CitiesSpeak With Clarence Anthony

Send us Fan Mail This episode dives deep into a prominent local-federal issue that has touched every aspect of daily life: digital access. Reliable internet and accessible online platforms are no longer simply optional for thriving communities; they are essential. At the federal level, policies like the American Broadband Deployment Act aim to accelerate infrastructure expansion, while new web acc...

Send us Fan Mail Nicole Handy, Executive Director of America 250 Utah, joins CitiesSpeak to talk about America’s Potluck and how local leaders can bring the celebration to their community. On July 5, 2026, neighbors will sit down for America’s Potluck to share a fun, communal meal, creating a sense of connection and belonging and fostering interactions among people from all walks of life. For more...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Jill Sonke, a research professor and research director at the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine, is a leader in arts and health research and policy advocacy nationally and internationally. Her research focuses on population-level health outcomes associated with arts and cultural participation, arts in public health, and the arts in health communication. For m...

Send us Fan Mail The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposed substantial changes to the Uniform Guidance, which governs federal grants and other forms of federal financial assistance. Bianca Motley Broom, Mayor of College Park, Georgia, and President of the Georgia Municipal Association , discusses the proposed changes and how they might impact municipalities, both small and large, if...

Send us Fan Mail Father’s Day is this weekend and we’re focusing on leadership and fatherhood, and how they shape outcomes for early childhood and serve the children and families in our cities, towns, and villages across America. Mayor Brandon Scott and Council President Zeke Cohen from Baltimore City join Clarence Anthony to discuss both. For more information, visit us at nlc.org .

Send us Fan Mail Julia Novak, CEO & Executive Director of ICMA, the International City/County Management Association, brings together city and county managers, the people who get the work done alongside mayors and councilmembers. Which is why NLC’s partnership is so important, as we all put residents' needs first. She oversees all aspects of ICMA, including membership, staff, and implemen...

Send us Fan Mail June is Small Cities Month at NLC! With 40% of the National population coming from cities with a population of 50,000 or less, small cities play a significant role in strengthening local government and shaping NLC’s initiatives, opportunities and federal advocacy. Ashley Harpstreith is the Executive Director for the Wyoming Association of Municipalities, which serves all of Wyomin...

Send us Fan Mail National Arts & Health Day – NLC’s annual celebration of the impact the arts have on public health around our country. It’s coming up later this summer on July 25th, and here to share how the arts have impacted his community is Mayor Michael M. Vargas of Perris, California. For more information, visit us at nlc.org .

Send us Fan Mail What does it take to turn a good idea into real policy that improves people’s lives? As anyone in local government knows, the path from identifying a problem to passing meaningful legislation can be complicated. For more information, visit us at nlc.org .

Send us Fan Mail Today, we are sharing a panel discussion about America 250 from our 2026 Congressional City Conference in Washington, D.C. On the conference stage, NLC President Kevin Kramer moderated a discussion with local leaders from Harrisonburg, Virginia; Baltimore, Colorado Springs, and Philadelphia on how city, town and village leaders are designing and driving the celebrations this summe...

Send us Fan Mail NLC public safety legislative director Yucel Ors breaks down what the recently ended Department of Homeland Security (DHS) federal shutdown means for local government. The DHS shutdown began on February 15th after Congress failed to pass a funding bill. Finally, last week, on Thursday, April 30, the longest shutdown of a federal department in U.S. history came to an end when the P...

Send us Fan Mail NLC Immediate Past President, Mayor Steve Patterson from Athens, Ohio, joins CitiesSpeak to discuss his city’s community choice aggregation green power program. The electric program helps residents use clean energy and save money on their monthly electric bills. For more information, visit us at nlc.org .

Send us Fan Mail At Congressional City Conference 2026 in Washington, D.C., Clarence Anthony, CEO and Executive Director of the National League of Cities, made the case for all the ways local governments deliver every day. During his address to conference attendees, he shared the essential work of local leaders bringing their communities together to transform residents' hopes and dreams into...

