IMLA

Telecommunications Webinar
2022-03-10 13:00 - 14:30 (America/New_York)
Cell Tower Leasing and Sales
This program provides municipalities (and all property owners) with the basics of leasing land for a cell tower or space on a building (or other structure) for cell antennas. It describes 5G service, why it is being rolled out slowly and why it has little impact on cell lease rental rates or the sales price for cell leases. It is presented by two attorneys with decades of experience representing municipalities and other property owners on cell leases. The program starts by covering key business issues in cell site leases, including lease rates, who gets the revenues from additional antennas or carriers being co-located at a site, and the major rent increases possible at renewals. It then shifts to avoiding lease terms which can prevent a landlord’s use or development of the property with the lease, and adding lease terms which help preserve these rights. After covering some more conventional lease terms the program addresses the sale of cell leases and future leasing rights. This includes typical sale prices (currently around 19 times annual revenues); when to sell and when it is not advisable to sell; how to get the best price and terms in a sale; and again avoiding provisions that restrict the development or use of the property. On both cell leases and the sale of leases the program addresses key items that are unique to municipalities. More generally, the program covers such topics as lease term and terminations, access requirements, radio frequency interference, design and camouflage, and radio frequency emissions safety.
Speakers: John Pestle & Jonathan Kramer

SLLC Supreme Court Midterm Webinar
2022-03-17 13:00 - 14:15
This is not an IMLA Webinar and will not offer CLE credits.
Since this summer, the Supreme Court has agreed to decide, and has decided, numerous cases involving states and local governments ranging from blockbusters to (more) bread and butter. Topics of cases discussed in this webinar include abortion, First Amendment, state intervention, qualified immunity, the Clean Power Plan, and liability for not reciting Miranda. Join Michael Dreeben, O’Melveny, who is writing the State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) amicus brief in a First Amendment public employment case, Harker Rhodes, Kirkland and Ellis, who is writing the SLLC brief in the Miranda case, and Morgan Ratner, Sullivan & Cromwell, in a discussion of the state and local Supreme Court docket at midterm.
Speakers: Michael Dreeben, Morgan Ratner, C. Harker Rhodes, IV & Lisa Soronen

Negotiations Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-05-05 13:00 - 14:00
Negotiations 101
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This presentation will outline the steps in preparing for a negotiation, discuss factors to consider in picking a strategy, and demonstrate both how to use and how to counter some of the most common negotiation tactics.
Speaker: DeWitt “Mac” McCarley

Construction Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-05-10 13:00 - 14:00
Secrets and Strategies to Successful Public Construction Projects
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Successful projects – meeting quality, time, budget requirements – can happen if the public owner and the municipal attorney take the proper steps to prepare for design and construction. Without the necessary planning and strategy, public works construction may experience unwanted delays, claims and cost overruns. This session will discuss the underlying causes that threaten successful project outcomes. Specific recommendations (“secrets”) will be presented regarding critical issues during the design phase including designer selection and professional services agreement, the public owner’s project management approach, and key construction contract provisions. Since unexpected issues are common in construction, a corresponding claims management strategy that focuses on avoidance, mitigation and resolution of claims and disputes will be presented.
Speaker: Joe Seibold & Christopher J. Petrini

General Webinar
2022-05-19 13:00 - 14:00
Robocall Me Maybe? Examining Automated Calls by Cities in Light of the FCC’s Broadnet Order on Reconsideration
As local governments seek to streamline processes and efficiently utilize funds in continually decreasing budgets, some are turning to automated phone calls and text messages (“robocalls” and “robotexts”) as a cost‐effective option to communicate with citizens. This session discusses the applicable federal laws and regulations that govern automated calls, including the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 as well as the associated FCC rules, orders, and rulings, with a focus on the FCC’s Broadnet Order on Reconsideration, released December 14, 2020, that formally applied these federal laws and regulations to local governments and their contractors. This session also discusses practical considerations and best practices for local governments when contacting citizens by automated calls and texts, including those related to telephone town halls, municipal court cases, water utility service, and COVID‐19 information.
Speakers: David Johnson

