The Texas City Attorneys Association (TCAA) is proud to present the Twenty-First Annual Riley Fletcher Basic Municipal Law Seminar.

The seminar honors Riley Fletcher, who was an attorney for 25 years with the Texas Municipal League. During much of his tenure, Mr. Fletcher was the one and only TML attorney handling dozens of questions from city officials each day. By the time he retired in 1987 at the age of 75, he was a part-time “Special Counsel,” but was still able to answer virtually any question about municipal law by reciting the appropriate statute or court case from memory.

Mr. Fletcher passed away on September 1, 1998. This seminar is our way of letting his memory live on. He was truly loved by Texas city officials and gained the respect, admiration, and affection of thousands of people.

MCLE Hours

Participants will receive up to 8.0 MCLE hours, including .75 ethics hour.

Topics Include

Types of City Government
Open Meetings Act
Public Information Act
Purchasing
Personnel Law
Ethics
Economic Development
Election Law
And more!

Registration Opens

November 21, 2023

General Information

Seminar Materials

TCAA does not provide binders for speaker papers or printed materials of any kind. Instead, TCAA will put all speaker papers on the TCAA website at http://texascityattorneys.org/seminar-materials/ for attendees to download in advance, if they so desire. No written materials will be provided at the seminar location.

Cancellation and Substitution Policy

If you are registered and cannot attend, we encourage you to send a substitute. If you cannot send a substitute, a $35 cancellation fee will be assessed if written cancellation is received by February 1, 2024. No refunds will be honored after that date.

Location

The on-location seminar will be held at the Texas Municipal Center, 1821 Rutherford Lane, Austin, TX 78754. The seminar will be held in the first floor conference room. Instructions to access the Internet livecast will be sent to registrants prior to the event.

Special Accommodations

Let us know if you need special accommodations of any kind. In order to respond to any special requests, we would appreciate as much advance notice as possible. A limited number of vegetarian and/or gluten-free breakfast items and lunches will be ordered for on-location attendees. To ensure your dietary needs are met, please email Miguel Martinez at miguel@tml.org no later than January 31 with your requests.

Continuing Education Credit

MCLE credit is available for this event for up to 8 hours (including .75 ethics hour). Elected officials (mayors and councilmembers) can earn Texas Municipal League Institute (TMLI) credits for attending this seminar. CEU forms are available online. For further information on the TMLI program, please call us at 512-231-7400 or log on to TML’s website at www.tml.org.

How to Report MCLE Hours

Questions

Miguel Martinez / (512) 231-7400 / Miguel@tml.org

Registration

Register by January 19, 2024, and receive the discounted early registration fee of $190 ($210 non-members). For registrations received after January 19, the registration fee is $210 ($230 non-members).

For the on-location seminar, the registration fee includes tuition, access to the handouts online, lunch on Thursday, and refreshment breaks. For the Internet Livecast, the registration fee includes tuition, access to the handouts online, and live streaming video.

For the on-location seminar, the registration fee includes tuition, access to the handouts online, lunch on Thursday, and refreshment breaks. For the Internet Livecast, the registration fee includes tuition, access to the handouts online, and live streaming video.

In person attendee registration will be accepted online until room capacity is met. Mail-in registrations must be postmarked by January 31.

Hotel

A list of hotels near the Texas Municipal Center can be found here: https://www.tml.org/292/Hotels-Near-Texas-Municipal-League.

Agenda

Thursday, February 08

8:00–9:00 a.m.
Registration

8:50–9:00 a.m.
Moderator and Welcome
Slater Elza, Shareholder, Underwood Law Firm, P.C. and TCAA President

9:00–9:30 a.m.
Types of City Government • .5 hour
Stephanie Huser, Legal Counsel, Texas Municipal League

9:30–10:00 a.m.
Open Meetings Act • .5 hour
Laura Mueller, City Attorney, Dripping Springs

10:00–10:30 a.m.
Public Information Act • .5 hour
Mike Hayes, City Attorney, Kerrville

10:30–10:45 a.m.
Break

10:45–11:15 a.m.
Purchasing • .5 hour
Jeff Chapman, Partner, The Chapman Law Firm

11:15 a.m.–11:45 p.m.
Personnel Law • .5 hour
Melissa Cranford, Partner, Messer Fort, PLLC

11:45–12:15 p.m.
Pick Up Box Lunches
(Boxed lunches provided)

12:15–1:00 p.m.
Ethics • .75 hour
Jon Heining, General Counsel, Texas Legislative Council

1:00–1:30 p.m.
Economic Development (.5 hour)
Victor Flores, City Attorney, Mission

1:30–2:00 p.m.
Election Law • .5 hour
Heidi Martinez, Texas Secretary of State

2:00–2:15 p.m.
Break

2:15–2:45 p.m.
Code Enforcement • .5 hour
Maleshia B. McGinnis, City Attorney, North Richland Hills
2:45–3:15 p.m.
Municipal Court • .5 hour
Mark Goodner, General Counsel and Director of Education, Texas Municipal Courts Education Center

3:15p.m.
Adjourn

Friday, February 09

8:15–8:45 a.m.
Breakfast

8:45–9:15 a.m.
Municipal Liability • .5 hour
Sharae Reed, City Attorney, Beaumont

9:15–9:45 a.m.
Ordinances • .5 hour
Jennifer Richie, City Attorney, Waco

9:45–10:15 a.m.
Land Use • .5 hour
Julie Fort, Partner, Messer Fort, PLLC

10:15–10:30 a.m.
Break

10:30–11:00 a.m.
Parliamentary Procedure • .5 hour
Mary J. Kayser, Former City Secretary, Ft. Worth

11:00 a.m.–11:45 a.m.
Municipal Budgets and Finance • .75 hour
Kuruvilla Oommen, City Attorney, Irving

11:45 a.m.
Adjourn