NACo Legislative Conference 2024 | National Association of Counties (NACO) | 10 February 2024 | Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Avenue NW Washington, DC 20009, USA

This event in between the urban Adams Morgan & Dupont Circle neighborhoods, The Washington Hilton will host all conference sessions unless otherwise noted in the program. Special rates have been secured at both the Hilton and the Churchill Hotel, but you must register for the conference before booking your room. All conference sessions will be held at the Washington Hilton unless otherwise noted in the program. Inventory at the Hilton is extremely limited and may indicate sold out status for your dates; we recommend booking a room at one of the overflow rooms if you cannot book at the Hilton.

2024 Speakers

Jane Cage
Volunteer Chairman, Citizens Advisory Recovery Team, Joplin, Mo.

Tim Gleason
City Manager, Bloomington, Ill.

Linda Langston
Consultant, Langston Strategies Group; former NACo President

Hon. Andy Brown
County Judge, Travis County, Texas

Guy Cavallo
CIO and CAIO, U.S. Office of Personnel Management

Jayson Dunn
Executive Government Advisor, Amazon Web Services

Sybil Gurney
Assistant Chief Information Officer, Alameda County, Calif.

Toni Holmes
Executive Director, Department of Talent Management, Rockdale County, Ga.

Bob Kennedy
CIO, Lehigh County, Pa.

Dessie Calihou
Director of Human Resources, Benefits, Wellness & Risk Manager, Dunn County, N.D.

Julia Kocis
Director, Regional Intelligence and Investigation Center, Lehigh County, Pa.

Kenneth Lennon
Chief Digital Officer, Montgomery County, Md.

Tom Lynch
Chief Information Officer, Cook County, Ill.

Mary Jo McGuire
NACo President; Commissioner, Ramsey County, Minn.

Danni Melton-Russell
IT Policy Analyst, Montgomery County, Md.

Matt Peters
Chief Technology Officer, CAI

Deiva Ramachandran
Partner, Generative AI Automation Leader, Public Market, IBM Consulting

Gail Roper
CIO, Montgomery County, Md.

David Smith
CIO, San Diego County, Calif.

Shannon Smith
Chief of Staff, Information Technology Department, King County, Wash.

Shayna Taqi
Chief Change Officer, Montgomery County, Md.

Ken Wolsey
Partner, Project Delivery Executive, IBM

Hon. Gregg Weiss
Commissioner, Palm Beach County, Fla.

Dr. Jim Barham
Chief Data Officer; Director, Data Analytics Division, USDA Rural Development

DeShawn Blanding
Senior Policy Analyst, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture

Brandon McBride
Executive Director, Appalachian Regional Commission

Mikayla Bodey
Senior Professional Staff Member, U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Nutrition

Hon. Leslie Meyer
Commissioner, Audrain County, Mo.

Tom Morris
Associate Administrator for Rural Health Policy, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Doson Nguyen
Legislative Affairs Manager, National Rural Health Association

Kennedy O'Dell
Appropriations and Economic Development Director, Office of U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa.)

Hon. Kevin Paap
Commissioner, Blue Earth County, Minn.

Anthony Pipa
Senior Fellow, Center for Sustainable Development, Brookings Institution

Jacqueline Ponti-Lazaruk
Chief Innovation Officer, USDA Rural Development

Eric Slee
Senior Professional Staff, U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Nutrition

Christopher Stever
Branch Chief, Community Solutions, USDA Rural Development

Ted Stiger
Chief External Affairs and Policy Officer, Rural Community Assistance Partnership

Dr. Steven Thomson
National Program Leader, Division of Agricultural Systems, USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Hon. Terry Wilbur
Chair, Agriculture and Rural Affairs Steering Committee

Joaquin Altoro
Administrator, Rural Housing Service

Craig Buerstatte
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regional Affairs, U.S. Economic Development Administration

Mirelle Burgoyne
Deputy Executive Director, National Association of Development Organizations

Brian Cummings
Director, Economic and Workforce Development, Bucks County, Pa.

Taylor Maag
Director of Workforce Development Policy, Progressive Policy Institute

Atissa Ladjevardian
Acting Director of External and Government Affairs, CHIPS Office, National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S. Department of Commerce

Claudia Monterrosa
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Grant Programs, Office of Community Planning and Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Sarah Alexander
Energy and Coastal Policy Advisor, Office of U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy

Susan Bodine
Partner, Earth & Water Law

Ashley Campbell
Counsel, Sher Edling LLP

Carlos Castillo
Senior Vice President, Chief Development Officer, Tidal Basin

Hon. Archie Chaisson, III
President, Lafourche Parish, La.

