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 action. For more information, visit us at nlc.org.
Ayesha Rascoe and Vincent Evans Engage in Conversation
04/16/2026 | 29 mins.
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 corporate accountability. For more information, visit us at nlc.org.
Lessons Learned From Five Years of ARPA
04/09/2026 | 39 mins.
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 recession. Guest host, Irma Esparza Diggs, discusses the historic impacts of ARPA with Mike Fina, Oklahoma Municipal League Director; Dan Gilmartin, Michigan Municipal League Director; and Todd Glover, Municipal Association of South Carolina Director. For more information, visit us at nlc.org.
Bridging Community Divides & Strengthening Civic Trust
04/02/2026 | 41 mins.
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 partner The Dignity Index, the sponsors of the Building Civic Bridges Act, and local leaders from across the nation for a solutions-driven conversation about what communities need to bridge divides. For more information, visit us at nlc.org.
National Census Day
04/01/2026 | 16 mins.
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 conversation from this year’s Congressional City Conference. For more information, visit us at nlc.org.
CitiesSpeak with Clarence Anthony, a podcast from the National League of Cities, gives listeners an insider’s view of what local leadership in America means today. Featuring conversations between NLC CEO and Executive Director Clarence Anthony and city leaders, policy experts and other guests, the show gets into the biggest issues, challenges and topics facing America’s cities, towns and villages today. Whether it’s talking about what it’s like to have residents protesting on their front lawn or discussing the creative things local governments are doing with their infrastructure dollars, CitiesSpeak gives listeners insight into what’s on the minds of mayors and council members across the country.
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