New State Board of Registration Member

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 13:25:03 GMT

Good morning friends. My fourth term on the Georgia Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors, in total comprising 18 years, expired last month. I've been privileged to be reappointed 3 times since my initial appointment in 2003. I offered to continue serving, but did not specifically ask to be reappointed. I was notified Tuesday that my successor has been appointed, James Mattison, PLS of Lincolnton, GA. I reached out to Mr. Mattison and we had a great conversation. I believe that he has genuine intentions of serving the state well. We agreed to spend some time together to help him get acclimated to the regulatory process, the intents and history behind the various rules and laws that govern our profession, and generally how the PLB (Profession Licensing Boards section of Secretary of State) runs. I’m happy to provide some help in this transition because a whole lot of “stuff” was dumped in my lap 18 years ago. I just had to figure it out. Not only does Mr. Mattison deserve such a functional transition, but so does the public (and surveyors) of our great state. My tenure on the board has been priceless to my continued development as a professional. I’ve learned things and been exposed to situations that I could not have imagined 18 years ago. I’m deeply thankful to Governors Perdue and Deal for their confidence in me and the opportunity to serve. Although I will miss the continued involvement, I can’t say that I’m very sad about passing the torch. The perpetual underfunding of the section and the inability to handle complaints efficiently has worn on my soul the last few years. I have offered to help the Board any way that I can moving forward, and will enjoy having a little more time for other things. I’m sure we’ll see an official announcement and get to learn more about Mr. Mattison in the near future. Please give him the support and comradery that you have given me. I'm not going anywhere. And, I won't dread going to SAMSOG functions and being bombarded with state board questions (insert big smile here!).

Mark E. Chastain, PLS

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 15:48:17 GMT

Thanks for all you've done to move the profession forward, Mark.

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 13:17:13 GMT

Thank you for your service.

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 14:12:37 GMT

Thank you for your dedication to the profession and all of your time and hard work.

Thu, 9 Sep 2021 21:43:35 GMT

Mark, I apologize for being about two months late with this comment, but I just wanted to say that I believe you are, by far, the best and most professional PLS board member I have seen in my career. I appreciate the time and dedication you gave to our profession and I am convinced that you acted in every way with an eye toward making us better. Thank you sir.

Fri, 21 Jan 2022 14:57:53 GMT

Thank you Mark for your service to the profession. I echo the sentiment of others in your positive mark on our profession.