Finance and Administration Cabinet
Kentucky selected to participate in “Greening State Capitols” program

FRANKFORT, Ky.—The Commonwealth of Kentucky’s historic state Capitol Complex in Frankfort has been selected to participate in the National Governor’s Association (NGA) “Greening State Capitols” program, which is co-sponsored by Wal-Mart.

Kentucky is one of 20 states selected by the NGA Center for Best Practices to participate in the program. Participants were announced at NGA’s State Summit on Clean Power and Efficiency this week in Kansas City, Kan. during the Energy Efficiency and Conservation working sessions.

Kentucky’s selection for this program comes on the heels of First Lady Jane Beshear’s Earth Day announcement of plans to make the Kentucky Governor’s Mansion and homes across the commonwealth more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. Mrs. Beshear’s greenteam.ky.gov is a public education effort to empower all Kentucky families with the knowledge to implement energy and cost savings strategies in their own homes and enlisting them in this statewide effort to beautify Kentucky and preserve our planet.

“The selection of our state Capitol for this program fits well with the Beshear Administration’s efforts to make our homes, our communities, offices and state buildings more energy efficient and environmentally friendly,” said Finance and Administration Cabinet Secretary Jonathan Miller. “We look forward to working with NGA through their partnership with Wal-Mart to perform an energy audit and recommend ways to reduce our energy consumption and save money.”

Over the next year, engineering experts will visit Kentucky’s Capitol Campus to examine lighting, heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, as well as refrigeration equipment and building structures. Kentucky will then receive recommendations on how to improve the energy efficiency in its Capitol building. These recommendations will be based on technologies that have proven successful in Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores, which have helped Supplier Energy Efficiency Program participants save between 20 to 50 percent in energy costs.

The 20 states selected to participate in the “Greening State Capitols” program are: Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

-30-