Local & State Headlines

Lee schools saving energy

• Turning off lights pays – or rather, saves – big in Lee County.

Barbara Rivera Holmes

ALBANY – In the three months since an energy management plan was implemented, the Lee County school System has shaved more than $43,000 off its utility bills.

Simple actions such as turning off lights and computers when they are not in use and adjusting air-conditioning and heating units dropped the system's bill by 14 percent, said Johnny Golden, who is in charge of executing the system's Energy Education Inc. program.

The system's savings for August-October were #43,293. Its total cost was $266,692.

"We would have spent an extra 14 percent if we hadn't used their program," Golden said.

In Tift County, the school system saved 29 percent on energy costs during a one-year period, program data shows.

The first month of Lee County's third special-purpose local-option sales tax shows a collection of $319,537. The figure reflects the tax collected in October 2007, but distributed to the school system in December 2007. According to data from the school system. October 2006 collections were $289,347.

Also during the meeting, School Board Chair Sylvia Vann recognized educators Lisa Nelson and Lynn Janes as National Board Certified Teachers. The National Board for Professional Teaching standards recognized nearly 64,000 educators in 2007.

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