International City/County Management Association

Through funding partners, such as federal agencies, ICMA provides services to local governments including consulting and expertise on fundamental and leading local government management practices in the U.S. and around the world. ⁴

ICMA also provides both professional and educational services for members⁵ through a variety of services, including print and digital media, survey projects, research projects, professional development, consultation, and outreach. ⁶

Founding and History

In 1908, the city of Staunton, Virginia appointed Charles Ashburner as the first city manager in American municipal government. When there were approximately 40 managers working in cities across the United States, they formed the City Manager’s Association in 1914. In 1924, the association changed its name to International City Manager’s Association to reflect the presence of Canadian managers who began attending their conferences. The name was changed again in 1969, to The International City Management Association (ICMA), to include chief administrative officers appointed by mayors as well as professionals working in county management, in order that members no longer had to be required to commit to the council-manager plan, which up to that point had been a required criterion for membership. In 1991, ICMA changed its name again to explicitly recognize the involvement of county managers in its membership. ⁷

The council-manager style of local governance is the most widely used institutional form of municipal government in the United States today. It is most common in medium sized cities in the South and West. A full-time city manager, a professional civil servant, is then hired by the council to manage the day-to-day operations of municipal government. Duties include developing a budget for the council’s consideration and the coordination of personnel matters related to municipal employees. San Antonio, Texas and Phoenix, Arizona are the two largest cities that utilize this form. ⁸

Advocacy

To achieve its goals ICMA focuses on developing and disseminating educational materials⁹ to influence local government professionals¹ and young people. ¹⁰ In addition, it collects, highlights, and disseminates examples of successful council-manager government. ¹¹

For example, ICMA used statistics, research, and data to develop a number of opinion pieces that advocated the retention of the city authority in San Antonio, Texas. It did the same for retention and adoption efforts of the council-manager form of government in Clearwater, Florida, and Amherst, Massachusetts. ²

In 2018, ICMA hired a media relations agency to pitch its content to national and trade publications. ¹²¹ It also develops annual policy white papers. ¹³ ICMA focuses much of its research on topics such as policing strategies, smart cities, cybersecurity, and diversity and inclusion issues. ¹¹⁴

Publication Management is ICMA’s official magazine dedicated to public sector professionals. ¹⁵ Another top priority of ICMA is to engage in extensive outreach to keep leaders up to date on leading practices, emerging issues and research and survey results through a wide variety of channels. ¹ ICMA has produced the United Front and Local Gov Life podcasts,¹⁶ developed social media and marketing campaigns,¹⁷ and awarded scholarships for individuals to attend regional conferences. ¹⁷ ICMA has sponsored events on popular issues across numerous college campuses and also coordinates professional development programs, which are a significant part of ICMA’s revenue generating capabilities. ¹⁸

Professional development is key to ICMA’s efforts of building and maintaining their membership base. ⁶ ICMA caters to individuals at all stages of their careers. ⁶ The organization has offered scholarships to students¹⁷ and individuals early in their local government careers,¹⁹ as well as to some of their members,²⁰ for attending conferences to develop local governance expertise. The ICMA University program offers an array of leadership and professional development opportunities for senior- and mid-level executives²¹ and for less experienced individualsinterested in local government professions. ²¹  ICMA’s professional development programs are wide-ranging and even free in some instances, meant to attract local government professionals to ICMA. ²² Programming includes fellowships for master’s students looking to enter the industry, several leadership institutes, a national coaching program, a mentoring program²¹, certification and credentialing opportunities, learning labs, and a sizable conference track encompassing the globe to showcase experts and cover a litany of popular issues related to local government. ²³

Finances

Assets/Revenue

The majority of ICMA’s money comes from grants and program service dues. Grant totals in FY 2017 were recorded as $13.6 million down from $20 million the previous year. ²⁴ Over a period of five years, ICMA received almost $84 million in total grant contributions. ²⁵

FY 2019 total operating revenues were $32.3 million. ²⁶ Grants and contracts revenue budgeted at $13.2 million, which is similar to FY 2017 totals and FY 2018 projections. ²⁷

In FY 2019, revenue excluding grants and contracts amounted to $19.1 million, with membership dues, professional development and rents and royalties bringing in the most. ²⁸

“Envision ICMA” is the foundation on which ICMA’s budget is developed. They have begun implementing a strategic partnership with Corporater,²⁹ a business management platform, to digitize ICMA’s management system and track the budget’s progress against the strategic goals of Envision. ³⁰

Spending/Expenses

ICMA spent $132,370 on grants to other organizations for indirect lobbying purposes in FY 2017. ³¹ ICMA also responded to requests for financial assistance from resident groups that are involved in form of government adoption and retention efforts. ²

Salaries and other expenses make up the bulk of ICMA’s spending, amounting to $26.9 million³² out of $29.5 million of ICMA’s total revenue in FY 2017. ³³ Besides salary, the biggest expenses include occupancy, travel, field office expenses, conferences, employee benefits, other salaries and wages, and other fees for services from non-employees. ³⁴ The total program service expenses in FY 2017 amount to $20.1 million. ³⁵

Total operating expenses for FY 2019 was $31.8 million. ²⁶ FY 2019 total expenses excluding grants and contracts was $19.5 million, with organizational support, member support and professional development leading. ²⁸