TACIR is hiring a research associate

The Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR) is accepting applications for a Research Associate to focus on fiscal and economic issues affecting local governments in Tennessee. See posting.

Come to our lunchtime lecture tomorrow – speaker is Mildred T. Walters, Nashville Business Incubation Center

Hope you can join us at Avon Williams Campus at noon on Thursday, Nov. 17, for an informal talk with Ms. Walters, NBIC‘s Executive Director!  Feel free to bring your lunch (logistics details are here). From the NBIC website:  “Ms. Walters has been in the position since December 2002. Prior to the appointment to her current position, she had served as the director of Public Service for the Tennessee State University College of Business. Housing over 22 small businesses, the NBIC is the first incubator in Tennessee which is operated directly by a college or university.” Read more about the event here.

Jefferson County Alabama opts for bankruptcy

Click Flickr photo for attribution and Creative Commons license info

Here’s the Reuters piece from Thursday.  This major development in the saga of financing the sewer system of Jefferson County is a new reminder of the long-lasting consequences of municipal finance gone wrong…how timely that we have two great sessions lined up for our December 9 TN-ASPA symposium related to municipal finance!  Keynote speaker Dwight Denison of the University of Kentucky is a nationally recognized researcher on the topic, and a distinguished lineup of regional practitioners will also tackle issues in state and local finance in our panel, shown below.  Register now to attend.

• Financial Reforms: Model Debt Policy, Increased Transparency, Accountability and More
  
• Mary Margaret Collier, Director of State & Local Finance, Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury
• Anne Butterworth, Assistant to the Comptroller for Public Finance, Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury
• Rich Riebeling, Director of Finance, City of Nashville
• John Schroer, Commissioner of TDOT

TN-ASPA announces our 2011 Award recipients

We will continue our tradition of honoring Tennessee administrators at the Awards Luncheon during our day-long Annual Fall Symposium, to be held this year on Dec. 9.

The Hoy Stephenson Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to retired Tennessee administrators, who, during their lifetimes, have made contributions of profound impact to public administration. Through their public service careers, these individuals have improved our society and inspired others.  This year’s honoree is Dennis Dycus, Director of the Division of Municipal Audit, Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, who will retire June 30, 2012, after 38 years’ service to the people of Tennessee.  Read more at our Awards page.

The Tennessee Administrator of the Year award is presented to a Tennessee administrator who has made a significant impact during the past year.  The high performance of this individual is notable in its impact on his/her organization and the landscape of Tennessee administration. This year’s award will be presented to Paul Degges, Deputy Commissioner and Chief Engineer of the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT). Mr.  Degges is the youngest individual to ever hold the position of Chief Engineer, and was appointed Deputy Commissioner in September of 2011.  Mr. Degges has overseen the awarding of more than 2,800 projects with a construction value of more than $5.6 billion.

It’s time! Check out our 2011 Symposium line-up and register to attend

The 2011 TN-ASPA Annual Fall Symposium will take place on Friday, December 9 from 8am to 5pm at the Avon Williams Campus of Tennessee State University, located in downtown Nashville just moments from the state capital and Metro Nashville Davidson Government.  We have planned an exciting and varied line-up of speakers and topics.  At the luncheon, we will recognize the recipients of the Hoy Stephenson Lifetime Achievement and TN Administrator of the Year awards.  Please take a moment to register in advance if you plan to attend, and pay before December 1 to obtain the early bird rate.  Your registration includes continental breakfast and the Awards Luncheon; a vegetarian option will be available.  As in years past, NASBA CPE credits will be offered.  Everything you need is explained on our Symposium page. We look forward to seeing you for a great day of learning and networking!

Next Lunchtime Lecture is Thursday November 17 – Mildred T. Walters, Executive Director of the nonprofit Nashville Business Incubation Center

Mildred T. Walters, Executive Director of the nonprofit Nashville Business Incubation Center, will be our speaker at the Third Thursday Lunchtime Lecture, November 17, 2011. Celebrating its 25th year, NBIC provides management and technical assistance, shared support services, and technical advisement to start-up businesses that are housed in the facility at 315 10th Avenue N. Businesses that have benefited from the support of the NBIC boast a 90% survival rate after 5 years.  Logistics information is  here.

October 20 Lunchtime Lecture on Redistricting following the 2010 Census

Be sure to plan on joining us this Thursday for our monthly Lunchtime Lecture, featuring Tom Fleming, Assistant to the Comptroller for Assessments, will speak on Redistricting. Following the 2010 Census, Tennessee’s redistricting will impact citizens at the federal, state, and local levels. Local redistricting will be complete by January 1, 2012; come and hear details on this timely topic.

More about our September 2011 Lunchtime Lecture topic – The Contributor, Street Newspaper

A follow-up to September’s Lunchtime Lecture: during his engaging talk on Nashville’s street newspaper, The Contributor, Tom Wills told us that the North American Street Newspaper Association, the trade association for street newspapers, will hold its 2011 Conference right here in Nashville, October 13-16.  Membership in NASNA includes 31 street newspaper organizations in the U.S. and Canada. It seems our city is a good choice for convention organizers: Wills also told us that with this year’s increased sales, The Contributor now has the largest circulation of any street newspaper in North America.