona
According to the 2010 Census, the racial composition of Mesa was as follows:* White: 77.1% * Hispanic or Latino : 26.54%* Black or African American: 3.5%* Two or more races: 3.4%* Native American: 2.4%...
).
Current issues
During the Presidential transition of Barack ObamaPresidential transition of Barack Obama
The presidential transition of Barack Obama began when he won the United States presidential election on November 4, 2008, and became the President-Elect. He was formally elected by the Electoral College on December 15, 2008...
in December 2008, The Conference held a news conference along with United States House Committee on Ways and Means
United States House Committee on Ways and Means
The Committee of Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Members of the Ways and Means Committee are not allowed to serve on any other House Committees unless they apply for a waiver from their party's congressional leadership...
Chairman Charlie Rangel, United States House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar and Congressional Urban Caucus Chairman Chaka Fattah
Chaka Fattah
Chaka Fattah is the U.S. representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa , born Antonio Ramón Villar, Jr., is the 41st and current Mayor of Los Angeles, California, the third Mexican American to have ever held office in the city of Los Angeles and the first in over 130 years. He is also the current president of the United States Conference of...
announced that the meeting sought support of the Conferences survey of 11,391 "ready-to-go" infrastructure projects that they hoped to see in a Main Street recovery plan during Obama's first 100 days. According to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg is the current Mayor of New York City. With a net worth of $19.5 billion in 2011, he is also the 12th-richest person in the United States...
, the $73.1 billion projects had completed the design and approval process and met all political requirement except for the need for funding. At the same time the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
AASHTO, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, is a standards setting body which publishes specifications, test protocols and guidelines which are used in highway design and construction throughout the United States...
called for support for more 5,148 road and bridge infrastructure projects that they categorized as "ready-to-go." Many of the ideas in the Mayor proposal became part of the stimulus package.
Another issue that the Conference took issue with in 2008 include the misappropriation of federal funds for municipal anti-terrorism emergency equipment through the Homeland Security Department, which was created in 2003, instead of for municipal police forces and other enforcement officials. On this issue, they stood by the International Association of Chiefs of Police
International Association of Chiefs of Police
The International Association of Chiefs of Police was founded in Chicago in 1893 as the National Chiefs of Police Union. The primary goal of this organization was to apprehend and return criminals who had fled the agency jurisdictions in which they were wanted...
who feel common domestic anti-crime expenditure might better serve the public interest. Since the September 11 attacks federally funded municipal purchases of bomb robots, chem-bio suits and other anti-terrorism equipment have often gone unused while crime is underserved. These organizations are calling for a re-evaluation of the federal grant system. Along with various foreign governments, United States Chamber of Commerce
United States Chamber of Commerce
The United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....
and the Travel Industry Association, the conference also stood against the 2008 Homeland Security Department initiative to fingerprint
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
foreign visitors before they leave the country by airplane. These complaints came a few years after the conference complained that their cities were not receiving an equitable proportion of counterterrorism funding in the first few years after the attacks.
The conference has been active in fighting foreclosure
Foreclosure
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a mortgage lender , or other lien holder, obtains a termination of a mortgage borrower 's equitable right of redemption, either by court order or by operation of law...
s and predatory lending
Predatory lending
Predatory lending describes unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent practices of some lenders during the loan origination process. While there are no legal definitions in the United States for predatory lending, an audit report on predatory lending from the office of inspector general of the FDIC broadly...
. During the formulation and debate of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Division A of , commonly referred to as a bailout of the U.S. financial system, is a law enacted in response to the subprime mortgage crisis...
in response to the global financial crisis of 2008, a conference spokesperson was cited for being in support of the inclusion of $4 billion for the purchase, rehabilitation and resale of low- and moderate-income family distressed property. The money would produce profits that would be used to develop neighborhoods. Another important feature to municipalities was $180 million devoted to grants for pre-foreclosure and legal counseling.
Also in 2008, the conference unanimously both supported single-payer national health insurance
National health insurance
National health insurance is health insurance that insures a national population for the costs of health care and usually is instituted as a program of healthcare reform. It is enforced by law. It may be administered by the public sector, the private sector, or a combination of both...
and City-coordinated drug overdose prevention efforts. After calling for a study on bottled water
Bottled water
Bottled water is drinking water packaged in plastic or glass water bottles. Bottled water may be carbonated or not...
in 2007, in 2008, the conference came out against bottled water which consumes 1.5 million barrels of oil per year to produce its plastic bottles.
