Municipal Equation Podcast

30:44

Episode 111: Commit to Civility (With Dr. Linda Jordon)

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/09/24

en

01:06:02

Episode 110: Testing Your City Website for Accessibility

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/08/27

With federal requirements (and deadlines ahead) regarding the Americans With Disabilities Act and local government websites, we bring you another important session with Kevin Benson from VC3, this time showing us ways to test our municipal websites for accessibility issues. You should also mark your calendar for the next webinar on the topic, set for Sept. 3, 2026. And check out NCLM's page on ADA accessibility for all the background you need.

en

40:37

Episode 109: The Evidence Room

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/07/23

Local police department evidence rooms are vital, sensitive places, and a lot rides on managing them well. On this episode, we talk with Hope Martin, evidence manager for the Madison Police Department and board member with the International Association for Property and Evidence, who takes us inside the typical evidence room and runs down the best practices and mentalities for smart, secure management. More about Hope Martin and IAPE: https://welcome.iape.org/2024/02/14/hope-martin/

en

36:09

Episode 108: Staying Ahead of Evolving Cyber Threats

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/06/25

How do we keep our online systems, and by extension our communities, safe as cyber threats constantly advance and evolve? Yes, we can have all the best security software and so on. But it's also about human behavior, planning and response. On this episode, we talk with NCLM's director of information technology, Sunil Rajan, about the kinds of cyber threats that local governments, vendors and organizations face today, how these threats have evolved, and how to stay ahead of them.

en

01:13:31

Episode 107: Five Legal Topics Every Local Elected...

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/05/28

If you're a local elected official, it's important to understand the legal framework of the role and that of the governing board — what you can do, and what you can't, by law -- and it's not always handy, common knowledge. Attorneys at NCLM and in-house with cities and towns across the state specialize in these points, though, and so we've brought NCLM Senior Assistant General Counsel Ben Mount to the podcast to go over the basics and lesser-knowns. Here, we discuss five legal topics we think every

en

43:38

Episode 106: Youth in Local Government

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/04/23

Helping your community's young people feel connected with their local government can go a long way, according to multiple local government leaders we talk with on this episode. Gibsonville Mayor Bryant Crisp, Dallas Mayor Hayley Beaty, Albemarle Mayor Pro Tem Martha Sue Hall (NCLM's 2025-26 president) and more share perspectives and personal stories of programs, initiatives and mentoring efforts that link youths and city halls for rippling mutual benefit. The "Mayor For a Day" concept, municipal

en

27:26

Episode 105: Data Center Dialogue

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/03/26

Data centers have made frequent headlines as communities have taken varying positions on them. For some, concerns about environmental impact, energy consumption, noise, property values and other angles have led to leaders to say their town is not the place for them, while other communities have worked with data center developers and granted approvals for their development after exploring the essentials. On this episode, we talk with Statesville City Manager Ron Smith about the conversation and steps

en

27:56

Episode 104: Digital Government & ADA Compliance

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/03/26

The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, is the federal legislation requiring equal access to jobs and public places for people with disabilities. It also applies to the public digital realm, like with government websites and apps -- and deadlines are coming up for local governments to get into compliance. The League has been putting out info to help municipalities understand and meet the federal requirements and has a hub on its website with resources and explanations. For this episode, we've

en

32:20

Episode 103: Basics & Quirks of Public Records Law

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/02/26

North Carolina's public records law is one of the most valued on the state books, but there's a lot to know about it between the basics and the interesting quirks. NCLM Assistant General Counsel Baxter Wells, our guest on this episode, knows the gamut of questions that come up about public records law -- what constitutes a public record, what does not, how direct messages on government social media and other newer forms of communication are treated, what responsibilities exist with old records, what

en

32:51

Episode 102: Housing Affordability and Local Efforts...

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2026/01/22

Like in other fast-growing states or regions, housing affordability can be a difficult, sometimes persistent, issue for North Carolina communities. Wilmington, in the southeast, is no exception, but it's among cities working on the issue with priority and results that are expanding local options. On this episode, we ask Mayor Bill Saffo, chairman of the NC Metropolitan Mayors Coalition, about the nature of the issue in his area and how local efforts and partnerships have made a difference.

