York Electric Cooperative (which handles electricity for over 40,000 customers throughout York, Chester, Lancaster, Union and Cherokee counties) is getting a $46.7 million federal loan to use to expand services, add substations and lay down transmission lines over the next several years.

This is the part of the article from The Herald that I like, though:

Because of the sluggish economy and sagging demand for power, Howie said, the co-op likely will not begin drawing funds from the loan for at least a year or two.

That sounds financially responsible to me. Don’t need the money YET? Good! Don’t spend it yet! Don’t get the coop bogged down with repaying a 35-year loan that they don’t really need to access yet. That’s great to see. I think a lot of companies/people would be tempted to get that money to work – even if it’s not really needed (I would liken that somewhat to someone using a brand new shiny credit card to purchase stuff they don’t need).

One last note – this money is NOT part of the federal stimulus package, but rather is a loan program from the US Department of Agriculture.