Agenda

REGISTER FOR CONFERENCE

Monday April 27th

8:30 AM	REGISTRATION
9:00 AM	WELCOME AND OPENING REMARKS Professor Graham Wilson – Director, Initiative on Cities Dr. Robert A. Brown – President, Boston University David Sweeney – Chief Financial Officer, City of Boston,MA
9:30 AM	THE FISCAL HEALTH OF THE AMERICAN CITY Leading researchers will present what is known about the financial threats and the opportunities confronting America’s cities. Moderator: Graham* Wilson – Director, Initiative on Cities and Professor of Political Science, Boston University* Christiana McFarland – Research Director, Center for City Solutions and Applied Research, National League of Cities Andrew Reschovsky – Fellow, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and Professor Emeritus, University of Wisconsin-Madison
10:30 AM	*BREAK*
10:45 AM	WHAT’S NEXT FOR PENSION REFORM? From recent efforts at privatization in Phoenix to municipal bankruptcies in Detroit and Stockton and ground-breaking reform in Providence, efforts at pension reform are taking hold. This panel will examine the advancements made toward sustainable pension reform. Moderator: Con* Hurley – Director, The Center for Finance, Law & Policy and Senior Provost Fellow, Boston University* Mayor Angel Taveras – Former Mayor of Providence, RI and Litigation Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig Greg Mennis – Director, Public Sector Retirement Systems, Pew Charitable Trusts Jack Beermann – Professor, Boston University School of Law Patrick Brett – Managing Director, US Municipal Securities Division, Citi
12:00 PM	LUNCH
12:45 PM	KEYNOTE MAYOR PAUL R. SOGLIN, MADISON, WI Mayor Soglin has been elected eight times as Mayor of Madison, serving as the city’s 51st, 54th, and 57th mayor. After more than a decade out of office, he ran for reelection in 2011 to restore order and balance to the city’s finances. Moderator: Katherine Levine Einstein* – Assistant Professor of Political Science, Boston University*
1:15 PM	MANAGING HEALTH CARE COSTS FOR PAST AND PRESENT PUBLIC SERVANTS Healthcare costs for current civil servants continue to soar. Meanwhile, unsustainable “pay as you go” funding models and limited transparency into the true scale of the liabilities have created a looming crisis in retiree health care plans. How can cities sustainably support the healthcare needs of their past and present workforce? Moderator: Randall Ellis* – Professor, Boston University Department of Economics* David Sweeney – Chief Financial Officer, City of Boston, MA David Rosenbloom – Chair and Professor, Health Policy & Management, Boston University School of Public Health Robert Pozen – Senior Lecturer, Harvard Business School and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institute Carolyn Ryan – Assistant Director of Policy & Research, Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation
2:30 PM	BREAK
2:45 PM	KEYNOTE CONGRESSMAN MICHAEL E. CAPUANO Congressman Capuano is serving his ninth term as a Member of Congress, where he is the senior Massachusetts member on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Financial Services Committee. Before running for Congress, he was Mayor of Somerville, MA from 1990 to 1999. Moderator: Graham Wilson* – Director, Initiative on Cities and Professor of Political Science, Boston University*
3:15 PM	REVITALIZING AMERICA’S AGING URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE In the face of severe underfunding from state and federal governments, many cities are confronted with critical threats to urban infrastructure which, in some cases, have reached the crisis stage. What innovative methods – from public/private partnerships to tax increment financing districts – are cities deploying to fund infrastructure transformation? Moderator: Anthony Flint* – Fellow and Director of Public Affairs, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy* Mayor Anthony Williams – Former Mayor of Washington, DC, and CEO & Executive Director, Federal City Council Patrick Sabol – Senior Policy/Research Assistant, Metropolitan Policy Program, Brookings Institute Brian Pallasch – Managing Director for Government Relations and Infrastructure Initiatives, American Society of Civil Engineers
4:30 PM	COCKTAIL RECEPTION

Tuesday April 28th

8:30 AM	OPENING REMARKS
8:45 AM	KEYNOTE STACY FOX – FORMER DEPUTY EMERGENCY MANAGER, DETROIT, MI From the headline-making “grand bargain” to the comprehensive restructuring of the city’s balance sheet, Detroit offers important lessons for America’s cities.
9:15 AM	CAN CITIES RAISE TAXES? Faced with diminishing federal and state support, many cities must rely on local sources of revenue. In spite of the rhetoric, are urban residents willing to pay for what their cities need? Moderator: Alan Feld* – Professor, Boston University School of Law* Mayor Kimberley Driscoll – Mayor of Salem, MA Vladimir Kogan – Assistant Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University Enid Slack – Director, Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto
10:30 AM	BREAK
10:45 AM	THE SEARCH FOR NEW MONEY Many cities have experimented with creative recurring revenue innovations, from payments in lieu of taxes to taxes on jet fuel. This discussion will examine the political viability and longevity of these new means of revenue generation. Moderator: Sam Tyler* – President, Boston Municipal Research Bureau* Daphne Kenyon – Fellow, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy Ron Rakow – Commissioner, Department of Assessing, City of Boston, MA Katherine Levine Einstein – Assistant Professor of Political Science, Boston University Andrew Kleine – Budget Director, City of Baltimore, MD
12:00 PM	LUNCH
12:30 PM	KEYNOTE SHELLEY METZENBAUM – PRESIDENT, THE VOLCKER ALLIANCE The Former Director of Performance and Personnel Management of the White House Office of Management and Budget, Metzenbaum brings her performance measurement expertise to the Volcker Alliance, where she is dedicated to improving government and policy.
12:50 PM	THE EFFICIENT CITY How can cities optimize the resources they have through advancements in budget formats, performance measures, and the creative deployment of new technologies? Moderator: Kristen McCormack* – Assistant Dean, Sector Initiatives and Faculty Director of the Institute for Nonprofit Management and Leadership, Boston University, Questrom School of Business* Michael Ward – Director of Municipal Services, Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management at the University of Massachusetts Boston Dean Kaplan – Managing Director, Public Financial Management Yolanda K. Kodrzycki – Vice President and Director, New England Public Policy Center, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Shelley Metzenbaum – President, The Volcker Alliance
1:50 PM	FINANCING THE MODERN CITY This discussion will examine the role of the municipal bond rating and tax exempt bonds more generally in funding America’s cities. Leading cities and municipal advisers will share lessons on achieving and maintaining top bond ratings and structuring sustainable financing. Moderator: Mark Funkhouser* – Publisher, Governing Magazine* Mayor Stephen Benjamin – Mayor of Columbia, SC and Chair, Municipal Bonds for America Meredith Weenick – Former Chief Financial Officer, City of Boston and Vice President, Harvard University June Matte – Managing Director, Public Financial Management Thomas H. Green – Managing Director and Head, Infrastructure Group Citi U.S. Public Finance
3:00 PM	BREAK
3:15 PM	MAYORS ROUNDTABLE – ENVISIONING THE 21ST CENTURY MUNICIPAL BUSINESS MODEL Leading mayors come together to discuss their challenges as chief financial stewards and their advice for the next generation of urban leaders. Moderator: Christiana* McFarland – Research Director, Center for City Solutions and Applied Research, National League of Cities* Mayor Dan Rivera – Lawrence, MA Mayor Lisa Wong – Fitchburg, MA
4:30 PM	PROGRAM CONCLUDES

This event is being co-sponsored by the Initiative on Cities at Boston University with the support of GOVERNING.