Erich Eiselt
Deputy General Counsel and Director of Legal Advocacy, International Municipal Lawyers Association

Ken Graham
Director, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Nancy Gilbert
Economic Development Integrator, Economic Development Administration

Heather Kimball
Council Chair, Hawai‘i County, Hawai’i

Jorianne Jerberg
Director of the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Program, Office of Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Chris Moody
Regulatory Technical Manager, American Water Works Association

Steve Polacek
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator, Water and Environmental Programs, Rural Utilities Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Richard Auxier
Principal Policy Associate, Tax Policy Center

Joel Black
Chair, Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB)

Christina Crue
Principal, Deloitte

David Eicenthal
Senior Policy Advisor, Policy Implementation and Delivery, U.S. Department of Treasury

Hon. Scott Erickson
County Clerk, Knox County, Ill.

Hon. Ricky Hatch
Auditor/Clerk, Weber County, Utah

Hon. Curtis Koch
County Auditor, Davis County, Utah

Hon. Alexander Mirabella
Commissioner, Union County, N.J.

Rachele Trigueros
Manager, Local and State Government Engagement, Visa

Dr. Nadia Anderson
Senior Vice President/Chief of Staff and Strategy, Silicon Valley Leadership Group

Lauren Battle
Health Policy Advisor, U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.)

Hon. Tarenia Carthan
Commissioner, Douglas County, Ga.

Dr. Richard Cho
Senior Advisor for Housing and Services, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Eduardo Cisneros
Acting Principal Deputy Director, Intergovernmental and External Affairs, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Secretary

Kellie Kubena
Rural Health Liaison, Rural Development Innovation Center, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Dr. Jessica Lee
Acting Chief Medical Officer, Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)

Hon. Greg Puckett
Commissioner, Mercer County, W.Va

Hon. Helen Stone
Commissioner, Chatham County Ga.

Joy Bivens
Deputy Administrator for Health and Human Services, Franklin County, Ohio

Chris Coudriet
County Manager, New Hanover County, North Carolina

Debra Johnson
Deputy Assistant Secretary for External Affairs, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Hon. Rebecca Jones Gaston
Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Lizzy Letter
Majority Staff Director, U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging

Cindy Long
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Rebecca Nathanson
Deputy Policy Director on Women, Children and Families, U.S. Senate Finance Committee

Marci Phillips
Director of Public Policy & Advocacy, National Council on Aging

Liz Ryan
Administrator, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice

Ruth Ryder
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education

Hon. Toyia Tucker
Councilor, Columbus-Muscogee County, Ga

Cheryl Vincent
Majority Staff Director, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Worker and Family Support

Hon. Alma Adams
U.S. Representative (D–N.C.)

Bill Braniff
Director, Center for Prevention, Programs and Partnerships (CP3), DHS

Hon. George Dunlap
Chairman of the Board, Mecklenburg County, N.C.

Ken Graham
Director, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Greg Jackson
Deputy Director, White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention

Hon. Sara Knizhnik
Board Member, Lake County, Ill.

Tierra Lemon
Director, Gun Violence Prevention Initiative, Lake County, Ill.

Samantha Medlock
Assistant Administrator, Office of Resilience Strategy, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Hon. Amy Solomon
Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice

Rob Wilcox
Deputy Director, White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention

Lucinda Andreani
Deputy County Manager, Coconino County, Ariz.

Tyson Bertone-Riggs
Coordinator, Federal Wildland Fire Commission

Hon. Kathy Chandler-Henry
Commissioner, Eagle County, Colo.

Hon. William Cox
Commissioner, Rich County, Utah

Hon. Heidi Hall
Supervisor, Nevada County, Calif.

Troy Heithecker
Associate Deputy Chief, U.S. Forest Service

Sigrid Johannes
Director, Public Lands Council

Brandon Miller
Professional Staff Member, U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources

Shimiki Ross
National Housing Project Manager, U.S. Forest Service

Hon. Nina Waters
Commissioner, Summit County, Colo.

Hon. Jennifer Clark
Board Member, Lake County, Ill.

Hon. Scott Erickson
County Clerk, Knox County, Ill.