Activities
The organization convenes for its winter meeting each January in Washington, D.C. (January 17–19, 2009) and an Annual Meeting each June in a different U.S. city (June 12–16, 2009 in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
) in addition to ad hoc meetings. At the annual meeting, members vote on policy resolutions. The results are distributed to the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
and the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
.
On January 11, 2007 the Conference leadership approved the annual ten-point platform called "Strong Cities, Strong Families for a Strong America", including positions on energy policy
Energy policy
Energy policy is the manner in which a given entity has decided to address issues of energy development including energy production, distribution and consumption...
and homeland security
Homeland security
Homeland security is an umbrella term for security efforts to protect states against terrorist activity. Specifically, is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the U.S., reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do...
, and support for Community development block grant
Community Development Block Grant
The Community Development Block Grant , one of the longest-running programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, funds local community development activities such as affordable housing, anti-poverty programs, and infrastructure development...
s (CDBG), government sponsored enterprises, the State Children's Health Insurance Program
State Children's Health Insurance Program
The State Children's Health Insurance Program – later known more simply as the Children's Health Insurance Program – is a program administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services that provides matching funds to states for health insurance to families with children...
(CHIPS), and the Workforce Investment Act. In 2008, travel
Travel
Travel is the movement of people or objects between relatively distant geographical locations. 'Travel' can also include relatively short stays between successive movements.-Etymology:...
and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
were part of the plan for the first time.
In the past, the Conference has taken stances against Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
's 1983 budget. It has also through its president Fiorello La Guardia, spoken against cuts in the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
on behalf of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The conference has actively pursued legislation to curb handgun violence by changing the regulations for purchasing, adding regulatory oversight, and suing manufacturers for unreasonable marketing practices and lax safety standards.
At times, the unified voice of Mayors has had significant impact on federal policies. An example was the controversy over the decision by investigators from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, also known as HUD, is a Cabinet department in the Executive branch of the United States federal government...
, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
and the United States Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
to carry out an examination of waste, fraud and abuse in the housing programs in three cities led by black mayors (Kurt L. Schmoke, Marc H. Morial and Willie L. Brown Jr.). Eventually, the housing subcommittee of the United States House Committee on Appropriations
United States House Committee on Appropriations
The Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is in charge of setting the specific expenditures of money by the government of the United States...
Chairman, Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis (politician)
Charles Jeremy Lewis is the U.S. Representative for , and previously the 40th, 35th and 37th, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is a former chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, serving in the role during the 109th Congress.-Early life, education, and...
, in response into the collective voice of the mayors, with the support of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and Andrew M. Cuomo, the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
The United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the President's Cabinet, and thirteenth in the Presidential line of succession. The post was created with the formation of the Department of Housing...
, mandated a clarification of selection criteria for investigation subjects.
In determining their positions and policies, the Conference has had to balance difficult political choices. They once opposed the Environmental Protection Agency in a resolution which came out against enforcing stricter smog and soot limits. The conference members felt that the stricter standards for ozone
Ozone
Ozone , or trioxygen, is a triatomic molecule, consisting of three oxygen atoms. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope...
and fine particles would have hampered the economies of many municipalities, especially those that are steel-, automobile- and fossil fuel
Fossil fuel
Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms. The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years...
-intensive.
Annual awards and grants
The U.S. Conference of Mayors also houses the Mayors Climate Protection CenterMayors Climate Protection Center
The Mayors Climate Protection Center, founded in 2007 as a subgroup of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, is dedicated to providing mayors with "the guidance and assistance they need to lead their cities’ efforts to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are linked to climate change."The initiative...
