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HomeMy WebLinkAbout6.e. Approval of Council TravelEXECUTIVE SUMMARY City Council Regular Meeting: April 18, 2017 AGENDA ITEM: Approval of City Council Travel AGENDA SECTION: Consent PREPARED BY: Clarissa Hadler, City Clerk AGENDA NO. 6.e. ATTACHMENTS: Council Travel Budget APPROVED BY: LJM RECOMMENDED ACTION: Motion to approve travel for Council members to the following conferences in 2017; League of Minnesota Cities Annual Conference, National League of Cities Policy Committee meeting, National League of Cities University Leadership Summit, and National League of Cities City Summit, as shown on the attached spreadsheet. ISSUE Council members have expressed interest in attending various local and national conferences throughout the year, including; League of Minnesota Cities Annual Conference, National League of Cities Policy Committee meeting, National League of Cities University Leadership Summit, and National League of Cities City Summit. SUMMARY According to the City’s adopted policy, the conference must be approved in advance by a vote of the City Council at an open meeting and must include an estimated cost of the travel. In evaluating the out-of-state travel request, the Council will consider the following:  Whether the elected official will be receiving training on issues relevant to City or his or her role as Mayor or Council Member.  Whether the elected official will be meeting and networking with other elected officials from around the country to exchange ideas on topics of relevance to the city or on the official roles of local elected officials.  Whether the elected official will be viewing a city facility or function that is similar to nature to one that is currently operating at, or under consideration by the City where the purpose for the trip is to study the facility or function to bring back ideas for the consideration of full Council.  Whether the elected official has been specifically assigned by the Council to visit another city for the purpose of establishing a goodwill relationship such as a “sister-city” relationship.  Whether the elected official has been specifically assigned by the Council to testify on behalf of the City at the United States Congress or to otherwise meet with federal officials on behalf of the City.  Whether the City has sufficient funding available in the budget to pay for the cost of the trip. The 2017 Budget includes $20,000 for City Council conference and travel expenditures, of which approximately $5,000 has been spent to date. The actual costs for the past conference and estimated costs for future conferences are shown on the attached spreadsheet. CONCLUSION It is requested that the City Council approve the aforementioned travel and conference attendance. Council Travel Estimates Droste Weisensel Nelson Freske DeBettignies LMC - Newly Elected Officials / Elected Officials - January Actual Conference Costs $0 $256 $0 $325 $0 NLC - Congressional Cities Conference - March - Washington DC Estimated & Actual Conference Costs $1,912 $3,003 $0 $0 $0 NLC - CED / TIS Policy Committee Meeting - June - Cleveland Estimated Conference Costs $0 $1,742 $0 $0 $0 LMC - Conference - June - Rochester Estimated Conference Costs $838 $838 $838 $220 $0 NLC - Leadership Summit - October - San Diego Estimated Conference Costs $0 $2,060 $0 $0 $0 NLC - City Summit - November - Charlotte Estimated Conference Costs $2,240*$2,240 $2,335 $0 Miscellaneous Conferences/Meetings $750 $100 $100 $100 $100 TOTAL $3500 $10,239 $3178 $2,980 $100 Estimated Total $19,996 Budget Available $20,000 $2,240 *Alternate if one member does not attend.