New License Plate Pays Homage To Linemen

ATLANTA, Oct. 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Representatives with Georgia EMC, Electric Cities of Georgia, Georgia Power, and the public gathered today at the Jeffrey Vaden Chavis House in Augusta for the unveiling of the state's first Georgia vehicle license plate to pay tribute to linemen.

Sponsored in the Georgia House of Representatives by Rep. Alan Powell (R-Hartwell) and carried in the Senate by Sen. Steve Gooch (R-Dahlonega), House Bill 260 provides for a specialty license plate honoring Georgia's electric utility line workers. It was signed into law by Gov. Nathan Deal in May.

"We are so pleased to be a part of recognizing the state's linemen and to partner with Georgia's electric utilities," says Linda McKnight, president/CEO of the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation. "While proceeds of the license plate will help thousands of burn patients and their families each year, we pray that no linemen in Georgia will ever have need of our services." 

According to the state's utility partners, the timing of the unveiling event is especially meaningful just weeks after Tropical Storm Irma caused more than 1.5 million outages in Georgia. The unprecedented damage set in motion a massive restoration effort involving more than 13,000 utility personnel and additional resources from across the country.

Proceeds will benefit the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation (SFBF) which provides assistance to burn patients and their families at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital in Augusta.

Specifically, the SFBF provides a place to stay for patients' families at the Jeffrey Vaden Chavis House, just a few steps from the Burn Center, as well as meals and transportation to and from the hospital. After patients are discharged, the SFBF also provides assistance with prescriptions, anti-scarring garments and transportation to follow-up doctor visits.

Georgians who are interested in purchasing a "Thank A Lineman" license plate can visit http://www.sfbf.net/License-Plate when renewing their annual motor vehicle registration. For the first 1,000 plates, the one-time $25 specialty plate manufacturing fee will be waived by the Motor Vehicles Division of the Georgia Department of Revenue with a $25 minimum donation to the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation.   

In addition, by an act of the General Assembly and Governor Deal, $10 of the Georgia Department of Revenue's $35 Annual Specialty Tag Fee for "Thank A Lineman" license plates will be contributed to SFBF each year for as long as the motorist renews the specialty plate.    

ABOUT:

Electric Cities of Georgia (ECG) was formally created as a non-profit trade association providing cost-effective utility professional resource support; statewide and local economic development services; and both utility and non-utility educational opportunities for 52 public power systems in Georgia. In addition, ECG provides training & safety programs for 17 public power systems in Florida. In all, ECG provides training & safety for over 800 public power linemen.

Georgia EMC is the statewide trade association representing the state's 41 EMCs, Oglethorpe Power Corp., Georgia Transmission Corp. and Georgia System Operations Corp.  Collectively, Georgia's customer-owned EMCs provide electricity and related services to more than 4.4 million people, nearly half of Georgia's population, across 73 percent of the state's land area.

Georgia Power is the largest electric subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America's premier energy company. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.5 million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse, innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, coal and natural gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind. Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer satisfaction. For more information, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com and connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower), Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower) and Instagram (Instagram.com/ga_power).

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SOURCE Georgia EMC