Across America citizens have been opposing actions taken by their local governments, often getting booted out of the meetings, a questionable violation of the First Amendment. Many years ago, it was the practice of citizens to address the city council and express how they wanted their city to be managed, the city basically took directions from citizen input. No longer is this the case, it has now flipped where cities are operating as a loose cannon with no adherence to the concept that they derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. There are reasons this has happened.
Many Idaho cities belong to an organization called the Association of Idaho Cities (AIC) in which 197 cities are members. Other associations with AIC include professionals from public works, city clerks and treasurers, attorneys, management, highways, along with corporate and businesses involvement. This is just the beginning of who has a hand in directing local governments.
AIC describes its purpose as providing technical assistance and “education, training and assistance to strengthen the ability of city elected officials and staff to serve their communities.” Its Board members are comprised of mayors and city council members from across the state and seven District Directors. AIC also meddles at the state level.
Training information is available on multiple issues at a cost per city official, but the public is excluded from accessing the material. With the recent push for affordable housing and zoning issues in Idaho, one has to wonder what the AIC Planning & Zoning brochure includes. Through this material, AIC is influencing local governments and how to manage their city. That is just one way in which to impede citizen input, and keep citizens in the dark about the direction their city is being taken.
Actual membership fees are elusive because of being based on populations size. But, not only are local citizens paying for the membership fees, there are all of the fun events and meetings planned throughout the year that city officials can attend. Surely those local officials don’t pay for these trips as an AIC member. A quick inquiry to the city will provide an answer on the costs.
Corporate “affiliates“ pay a pretty penny for access to city leaders during an AIC conference. Depending on the level of support, it costs anywhere between $550 to $40,000 to smooze with city officials. One must wonder what types of deals are made from this access.
According to AIC’s 2023 990 tax form, the net assets were $1,901,340. Kelley Packer is listed as the Executive Director (ED) with a compensation of $148,759 and more than seven uncompensated Idaho mayors are listed as District Directors. The League of Idaho Cities is listed as a related organization to “Advance the Interests of Idaho Citizens through Strengthening Cities”. The League has several program priorities that include mental health, STEM learning, and in which it has dabbled in other issues in the past. Kelly Packer is the League ED as well.
Packer has an interesting background, she was an Idaho State Representative from 2012-2018, and ran for Lt. Governor but lost in 2018. She also formed an initiative to “protect access to contraception”. Perhaps her biggest hidden secret however is that she is the link to the National League of Cities (NLC) in which she drags the AIC.
Through this linkage, AIC is a member of the NLC. The NLC organization is “comprised of city, town and village leaders that are focused on improving the quality of life for their current and future constituents”, another obstruction to constituent representation. Exactly when was this organization elected by constituents to represent them? It claims to also “advocate for, and protect the interests of, cities, towns and villages by influencing federal policy, strengthening local leadership and driving innovative solutions.”
NLC also has varying levels of partnerships with corporations. Corporatism through public-private partnerships is encouraged along with ideological influences as found on page 5 and 6. NLC has much larger asset holdings at 19,387,271 in 2023, and the membership dues, again based on population, are more transparent. It is assumed these dues are paid by AIC members which in turn probably raises AIC membership costs.
It also has a National League of Cities Institute, providing the research and education component that “equip locally elected officials with knowledge, tools, and techniques to enhance their ability to govern effectively in their communities.” So much for expert citizen voices who know their city better than any outside organization.
From its research, NLC has created an endless list of initiatives to influence how cities are managed for equality, climate sustainability, future cities, and democracy, even though we are a Republic. NLC also accepts grants on issues that can be used to influence cities. Most prominent right now in Idaho is building more “affordable“ dense unneeded housing, a ruse that originates from the NLC partnership with the American Planning Association.
The issue to be aware of is that NLC is used to influence Idaho cities through AIC, and NLC is a left-of-center organization that uses its Institute to influence how cities are managed. The George Soros, Bill & Melinda Gates, and MacArthur Foundations, along with others, have provided millions to the NLC Institute to influence city governance. In turn, NLC Institute grants have been given to non-profits and local city governments across the United States to promote its objectives.
So confident is NLC that it has even given its own “state of the cities“ report as if it were a mayor by declaring the top mayoral priorities (pg 9)(pg 6). It doesn’t get more repugnant than that.
NLC gets its marching orders from none other than the United Nations (UN) as a non-governmental organization that is consultative status with the UN. In participation with the UN, NLC has also supported migration, and encouraging the integration of biodiversity measures and COP26 objectives into cities. This is easily accomplished through its conferences.
Why would any city council member bother listening to its constituents when they are handed the answers to all problems by these groups. The United States Conference of Mayors offers another opportunity to dismiss citizen input. Boise Mayor McLean, Idaho Falls Mayor Burtenshaw, Pocatello Mayor Dahlquist, Caldwell Mayor Phillips, and a host of many other mayors participate, just search Idaho. As a declared non-partisan group, there is no difference between parties, they are operating from the same NLC position as this group also works with NLC. Counties shouldn’t feel left out, there is a national organization for them as well.
Citizens should be outraged their voice has been removed from local government. Local government officials should be ashamed for being involved in groups that covertly usurp the framework of how our government was designed to work, by consent of the governed. All citizens should meet with any mayor or council member involved in IAC and demand immediate withdrawal, and educate them about where the real influence behind this organization originates. Most likely, these local officials have no idea how badly they have been led astray.
It is time Idahoans remind elected officials their just powers are granted only by the consent of the governed.
