Thanks to all long-time and first-time donors to the Fund, ICMA is able to advocate for more ethical, effective, efficient, and equitable local government.

ICMA supported four communities this fall seeking to adopt the council-manager plan. Staff and volunteers provided consultation, speakers, and information resources. It is not unusual for communities to resist change, and all four communities opted to keep their mayor-council system...for now! ICMA Senior Advisors played a critical role in strategy and communications in each of these efforts.

Conroe, Texas (pop. 114,581)
Nearly 60 percent of voters in Conroe, Texas, voted against Proposition A, which would have established council-manager government in that community. A small, but energetic local team deployed strong messaging, but the opposition group amassed and used a $100,000 campaign chest. The pro-council-manager government team did not request any funds for their campaign.  

Pueblo, Colorado (pop. 112,964)
Pueblo voters voted to change to mayor-council in 2019, and when given the chance to revisit their decision, they opted to retain the elected executive mayor form of government. Two political campaigns raised more than $69,000 to oppose Ballot Question 2C to return to the council-manager plan.  Nearly 70 percent of voters cast ballots to keep the mayor-council form.

Ketchum, Idaho (pop. 3,611)
A powerhouse effort to adopt the council-manager plan was led by a longtime resident. It included community meetings, an online newsletter, information distribution, and even a screening of the documentary All the Queen’s Horses about corruption in Dixon, Illinois, that led to adoption of the council-manager plan. Ketchum voters were split 60-40 against adopting the plan, though they elected a new mayor.

Sunrise Beach Village, Texas (pop. 730)
Sunrise Beach Village may be small in population, but it’s big on professionalism with a resident group promoting the adoption of council-manager government. Proposition A did not pass with 72 percent voting to retain their current volunteer council form. On the positive side, the issue energized the voters with a larger turnout than usual, demonstrating strong community engagement.

Media Coverage and Feedback

Media coverage and feedback from the groups ICMA supported makes it clear that considerable education is needed to battle misinformation and misunderstandings:

“The pro-mayor faction claims having a mayor represents the democratic process of selecting the city’s leader by the direct vote of the people, as opposed to the council-manager form which allows council to appoint someone answerable to them.”

“Opponents argued the current [mayor-council] system ensures greater accountability to voters.”

“I was surprised by the very negative backlash by some of the less informed citizens. We did get some good exposure in the local press.”

“Thanks for your help and all the information from ICMA. It helped us educate those that wanted to understand the issue.”

Council-Manager Video

Thanks to donor support, ICMA has just released a new video that explains why council-manager government is more accountable, efficient, transparent, and effective in achieving long-range goals.  It includes recent examples of places that have voted to adopt or retain council-manager government with commentaries from elected officials, business and nonprofit leaders, managers, and employees. 

The ICMA Fund supports the development of video and print materials, independent research, and case studies. It also supports citizen groups that request aid in campaigns to adopt or retain the plan. ICMA recognizes that the most significant factor in building public trust and making government work for the people rests in the knowledge, ability, experience, and ethical leadership of the professionals serving their communities.

Do you need form-of-government assistance, or know someone who does?

ICMA provides information, presentations, and other support to individuals and organizations interested in promoting professional management and the council-manager form of government. Contact fund@icma.org to get connected.

Learn more about ICMA’s Future of Professional Management Fund and make a contribution.