The 2012 CEA finalists after being selected at the 2012 Capital Conference.

The Village of Lexington in Michigan’s Thumb region as well as Albion, South Haven and St. Joseph in the southern portion of the state are among the first communities to enter the Michigan Municipal League’s 2013 Community Excellence Award (CEA) competition.

The CEA is a spirited competition that recognizes innovative solutions taking place in MML-member communities. The contest officially gets under way during the League’s Capital Conference (April 9-10 in Lansing) but communities interested in participating can submit entry forms now at this link.

The small Village of Lexington, population 1,178, was the first to announce its entry into the CEA, affectionately called “The Race for the Cup” and St. Joseph, the 2007 winner of the Cup, and South Haven, and Albion entered this week. The League is seeking nominations from communities of all sizes from throughout the state. The 2012 winner was Grandville and you can view other past winners here. You can view past CEA presentations here.

Communities will compete in the first round of the competition during regional meetings at the League’s Capital Conference. Attendees of the Regional Roundtables will vote on the projects, and the regional winner will go on to compete at League's Annual Convention taking place in Detroit in September.

Remember, giving a five minute, “elevator pitch” style presentation at your Regional Roundtable at our Capital Conference is the ONLY way to enter!

Here's how to get involved in this year's CEA competition:

1.) Register: Click here for the online Community Excellence Award entry form.

2.) Prepare Entry: Prepare a five (5) minute verbal “elevator pitch” style presentation. Optional:  Bring a 2 x 3 ft display board of your project/initiative; we will display it on an easel during the meeting.

Matt Bach is director of media relations for the Michigan Municipal League. He can be reached at (734) 669-6317 and mbach@mml.org.

The Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation has asked the Michigan Municipal League to inform our members about the American Government Awards Program and how entries from Michigan communities are now being sought.

The timeline is tight - the deadline is March 1 - but your community has a chance to get a $100,000 grant to support replication and dissemination activities. In addition, top finalists will also receive monetary grants. Here are some details from the program officials: The application involves three simple questions that shouldn't take more than an hour or two to compose. Communities interested can go to this link. All units of government — federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial — from all policy areas are eligible to apply for recognition.

While we don't have $100,000 to award, the Michigan Municipal League also has a competition to recognize innovations taking place in Michigan communities. The League's Race for the Cup/Community Excellence Award competition will start next month during our 2012 Capital Conference. Competitors are given five minutes to present at their respective Regional Roundtable, held during the Capital Conference March 20 in Lansing. Following the presentations, the seminar attendees vote and the winner (for that region) is announced.

The seven region finalists go on to represent their communities in the final round at the League’s Annual Convention, where votes from every attendee are counted, and the winner is announced at the Convention’s final event. Click here for the online entry form. To register and/or learn more about Capital Conference go here: cc.mml.org.

Matt Bach is director of communications for the Michigan Municipal League. He can be reached at mbach@mml.org or (734) 669-6317.