Police Webinar
2022-05-24 13:00 - 14:00
Creating a System of Police Oversight
The City of Austin has had some form of civilian police oversight for 20 years. This presentation will explore the legal issues the city has faced during that time, the changes in civilian oversight that have occurred, and different forms of oversight in other cities that have influenced the City of Austin’s approach. It will explore issues related to the confidentiality of police disciplinary records, anonymous civilian complaints, and labor relations with the Austin Police Association.
Speaker: Neal Falgoust

First Amendment Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-06-22 13:00 - 14:00
Regulating Signs & Billboards after Austin v. Reagan
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) has led to another U.S. Supreme Court case, Austin v. Reagan, a First Amendment decision which may affect the ability of your community to regulate on-premises and off-premises signs (billboards). Depending on the outcome of the case, thousands of local jurisdictions could have their sign ordinances completely upended, and have to start over when it comes to treating on-premises signs differently than billboards. Even if the Court affirms the traditional on/off distinction, Austin could still elaborate upon the concept of content-neutrality in sign regulations and further clarify the Reed decision.
This webinar includes a panel of experts who will describe the latest Reed developments and how the Court’s ruling in Austin may – or may not – change best practices for city attorneys. Communities interested in ensuring that they have constitutionally-compliant sign ordinances will want to attend.
Speaker: Susan L. Trevarthen, Mark White & David Hickey

Code Enforcement Webinar
2022-07-12 13:00 - 14:00
Administrative Warrants: Getting the Code Officer’s Foot in the Door
This webinar will discuss administrative warrants as a necessity for code enforcement inspections. We will discuss the differences between an administrative warrant as opposed to criminal warrants. Followed by a review of the case law requiring code enforcement officers to obtain one, the process, and scenarios.
Speaker: Savita Rai & Samuel Adams

Immigration Webinar
2022-07-14 13:00 - 14:00
Denver’s Municipal Response to Federal Immigration Pressures and Changes: 2017 to Today
The City and County of Denver has long been involved in immigrant and refugee integration from the community engagement level to policy development. In 2017, feeling tremendous pressure and responsibility to respond to the many significant changes to federal immigration policy and practice, Denver developed several transformational changes in legislation and support systems to reinforce our commitment to immigrant and refugee communities. This presentation will cover the changes and what has transpired since their development to ensure sustainability and relevance in an ever-changing national immigration landscape.
Speakers: Jamie Torres & Atim Otii

Preemption Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-07-21 13:00 - 14:00
Preemption of Prosecutorial Discretion
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This session examines state preemption of prosecutorial discretion. Increasingly, as prosecutors have begun to use their discretion to further criminal justice reform and shift from a punitive approach to a restorative one, states have begun to step in to constrain this use of prosecutorial discretion. States have preempted prosecutorial discretion by creating concurrent jurisdiction over certain offenses at the state level, by forcing prosecutors to pursue certain charges or limiting their ability to decline to prosecutor, and even by targeting certain specific prosecutors directly. These uses of preemption not only upsets the tradition of discretion – which has been a practical necessity as prosecutors must prioritize cases – but it also rejects the mandate of the local electorate calling for criminal justice reform.
Speaker: Jorge Camacho, Nicholas Goldrosen, Rick Su & Marissa Roy

First Amendment Webinar
2022-08-02 13:00 - 14:00
Protest and Demonstration Permits
A presentation discussing key considerations for governmental entities creating regulations that require permits for public protests and demonstrations. The webinar will cover the First Amendment standards for prior restraints – including strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, limiting the discretion of government officials, justifications supporting the regulation, narrowly tailoring the permit requirements, content neutrality, and permit conditions.
Speaker: Ian Williams

Personnel Webinar (Originally Scheduled For July 7th)
2022-08-23 13:00 - 14:00
Every Breath You Take, Every Move You Make: The Legal (and Practical) Aspects of Supervising Telework
This presentation will address some of the more common pitfalls associated with remote work. The legal aspects include Title VII, FLSA, Workers’ Comp, employee benefits, privacy rights and federal tax treatment. The presentation may also include practical solutions from savvy HR directors.
Speaker: Robin Cross

