News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Alpena County Commissioner John Kozlowski poses for a photo outside The News on Thursday. Kozlowski is going to the White House in Washington DC to participate in the State Leadership Conference.

ALPENA — Alpena County Commissioner John Kozlowski will meet with members of President Donald Trump’s administration when he visits Washington, D.C. next month.

Kozlowski and many other local government officials in Michigan are invited to participate in the White House State Leadership Conference, which is a series of conferences geared toward strengthening the relationship between federal and local governments.

This will be the second time Kozlowski will partake in the conference, as he also accepted an invitation in 2019 during Trump’s first term.

Alpena County will pick up a portion of the cost for Kozlowski to attend, and he will cover some costs himself.

Besides utilizing a direct line of communications with the White House and other federal officials, Kozlowski will also be able to network with other commissioners, city council members, and other local leaders from around Michigan, to brainstorm and problem solve.

The event on June 17 is one of many sessions for local government leaders scheduled at the White House this year.

At other sessions this year, topics like economic trends and workforce development, trade and global competitiveness, transportation and infrastructure needs, affordable housing and homelessness, and immigration and border communities were discussed and debated.

Kozlowski said making connections with other local officials and creating relationships with federal leaders is only a good thing for the county. He said the county deals with the State of Michigan often, but some matters and issues rise to the federal level, and to have resources to utilize in Washington is important.

The last time Kozlowski was at the conference, during one of the sessions, he was able to share concerns about a controversial issue involving the federal government and the Alpena area.

Kozlowski said in 2017, President Trump was considering reducing the size of the Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuary, and he was able to plead the area’s case on why it wasn’t a good idea and what the fallout locally would be.

“They wanted input and I was able to share my thoughts and give them input about the issue and explained why it was important to leave it alone,” he said. “I provided them with a local perspective that maybe they didn’t know. I’m not taking credit for it not happening, but it was a way to share our views and concerns.”

During his first conference at the White House, Kozlowski said he did not see President Trump. He said he is hopeful the president will say hello during one of the breakout sessions, but if not, Kozlowski said he understands.

“He’s been pretty busy,” he said. “The last time, though, we did get to meet and talk to some pretty senior officials.”

Kozlowski said he is going to make sure the financial burden of the trip is minimal for the county. He said his flight is only $130, and two nights in a hotel is $250 in total. He said he intends to use public transportation while in the nation’s capital, and he will cover the costs of his own meals and other expenses.

“It will look like it will be about $500,” he said.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@TheAlpenaNews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.