Schools suffering with soaring electric bills

Terry Webster

Friday, April 27, 2001 | 10:57 a.m.

The utility bill for the Clark County School District has soared 82 percent since August, and projections show the district spending $49 million in the 2001-2002 school year.

In this fiscal year, which ends June 30, the district has so far spent nearly $33 million on utility costs.

The numbers have spurred district officials to come up with a conservation plan.

Pat Herron, assistant superintendent for facilities, spoke of the desired priority for district money at Thursday's School Board meeting.

"We're trying to keep the dollars in the classroom," Herron said.

Even before the new utility projections were in, Superintendent Carlos Garcia was warning that the district is facing a budgetary crisis.

Herron displayed a monthly electric bill for a high school that totaled $34,180. Some high schools, he said, have had monthly bills as high as $48,000.

"In January, our people found six schools that were running (24 hours a day, seven days a week)," Herron said.

An energy advisory panel composed of local and school district officials has come up with ways the district can save money. One is reducing the run time for heating and air conditioning systems by one hour a day, for an annual savings of $600,000. Additionally, shutting down nine-month schools between 12:30 and 7 p.m. for the entire month of July would save about $700,000 a year.