, created in 2007 to provide support mayors in efforts to reduce global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
in American cities. In June 2007, the Center awarded its first annual "Mayors' Climate Protection Awards" to leading mayors. The "U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement", initiated by Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels
Greg Nickels
Gregory J. "Greg" Nickels was the 51st mayor of Seattle, Washington. He took office on January 1, 2002 and was reelected to a second term in 2005. In August 2009, Nickels finished third in the primary election for Seattle mayor, failing to qualify for the November 2009 general election, and...
in 2005, seeks the pledges of mayors from all 50 states to take action to reduce greenhouse gas
Greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone...
emissions by 7% from 1990 levels by the year 2012, in line with the Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
. As of February 2010, 1017 mayors have signed the Agreement. In 2007, the mayors called for a multi-billion dollar grant to help cities fight global warming and declared global warming as first on their list of top-ten priorities. That year the conference and the city of Seattle hosted the "2007 Mayors Climate Protection Summit in Seattle", which featured Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
. Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
has been a corporate partner in the presentation of the first two years of these awards.
The council has granted City Livability Awards since 1979 for mayors and governments as recognition for developing programs that enhance the quality of life in urban areas. Programs such as drowning
Drowning
Drowning is death from asphyxia due to suffocation caused by water entering the lungs and preventing the absorption of oxygen leading to cerebral hypoxia....
awareness and prevention programs earn such recognitions.
Since 1997, the Conference of Mayors in conjunction with the Americans for the Arts
Americans for the Arts
Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization whose primary focus is advancing the arts in the United States. With offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, it has a record of more than 50 years of service...
has annually presented Public Leadership in the Arts Awards. The awards recognize "elected officials and artists or arts organizations that have demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts." Various classes of elected officials are recognized and various types of contributions are recognized each year.
The Conference has advocated for HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
Prevention Grants Programs. Annually, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) it awards approximately hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants for HIV/AIDS prevention service to Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
s as well as to African American or Hispanic Women at High Risk of HIV Infection. This was part of a broader 24-year partnership with the CDC in which the conference has awarded $23 million in grants to community based organizations and local health departments to promote local prevention and education efforts.
Task forces
Temporary task forces are organized to study emerging issues and make recommendations to the body of the Conference. Recent task forces have addressed AIDSAIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, hunger
Malnutrition
Malnutrition is the condition that results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess , or in the wrong proportions....
and homelessness
Homelessness
Homelessness describes the condition of people without a regular dwelling. People who are homeless are unable or unwilling to acquire and maintain regular, safe, and adequate housing, or lack "fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence." The legal definition of "homeless" varies from country...
, unfunded federal mandates, youth crime and violence, high fuel costs, and brownfields. The "Poverty, Work and Opportunity Task Force," chaired by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa , born Antonio Ramón Villar, Jr., is the 41st and current Mayor of Los Angeles, California, the third Mexican American to have ever held office in the city of Los Angeles and the first in over 130 years. He is also the current president of the United States Conference of...
, was formed in January 2006.
Standing committees
The organizations members serve on the Council's standing committee which recommend policies for the general body to evaluate for endorsement at the summer meetings. The endorsed policies are delivered to the United States President and United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. The councils supports initiatives such as handgun regulation, recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, defense funding and global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
. Although the organization is domestic, its reach is international. It partakes in missions to worldwide locations. When the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
blossomed and Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
made plans for an unregulated and untaxed electronic marketplace, state and local officials objected. Their voice was represented by the Council. Mayors may also serve on one or more of the Conference's standing committees: Children, Health and Human Services; Community Development and Housing; Criminal and Social Justice; Energy; Environment; International Affairs; Jobs, Education and the Workforce; Membership; Tourism, Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports; Transportation and Communications; and Urban Economic Policy.
