The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus is a membership organization of the Chicago region’s 275 cities, towns, and villages. Founded in 1997 by then Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and leading Mayors from nine suburban municipal groups, the Mayors Caucus pushes past geographical boundaries and local interests to work on public policy issues. The Caucus provides a forum for metropolitan Chicago’s chief elected officials to collaborate on common problems and work toward a common goal of improving the quality of life for the millions of people who call the region home.
The full Mayors Caucus membership meets on a quarterly basis and is governed by an Executive Board that meets bi-monthly. The Caucus also currently has twelve committees and task forces that meet regularly to address specific regional issues. Full-time Caucus staff members work closely with the board and committees to move forward key policies and implement regionally collaborative programs.
The Strengths of The Caucus
One of the great strengths of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus is its informal organization. With freedom and flexibility built in, the Caucus is structured for success. While each of its meetings has an agenda, discussion is wide-ranging and free-wheeling with Mayors sharing ideas and developing joint solutions and positions of consensus on critical municipal and regional issues.
The Mayors Caucus respects the different perspectives that all of its independent municipalities bring to the organization. All these voices are heard, differences are aired, and then consensus is built on a single vision and focus so the Caucus can leverage the strength of a unified position on key issues.
The municipal organizations that participate in the Caucus include the City of Chicago and nine partner suburban municipal groups – the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference, Lake County Municipal League, McHenry County Council of Governments, Metro West Council of Governments, Northwest Municipal Conference, South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association, Southwest Conference of Mayors, West Central Municipal Conference and Will County Governmental League. The member municipalities of each of these organizations are considered to also be members of the Mayors Caucus.
The above partner organizations each appoint one director and one alternate to serve on the Caucus’ Executive Board. The Board meets every other month and is charged with the responsibility of overseeing the general operations of the Caucus. The Board selects a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer.
Consensus remains the basis for decision-making and actions taken by the Caucus as a whole. For this reason, the decisions and positions taken by the Mayors Caucus are advisory to the City of Chicago, participating suburban municipal groups, and individual member municipalities. Each partner organization and each mayor may act on recommendations of the Caucus as they see fit. The organization remains strong and viable because it recognizes the power of unity while never forgetting the importance of independence, flexibility, and freedom.