ICMA: Leaders at the Core of Better Communities

Each time we turn on the tap in our kitchens, set the trash out for pickup the next day, or cruise through our neighborhoods on newly paved roads, we access our local governments. Providing essential community services that ensure the quality of our lives is what local government is all about.

Founded in 1914, ICMA, the International City/County Management Association, advances professional local government worldwide. Our mission and vision is to create excellence in local governance by developing and fostering professional management to build sustainable communities that improve people’s lives worldwide. ICMA provides member support; publications; data and information; peer and results-oriented assistance; and training and professional development to nearly 9,000 city, town, and county experts and other individuals and organizations throughout the world.  The management decisions made by ICMA’s members affect millions of individuals living in thousands of communities, from small villages and towns to large metropolitan areas.

ICMA’s primary audiences are  the professional city, town, and county managers who are appointed by elected officials to oversee the day-to-day operation of our communities.

ICMA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that offers a wide range of services to its members and the local government community. The organization is an internationally recognized publisher of information resources ranging from textbooks and survey data to topical newsletters and e-publications. ICMA provides technical assistance to local governments in emerging democracies, helping them to develop professional practices and ethical, transparent governments. The organization performs a wide range of mission-driven grant and contract-funded work both in the U.S. and Internationally, which is supported by federal government agencies, foundations, and corporations.