President Biden to address 2023 NACo Legislative Conference

President Joe Biden addresses county officials Tuesday at the 2022 NACo Legislative Conference at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. Photo by Denny Henry
Error message
In order to filter by the "in queue" property, you need to add the Entityqueue: Queue relationship.-
County NewsPresident Biden will join the Feb. 14 General Session at the NACo Legislative Conference.President Biden to address 2023 NACo Legislative Conference
-
County News Article
President Biden to address 2023 NACo Legislative Conference
Fresh off his State of the Union address last week, President Joe Biden will head to NACo’s Legislative Conference Tuesday, Feb. 14 for a speech to county officials at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C.
Nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials from around the country are in Washington, D.C. this week focusing on federal policy issues at the conference, which kicked off Friday, Feb. 10 and continues through Tuesday, Feb. 14. Attendees are engaging in policy sessions, meeting members of the 118th Congress and interacting with federal agency officials.
County officials will meet with their counterparts and hear from the administration and others on issues important to their counties — from mental health and broadband to affordable housing and wildfire and resiliency.
Presidents have a long tradition of visiting NACo conferences — including Presidents Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama.
In his State of the Union address Feb. 7, Biden talked about helping “people that have been forgotten.”
“My economic plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten,” he said. “Amid the economic upheaval of the past four decades, too many people have been left behind or treated like they’re invisible.”
During a time of cultural divide, the president preached bipartisanship during his address. “Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflicts, gets us nowhere,” he said. “And that’s always been my vision for the country: to restore the soul of the nation, to rebuild the backbone of America: the middle class, to unite the country.”
Learn more
Watch President Biden's remarks live
Biden spoke at the 2022 Legislative Conference
Biden’s political career began as a county official in New Castle County, Del., where he served as a councilman for two years. In 1970, 27-year-old Biden was first elected to public office as the New Castle County, Del. Council Member for the 4th District.
He served on the council for two years before making a bid to run for the U.S. Senate where he was elected as the sixth-youngest U.S. Senator in the country’s history.
Current New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer recalled a story during the December 2020 NACo Board of Directors meeting that Biden had told him about his time as council member when a constituent insisted a dead animal immediately be removed from her street. Biden arrived in a pickup truck and removed the animal himself that night.
“We’re so fortunate to have a president-elect who understands what it is like to stand in our shoes as county officials,” Meyer said.
During the same meeting, Biden recalled his county experience and emphasized the difficult positions county officials are often put into and the public’s lack of understanding about the role of local governments.
“I’d knock on the door as a 26-year-old kid when I started and say ‘Hello, my name is Joe Biden, candidate for the county Council.’ They’d look at me and I know they were wondering — What the hell does a county Council do?” he said.
Biden said county officials are the “single most consequential government officials.”
“You’re also the basis upon which people have faith or don’t have faith in government,” he said. “It’s all local.”
President Biden will join the Feb. 14 General Session at the NACo Legislative Conference.2023-02-10County News Article2023-02-10
Fresh off his State of the Union address last week, President Joe Biden will head to NACo’s Legislative Conference Tuesday, Feb. 14 for a speech to county officials at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C.
Nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials from around the country are in Washington, D.C. this week focusing on federal policy issues at the conference, which kicked off Friday, Feb. 10 and continues through Tuesday, Feb. 14. Attendees are engaging in policy sessions, meeting members of the 118th Congress and interacting with federal agency officials.
County officials will meet with their counterparts and hear from the administration and others on issues important to their counties — from mental health and broadband to affordable housing and wildfire and resiliency.
Presidents have a long tradition of visiting NACo conferences — including Presidents Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama.
In his State of the Union address Feb. 7, Biden talked about helping “people that have been forgotten.”
“My economic plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten,” he said. “Amid the economic upheaval of the past four decades, too many people have been left behind or treated like they’re invisible.”
During a time of cultural divide, the president preached bipartisanship during his address. “Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflicts, gets us nowhere,” he said. “And that’s always been my vision for the country: to restore the soul of the nation, to rebuild the backbone of America: the middle class, to unite the country.”
Learn more
Biden’s political career began as a county official in New Castle County, Del., where he served as a councilman for two years. In 1970, 27-year-old Biden was first elected to public office as the New Castle County, Del. Council Member for the 4th District.
He served on the council for two years before making a bid to run for the U.S. Senate where he was elected as the sixth-youngest U.S. Senator in the country’s history.