Past presidents
The following is a comprehensive listing of past presidents of the United States Conference of Mayors:| Name | City | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth B. Kautz | Burnsville, Minnesota Burnsville, Minnesota Burnsville is a city south of downtown Minneapolis in Dakota County in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies on the south bank of the Minnesota River, upstream from the confluence with the Mississippi River... |
2009-2011 |
| Greg Nickels Greg Nickels Gregory J. "Greg" Nickels was the 51st mayor of Seattle, Washington. He took office on January 1, 2002 and was reelected to a second term in 2005. In August 2009, Nickels finished third in the primary election for Seattle mayor, failing to qualify for the November 2009 general election, and... |
Seattle, WA | 2009 |
| Manuel A. Diaz | Miami, FL | 2008-09 |
| Douglas H. Palmer | Trenton, NJ | 2006-08 |
| Michael A. Guido | Dearborn, MI | 2006 |
| Beverly O'Neill | Long Beach, CA | 2005-06 |
| Donald L. Plusquellic | Akron, OH | 2004-05 |
| James A. Garner | Hempstead, NY Hempstead (village), New York Hempstead is a village located in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 53,891 at the 2010 census.Hofstra University is located on the border between Hempstead and Uniondale.-Foundation:... |
2003-04 |
| Thomas M. Menino | Boston, MA | 2002-03 |
| Marc H. Morial | New Orleans, LA | 2001-02 |
| H. Brent Coles H. Brent Coles H. Brent Coles served as mayor of Boise, Idaho, from 1993 to 2003.Coles was appointed mayor upon the resignation of Dirk Kempthorne, who was elected to the United States Senate... |
Boise, ID | 2000-01 |
| Wellington E. Webb | Denver, CO | 1999-00 |
| Deedee Corradini Deedee Corradini Deedee Corradini served as mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah from 1992 to 2000. Corradini was Salt Lake City's first and to date only female mayor.... |
Salt Lake City, UT | 1998-99 |
| Paul Helmke Paul Helmke Walter Paul Helmke, Jr. is an American politician, and the former president of the Washington, DC-based Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. He held this position from July 2006 to July 10, 2011... |
Fort Wayne, IN | 1997-98 |
| Richard M. Daley Richard M. Daley Richard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party, and former Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He was the longest serving Chicago mayor, surpassing the tenure of his... |
Chicago, IL | 1996-97 |
| Norman B. Rice | Seattle, WA | 1995-96 |
| Victor Ashe Victor Ashe Victor Henderson Ashe II is the former United States Ambassador to Poland. From 1987 to 2003, he was mayor of Knoxville, Tennessee. Ashe is a Republican. Ambassador Ashe concluded his service as Ambassador to Poland on February 6, 2009.... |
Knoxville, TN | 1994-95 |
| Jerry Abramson | Louisville, KY | 1993-94 |
| William J. Althaus | York, PA | 1992-93 |
| Raymond L. Flynn | Boston, MA | 1991-92 |
| Robert M. Isaac Robert M. Isaac Robert Michael "Bob" Isaac was the Republican Mayor of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Elected in April 1979, he was the first popularly elected mayor in the history of Colorado Springs, serving five four-year terms through 1997... |
Colorado Springs, CO | 1990-91 |
| Kathryn J. Whitmire Kathryn J. Whitmire Kathryn Jean "Kathy" Whitmire was Mayor of the city of Houston, Texas, from 1982 to 1991.Whitmire was a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, where she taught political science classes in the Burns Leadership Academy. Whitmire was the daughter of Ida Reeves and Karl Niederhofer, a... |
Houston, TX | 1989-90 |
| Arthur J. Holland | Trenton, NJ | 1988-89 |
| Richard L. Berkley Richard L. Berkley Richard L. Berkley served as mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, U.S., from 1979 to 1991.Although Kansas City mayors do not officially have political affiliations, Mayor Berkley was the first Republican mayor of the city since the 1920s... |
Kansas City, MO | 1987-88 |
| Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Joseph P. Riley, Jr. is an American politician who is the long-time Mayor of Charleston, South Carolina. He is the longest serving mayor in the United States that is still living and in office.-Biography:... |
Charleston, SC | 1986-87 |
| Ernest N. Morial | New Orleans, LA | 1985-86 |
| Hernan Padilla Hernán Padilla Hernán Padilla in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, is a retired physician and former two-term Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, the oldest city in the United States.... |
San Juan, PR | 1984-85 |