Homelessness Webinar
2022-08-25 13:00 - 14:00
Case Study: A Capital City’s Approach to Unsheltered Homelessness
In the wake of Martin v. City of Boise (9th. Cir. 2019), and the effects of the pandemic, Sacramento, California like many communities, experienced an overwhelming homelessness crisis that depleted public resources and overwhelmed business and neighborhood corridors. The recent Point in Time Count demonstrated that the Sacramento region experienced a 67% increase in its unhoused population since 2019. This webinar will explore the efforts employed by the City of Sacramento to mitigate the adverse effects of public encampments, address lawsuits brought by both homeless advocates and affected businesses, all while undertaking multiple efforts to shelter the unhoused. These efforts included actions by the Sacramento City Council to enact ordinances aimed to protect the city’s critical infrastructure, establish a new city department to provide a social-service-oriented response to noncriminal calls for services, and develop a comprehensive siting plan to shelter the unhoused in partnership with community organizations and individuals. The City Council has also placed a measure on the November ballot to accelerate increased shelter capacity and prescribe conditions subject to enforcement. The speakers will address each of these and other approaches and strategies taken not only to reduce the effects, but also to reduce and ultimately resolve unsheltered homelessness.
Speaker: Susana Alcala Wood, Aaron Israel, Gustavo Martinez & Beau Parkhurst

Animal Law Webinar
2022-08-30 13:00 - 14:00
Herding Cats: Legal Issues Involving Cats in Your Communities
The legal and practical management of cats has experienced significant development and advancement at the local level in recent years. City and county governments have the power to make important changes with respect to the treatment of cats in their communities – changes that will provide great benefit to both the human and animal populations, and lead to long-term solutions to current concerns. This session will describe the contemporary situations that local governments face with respect to cats, and provide scientific data and legal support for programs that represent the only real potential for success when dealing with these issues.
Speaker: Ledy VanKavage & Bruce Wagman

General Webinar
2022-09-06 13:00 - 14:00
New Municipal Attorney Essentials
Municipal attorneys need to handle a wide variety of legal responsibilities, some unique to local government. The number of issues and topics requiring legal proficiency can be overwhelming. This presentation will help city and county attorneys develop a plan for navigating their initiation into local government law. While this webinar is designed for attorneys who are new to local government, experienced municipal attorneys can also benefit from a review of the basics of municipal law.
Speaker: Roger Horner

Personnel Webinar
2022-09-13 13:00 - 14:00
Employment Law Workplace Investigations
This presentation will provide strategies and tips for workplace investigations, including: the investigative process; escalation and timing issues; retaliation and whistleblower protections; privilege issues; training; conducting interviews; and drafting and preparing reports.
Speaker: Trina Chernos

Preemption Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-09-15 13:00 - 14:00
Protecting Abortion at the Local Level
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This session examines the current patchwork of state laws governing of abortion following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. This session will discuss what can be done at the local level to protect abortion access, both in states have restricted the right and those that have moved to enshrine it. Finally, this session will discuss how to integrate local communities into local efforts to further abortion justice.
Speaker: LiJia Gong, Jenny Dodson Mistry & Winnie Ye

Telecommunications Webinar
2022-09-20 13:00 - 14:30
Cell Tower Lease Rates and Sales Prices
In the world of telecommunications law, one question consistently rises to the top of the list: What is the going rate for lease or rent of a cell tower lease? This program will answer that question for cell leases, particularly for the tens of thousand of leases coming up for renewal.
It will also provide municipalities (and all property owners) with the basics of leasing land for a cell tower (or space on a building roof or other structure) for cell antennas, including why 5G has little impact on cell lease rents or the sales prices. It is presented by two attorneys with decades of experience representing municipalities and other property owners on cell leases.
The program covers key business issues in cell site leases, including lease rates, who gets the revenues from additional antennas or carriers being co-located at a site, and the major rent increases possible at renewals. It then shifts to avoiding lease terms which can prevent a landlord’s use or development of the property with the lease, and adding lease terms which help preserve these rights.
After covering some more conventional lease terms the program addresses the sale of cell leases and future leasing rights. This includes typical sale prices (often around 19 to 20 times annual revenues); when to sell and when it is not advisable to sell; how to get the best price and terms in a sale; and again avoiding provisions that restrict the development or use of the property. On both cell leases and the sale of leases the program addresses key items that are unique to municipalities. More generally, the program covers such topics as lease term and terminations, access requirements, radio frequency interference, design and camouflage, and radio frequency emissions safety.
Speaker: John Pestle & Jonathan Kramer