Current New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer recalled a story during the December 2020 NACo Board of Directors meeting that Biden had told him about his time as council member when a constituent insisted a dead animal immediately be removed from her street. Biden arrived in a pickup truck and removed the animal himself that night.
“We’re so fortunate to have a president-elect who understands what it is like to stand in our shoes as county officials,” Meyer said.
During the same meeting, Biden recalled his county experience and emphasized the difficult positions county officials are often put into and the public’s lack of understanding about the role of local governments.
“I’d knock on the door as a 26-year-old kid when I started and say ‘Hello, my name is Joe Biden, candidate for the county Council.’ They’d look at me and I know they were wondering — What the hell does a county Council do?” he said.
Biden said county officials are the “single most consequential government officials.”
“You’re also the basis upon which people have faith or don’t have faith in government,” he said. “It’s all local.”
Hero 1
About Mary Ann Barton (Full Bio)
County News Editor & Senior Writer
Mary Ann is the County News editor and senior staff writer and is returning to NACo after previously working at the association. She comes to NACo after covering local news for Patch.com in Northern Virginia.More from Mary Ann Barton
-
-
Reports & Toolkits
Strengthening Local Economies through the Recovery Fund: Executive Summary
NACo's report examines how counties are leveraging American Rescue Plan resources to support communities and rebuild the economy, even as the pandemic continues to affect jobs, public health, housing, and more. -
Reports & Toolkits
American Rescue Plan Resource Hub
In March of 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 authorized the $350 billion State and Local Coronavirus Fiscal Recovery Fund (Recovery Fund), which provided $65.1 billion in direct, flexible aid to every county in America. -
Blog
President Biden releases FY 2024 budget request that includes county priorities
On March 9, 2023, President Biden released his fiscal year (FY) 2024 budget request outlining the administration’s proposal for federal spending for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2024. -
Video
Counties testify on our role in evolving federal land management challenges
Carbon County, Wyo. Commissioner John Espy testifies how counties are best suited to assist federal land managers navigate evolving management challenges.
-
Conference
2023 NACo Fall Board Meeting
November 30, 2023 – December 2, 2023Save the date to join county leaders for NACo's Fall Board of Directors MeetingRamsey County (St. Paul), Minn.113011:00 am<h3>Save the Date</h3>
<p>Save the date to join county leaders for NACo's Fall Board of Directors Meeting in Ramsey County (St. Paul), Minn. Nov. 30 – Dec. 2.</p>
-
Basic page
NACo High Performance Leadership Academy
The NACo High Performance Leadership Academy is an online 12-week program that will empower frontline county government professionals with the most fundamental leadership skills to deliver results for counties and communities.pagepagepage<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width:100%" summary="medium-call-out transparent">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td> -
Basic page
Finance, Pensions & Intergovernmental Affairs Steering Committee
All matters pertaining to the financial resources of counties, fiscal management, federal assistance, municipal borrowing, county revenues, federal budget, federal tax reform, elections and Native American issues. Policy Platform & Resolutions 2022-2023 2022 NACo Legislative Prioritiespagepagepage<p>All matters pertaining to the financial resources of counties, fiscal management, federal assistance, municipal borrowing, county revenues, federal budget, federal tax reform, elections and Native American issues.</p>
Contact
-
County News Editor & Senior Writer(202) 942-4223
Related Resources
-
-
County News
2023 NACo second vice president candidates
Two candidates are running for a seat on NACo's executive committee as second vice president. The election will be held July 24 at NACo's Annual Conference in Travis County, Texas. Meet the candidates: -
County News
Meet the Candidates: J.D. Clark
J.D. Clark Judge Wise County, Texas Why are you interested in serving as a NACo officer?
-
Video
2023 #NACoLeg Video Recaps
Check out NACo's video recaps and catch up on all of the action from the 2023 NACo Legislative Conference. Tuesday, February 14 Watch Video -
Video
#NACoLeg – Day Four Video Recap
Watch our daily video recap from the 2022 NACo Legislative and catch up on all of the day's action. -
Video
2022 NACo Legislative Conference Tuesday General Session
Tuesday, February 15 at 9:30 a.m. EST
Related Events
-
30Nov2023Conference
2023 NACo Fall Board Meeting
Nov. 30, 2023 – Dec. 2, 2023Ramsey County (St. Paul), Minn.
More From
-
President Joe Biden addresses county officials
President Joe Biden addresses county leaders at the 2023 NACo Legislative Conference.
Learn More