By Conference Staff
March 17, 2003

Under the leadership of New Haven (CT) Mayor John DeStefano, Jr., the National League of Cities (NLC) used its March 7'11 Congressional Cities Conference to push for priorities such as homeland security funding and fiscal relief.

Over the course of the meeting, NLC heard from numerous officials including Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, Education Secretary Roderick Paige, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman, Sen. Mary Landrieu (LA), Sen. Lincoln Chafee (RI) and others. The major focus of the meeting was on lobbying Congress, with the final day being devoted to a City Lobby Day.

Two veteran members of Congress also received Distinguished Congressional Service awards during the meeting: Sen. Ted Stevens (AK) and Rep. Mel Watt (NC).

During a rally on Capitol Hill, Mayor DeStefano said, "The troops on the frontlines both abroad and in our homeland should have the training, equipment, and resources they need."

Leadership during the meeting was also provided by NLC First Vice President Selectman Charles Lyons of Arlington (MA), and NLC's Second Vice President District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams.

While the NLC Lobby Day agenda included many priorities, specific focus was placed on the need for homeland security funding in a supplemental appropriations bill, and support for bipartisan legislation sponsored by Senators Charles Schumer (NY) and Olympia Snowe (ME) to provide $20 billion to local governments and $20 billion to states in one'time fiscal relief. This bill has also been endorsed by The U.S. Conference of Mayors, National Association of Counties, National Conference of State Legislatures, Council of State Governments, and the International City/County Management Association.

The list of NLC City Lobby Day Priorities included:

1. Create a sensible economic stimulus package that makes a difference to working Americans now and provides fiscal relief to cities and states;

2. Make America safe by providing new, substantial, and continued funding for ongoing local homeland security and for successful public safety programs such as the Community Oriented Policing Services Program (COPS) and the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant;

3. Ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing by fully funding the Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG), HOME, HOPE VI, public housing, and Section 8 assistance;

4. Strengthen vital transportation systems by increasing federal support for the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to preserve the federal partnership with cities, meet local infrastructure needs, reduce congestion, and promote smart, sustainable development;

5. Protect America's natural resources by increasing the federal investment in clean water, clean air, and renewed water infrastructure;

6. Invest in children by fully funding implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act; and

7. Work as a partner with America's cities and towns to help us create a future of promise for all Americans.

Ridge Address Funding, Borders

During his remarks to NLC, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge spoke about the $1.3 billion in federal grants on the way to cities and states (see related story in USMAYOR), and the progress which has been made in improving port and border security.

Secretary Ridge said that the number one priority must be to prevent an attack, and highlighted that 1,700 new inspectors are being added to air and sea ports, 600 new customs inspectors are being added to the borders, and that the new entry'exit visa system will continue the tradition of America being a welcoming nation while ensuring that visitors do not overstay their allotted time in the country.

Ridge also said that the Department is working with the world's 20 "mega'ports" to make sure that more cargo is inspected using good intelligence information.

Whitman Outlines President's Clear Skies Initiative

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Todd Whitman spoke before the National League of Cities Conference on March 10 and outlined one of the top environmental priorities for President Bush, the Clear Skies Act of 2002.

Whitman outlined the broad aspects of the Act, which was introduced by both the House (H.R. 999) and Senate (S. 485) on February 27. The legislation targets older, coal'burning power plants and would require 70 percent mandatory reductions of three of the most dangerous pollutants emitted — nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and mercury.

Whitman told the audience that the initiative was modeled after the effective acid rain program, which allows for more flexibility on the industry as a whole as opposed to targeting individual facilities.

Under the Act, utilities would be required to reduce emissions of SO2 from the current 11 million tons to a cap of 4.5 million tons in 2010 and 3 million tons in 2018. NOx would be cut from its current 5 million tons to a cap of 2.1 million tons in 2008, and 1.7 million tons in 2018. And mercury would be cut from its current levels of 48 tons to a cap of 26 tons in 2010 and 15 tons in 2018.

Whitman said, "Clear Skies is what I mean when I talk about improving existing programs to achieve the next generation of environmental progress. It builds on the success of the past while recognizing that the challenges we face are different than those we faced 30 years ago. Making something better is not a rollback, it's a step forward. It's time to take that step forward for cleaner air."