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The board of commissioners passed a resolution on Thursday stating Morristown Utilities has been officially recognized and honored as the recipient of the Community Service Award presented by the Tennessee Municipal Electric Power Association.

The award, presented during their annual conference in Nashville, Tennessee on July 13, 2023, recognizes MU for their commitment to the community.

“We are honored to receive this award on behalf of our employees, “said Jody Wigington, general manager at Morristown Utilities. “We are very fortunate that our employees and our entire system is committed to giving back to our community.”

As a medium-sized electric utility, MU is measured by their efforts to improve the social, cultural, educational or economic environment of their communities, by their opportunities for employee involvement and by demonstrating sustained performance and achievement as a member of TMEPA.

The system has shown a great commitment by being active in their community and improving service for their customers. Utility employees serve on 48 professional and community organizations. Whether through sponsorships, employee volunteers, or utility participation, the utility is involved with numerous community events.

Morristown Utility’s round-up program has also given back to the community. It has collected over a million dollars since its inception and used the funds for community assistance and economic development including numerous community lighting projects and donations to several deserving charities.

Similar to its strong commitment to community service, the utility has a strong commitment to reliability and safety. It holds a Reliable Public Power Provider Diamond status for the 12th year in a row and was an APPA Safety Award winner in 2022. MU takes its RP3 standards beyond just electric and applies them to get continuous improvement across all four of its utility services.

MU also works to continuously improve services to its customers. This year it launched a more user-friendly website that includes an outage map and upgrades to online payment options and the customer portal, and it has a committed capital budget to keep all systems modernized. The utility collaborates with several community education institutions for current and future utility workforce development, and it has created a digital and print history of the utility dating to the late 1880s.

Morristown Utilities expresses gratitude to TMEPA for recognizing their efforts and for promoting the importance of community service among utility companies. The award further motivates MU to maintain their commitment to making a positive impact and fostering a stronger, more vibrant community.

TMEPA is a membership association of 60 municipal electric power providers that serve over 2.4 million homes and businesses across Tennessee with a mission to advance the overall success of Tennessee municipal utility systems.