City Clerks New Law and Elections Seminar
December 11-13, 2024
The Meritage
875 Bordeaux Way, Napa, CA
Designed for city clerks and staff members of all tenures from throughout the state, the City Clerks New Law and Elections Seminar expands an individual’s knowledge on a wide range of topics relevant to the city clerk’s role within their city and fosters relationships and communication with peers. The opportunity for city clerks to learn from and network with each other provides invaluable support.
Save the date for the next seminar on Dec. 11-13, 2024 at the Meritage Hotel in Napa.
For questions, please contact event program manager, Kayla Boutros.
Seminar Information
View the 2023 City Clerks New Law and Elections Seminar program here.
2023 Seminar Session Materials
- Core Responsibilities of a Filing Officer
- Elections 101
- Elections - Beyond the Basics
- Navigating the Transition
- New Laws for District Elections - Santa Monica and FAIR MAPS Act Changes
- New Law and Election Update - Cohen and Hutchings
- New Law and Election Update - Pina
- Political Reform Act - Beyond the Basics
- What's New with the Brown Act
- When Decorum and Civility Do Not Work Then What
Previous Seminar Session Materials
- 2022 Legislative Reference Guide To California Election Laws
- Cal Cities 2022 Legislative Report
- Creating Greater Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Through Language Access - Fuentes
- Federal Resources for Elections
- FPPC New Law and Election Update and More! - Hackert
- How to Get Things Done When You’re Not the Boss
- New Law and Election Update and More!
- Strategies for Creating Dynamic Multi-Generational Teams - Smith
- Wearing Multiple Hats How to Manage a PIO Role
- When Discourse Fails and Recalls and Initiatives are on the Horizon
- Calling All Residents, Please Apply!
- Do You Speak My Language? Language Inclusivity and Belonging in My Community
- Media Engagement In Tumultuous Times - Gomez
- Media Engagement in Tumultous Times - Oviatt
- New Law and Election Update and More! - Castillo and Hackert
- New Law and Election Update and More! - Hutchings and Cohen
- New Law and Election Update and More! - Perron
- The Engineering of Public Records Processing
Speaker Center
In the Speaker Center, you can find resources for all speaker-related details including deadlines, , presentation guidelines, layout, and structure, speaker agreements, and presentation submission directions.
Should you have any questions, please contact the education department.
Important deadlines
Dec. 4: Submit your final presentation to Cal Cities within the “My Speaking Session” of your MyCalCities Portal.
Our goal is to provide exceptional educational experiences, networking opportunities, and innovative tools that will make attendees and their cities more successful. Studies show that adults learn best when they are actively involved in the process rather than passively listening or watching. Most seminar attendees are knowledgeable about the subject, and therefore are interested in hearing what others know and what their experiences have been. Accordingly, we urge you to plan your presentation with these suggestions in mind.
The most common complaints on session evaluations from prior seminars are:
- "The presentation was a 'sales' pitch for a particular product or service."
- "I couldn't read the slides."
- "One speaker took so much time that the others were not able to give their full presentations."
- "I'd like more practical knowledge."
Please consider the following as you prepare for your presentation:
- Relevant content for experienced audiences that stretches thinking and provides new approaches.
- Content that is delivered in an engaging way and draws on the experience of the attendees.
- Examples and case studies of real success (and successful failures).
- Try to add stories, anecdotes, testimonials, or demonstrations that emphasize your point. We all remember a good story, and thus more easily the lesson with it.
- Provide tools and information that the audience can implement.
- If there are other speakers in your session, coordinate with them in advance to decide your speaking order and ensure that all presentations fit into the assigned time allotment. If you do not have the contact information for your co-presenters, please contact us at education@calcities.org.
- Selling from the podium creates conflict of interest problems. Education sessions at the Public Works Officers Institute should never be an advertisement. Therefore, presentations may not include any commercialism for specific products or consulting services.
The League of California Cities encourages our presenters to use the most engaging educational platform possible when speaking at the City Clerks New Law and Elections Seminar. We recognize that each session has a unique format and presentation style based on the preferences of the speaker(s) and content being presented, but the following examples are provided as a general guideline in planning your session.
Panel Discussions: 90 minutes, with up to 3 speakers
Presider (5 minutes)
- Welcome
- Frame session
- Introduce speakers
Speaker(s) #1, #2 and #3 (25 minutes)
- Summary of relevant experience
- Learning objectives
- Core session content
- Summary of key points
Presider (10 minutes)
- Facilitate Q&A
- Final comments
Single Speaker Session: 90 minutes, 1 speaker
Presider (5 minutes)
- Welcome
- Frame session
- Introduce speaker
Speaker #1 (75 minutes)
- Summary of relevant experience
- Learning objectives
- Core session content
- Summary of key points
Presider (10 minutes)
- Facilitate Q&A
- Final comments
As a reminder, sessions may not include any product/service demonstrations or commercial presentations for specific products or consulting services. Please contact the education department with any questions, concerns or assistance needs you may have.