12/11/2001

Report from NLC - This Staff Update is a little different. The National League of Cities met last week in Atlanta There were over 6,000 city officials present and me. Here's what I learned:

Dr. Lester Thurow - He's a leading economist from MIT and make several comments about the economy. This is the 10th recession since WWII, but it has been ten years since the last one, so we've forgotten they can happen. This recession is based on problems in the telecommunications industry. Over 95% of the fiber optic cable that everyone was scrambling to install is unused or "dark". The disaster of September 11 would not have had any effect on the economy of 1999, but we were going into a recession when it happened. The question is whether or not the economy will recover quickly. It will take some time and the length of time depends on the federal recovery package. He made no predictions for recovery.


American City and County Magazine - They made their annual city official of the year award. Instead of selecting an official, the magazine named the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) as the winner. An officer from the FDNY Rescue 1 squad attended to accept the award and to conduct a seminar later that afternoon.

NLC Survey - NLC distributed the results of a recent survey. They reported that cities and towns face a 4% decline in revenues after September 11. 51% of cities report that they are increasing spending on public safety and security after September 11. When asked to assess the mood of city residents, city officials most often chose "shocked or stunned." Despite initial shock, city officials report that their residents are also "resolute or steadfast" and "ready to return to normal."

DOT Secretary, Norman Minetta - He spoke about transportation security. He is creating the Transportation Security Administration to take over security at all airports. It will be a distributed organization with only a small headquarters in Washington. He is likely to hire a bunch of local law enforcement personnel. It will work with all modes of transportation but will concentrate on air. Secretary Minetta has been accused of not moving fast enough. He said that DOT will hit each deadline as soon as humanly possible. Also, in discussing the additional security checks at airports, he said: "Patience is a new form of patriotism."

Small City anti-terrorism - I attended a session for small cities. The two Mayors making the presentation agreed that each city has two tasks: 1) preparation, and 2) raising the comfort level of their citizens. People need to be reassured that we are doing all we can.

PS - I also attended the SEC championship game and sat in a corporate box with George Harvell, Mayor of Millington and Virginia, his wife. Great stadium, great crowd, great seats, lousy game!