MTAS Mustard for weeks ended 1-18 and 1-25-19

Good Wednesday afternoon to you MTAS,

I hope your week has gotten off to a great start. I think the state is experiencing a blast of artic air right now so I hope you’re staying warm and are especially careful as you travel to/from work and for work if that applies.

Since I was vacationing the week of the 18^th, I don’t have a lot to report work-wise. Last week I was busy catching up. I attended a meeting with the Comptroller’s office and listened intently as they outlined their legislative agenda for this season. There were a couple of items (out of 13 proposed bills) that may have a moderate impact on our customers. We’ll stay closely tuned into those. TML was at the meeting as well and shared their key items – the same ones they outlined in their district meetings. Also, many times from many lobbying groups I heard about online sales tax. This will definitely be one to watch.

Additionally, last week I attended the event sponsored by one of the IPS Diversity Strategy Teams. Elisha chairs this team whose goal is to: By 2022, increase the number of diverse hires to better reflect the demographics of Tennessee and create and sustain a climate within IPS where employees know that equity and inclusivity are valued. Elisha and her team knocked it out of the park by inviting Dr. Henry Fribourg to speak to us. He is a Holocaust escapee and told an amazing true life tale. I was shocked by some of the numbers that he presented to us. He shared quite a history lesson with us too. While parts of it were hard to listen to, I’m grateful for this because if we don’t remember history we are bound to repeat it.

Okay, on a cheerier note, let’s celebrate Doug’s and Pat’s birthdays. They blew out the candles on their cakes and maybe raised a glass or two on the 12^th and 24^th of January, respectively. Happy birthday guys!

Speaking of birthdays, I have a happy announcement to share with you. There will be an addition to the MTAS family in August when Stephanie and Justin will become parents. They were gracious enough to share one of their first baby photos with all of us:





Congratulations to the O’Haras!


As you know, we are in the annual performance review (APR) season. Rick sent a schedule to everyone the week before last. According to the calendar, you should be meeting with your supervisor between February 18 and March 1. I’m looking forward to hearing about the meaningful work that you plan to do this calendar year. Thank you for what you do for our customers. Together, we are on our way to making Tennessee municipalities the national model of good governance (our vision statement).

Most sincerely,
Margaret