Dan Gilmartin and Melanie Piana in D.C. This Week Fighting for Infrastructure Investment

The Michigan Municipal League’s President and Executive Director will both be in Washington D.C. this week fighting on behalf of Michigan’s community as President Trump prepares to make the annual State of the Union Address. League Board President Melanie Piana, Ferndale city councilmember, and Dan Gilmartin, League CEO and executive director, will join state League presidents and directors from throughout the nation in D.C. this week. Specifically, Piana and Gilmartin will be participating in two high-profile events before and after the State of the Union Address, scheduled for Tuesday evening.

They will be talking about the need to invest in infrastructure nationwide. Infrastructure investment is a key component to the SaveMICity initiative and our ongoing desire to fix Michigan’s broken system for funding our municipalities.

Ahead of President Trump’s State of the Union address, municipal league officials representing America’s cities, towns and villages from throughout the nation are calling on the president to use this opportunity to set an ambitious agenda that prioritizes rebuilding and reimagining America’s infrastructure. The National League of Cities (NLC) and local leaders from cities of all sizes stand ready to work with federal partners to pass comprehensive, bipartisan infrastructure legislation that will serve local communities for the next 100 years.

Local leaders are speaking out on the need for an infrastructure bill this year. Last week, leaders of NLC’s federal advocacy committees, representing communities ranging in population from 15,520 to 2.3 million, shared their views for what they want to hear from President Trump on infrastructure.

NLC’s Rebuild With Us campaign has prioritized 50 ways Congress and the administration can work with cities to fix the infrastructure crisis in five key areas:

1. Modernizing transportation infrastructure
2. Investing in community workforce
3. Updating broadband infrastructure
4. Improving water infrastructure
5. Supporting community resilience

Two specific events happening this week in relation to this work involve Piana and Gilmartin.

First, Tuesday morning, prior to the President’s speech, Piana is part of the in the Public Private Partnership Panel at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Infrastructure Summit. Here are details about this summit and here is a link to the agenda:

America’s infrastructure is more than just a network of roads, bridges, tunnels, railroads, airports, and waterways connecting our towns, cities and states. It serves as a backbone of economic growth and preserves our quality of life, safety, communities and prosperity. America has long been a global leader in innovation, transportation and smart fiscal policies, yet the infrastructure that keeps our country open for business is out of date.

Join the U.S. Chamber on February 5, 2019, as we convene business leaders, policy makers, investors, innovators, developers, workforce leaders and other experts to discuss the modernization of America’s infrastructure.

The time to gain federal action to invest in America’s infrastructure is NOW! This Summit will discuss various investment options and show the broad business community support for making enactment of a federal infrastructure modernization plan a reality in 2019.

Piana will be speaking on a panel along with Jennifer Aument, president, North America Transurban; Ed Mortimer, vice president, Transportation and Infrastructure U.S. Chamber of Commerce; and Alan Polsky, senior vice president, Daugherty & Company LLC and member, Bond Dealers of American.

Then on Thursday, Gilmartin will be involved in an NLC event titled, “City Hall 101: The Role of Cities in Moving America Forward”. The session is at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. Gilmartin will be introducing the keynote speaker for the event – U.S. Congressman Dan Kildee, D-Flint. Kildee will talk about the importance of federal-local partnership, the importance of local input into federal decision-making/policy process, how cities are economic drivers for the states and nation, and why the federal government must invest in cities.

Here are additional details about the Thursday event, which is open to the public:

The economy in America’s cities, towns, and villages determines the economy of the nation, with 83 percent of the U.S. GDP generated in cities. A century ago, just 14 percent of Americans lived in cities; today, 80 percent do.

 Local elected officials are responsible for the physical and civic infrastructure America depends on, such as roads, bridges, and water systems. Cities also deliver critical services to residents, such as public safety, workforce development and housing.

 Despite the difficult economic challenges cities have faced since the recession, local leaders have risen to the challenge. Many of our nation’s cities have made great strides forward through innovative partnerships, policies, programs, and financing models. Cities large and small are cultivating desirable places for families to live, work and play and for businesses to succeed.

 During this briefing, local leaders from across the nation will discuss how their communities are solving some of the most pressing challenges of our time. Their stories and perspectives will help the 116th Congress consider the best ways to partner with cities to move America forward.

 Speakers include:

• The Honorable Dan Kildee (D-MI), U.S. Representative
• The Honorable Matt Zone, Councilmember, City of Cleveland, Ohio and Immediate Past President, National League of Cities
• The Honorable Daniel Corona, Mayor, City of West Wendover, Nevada and Vice President, Nevada League of Cities and Municipalities
• The Honorable Bridget Donnell Newton, Mayor, City of Rockville, Maryland and President, Maryland Municipal League
• Clarence E. Anthony, CEO and Executive Director, National League of Cities
• Dan Gilmartin, Executive Director and CEO, Michigan Municipal League
• Christy McFarland, Research Director, National League of Cities

Matt Bach is director of communications for the Michigan Municipal League. He can be reached at mbach@mml.org.