Resources

2026 BUSINESS CONFERENCE

Day 1

• Legislative Update | Ben Gastel [HSG Law Group]
• Changes & Updates to TBOUR | Ross Colona [Comptroller’s Office]
• SRF Funding for 2027 & Beyond | Emily Royal [TDEC] & Billy Dranes [TAUD]

Day 2

• Transitioning Rural Utilities to Self Sufficiency | Seth Rye & Matthew Rye [Rye Engineering]
• Don’t Get Railroaded by a Boring Project | Chris Strupp & Zara Hoch [OHM Advisors]
• May the Force (Account) Be With You | Zara Hoch [OHM Advisors]
• Building Back Better in Erwin, TN — Recovery After Helene | Jamie Carden [McGill Associates]

2025 ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONALS CONFERENCE

Day 1

• IRS Designations: Distinguishing Between W-2 or 1099’s | Melanie Sain & Tim Ham [TAUD]
• Tricks for Customer Service Brett McCardle [Consolidated Utility District]
• Turning Customers into Owners | Brett McCardle [Consolidated Utility District]
• Survival Guide to Internal Controls & Compliance | Justin Garcia & Matt Piland [Comptroller’s Office]

Day 2

• Record Retention | Ross Colona [TN Comptroller’s Office]
• Questions and Answers with TAUD’s General Counsel | Don Scholes [TAUD]

2025 UTILITY  LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

Day 1

• Utility Board Meetings: Before, During, & After | Don Scholes [TAUD]
• Fraudulent Finding – What Happens Next | Alan Dover [TN Comptroller’s Office]

Day 2

• Regionalization | Ross Colona [Comptroller’s Office] Seth Rye [Rye Engineering] Don Scholes [TAUD]
• SRF 101: Benefits of Debt & Navigating the Loan Process | Vena Jones [TDEC]
• $1.35B ROI: Results of ARPA Funding Infusion for Utilities | Vena Jones [TDEC]
• Tools to Improve Your Utility Revisited | Jim Marshall & Sarah Chandler [Jackson Thornton]

Day 3

• Customers into Allies: Public Relations on a $0 Budget | Brett McArdle [Consolidated Utility District]
• The Media Called… Now What? | Brett McArdle [Consolidated Utility District]
• Asset Management Plans | Ethan Carter [TAUD]

2024 TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE

• Secondary Clarifier Optimization
• Creating a Fats, Oils, & Grease Program
• Digital Approaches to improving Collection Assets
• Automated Water Testing System for Bacterial
• Pressure Monitoring Utilizing Cellular-Based Telemetry
• Why Measuring H2S in WW Matters and Portable Parallel Analyzer
• Automated Water Testing System for Bacteria
• Chemicals-GHS Safe Handling
• Operator Certification Exam
• Measurment of partially filled pipes in collection systems
• Water Main Leak Detection (File too large)
• Valves-Website Utilization
• Deciphering Disinfection
• Being THM compliant
• TDEC Update on WT and DS Issues
• Water Quality – Tanks and Tank Mixing
• High selectivity Ion Exchange Resin for PFAS Removal
• Media Upgrade at MLGW_s Water Production Plants
• Strategies to prevent and Reduce Water Loss
• Enhanced Anaerobic Fermentation for Biological Phosphorus Removal (File too large)
• Implementing Industrial Pretreatment
• Onsite Hypochlorite Generation
• TDEC Update on WW & CS Issues