Send us Fan Mail Ayesha Rascoe, host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday, sat down for a fireside chat at the NBC-LEO membership meeting with Vincent Evans, Executive Director of the Congressional Black Caucus, engaged in conversation at the 2026 Congressional City Conference in Washington, D.C. Together, they discussed Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, leadership and advancing equitable practices and...

Send us Fan Mail The American Rescue Plan’s State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds became law five years ago. It's a program that provided funding directly to communities of all sizes across the country. At the time, pandemic-driven revenue shortfalls were threatening widespread municipal layoffs, service cuts, and there were serious concerns that we were headed into another 2008-style recessi...

Send us Fan Mail Recently, the NLC Board of Directors unanimously adopted a civility resolution encouraging local governments to promote dignity, respect and constructive dialogue in public meetings and community engagement. As a continuation of the work to overcome our collective civility crisis, we are sharing a conversation from the 2026 Congressional City Conference, which brings together NLC...

Send us Fan Mail Every year, April 1st is recognized as National Census Day, a great opportunity to review your census plans. The next census is fast approaching and will be used to redraw electoral districts and to allocate federal funding for affordable housing, emergency services, schools, and infrastructure. In honor of Census Day, we are bringing you this bonus episode of our census conversat...

Send us Fan Mail National League of Cities President Kevin Kramer addressed attendees at the 2026 Congressional City Conference in Washington, D.C., with his message, ‘We The Cities’ deliver real results for communities every day. As the most trusted level of government in America, President Kramer outlined why local leaders are best positioned to lead us through our civility crisis as we celebrat...

Send us Fan Mail Clarence Anthony, NLC CEO & Executive Director, sat down for a conversation with Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker at Congressional City Conference. Together, they discuss affordability, housing, transportation, and more.  For more information, visit us at nlc.org .

Send us Fan Mail Dignity Index co-creators Tim Shriver and Tami Pyfer, talk about their hopeful and practical path to improving public discourse and strengthening our relationships and our country. Tim and Tami discuss the importance of dignity, the role of local leaders in fighting against what they call the “contempt industrial complex,” and where they see change happening every day – at school...

Send us Fan Mail NLC CEO and Executive Director Clarence Anthony and Boston Fox 25 reporter Crystal Haynes as part of a fireside chat recorded in Boston, with our friends and partners, the Massachusetts Municipal Association, at their annual Connect 351 conference. Clarence covers a range of topics facing local leaders, including fiscal challenges, incivility in public life, the growing influence...

Send us Fan Mail Nicole Handy, Executive Director of America 250 Utah, joins CitiesSpeak to talk about America’s Potluck and how local leaders can bring the celebration to their community. On July 5, 2026, neighbors will sit down for America’s Potluck to share a fun, communal meal, creating a sense of connection and belonging and fostering interactions among people from all walks of life. For more...

Send us Fan Mail John McArdle, was the mayor of Independence, Oregon, a city of 10,000 in Western Oregon, for 26 years before retiring in 2024. During his time as mayor, he was known as a leader who tackled tough issues and set ambitious goals. He was also a convener who brought together local leaders from across Oregon as president of both the Oregon Mayors Association and the Oregon League of Ci...

Send us Fan Mail Melissa Scott , the Chief Information Officer for the City of Philadelphia, joins CitiesSpeak to discuss implementation in local government. As the CIO for Philadelphia, she plays a critical role in the city’s information technology strategy, infrastructure and operations. She is also responsible for ensuring that all technology initiatives align with Mayor Cherelle Parker’s goals...

Send us Fan Mail At City Summit 2025 in Salt Lake City, Clarence Anthony, CEO and Executive Director of the National League of Cities, sat down with Republican Governor Spencer Cox of Utah and Democratic Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico. The three former local leaders engaged in a conversation about polarization and strategies they personally used to bring their communities together a...