Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President and Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on the passing of President George H.W. Bush: “While we mourn the passing of President George H.W. Bush, we celebrate and honor his extraordinary service to our country. His longstanding commitment to the nation—including his military service in [...]
Washington, DC—Under the leadership of U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) President, Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin, the U.S. Conference of Mayors will attend the inauguration of Mexican President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Saturday, December 1, 2018. The bipartisan delegation includes mayors from across the United States, who were invited by President-elect Obrador, the former [...]
Washington, DC—Today, United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin sent a letter to Senator Lindsey Graham to register the strong bipartisan support of the nation’s mayors for the First Step Act of 2018 (S.3649). A text of the letter can be found below. "This proposed legislation, of which Senator Graham is [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on last night’s shooting in Thousand Oaks, CA: “Once again, we’ve seen that senseless mass shootings can occur anywhere and anytime. As a result of last night’s shooting in a bar in Thousand Oaks, CA, 12 people are dead, [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on last night’s mid-term elections: “Last night, we witnessed democracy at work as Americans from coast to coast went to the polls to cast their ballots. The incredible voter turnout, particularly with young people, is inspiring and serves as [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran on the Conference of Mayors joining with cities and other local government interests across the nation in requesting the FCC to stay the effective date of its recent order substantially preempting local authority over the installation of small cell [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin in support of #ShowUpForShabbat: "The U.S. Conference of Mayors stands with the American Jewish Committee (AJC) in encouraging members of Jewish communities, mayors and elected officials, civic leaders, and others to attend Sabbath services at local synagogues this Friday [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh: “The horrific, anti-Semitic attack on worshippers at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday breaks our hearts. The Anti- Defamation League believes this to be the [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a joint statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin and USCM CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran on the bombs sent to prominent persons this week: “Violence has no place in our political discourse. America’s mayors condemn the mailing of pipe bombs to former Presidents and other [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran on two Petitions for Review filed by the City of San Jose, California and twenty other western U.S. cities and Los Angeles County in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals challenging the constitutionality and legality of a recent FCC [...]
Bristol, England—Today, U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin was elected to the Executive Committee of the Global Parliament of Mayors (GPM). Unlike any other urban network, the GPM is the first, and only, international organization exclusively for mayors. Founded in 2016, the GPM serves as an unprecedented platform for municipal [...]
Report Shows Cities Could Save Billions of Dollars Over Next Decade on Replacing Aging Pipes Washington, DC—As the nation’s aging infrastructure continues to threaten water systems as well as the country’s health and economic vitality, a new report released today by the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) shows how cities could potentially save billions of [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on today’s passage of America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018: “The nation’s Mayors applaud Congress’s bipartisan efforts to pass America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, a bill that addresses the pressing needs of the country’s water infrastructure. “The bill [...]
Updated October 15, 2018 WASHINGTON, DC — Today, the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) sent a letter signed by 93 bipartisan mayors from 29 states and the District of Columbia to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen calling on her to drop the proposed expansion of the “public charge” rule. In the letter, the mayors state, [...]
WASHINGTON, DC — United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin has sent a letter to HHS Secretary Alex Azar asking for clarity regarding the treatment of the approximately 13,000 migrant children being held in detention centers across the country. Recent reporting has raised several issues of concern about the children’s welfare, [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran on today’s FCC final Order on removing barriers to small cell deployment: “The U.S. Conference of Mayors conveys its strongest opposition to today’s final Order issued by the Federal Communications Commission. While The U.S. Conference of Mayors supports the nation’s [...]
With Midterm Elections Just 6 Weeks Away, Cities Work to Ensure All Voices are Heard Washington, DC— Today, to mark National Voter Registration Day, mayors across the country are lending their support to promote voter registration opportunities for residents in their cities in advance of the November elections. Mayors have committed to hosting events, making voter registration forms readily [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on the Trump Administration’s proposed changes to the Public Charge rule and its impact on the country’s immigrant communities: “The U.S. Conference of Mayors in June unanimously adopted policy opposing the Trump administration’s proposal to penalize lower income immigrant [...]
Washington, DC—Below is a statement by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Columbia (SC) Mayor Steve Benjamin on the passage of the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018: “We applaud the United States Senate for their 99-1 strong bipartisan vote approving the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 (OCRA) last night. “As President of the United [...]
Cities Step in to Lead and Aggressively Fill Void Left by Federal Government Survey: Mayors Leading the Way on Climate - 2018 SAN FRANCISCO—A survey released today by the United States Conference of Mayors and the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) in San Francisco points to mayors as a key force behind [...]