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Loveridge Pledges to Make Cities’ Voices Heard
by Ronald O. Loveridge
 The following is an excerpt from Riverside, Calif., Mayor Ronald O. Loveridge’s Presidential
acceptance speech at the Congress of Cities and Exposition in San Antonio on November 14.
It is a great honor, and great opportunity, to stand before you as the President of the National League of Cities.
This year we are looking at how we govern ourselves. The Board of Directors approved many recommendations presented by a Governance Study Task Force. I thank Kathie Novak for setting up the Task Force. Its recommendations will make the NLC a stronger force in advocacy and in providing services to our members.
The success of cities we represent requires that we go beyond City Hall, beyond our city limits. We must look outside for opportunities and resources. As President, this will be a central message I will offer in 2010.
It is in the cities of America where economic development takes place and quality of life is experienced. Cities are the wealth of nations. As cities go, so goes the country. There cannot be a healthy national economy without healthy local economies. Without strong cities and towns, we cannot have a strong America.
There are opportunities and resources in Washington. The biggest issues of our time are on the national agenda: the economy, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, health care, climate change and energy independence, transportation and infrastructure, housing, and immigration reform.
As cities, we must be a participant in these national issues, for they have direct consequences for our future. We are at the table! This is our time for advocacy, our voices should, must be heard.
My pledge — in 2010, the National League of Cities will be an increasingly clear, respected, and visible voice for the cities and towns. As an organization, we have breadth, depth, and varied constituencies across America. We have 49 state leagues that advocate for some 19,000 cities and towns; they represent extraordinary networks of influence and resources. We have an outstanding Board of Directors, over 40 strong. We have important policy and advocacy committees and key constituency groups. And we are the membership organization for all American cities and towns!
Political observers often point out that all politics is local. It is in our cities and towns that political choices and public policy take form. Federal representatives are elected from specific places. That is the strength of the grass roots. We matter to members of Congress. We should meet and present our national messages in the hometowns of America, as well as in Washington.
To move our best interests from the outer rings to the center ring of national legislation and policy, we must also be an effective partner with the Big Seven state and local government associations. In particular, we should work closely with U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National Association of Counties. And the elected leadership of cities and counties should talk — I will initiate monthly phone calls to look for and share a common agenda.
These are the worst economic times since the Great Depression, and especially so for unemployment. When asked about the problems facing America, every poll is led by jobs and the economy.
You know the drill: home foreclosures, job losses, business closings, and uncertainty about the timing and scale of the recovery.
As cities, we must demonstrate leadership in getting our residents back to work and look for ways for our city and region to compete in the global market place.
It is the economy stupid … and jobs!
During my time as President of the National League of Cities, I will speak out on the challenges and requirements of success outside of City Hall. We are not walled places. We must connect with outside opportunities and resources. Many of our problems require us to cross boundaries, to connect with schools, non-profits, private businesses, counties, regions, states, as well as the federal government. The list is long and complex, but connections are essential.
In 2009, the job of a mayor or council member is not simply showing up and voting once a week. Beyond being an ombudsman, it is far more complex and demanding, including a formal role in many intergovernmental groups, and making frequent contacts with county, state, and federal representatives.
Cities and towns cannot solve by themselves major economic, social, and political problems. We compete, and succeed, in a regional, national, and global market place. Success depends on successful connections, partnering outside of City Hall. Put together your own check list of connections and partnerships. The state leagues and the NLC can be helpful in making connections, in understanding this complex world of local governance.
In closing, now is the time for city officials, all of us, to lead recovery and growth in our communities. It is NLC’s time to ask Washington to stay focused on partnering with us to help our economy and our local budgets get back on track and to create good jobs.
And in our cities and towns, it is time to cross boundaries, to lead in working with our many stake holders to make good things happen. It is time to collaborate and partner.
Let’s work together as members of the National League of Cities to make all this happen. Our residents depend on us stepping up, and getting it right.
To view the speech, visit www.nlctv.org.
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