Evan Feinman
Director of Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), U.S. Department of Commerce

Michael Knapp
CEO & Co-Founder, SkillSmart

Alejandro Roark
Chief, Consumer and Government Affairs Bureau, Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Ji Soo
Digital Equity Advisor, Office of Educational Technology, U.S. Department of Education

Wyatt Sterusky
Director of State and Local Government, Guidehouse

Rachele Trigueros
Manager, Local and State Government Engagement, Visa

Hon. Gregg Weiss
Commissioner, Palm Beach County, Fla.

Meredith Williams
Assistant Vice President, Executive Branch, AT&T

Brian Bell
Democratic Staff Director, U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation

Jeff Blue
County Engineer, Champaign County, Ill.

Frances Bourne
Staff Director, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials

Michael Gaynor
Assistant Vice President, Field Operations, GORAIL

Eileen Higgins
Commissioner, Miami-Dade County, Fla.; Chair, NACo Transportation Policy Steering Committee

Ward McCarragher
Vice President of Government Affairs and Advocacy, American Public Transportation Association

Jackie Schmitz
Democratic Staff Director, Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

Lucinda Andreani
Deputy County Manager, Coconino County, Ariz.

Tyson Bertone-Riggs
Coordinator, Federal Wildland Fire Commission

Zander Bonorris
Director of Partnerships, Vibrant Planet

Hon. William Cox
Commissioner, Rich County, Utah

Jordan Smith
Executive Director, National Endangered Species Act Reform Coalition

Ben Caruso
Practice Leader, Juniper Networks

Hon. Kevin Boozel
Commissioner, Butler County, Pa.

Patrick Bresnahan, PhD
Geographic Information Officer, Richland County, S.C.

Hon. Reid Demman
Surveyor, Salt Lake County, Utah

Richard Leadbeater
Global Manager: State/Provincial Government Industry Solutions and Government Trade Associations, Esri

Jason Livingood
Vice President, Technology Policy, Product & Standards, Comcast

Elizabeth Lo
IT Director, Bedford County, Va.

Michael Palacios
IT Network Director, Fairfax County, Va.

Linda Thompson
Chief Diversity and Equity Officer, New Hanover County, N.C.

Hon. Kenton Ward
Surveyor, Hamilton County, Ind.

Mark Koumans
Operations Support Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner, CBP, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Margie McHugh
Director, National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy, Migration Policy Institute

Stacey Street
Director of Office of Grants Administration, FEMA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Randy Cohen
Vice President of Research, Americans for the Arts

Jay Dick
Senior Director of State and Local Government Affairs, Americans for the Arts

Hon. Mary Hamann-Roland
Commissioner, Dakota County, Minn.

Hon. Debbie Lieberman
Commissioner, Montgomery County, Ohio

Aaron Myers
Executive Director, DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities

Kate Gordon
Visiting Scholar, UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and Former Senior Advisor to Secretary Jennifer Granholm at U.S. Department of Energy

Kristen Granier
Director of Federal Infrastructure Policy, Entergy Services

Heather Kimball
Council Chair, Hawai‘i County, Hawai’i

Hon. Xavier Becerra
Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Hon. Adrianne Todman
Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Hon. Kathryn Barger
Supervisor, Los Angeles County, Calif.

Hon. David Crowley
County Executive, Milwaukee County, Wis.

Andi Lipstein Fristedt
Deputy Director for Policy, Communications and Legislative Affairs, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Hon. Adrian Garcia
Commissioner, Harris County, Texas

Dr. Luisa Godinez-Puig
Equity Scholar & Senior Research Associate, Urban Institute

Hon. Nicole Love Hendrickson
Commissioner, Gwinnet County, Ga.

Nicholas Merriam
Vice President of Programs and Operations, Housing Connector

Taylor Marr
Senior Housing Economist, Airbnb

Desmond Brown
Principal Assistant Director, Office of Consumer Populations, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Hon. Tarryl Clark
Commissioner, Stearns County, Minn. and Chair, Telecommunications and Technology Steering Committee

Courtney Dozier
Deputy Director, Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, National Telecommunications & Information Administration

K. "Gandhi" Eswaramoorthy
Senior Program Manager, Consumer Credit, Payments, and Deposits Markets, U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Hon. Tracey Johnson
Commissioner, Washington County, N.C., Immediate Past President, North Carolina Association of County Commissioners

Kathleen Metzger
Deputy Director, Veterans Transportation Program, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Patricia Pudwill
Small State and Rural Advocate, FEMA Office of External Affairs - Intergovernmental Relations

Hon. Vance Stuehrenberg
Subcommittee Vice Chair, NACo Transportation Committee Highway/Highway Safety Subcommittee; Commissioner, Blue Earth County, Minn.