| Richard H. Fulton | Nashville, TN | 1983-84 |
| Coleman A. Young | Detroit, MI | 1982-83 |
| Helen G. Boosalis | Lincoln, NE | 1981-82 |
| Richard G. Hatcher Richard G. Hatcher Richard Gordon Hatcher became on January 1, 1968, the first African-American mayor of Gary, Indiana. He had won election the previous November as one of the first black mayors elected in a northern industrial city and the first in the state of Indiana.Hatcher earned his B.S. from Indiana... |
Gary, IN | 1980-81 |
| Richard E. Carver Richard E. Carver Richard E. "Dick" Carver was Mayor of Peoria, Illinois from 1973 to 1984 and United States Assistant Secretary of the Air Force from 1984 to 1988.-Biography:... |
Peoria, IL | 1979-80 |
| William H. McNichols, Jr. | Denver, CO | 1978-79 |
| Lee Alexander | Syracuse, NY | 1977-78 |
| Kenneth A. Gibson Kenneth A. Gibson Kenneth Allen Gibson is an American Democratic Party politician, who was elected in 1970 as the 34th Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, the largest city in the state. He was the first African American elected mayor of any major Northeastern U.S. city... |
Newark, NJ | 1976-77 |
| Moon Landrieu Moon Landrieu Maurice Edwin "Moon" Landrieu is a Democratic politician from Louisiana who served as Mayor of New Orleans from 1970–1978. He also is a former judge... |
New Orleans, LA | 1975-76 |
| Joseph L. Alioto | San Francisco, CA | 1974-75 |
| Roy B. Martin, Jr. | Norfolk, VA | 1973-74 |
| Louie Welch Louie Welch Louie Welch Louie Welch Louie Welch (December 9, 1918Louie Welch (December 9, 1918Louie Welch (December 9, 1918"," Houston Public Library – January 27, 2008,) was an American politician who served as the mayor of Houston, Texas, from 1964 to 1973. -Early life:... |
Houston, TX | 1972-73 |
| Henry W. Maier Henry W. Maier Henry Walter Maier was an American politician and mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1960 to 1988.Maier was born in 1918 in Dayton, Ohio... |
Milwaukee, WI | 1971-72 |
| James H. J. Tate | Philadelphia, PA | 1970-71 |
| Jack D. Maltester Jack D. Maltester -Biography:Jack D. Maltester was born in 1913 in San Leandro, California and was of Irish and Northern Italian descent.Maltester was appointed to the San Leandro City Council in 1948, to replace Helen Lawrence when she was selected mayor of that city by the City Council. Lawrence became Maltester's... |
San Leandro, CA | 1969-70 |
| Terry D. Schrunk | Portland, OR | 1968-69 |
| Joseph M. Barr Joseph M. Barr Joseph M. Barr served as Mayor of Pittsburgh from 1959 to 1970.-Early life:Barr was born in Pittsburgh to a large family. He started his career as a salesman in the city. In 1940 he became the state's youngest state senator serving the region in Harrisburg. His career in Harrisburg roughly... |
Pittsburgh, PA | 1967-68 |
| Jerome P. Cavanagh | Detroit, MI | 1966-67 |
| Neal S. Blaisdell | Honolulu, HI | 1965-66 |
| Raymond R. Tucker | St. Louis, MO | 1963-65 |
| Arthur L. Selland Arthur L. Selland Arthur L. Selland was an American politician, and mayor of Fresno, California from 1958 to 1963. Selland was born in North Dakota and died in an auto accident in Fresno. Upon his death, he was currently serving as mayor of Fresno, and as president of the U.S... |
Fresno, CA | 1963 |
| Richard C. Lee Richard C. Lee Richard Charles Lee was a Democrat and a longtime Mayor of New Haven and the youngest when he held the position in 1954 at age 37. Lee is best known for his leading role in urban redevelopment in the 1950s and '60s.-Biography:Richard Charles Lee was born on March 12, 1916... |
New Haven, CT | 1962-63 |
| Anthony J. Celebrezze Anthony J. Celebrezze Anthony Joseph Celebrezze Sr. was an Italian American politician of the Democratic Party, who served as the 49th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a cabinet member in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, and as a U.S. appeals court judge.... |
Cleveland, OH | 1962 |
| Haydon Burns | Jacksonville, FL | 1961-62 |
| Richardson Dilworth Richardson Dilworth Richardson K. Dilworth was an American Democratic Party politician, born in the Pittsburgh area, who served as the 91st Mayor of Philadelphia from 1956 to 1962.-Education and early career:... |
Philadelphia, PA | 1960-61 |
| Richard J. Daley Richard J. Daley Richard Joseph Daley served for 21 years as the mayor and undisputed Democratic boss of Chicago and is considered by historians to be the "last of the big city bosses." He played a major role in the history of the Democratic Party, especially with his support of John F... |
Chicago, IL | 1959-60 |
