OAKLAND, Calif. -- Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums announced Thursday he will be part of a team of 24 big-city mayors who will work with President-elect Barack Obama in Congress to develop an economic recovery program.

Dellums said he received word of his appointment in a phone call from Miami Mayor Manuel Diaz, who is the president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

Other Bay Area mayors who are on the team are San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Newark Mayor David Smith.

Speaking to reporters at Oakland City Hall, Dellums said, "If we're going to have a vibrant economy, we need to invest in infrastructure, invest in people and invest in research and innovation."

Dellums' remarks came at a news conference at which he joined leaders of the activist group Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN, in endorsing Obama's call for a major economic recovery and job-creation package.