Nicole Lance has spent almost 13 years working in local government and now spends her time speaking, facilitating, coaching and training.

Nicole Lance has spent almost 13 years working in local government and now spends her time speaking, facilitating, coaching and training.

Lisa Garcia is the 2024-2025 President of IIMC. She began her journey in the municipal clerk’s profession with the Town of Florence, Arizona in 1994 as a Deputy Clerk. She was appointed Town Clerk in 1996 and Town Clerk/Deputy Town Manager in 2007. She continues in that capacity, leading the Clerk’s Office while also managing the Finance and Human Resources. Lisa served on the Arizona Municipal Clerk’s Association board from 2009-2016, serving as its president from 2012-2015. Lisa served as IIMC Region VII Director from 2019 to 2022 and was elected to IIMC Vice-President in 2022.

Lisa’s love for the role of the municipal clerk shines through in everything she does. This is evident in her commitment to lead the IIMC Region VIII Restructuring Task Force, which recommended splitting the Region to ensure better representation. Lisa has been actively involved in AMCA and IIMC throughout her career. Ms. Garcia has a bachelor’s degree in public administration, holds a certificate in Public Policy and Management, and is a Master Municipal Clerk.

Ben Bitter is an experienced City Manager, with expertise in personnel, economic development, planning, and financial management. He currently serves as the City Manager at the City of Maricopa, Arizona. He previously served as the Assistant to the Town Manager and Intergovernmental Relations and Communications Manager for the Town of Florence, Arizona. Prior to his time in Florence, Ben served the City of Ashland, Kentucky as its City Manager and the City of Casa Grande, Arizona as the Senior Management Analyst. In his career, he has confronted difficult challenges head-on, in order to benefit the community. For some, this has been to quadruple fund balances while managing through various disasters. For others, it has been to address longstanding personnel concerns. He has helped modernize and future-proof organizations through the implementation of new technologies and innovative strategies, and spread this work throughout the ICMA organization as Chair of its Digital Strategies Committee from 2019-2023. He has a B.A. from Brigham Young University in Political Science (with Minors in Spanish and Statistics), and an M.P.A. from Arizona State University. Ben received a certificate from the Senior Executives in State and Loval Government program at Harvard. He also holds a certificate of Management and Organizations from the University of Arizona and participated in the ICMA Emerging Leaders Development Program.

Jennifer Pena serves as the City Clerk for the City of Apache Junction. She began her career in the clerk's profession in the City of Peoria in 2001 and by 2002 became the Deputy City Clerk for the City of Litchfield Park. In 2013 Jennifer served in the City Clerk's office for the City of Chandler and in 2019 she became the City Clerk for the City of Apache Junction.

Over the years, like many clerks, she has worn many different hats. During her time at Litchfield Park, she served as the intergovernmental liaison and assistant to the mayor. This provided insight into the workings of the Maricopa Association of Governments, as the Mayor served on the Executive Committee, Transportation Committee, and Regional Council; The significant role the League of Arizona Cities and Towns has on legislative matters, self-governance for municipalities as the Mayor served on the League’s Executive Committee. She worked with other intergovs and consultants on preserving Luke AFB and efforts to remove it from the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) list.

Jennifer has served on several of the AMCA committees and the Executive Board. She served as a poll worker during a Presidential Election for the experience and recommends everyone try it at least once. She has been a member of AMCA and IIMC for the last 22 years.

Carla Reece hails from the quaint mining community of Bagdad, Arizona, where she spent her formative years. Her academic pursuits led her to achieve a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies and a Master of Public Policy. With an impressive array of career credentials including Certified Public Manager, Master Municipal Clerk, AZ SOS Certified Elections Officer, Municipal Elections Official, and SHRM-Senior Certified Professional, and more than two decades of local government experience, Carla has established herself as a versatile public servant. Carla generously shares her expertise across a spectrum of disciplines including serving as a Guest Lecturer for ASU, AMCA, PSHRA, Arizona APCO-NENA, etc.

Sarah Siep has been with the City of Prescott since 2018 and has been working in the City Clerk’s Office since 2012. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Journalism, a Masters Degree in Public Administration, is a Certified Elections Official and recently completed her Master Municipal Clerk Designation. Sarah has served on a number of AMCA Committees and has been part of the Executive Board since 2022.

Outside the office, Sarah is an avid reader and meets monthly with her Book Club, and loves travel, movie nights and outdoor activities with her family and dogs.

Annie Meredith serves as the City Clerk for the City of Kingman. She began her career in the Municipal Clerk profession with the City of Kingman in 2016 as the Deputy City Clerk and was then appointed City Clerk in 2019. Annie is a proud graduate of Northern Arizona University (GO JACKS) where she earned a Bachelor's Degree in Public Administration. She thoroughly enjoys being a Municipal Clerk and is grateful for the opportunity to serve her organization and community.

Terri Roth began her career with the City of Litchfield Park in 2002. In 2014, she transferred to the City Clerk’s Department as the Records Manager. In 2015, she was promoted to Deputy Clerk, and in 2017, she was appointed as City Clerk, and earned her CMC that same year and her MMC in 2021. She continues to enjoy serving the City and its community.