Our Goal & Mission   The Customer is KING! The customer is not dependent on us. We are dependent upon the customer. Our Utility is "customer driven". We must be responsive to the customer's needs as perceived by the customer. We must meet the customers needs. Our Sole mission is to make the customer very happy . We achieve this by providing outstanding services. Our most important company assets go home at night-at quitting time. Claiborne Utility employees are selected people of high character, with positive outlooks, who are aware and care. They "see the glass as half full rather than half empty." Trust prevails among the employees, thus they generate the chemistry of this utility. Our goal is to manage an effective and efficient utility with an emphasis on "quality of life" - and self fulfillment. We are working at the utility, as many waking hours as in our own homes, therefore working conditions should be excellent. The utility should be known for its orderliness and cleanliness.   Company Info   The Claiborne Utilities District was formed on September 17, 1945, pursuant to a decree of the Claiborne County Court. The first board of commissioners consisted of A.G. Shumate, Mark Lewis, Lee D. Stone Jr. The Company Currently has 36 employees. The Current Coverage area includes New Tazewell , Tazewell, and Harrogate within city limits.Call 423-626-4282 for more info on availability in your area. Inside the current coverage area we have 7,651 customers signed up on water, waste water, and Natural gas. See chart below for break down of residential, commercial, industrial.   Company History     The Claiborne Utilities District was formed on September 17, 1945, pursuant to a decree of the Claiborne County Court. The first board of commissioners consisted of A.G. Shumate, Mark Lewis, Lee D. Stone Jr. The Tazewell and New Tazewell Water Company was purchased from K.D. Chumley in 1947 and was used until construction on the new water plant and lines was completed. Fred McMurray was acting manager until the plant, located at the head of Ball Creek, went on line on January 1, 1949. At this time, Clyde Wolfenbarger became the first superintendent, serving the utility district until 1955. Roy Love was named as superintendent in 1955 and served until his retirement at the end of 1986. Bill Gibson was named superintendent. At that time served until April 2002 when he became the construction superintendent. At that time Carl Doane was named General Manager and is currently in charge. Presently serving as commissioners are: Thomas O. Shumate, President; William R. Stanifer, Jr., Treasurer; and David Bishop, Secretary. Other commissioners who have served over the years have been L.C. Ault, General Coffey, James E. Breeding, L. Otto Bolinger, Claude Russell, and Q.G. Fortson. When the water plant went into operation in 1949, Mr. Wolfenbarger was the only full-time employee. Bills were paid at Cunningham Drug Store, and the minimum bill was $3.50. At that time, there were 350 customers on the system, as of now we currently have around 7500 customers. The original water plant on Ball Creek has expanded into a modern facility with the latest technology. Computerized equipment keeps the operator informed of the water flow from the point of intake to the distribution to the customer. Sewer service was added in 1965, and the wastewater treatment plant was constructed at that time. As the Claiborne Utilities District constantly strives to provide needed services to the people of this area, on the 3rd day of December 1997 a contract was signed between Claiborne Utilities District and Evan Energy of Kingsport, TN. , providing the first step in the addition of natural gas to our offered services. In April 1999, Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, TN became our first gas customer. Since that time our Natural Gas customers have increased tremendously. In January 1999, Carl Doane was hired as a Consultant in the initialization of our gas department, then on January 26,1999 Mr. Doane became our official gas superintendent. On April 29, 2002, he was named General Manager. Claiborne Utilities District has brought about many changes and improvements for the well being of the people of our community in the last 50 plus years. And with the continued support of our community and employees in our endeavors, we will continue into the next 50 years with continued success for both the District and our customers.