Elected officials, department heads and other municipal personnel from cities and towns across Arkansas gathered in Little Rock or followed along online for the Arkansas Municipal League’s 2024 Winter Conference, held January 10-12 at the Little Rock Marriott and Statehouse Convention Center. Attendance may have been hampered a bit by the impending winter storm that affected much of the state in the days immediately following the conference, but participation was still strong, with 790 League members representing 207 cities and towns joining the meeting.

Conference general sessions and breakout sessions covered an array of timely topics important to municipalities, including First Amendment auditors and other trending legal issues, grants and other funding sources for local projects, disaster prep, changes to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, and preparing for April’s total solar eclipse.

Each winter conference is focused on education, and this year marked the transition to the Arkansas Civic Education Program, the League’s new online and in-person training and certification program. League Director of Education Kerrie Lauck introduced the new program during an afternoon session on January 10 and held several breakout sessions to share information and answer questions from members.

While many of the familiar, tried-and-true elements of the annual winter meeting remained, the League opted to shake things up a bit in 2024. This year’s event featured more time built into the schedule to network with municipal colleagues, vendors and sponsors. To that end, the exhibit hall was set up with a more open floorplan with space for visiting, conferring with staff at League Services or having some fun with games like Jenga and Connect Four. The conference also concluded Friday morning with a new event, the Inspire Breakfast, giving members—especially those with long drives ahead of them—a chance to return home earlier than years past. According to Executive Director Mark Hayes, the majority of feedback from the membership about the conference changes has been very positive, and the League will be taking suggestions into account as we begin preparations for the 90th Convention in June and other meetings moving forward.

Key sessions and takeaways from #2024AMLWC

The goal of the new Arkansas Civic Education Program (ACE) is to build upon the success of the original voluntary certification program while expanding delivery options in order to make it accessible to more municipal officials and personnel, said League Director of Education Kerrie Lauck, above, during the 2024 Winter Conference’s welcome session on the afternoon of January 10. While ACE will still include in-person training options, the online hub will expand our reach, she said. “As most of you know, most cities and towns in Arkansas are really small, and it’s difficult for most people to travel all the way to Little Rock. They might be the only one manning the desk at city hall.” Elected officials and personnel may sign up for the new program at learningmanager.adobe.com/acehub.

The League welcomed Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Senior Editor Rex Nelson to the stage during the opening night banquet to share his thoughts about the future of our state. The best stories are local stories, he said, and he encouraged city and town leaders to reach out to him. “Everything I write is gonna be about Arkansas because this state is home. This state is where I came back to after those years in Washington, D.C. This state is where I was born and it’s where I will be buried. And I think that our best days are still ahead.”

From filming police in the course of their work to showing up to city hall and other public facilities to record videos that often end up on YouTube, so-called First Amendment auditors have become a phenomenon. While they are often simply exercising their rights, the law isn’t always clear and it can be difficult for city officials and employees to know how to handle these situations. League General Counsel John Wilkerson, right, and Legal and Inquiry Counsel Caleb Alexander-McKenzie, left, offered guidance on how to properly engage with these citizen activists during the conference’s opening general session.

Naturally the legal team put together an entertaining skit to help illustrate the point. League Litigation Counsel Brie Gibson, with smartphone camera rolling, played the role of First Amendment auditor “Brie on the Lookout,” who demanded access to city hall in the city of “Civildelphia.” “This is a public place, this is a public building, I pay taxes, I can be here and I can record,” she claimed.

While Brie on the Lookout is within her rights to film in many public places, certain areas may be off limits. Wynne Mayor Jennifer Hobbs demonstrated the correct way to respond to someone demanding access to an area not open to the general public. “I’m sorry, we have a policy. That’s a restricted area. We don’t allow visitors back there because there’s sensitive information.”

A large portion of Arkansas is in the path of totality of the fast-approaching total solar eclipse on April 8, which will darken the sky for more than four minutes. It is estimated more than one million visitors will descend upon our state to experience the eclipse, and that massive influx of tourists will present both opportunities and challenges. During the afternoon general session on January 11, a panel of tourism and public safety experts discussed what makes the 2024 eclipse unique and shared their thoughts about how cities and towns can prepare for it. From left, Arkansas Tourism Director Delaney Thomas; Hot Springs Fire Marshall Tom Braughton; Perry County, Missouri, Tourism Director Trish Erzfeld; and League Digital Content Manager Ben Cline.

The 2024 Winter Conference wrapped up Friday morning January 12 with a new event, the Inspire Breakfast. Former Arkansas Razorback football head coach Houston Nutt gave an entertaining and inspirational keynote address, regaling the crowd with tales from his coaching days and offering some gridiron-honed wisdom.