Land Use Webinar
2022-09-22 13:00 - 14:00
Equity in Property Assessments and Zoning
Real estate taxes are an important source of income for most local governments. Property assessments should be fair and equitable in order to ensure that all property owners pay their fair share, but no more. This program will include discussion of historic and current inequities in property assessments, and current thinking on ways to reduce these inequities.
Zoning codes and decisions by zoning boards have a significant impact on the lives and livelihoods of residents. Because of this widespread impact, it is important that a variety of stakeholders have access to the zoning process in order to provide input on issues in their communities. This presentation will first review the various stakeholders in zoning matters and how they are impacted, followed by a discussion of the challenges to equitable access and outcomes in zoning.
Faculty members are an attorney who counsels the Philadelphia Office of Property Assessment, in addition to defending assessment appeals; and an attorney who is counsel to the Philadelphia Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Speaker: Amy Galer & Hilary Emerson

Federal Webinar
2022-09-29 13:00 - 14:00
Seismic Shifts: SCOTUS, Religion & States and Local Governments
In the past few years, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued several significant decisions regarding its legal doctrines involving religion. Most notably, local governments lost two cases last term for applying incorrect legal tests! Last term SCOTUS embraced a narrow view of the Establishment Clause in a tuition assistance case and a public forum case and overturned Lemon in a public employment case. Recently, SCOTUS has embraced a broad view of the Free Exercise Clause in a series of COVID cases and a case involving the City of Philadelphia. And it may continue this trend in the upcoming term in a case involving a web designer who objects on religious grounds to making custom wedding websites for same-sex couples. The presentation will discuss these cases, trends, and practical guidance on SCOTUS and religion.
Speaker: Lisa Soronen, Erin Murphy & Joshua Matz

Technology Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-11-10 13:00 - 14:00
Biometrics and the Potential for Local Government Liability
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
New privacy laws about biometrics (fingerprints, retinal scan, facial recognition, voice recognition, the way a person walks, their keystrokes) require notification or protection for individuals, but do those laws affect local government? Are there liability issues for local government for use of biometric markers in regard to employment or other claims? This presentation explores those issues and maps out recommendations for best practices in this emerging area.
Speaker: Cathy Cunningham

Construction Webinar
2022-11-17 13:00 - 14:00
2022 Global Construction Disputes Report
Current events have introduced a high degree of anxiety and uncertainty to the construction industry across the globe. This webinar focuses on the top causes of disputes in 2021 and provides tangible actions to mitigate disputes on projects. After attending this presentation, participants should be able to describe the current events and challenges affecting the construction market; describe the top techniques for mitigating disputes; explain potential solutions for avoiding disputes; and discuss the top causes of disputes and methods for effectively avoiding them.
Speaker: Roy Cooper, Bryan Payne & Ben Eiss

Environment Webinar
2022-11-22 13:00 - 14:00
Citizens’ Suits & You: A basic understanding of the Private Enforcement mechanism under The Clean Water Act
This presentation will discuss how does a citizen suit work under 33 U.S.C. § 1365. The presentation will also discuss how to defend against a citizens’ suits and a survey of federal case law.
Speaker: Thomas E. Powers III

