Agenda - Council - 02/08/2021 - Laserfiche WebLink

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LMC POLICY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS The City Policies document addresses more than 200 legislative issues that impact cities and serves as the foundation of the League of Minnesota Cities (LMC) advocacy efforts. City officials from across the state are recruited throughout the year to serve on one or more policy committees. In 2020, over 130 city officials participated in the policy committees. Policies are considered, discussed, and revised annually with considerable member input. Then, draft policies are published online for member comments before being considered for approval by the LMC Board of Directors. Guided by the City Policies, LMC member cities and staff actively advocate for city -friendly legislation. Below are some of the major events in the policy development process: January The Minnesota Legislature begins the first session of each two-year biennium in January of odd -numbered years. The 2021 Legislative Session began on January 5, 2020. February The Legislature typically begins the second session of each biennium in February or March of even -numbered years. March/April In March, the National League of Cities usually hosts the Congressional City Conference in Washington, D.0 and the League's legislative conference is held in St. Paul. Due to questions surrounding the ongoing pandemic, both are anticipated to be conducted in some sort of virtual manner. May Under the Minnesota Constitution, the deadline to end any legislative session is the first Monday following the third Saturday in May (May 17, 2021). The governor may call special legislative sessions when necessary. June At the LMC Annual Conference (Tentatively: Rochester, June 23-25, 2021), members provide comments on City Policies throughout the conference and during the Legislative Update. July Policy committees hold their first of three meetings. The July meeting typically includes a review of the most recent legislative session, a preliminary discussion of emerging issues, and a review of member comments and board interim policies from the prior year. August Policy committees hold their second of three meetings to hear from subject -matter experts on existing and potential new policy topics. September Policy committees meet for a third time to finalize their work and make specific policy recommendations to the LMC Board of Directors. October Draft policies, as approved by the policy committees, are shared with members online during the comment period. Member input is also sought from city officials attending LMC Regional Meetings around the state each fall. November The LMC Board of Directors reviews member input, then considers and amends the policies for the following calendar year. The Board adopts policies on behalf of League members before the start of the next legislative session. 12