June 12, 2008 www.northfulton.com

ROSWELL — Roswell has partnered with the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District in the Toilet Rebate Program to allow residential water customers the opportunity to apply for either a $50 or a $100 rebate if they have installed a new, low flow toilet in their residence. Toilet rebates are limited.

Roswell customers should meet these criteria:

• Have an individual residential account with Roswell and be up to date on payments.

• Own or rent a single-family home built in 1993 or earlier

• Purchase an approved toilet after Sept. 28, 2007 to replace an older toilet using greater than 1.6 gallons per flush.

• Agree to a verification visit.

• Agree to complete a survey.

Criteria making customers ineligible for the rebate include:

• Customers who have already received a rebate.

• Customers of utilities not participating in the program.

• Customers who own or rent a single-family home built after 1993.

• Customers who purchased a toilet before Sept. 28, 2007.

• Customers who have a 1.6 gallons per flush or less toilet.

• Customers living in a multi-family residence or non-residential customers.

For information on how to apply for the rebate, visit www.northgeorgiawater.org/toiletrebate and download the application form. Customers may also call 404-463-8645.

By The Associated Press

DECATUR - Beginning Sunday in DeKalb County, any house built before 1993 and sold will have to have low-flow toilets that consume 1.6 gallons of water or less per flush.

Low-flow toilets became mandatory in new construction around 1993, which is why officials picked that year. The county still has as many as 165,000 houses built before 1993, but no one knows how many have been upgraded with toilets that use less water.

The low-flow requirement is one thing the county is using to cope with the drought.

On May 14, 2008 Governor Perdue vetoed House Bill 1217, ending the proposal of licensing private residential home inspectors. Thanks to all who supported HB1217. Public awareness has been raised, and more are learning the importance of using a qualified and nationally certified inspector.
The legislation process has highlighted the importance of professional organizations like ASHI and GAHI to insure high standards. Your continued support of ASHI and GAHI are appreciated. When obtaining an inspector for resale inspections, insure that the inspection is ASHI compliant, that the inspection is conducted by a professional nationally certified ASHI inspector. When new construction is built and sold, recommend an ICC code review from an GAHI certified inspector.

Below is Governor Sonny Perdue’s statement from www.georgia.gov.

House Bill 1217 provides a regime to license Georgia’s home inspectors. I am cognizant and respectful of the fact that the advocates for the legislation chose to use and were approved by the Georgia Occupational Regulation Review Council (GORRC). I have come to believe that GORRC review should be the initial threshold for the creation of a new licensing board. I am also aware that the private sector provides several, voluntary professional organizations to achieve the goals of the legislation. It is my preference that the market – not the State – regulate as many of our industries as possible. Thus, in order to not supplant the good work of the free market with taxpayer funds, I VETO House Bill 1217.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Since 1992, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has reminded consumers to check smoke alarms and change batteries when they change their clocks, but in that time, many alarms have lost their effectiveness.  This year, CPSC wants to remind consumers to replace smoke alarms every ten years and replace carbon monoxide (CO) alarms every five years. In a national telephone survey of households conducted by the CPSC, 97 percent of homes had at least one smoke alarm. That’s good news, but without fresh batteries, alarms will not work when needed.  And the sensors in alarms will degrade and lose effectiveness over time because of environmental contamination and age. According to National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports, there were more than 1.6 million fires reported in the United States in 2005.  These fires caused about 3,700 civilian deaths and 18,000 injuries.  Additionally, from 2002-2004, CPSC estimated a yearly average of 166 deaths from unintentional, non-fire related CO exposure. “Millions of Americans are without adequate protection from fire and CO because the alarm’s battery is dead or the alarm is too old,” said CPSC Acting Chairman Nancy Nord. “Alarms don’t last forever, and old ones need to be replaced.” Consumers need to remain vigilant against carbon monoxide poisoning and fires.  CPSC recommends three simple tips to protect your life, your loved ones, and your home: Make sure your home is protected with both smoke and CO alarms.  Combination smoke/CO alarms are available in the marketplace. Test alarms monthly to make sure they are working. Once a year, change batteries when you change your clocks.

From U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Press Release - Nov 2007