Wednesday, May 30, 2012 - BOCC Earns NACO Achievement Award For SELF Program

For the third year in a row, the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners earned recognition from the National Association of Counties' (NACo) Achievement Awards program, winning a 2012 Achievement Award in the Environmental Protection and Energy category for the Solar and Energy Loan (SELF) program.

Developed by the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners, SELF has evolved into a non-profit organization that offers energy expertise and low-interest rate loans to help residents identify and make energy-efficient upgrades and utilize cost-effective solar technologies.

“It is wonderful to see how this public-private partnership between our County, local financial institutions, community leaders and the US Department of Energy’s Efficiency Block Grant Program is helping to create energy-efficient homes and putting money back in our residents’ wallets,” said St. Lucie County Commission Chairman Tod Mowery.

“Congratulations to St. Lucie County for creating this innovative and national award-winning program,” added SELF President Kyle Abney. “SELF is pleased to be helping local residents save money on their energy bills and putting local people back to work in the process.”

NACo's Achievement Awards recognize innovated programs development by counties in 21 different categories. Award winners were announced last week. St. Lucie County was one of nine Florida counties to be recognized in the 2012 Achievement Award program, along with Broward, Clay, Collier, Flagler, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Pasco and Sarasota counties. During the past three years, St. Lucie County’s has received 10 Achievement Awards for its various programs and services.

Since the launch of SELF, just one year ago, the program has completed 567 energy evaluations and issued 101 loans totaling more than $945,000. Free energy evaluations are still available for residences in St. Lucie County. To find out more about SELF loans or how to obtain a free energy evaluation, call 772-468-1818 or visit www.CleanEnergyLoanProgram.org or www.Facebook.com/SolarEnergyLoanFund.

The National Association of Counties (NACo) is the only national organization that represents county governments in the United States. Founded in 1935, NACo's membership totals more than 2,000 counties, representing more than 80 percent of the nation's population. For more information visit: www.naco.org.