Edwin L. Crawford Memorial Lecture in Municipal Law

The Government Law Center established the Edwin L. Crawford Memorial Lecture on Municipal Law in 1996 to honor the memory of Edwin L. Crawford, former executive director of the New York State Association of Counties. Held annually, the program strives to educate and promote dialogue on important and timely issues affecting local governments.

Past Programs

Implementing Sustainable Development at the Local Level (Nov. 17, 2023)

This program examined how statewide sustainable development initiatives impact local governments, the role of local governments in implementing them, existing sustainability initiatives in municipalities across the state, and the future of local action around sustainable development. Click to view the recording.

The program included a keynote address by Doreen M. Harris, President and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Two panel discussions addressed the role of local government in building decarbonization and investing in renewable energy, respectively. Panel participants included: Niki Armacost, Mayor of the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson, NY; Elizabeth Bough Martin, Mayor of the Village of Chittenango, NY; Rebecca Filbey, Team Lead, New Construction Program, NYSERDA; Madison Hertzog, New York City Mayor's Office of Climate and Environmental Justice; Jennifer Manierre, Director, Clean Energy Siting, NYSERDA; Malak Nassereddine, Senior Manager, New York Utility and Regulatory Policy, Building Decarbonization Coalition; Prof. Keith Hirokawa (moderator), Distinguished Professor of Law, Albany Law School; and Javid Afzali ’12 (moderator), Partner, Harris Beach, PLLC.

Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Technology: Potential Impacts on State and Local Government (Nov. 29, 2022)

This program examined the potential uses and effects of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology on state and local governments. Click to view the recording.

Panel participants included: Assembly Member Anna Kelles, New York State Assembly; Deborah Hoffman '96, Managing Associate General Counsel at Western Union and Co-director and Professor in the Financial Compliance and Risk Management Program at Albany Law School; Tanya Marshall, State Archivist and Chief Records Officer for the State of Vermont; Christopher C. Rosenquest, Mayor of the City of Plattsburgh, NY; and Antony Haynes (moderator), Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Director of Cybersecurity and Privacy Law, Professor of Law at Albany Law School.

Police-Community Relations: Moving Forward (April 23, 2015)
Lecture presented by the Hon. Sterling Johnson Jr., U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of New York. Followed by a panel discussion on the state of police-community relations in the City of Albany, featuring Albany’s Acting Chief of Police Brendan J. Cox; Dr. Alice P. Green, Executive Director of the Center for Law & Justice; Civil Rights Attorney Mark S. Mishler, Esq.; and The Rev. Dr. Edward B. Smart, Chairman of Albany’s Citizens’ Police Review Board. Prof. Christian B. Sundquist of Albany Law School moderated the program.

Fiscal Challenges Facing Local Governments (April 22, 2024)
Richard Ravitch, former Lieutenant Governor of New York and author of So Much to Do: A Full Life of Business, Politics, and Confronting Fiscal Crises

Insolvency: What Can a Municipality Do? (April 8, 2011)
Professor Clayton Gillette, Max E. Greenberg Professor of Contract Law at the New York University School of Law

The Integrity of Public Service: Lessons from Recent Municipal Corruption Investigations (April 15, 2009)
Ross Garber, Esq., Partner at Shipman & Goodwin

Guns and the City (Oct. 19, 2007)
Hon. Dennis W. Archer, Chairman of Dickinson Wright, PLLC, and former Mayor of Detroit, MI. The lecture was part of a two-day symposium on historical issues of the Second Amendment, called "Firearms, the Militia, and Safe Cities: Merging History, Constitutional Law, and Public Policy."

Municipal Disaster Preparedness and Response (Nov. 10, 2006)
Ernest Abbott, Esq., Founder and Principal of FEMA Law Associates, PLLC

Implications of the U.S. Supreme Court's Decision in KELO (Nov. 1, 2005)
Timothy J. Dowling, Esq., Chief Counsel for Community Rights Counsel, Washington, D.C.

Giving Life to Home Rule: The Case for Local Law Powers of New York Local Governments (Nov. 18, 2004)
A. Kevin Crawford, Esq., Counsel to the Association of Towns of the State of New York

Land Development Conditions: what's Legal and What's Not? (Oct. 22, 2003)
Professor David L. Callies, University of Hawaii, Richardson School of Law

The U.S. Supreme Court and State and Local Governments (Nov. 7, 2002)
Professor Robert L. Freilich, Professor Emeritus, UMKC School of Law. Speaker discussed the effects of recent US Supreme Court decisions in the areas of land use and federalism.

Religion and the Law: Implications for Local Governments (Feb. 7, 2002)
Prof. Jerold S. Kayden, Harvard Graduate School of Design and Principal Constitutional Counsel to the National Trust for Historic Preservation

Taxation of Internet Sales and the Impact on Today's Global, E-commerce Economy (Nov. 1, 2000)
Dan R. Bucks, Executive Director of the Multistate Tax Commission

Regulatory Takings Law: Finding Order and Logic in the Just Compensation Clause (Nov. 10, 1999)
Dwight H. Merriam, Esq., Robinson & Cole, LLP.

Smart Growth for New York (Feb. 22, 1999)
Mayor William A. Johnson Jr., City of Rochester, NY.

The Power of Partnerships (Dec. 18, 1997)
Patricia Woodworth, New York State Budget Director.

Local Government Fiscal Integrity (May 14, 1996)
Hon. H. Carl McCall, New York State Comptroller.