| Norris Poulson Norris Poulson C. Norris Poulson served as the 36th Mayor of Los Angeles, California from 1953 to 1961, after having been a California State Assemblyman and then a member of the United States Congress for eight years... |
Los Angeles, CA | 1958-59 |
| Robert F. Wagner Robert F. Wagner Robert Ferdinand Wagner I was an American politician. He was a Democratic U.S. Senator from New York from 1927 to 1949.-Origin and early life:... |
New York, NY | 1957-58 |
| John B. Hynes | Boston, MA | 1955-57 |
| Elmer E. Robinson | San Francisco, CA | 1953-55 |
| Thomas A. Burke Thomas A. Burke Thomas Aloysius Burke was a Democratic Party politician from Ohio. He served as the 48th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio and in the United States Senate from November 10, 1953 until December 2, 1954. Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport is named after him.Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Burke served in the U.S... |
Cleveland, OH | 1953 |
| Martin H. Kennelly Martin H. Kennelly Martin H. Kennelly served as mayor of Chicago, Illinois for the Democratic Party.-Early Life:... |
Chicago, IL | 1952-53 |
| David L. Lawrence David L. Lawrence David Leo Lawrence was an American politician who served as the 37th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1959 to 1963. He is to date the only mayor of Pittsburgh to be elected Governor of Pennsylvania. Previously, he had been the mayor of Pittsburgh from 1946 through 1959... |
Pittsburgh, PA | 1950-52 |
| W. Cooper Green | Birmingham, AL | 1949-50 |
| George W. Welsh | Grand Rapids, MI | 1947-49 |
| Edward J. Kelly | Chicago, IL | 1945-47 |
| Fiorello H. La Guardia | New York, NY | 1935-45 |
| Daniel W. Hoan | Milwaukee, WI | 1934-35 |
| T. Semmes Walmsley T. Semmes Walmsley Thomas Semmes Walmsley was Mayor of New Orleans from July 1929 to June 1936. He is best known for his intense rivalry with Louisiana Governor Huey P. Long.- Early life and career :... |
New Orleans, LA | 1933-34 |
| James M. Curley | Boston, MA | 1933 |
| Frank Murphy Frank Murphy William Francis Murphy was a politician and jurist from Michigan. He served as First Assistant U.S. District Attorney, Eastern Michigan District , Recorder's Court Judge, Detroit . Mayor of Detroit , the last Governor-General of the Philippines , U.S... |
Detroit, MI | 1933 |
Controversies
The organization has had some controversies. In Newark, New JerseyNewark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, one of its non-partisan presidential straw polls was determined to be contrary to a New Jersey Supreme Court
New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
ruling because the court had determined that it was improper for any municipality to test public opinion outside of its jurisdiction.
Also, at the 2004 Democratic National Convention
2004 Democratic National Convention
The 2004 Democratic National Convention convened from July 26 to July 29, 2004 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts, and nominated John Kerry and John Edwards as the official candidates of the Democratic Party for President and Vice President of the United States, respectively, in the 2004...
, striking Boston Police Department
Boston Police Department
The Boston Police Department , created in 1838, holds the primary responsibility for law enforcement and investigation within the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is one of the oldest police departments in the United States...
officers decided to picket a Conference of Mayors meeting. 2004 Democratic Presidential nominee John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
, who was the invited speaker, decided to honor the picket line.
See also
- National League of CitiesNational League of CitiesThe National League of Cities is an American advocacy organization representing 19,000 cities, towns, and villages, and encompassing 49 state municipal leagues....
- Mayors Against Illegal Guns CoalitionMayors Against Illegal Guns CoalitionMayors Against Illegal Guns is a coalition of over 600 mayors who support a number of gun control initiatives that the group calls "commonsense reforms" to fight illegal gun trafficking and gun violence in the United States...
- National Governors AssociationNational Governors AssociationThe National Governors Association , founded in 1908 as the National Governors' Conference, is funded primarily by state dues, federal grants and contracts and private contributions. NGA represents the governors of the fifty U.S. states and five U.S. territories The National Governors Association...
- National Conference of Black Mayors