Schools continuing to struggle with rising fuel costs

UNDATED - Georgia school systems are looking for ways to cut spending to make up for skyrocketing fuel costs this fall.

Schools are considering delaying textbook purchases, canceling field trips or changing bus routes to have enough money to pay about 60 percent more per gallon than this time last year for school bus diesel.

Atlanta Public Schools spokesman Joe Manguno said the district's bus drivers have been told not to idle for more than three minutes at a time. The system expects to spend an additional $500,000 this year for gas.

The problem is that state lawmakers only increased student transportation funding by $3 million, which must be shared among the state's more than 180 school districts. That's less than 2 percent more funding than last year.

Hall County school officials have said they will pay about a million dollars more this year for fuel but with a $14 million budget surplus, the impact won't be near what it will be on some school systems.

(AccessNorthGa.com's Ken Stanford contributed to this report.)