Online registration for the Western Governors’ Association 2019 Annual Meeting in Vail, Colorado is closed. Onsite registration will be available at the Hotel Talisa lobby on Sunday, June 9 (1-5 p.m.). Registration will be available in the Talisa Ballroom Foyer on Monday, June 10 (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.), Tuesday, June 11 (7: 30 a.m. to 5 p.m.), and Wednesday, June 12 (7:30 to 11:30 a.m.). See agenda.
Twelve Western Governors have registered to attend, including: WGA Chair David Ige (Hawai’i), WGA Vice Chair Doug Burgum (North Dakota), Jared Polis (Colorado), Lourdes Leon Guerrero (Guam), Brad Little (Idaho), Laura Kelly (Kansas), Steve Sisolak (Nevada), Michelle Lujan Grisham (New Mexico), Kate Brown (Oregon), Kristi Noem (South Dakota), Gary Herbert (Utah) and Mark Gordon (Wyoming).
Gov. Ige will lead his fellow Western Governors in public discussions about issues in the region, including expansion of rural broadband, the critical role of forecasting in western water management, and the past year's work of the Western Governors’ Biosecurity and Invasive Species Initiative.
The final day of the meeting at the Hotel Talisa in Vail will feature a roundtable discussion by newly elected Western Governors. They will share their paths to office and the work they have embarked on in their states, including policy, economic development and beyond.
In addition, a number of Administration officials and high-profile guests will address attendees and participate in on-stage conversations with the Wetern Governors. Following is a look at the speaker schedule:
Secretary David Bernhardt: The Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior will discuss the department's work in the West and have an on-stage conversation with the Governors.
Rob Katz: The CEO of Vail Resorts, the premier global mountain resort operator with a portfolio that includes some of the West’s most iconic destinations, will speak on opening day.
Craig Johnson: The best-selling author's fictional Wyoming Sheriff Walt Longmire starred in a long-running A&E TV series. His latest Longmire book is The Depth of Winter.
Frank Luntz: The pollster whose “Instant Response” technique has made him one of the country's most influential communication professionals, will kick off Day Two with his insights on words that work.
Eric Boechler: The Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sergeant will speak about the harrowing growth of illicit fentanyl exports from China to Canada and its growing human cost.
Secretary Ben Carson: The U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development will discuss the department's work in the West and have an on-stage conversation with the Governors.
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