Land Use Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-11-29 13:00 - 14:00
Protecting Due Process in Your Pajamas: Administering Land Use Hearings in a Virtual World
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced local governments to shift to virtual hearings if they wanted to continue conducting business. Questions as to what impact such hearings may or may not have on the constitutional rights afforded parties in land use cases were generally set aside for the time being as Americans faced up to a significant health crisis. Heading into 2023, are virtual hearings the “new normal” and, if so, are the legislators and courts on board? Do existing state statutes and case law provide adequate protection for local government leaders to continue approving variances, conditional uses, special exceptions, site plans, subdivisions, and other land use applications from the comfort of their living room? What should local government attorneys consider when advising clients on whether virtual processes satisfy constitutional muster? This presentation will look at how different states are currently handling virtual hearings in the land use context and identify issues that attorneys should explore when advising local governments on best practices.
Speaker: David Warner

Election Webinar
2022-12-01 13:00 - 14:00
Recent Developments in Election Law: The Independent State Legislature Theory, Voter Suppression masquerading as Election Reform, and Efforts to Curb Partisan Gerrymandering
This program will focus on the most recent developments in election law, with emphasis on the Independent State Legislature theory to further restrictions on Section 2 Vote Dilution under the Voting Rights Act and pernicious efforts to suppress minority voting. Given the uncertainty in the law as reflected in the most recent grant of certiorari in the Moore v. Allen case and Brnovich, this program will resonate with local government counsel interested in keeping current in this volatile area of the law.
Speaker: Ben Griffith & Chris Balch

Disaster Relief Webinar
2022-12-06 13:00 - 14:00
Emergency Pandemic Hotel Shelters: Legal Challenges and Lessons Learned
In the earliest days of COVID-19, jurisdictions across the country quickly stood up emergency pandemic shelters for those experiencing homelessness, often in hotels. These pandemic shelters operated far longer than expected and, in some cases, drew legal challenges. This presentation will address tips for defending against legal challenges to these emergency, life-saving efforts, as well as lessons learned and legal pitfalls to avoid.
Speaker: Devona Wells & Rebecca Holschuh

Federal Webinar
2022-12-07 13:00 - 14:00
Federal Circuit Court Trends
This presentation will examine trends in the federal circuit courts involving important constitutional issues for local governments. Topics covered will include social media cases and the First Amendment, homelessness case trends, Taking trends, novel Fourteenth Amendment arguments stemming from COVID-19 shutdowns, and the dormant commerce clause as it relates to short-term rentals.
Speaker: Amanda Karras

Prosecution Webinar
2022-12-13 13:00 - 14:00
Prosecuting Code Cases
This presentation will discuss pros and cons for taking the civil/administrative and criminal routes in prosecuting code cases. The presentation will discuss initial intake issues and concerns and the common errors and problems that come with them. The presentation will also discuss training and advising investigators and ethical dilemmas which may arise for Prosecutors.
Speaker: Samuel Adams & Felix Ramirez

Ethics Webinar
2022-12-15 13:00 - 14:00
Questions to an Ethics Hotline
This presentation will cover questions regularly raised by local government lawyers about the Rules of Professional Conduct and discuss how and which Rules answer such questions. The presentation will generally cover several of the ABA Model Rules having particular applicability to local government lawyers, including the Preamble and Scope and Rules 1.0 through 1.11, 1.13, 1.16, 1.18, Rules 3.1 through 3.5 and Rules 3.8 and 3.9, Rules 5.1 through 5.4 and Rules 8.3 and 8.4 to the extent time allows. The program anticipates that lawyers attending the program will have a better appreciation of how the Ruled of Professional Conduct apply in various situations that can regularly arise in the course of representing a local government client, how best to address their conduct in responding to those situations and what their duties and responsibilities are to the court and the bar.
Speaker: Charles W. Thompson, Jr.

Construction Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2022-12-21 13:00 - 14:00
Fundamentals of Alternative Project Delivery in Public Construction: CMAR and Design-build Mechanics
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This program will introduce municipal practitioners to the basic procurement and contracting distinctions between traditional public construction through “low bid” and alternative project delivery models including design-build and construction manager at risk (CMAR). As more states permit local government to use these progressive project delivery models, municipal counsel are increasingly called upon to structure procurements and contract documents that protect owners. This program will teach these mechanics through comparative instruction and reference to modified low-bid documents. As always, our popular “traps for the unwary” will be covered.
Speaker: Steven Torres