en

23:32

Episode 101: Tour of Takeaways '25

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/12/19

The League's Municipal Equation podcast closes out 2025 with a through-line on the year, with takeaways from monthly episodes and their common feature of people working as one to advance all. Since its inception, Municipal Equation has been about idea-sharing and exploration of local government's many interesting stories. We'd like to thank all of our expert guests and you for being such a supportive and responsive audience with great feedback and ideas for future content. Together, we released our

en

16:57

Episode 100: Shop With A Cop

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/11/25

We've had many great occasions on this podcast to highlight different ways local governments maintain warmth and trust with the community. For our 100th episode, coinciding with Thanksgiving week, we chat with the Town of Davidson about its Shop With A Cop program underway right now, in which local police officers give children from economically disadvantaged families an unforgettable holiday experience. Other towns have similiar initiatives; Davidson walks us through how theirs works, how its

en

22:53

Episode 99: Clerks

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/10/23

This historic, fascinating and expansive world of municipal clerks is the focus our latest episode. Folks who believe clerks mostly just serve to prepare agenda packets and record council vote outcomes might be surprised by how far and wide the job goes. It’s one of the most public-facing roles in town hall; generally, the clerk is the one employee that law requires municipal governments to have. Municipal Equation traveled to Cherokee recently for the annual conference and 50th anniversary of the

en

37:08

Episode 98: From the 'Top of the Arc'

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/09/25

Cary Town Manager Sean Stegall is on the podcast discussing his new book, "." From the book's promotional materials: "Instilling a 'people first' philosophy, Stegall and the elected Cary Town Council are reshaping local government through collaboration, experimentation, innovation, and adaptation. Cary remains an exceptional place to call home, an inspiring destination for visitors, and a compelling case study for helping keep cities strong."

en

30:56

Episode 97: Renew NC, Rebuilding from Helene (One...

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/09/25

We're joined by Stephanie McGarrah of the NC Department of Commerce for a discussion of resources to rebuild homes that Hurricane Helene damaged or destroyed in the North Carolina mountains exactly one year ago. We cover the Renew NC initiative, its Single-Family Housing Program (https://renewnc.org/), and other relief, including free assistance that NCLM offers, for the people of western NC.

en

39:15

Episode 96: Building a Town Center

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/08/27

As with other episodes of Municipal Equation, this one originated from a casual, hallway conversation with a local government official. In this instance, podcast host Ben Brown was chatting at a League event with Mayor TJ Cawley of Morrisville, who'd noted the progress there in a major project to essentially build a downtown from scratch, as Morrisville up to this point hasn't had one. The idea is to create that convergence of residence, business variety, fun and identity that can bring locals

en

42:41

Episode 95: Municipal EVs

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/07/24

Are electric vehicles, or EVs, right for your municipal fleet? They've surged in everyday popularity over the past 20 years and now are available from most of the mainstream automakers. Increasingly, governments and agencies are bringing on EVs, and peers are researching the merits. But EVs have evolved a lot, and it's easy to talk about them in general conversation with outdated info. So, we reached out to an expert to better understand today's context and possibilities with municipal government

en

26:05

Episode 94: Civic Trust, Together (With Matt Lehrman)

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/06/26

Public leaders often find themselves in situations of disagreement -- and that's not inherently bad. "Effective leadership isn't about avoiding disagreement," says Matt Lehrman, a civic facilitator and past CityVision keynote speaker. He adds: "Disagreement isn't just natural; it's necessary." On this half-hour episode, Lehrman of Social Prosperity Partners circles back with Municipal Equation to go over the overarching importance of a shared sense of purpose and effective communication points so

en

47:35

Episode 93: Marion's GEM, Sanford's RISE

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/05/22

One of Municipal Equation’s favorite topics to cover is the kind of partnership and idea-sharing that can make success easier for everyone. When the City of Marion learned about a commerce-boosting concept that seemed to work for other cities, they tried it, and it worked for them. When the City of Sanford learned about it from Marion, they tried it, and it worked for them, too. In this instance, it was two cities in separate parts of the state with the initiative to directly trade know-how, and it

en

30:53

Episode 92: For the COOP (Continuity of Operations)

Municipal Equation Podcast ·

2025/04/24

Emergencies happen, and sometimes at scales that surprise us. We can shrug, or we can invest that sensitivity. That goes for all of us, and our shared stakes in the kind of local governance that can keep vital functions going for communities amid disruptive wildcards like hurricanes or other natural disasters. More than a basic conversation for our cities and towns, it's filled with varying nuance, science and new technologies for better outcomes. Deeply familiar with the subject is Bill Hollingsed,

en

All Episodes

Similar Podcasts

Best of News Talk 590 WVLK AM

NewsTalk 590 WVLK | Cumulus Media...

הרגולטור - פודקאסט על מדיניות רגולציה

גיא מור

While We Still Can

Tina Langland and Lisa Rollison

OpenMHz

OpenMHz

Open mic with comedian RICKY COLE

Comedian RICKY COLE