The Florida League of Cities 2026 Annual Conference Summary
Florida League of Cities 2026 Annual Conference Summary – August 2026
Submitted by Marlene Shaw, Vice Mayor, City of Gulfport
Thank you for the opportunity to attend the 2026 FLC Annual Conference.
There were two general sessions, each with an excellent keynote speaker. The first session keynote speaker was Doris Kearns Goodwin, world renowned presidential historian. The speaker for the second general session was Jefferson Fisher, New York Times bestselling author of The Next Conversation: Argue Less, Talk More, and founder of the Jefferson Fisher School of Communication.
The sessions, workshops, and meeting topics:
- Big Data, Bigger Impact regarding data centers
- I. in City Hall
- Leadership Lessons that Work
- A Property Tax Amendment General Session with Jeff Brandes, former Senator and House Representative, and in 2023, he launched the Florida Policy Project to provide evidence-based, data-driven research for Florida state lawmakers.
- Social Media for Cities
- Standing Behind Your Budget: Communicating Community Priorities
I also attended:
- The Federal Action Strike Team Meeting
- A Suncoast League of Cities Meeting
- And a Suncoast/Tri-County/Volusia League of Cities Meeting
There was well over one hundred exhibitors in the Great Hall and countless opportunities to talk with Mayors, Councilmembers, Commissioners, and City Managers from other Florida cities which allowed me to learn about their operations and practices.