Marci Andino
Senior Director, Election Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center

Jennifer Bensi
Senior Strategic SLED Account Executive

Hon. Terry Burroughs
Commissioner, Okeechobee County, Fla. and Vice Chair, Telecommunications and Technology Steering Committee

John Matelski
Vice Chair, NACo Technology and Telecommunications Committee Chief Information Office, DeKalb County, Ga.

Tim Oliver
Chief Information Officer, Horry County, S.C.

John Regula
Chief Information Officer, Bucks County, Penn.

Justin Schools
Assistant CIO, Horry County, S.C.

Juan Torres
Chief Information Officer, Franklin County, Ohio

Hon. Gregg Weiss
Commissioner, Palm Beach County, Fla.

Richard Leadbeater
Global Manager: State/Provincial Government Industry Solutions and Government Trade Associations, Esri

Hon. Mary Alford
Commissioner, Alachua County, Fla.

Sharmane Anderson
Deputy County Administrator, Clarendon County, S.C.

Hon. Orlando Trainer
Supervisor, Oktibbeha County, Miss.

Danielle Applegate
Board Chair, National Coalition of Homeless Veterans

Martin Caraway
Strategic Advisor and Veterans Service Officer Liaison, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Nichole Coleman
Director of Veterans Affairs, Hancock County, Ohio; Immediate Past President of National Association of County Veteran Service Officers (NACVSO)

Oliver Edelson
Legislative Director, U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.)

Todd Leatherman
Director, Center for Consumer Protection, National Association of Attorneys General

Hon. Trista Martinson
Commissioner, Ramsey County, Minn.

Daniel Mulatero
Partnership Manager, the National Council for Mental Health Wellbeing

Siobhan Norris
Vice Chair, NACo Veterans and Military Services Committee; Division Director, Veterans Services, Wake County, N.C.

Robert Rader
Sr. Client Development Manager, the National Council for Mental Health Wellbeing

Kayla Williams
Senior Policy Researcher, RAND Corporation

Tim Crouch
Chief Strategy Officer, Choose NJ

Guillermo Mazier
SVP Global Business, fDi Intelligence, Financial Times

Jasjit Singh
Executive Director, SelectUSA, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce

Hon. Robert Bender
Commissioner, Escambia County, Fla.

Ken Graham
Director, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Erik Milito
President, National Ocean Industries Association

Noah Patton
Senior Policy Analyst - Disaster Recovery, National Low Income Housing Coalition

Brad Fitch
President & CEO, Congressional Management Foundation

Stephen J. Acquario, Esq.
Executive Director, New York State Association of Counties

Jennifer Henning
Executive Director, County Counsels’ Association of California

Amanda Karras
Executive Director / General Counsel

Christian D. Menefee
County Attorney, Harris County, Texas

Eileen Higgins
Commissioner, Miami-Dade County, Fla.; Chair, NACo Transportation Policy Steering Committee

Kevan Stone
Executive Director, National Association of County Engineers

Dr. Donna Phillips
Vice President & Chief Program Officer, Center for Civic Education

Ryan Whalen
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Implementation, The White House

Hon. Lorraine Cochran-Johnson
Commissioner, DeKalb County, Ga.

Hon. Rhonda Duggan
Supervisor, Mono County, Calif.

Josh Harvill
County Engineer, Chambers County, Ala.; Vice President, Southeast Region, National Association of County Engineers

Hon. Eileen Higgins
Commissioner, Miami-Dade County, Fla.; Chair, NACo Transportation Policy Steering Committee

Matt Machadom
Deputy Chief Administrative Officer and Director of Community Development & Infrastructure, Santa Cruz County, Calif.

Sanjay Patnaik
Director - Center on Regulation and Markets, Bernard L. Schwartz Chair in Economic Policy Development; Senior Fellow - Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution

Hon. Sheila Rutledge
Board Member, DuPage County, Ill.

Theresa Cardinal Brown
Senior Advisor, Immigration and Border Policy, Bipartisan Policy Center

Hon. Todd Devlin
Commissioner, Prairie County, Mont.

Troy Heithecker
Associate Deputy Chief, U.S. Forest Service

Hon. Wes McCart
Commissioner, Stevens County, Wash.

Edward Belk
Director of Civil Works, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Linnea Saby
Knauss Sea Grant Legislative Fellow, Committee on Environment and Public Works, U.S. Senate