Vermont news

• Walt Amses: Silencers are golden

  03-11-2017 23:55 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: Walt Amses is a writer and former educator who lives in Calais.
  Imagine if the Las Vegas shooter had both a silencer and armor-piercing bullets in addition to his assault weapons that were easily modified to full automatic. What if he shot at jet fuel tanks adjacent to the concert on which he visited his carnage? An explosion would have more than likely killed hundreds. Had the police and first responders not been able to tell where the shots were coming from, the body count
  
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• Welch, House Democrats balk at CHIP funding

  03-11-2017 22:32 via vtdigger.org
  Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., in his office in Congress. Photo by Elizabeth HewittWASHINGTON — The House passed a bill to extend a popular children’s health care program with little Democratic support Friday.
  Though there is broad backing across party lines for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, many members of the Democratic minority refused to vote for the legislation because of how it would be funded.
  Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., was among the “no” votes. T
  
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• Democrats, including Welch, balk at CHIP funding

  03-11-2017 22:32 via vtdigger.org
  Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., in his office in Congress. Photo by Elizabeth HewittWASHINGTON — The House passed a bill to extend a popular children’s health care program with little Democratic support Friday.
  Though there is broad support across party lines for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, many members of the minority refused to vote for the legislation because of how it would be funded.
  Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., was among the “no” votes. Though Welch
  
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• Spectrum launches new youth warming shelter

  03-11-2017 20:54 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Spectrum Youth & Family ServicesNov. 2, 2017
  Contact:Sarah WoodardSpectrum Youth & Family Services(802) 864-7423 x350 (w)(802) 238-2164 (c)
  [email protected]
  http://www.spectrumvt.org
  Winter Housing Expands For At-Risk Youth
  BURLINGTON, VT (Nov. 2, 2017) – This Monday marks the opening day of Spectrum’s youth warming shelter, a 10-bed, temporary shelter for youth ages 18-24 during the winter months. The shelter will operate in the parish h
  
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• Mixing Memories And Recipes: 'Breaking Bread' Shares A Baker's Journey To Vermont dlvr.it/Pz5b4H https://t.co/pndgJeflvW

  03-11-2017 20:36 via twitter.com
  
  Mixing Memories And Recipes: 'Breaking Bread' Shares A Baker's Journey To Vermont dlvr.it/Pz5b4H https://t.co/pndgJeflvW
  
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• Driscoll considering bid for Burlington mayor

  03-11-2017 20:36 via vtdigger.org
  Carina Driscoll speaks at a news conference supporting a local co-op’s bid to purchase Burlington Telecom. Photo by Morgan True/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — Former state representative and city councilor Carina Driscoll, the stepdaughter of Sen. Bernie Sanders, is strongly considering a run for mayor of Burlington.
  Driscoll, a Progressive, said many are encouraging her to run against Democrat Miro Weinberger, the current mayor. The election is next March. Weinberger would be seeking his thir
  
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• UVM faculty face health care hike

  03-11-2017 19:20 via vtdigger.org
  Members of UVM’s faculty union, United Academics, stand in regalia alongside students before marching to a meeting for negotiating their contract. Photo by Kelsey Neubauer/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — Members of the University of Vermont’s faculty union — gowned in regalia, singing and chanting — marched through the busiest portion of UVM’s central campus Thursday during the first round of talks for a new faculty contract in 2018.The march ended outside a room full of
  
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• Pelham to sit on health care board

  03-11-2017 19:19 via vtdigger.org
  Tom Pelham.Gov. Phil Scott has appointed a former lawmaker who worked under Republican and Democratic governors to an open seat on the Green Mountain Care Board.
  Scott announced Friday that Tom Pelham, 67, of Berlin, would sit on the board. He fills an empty seat left when Con Hogan, a former human services administrator, finished his term at the end of September.
  Pelham was deputy secretary of the Agency of Administration under former Gov. Jim Douglas. He ran the Department of Taxes under Dougl
  
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• LISTEN: What The Governor's Marijuana Commission Has Determined So Far dlvr.it/Pz4kQ4 https://t.co/XAtj0nUC8n

  03-11-2017 18:38 via twitter.com
  
  LISTEN: What The Governor's Marijuana Commission Has Determined So Far dlvr.it/Pz4kQ4 https://t.co/XAtj0nUC8n
  
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• OneCare faces major questions in budget review

  03-11-2017 18:36 via vtdigger.org
  Todd Moore is chief executive officer of OneCare. Photo by Erin Mansfield/VTDigger
  Regulators, advocates and members of the public continue to raise serious questions about a health reform company’s ability to meet goals under the state’s all-payer model.
  The ongoing questions mean OneCare Vermont, the state’s largest health reform company, will undergo at least two more rounds of questioning in front of the Green Mountain Care Board.
  Since June, OneCare has been going through
  
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• Fatal crash suspect wants trial moved

  03-11-2017 18:10 via vtdigger.org
  Rutland County State’s Attorney Rose Kennedy. Rutland Herald photo
  RUTLAND – The lawyer for a Middletown Springs man charged in a fatal hit-and-run crash is asking a judge to move his trial out of Rutland County because of widespread media attention the case has attracted.
  William Cobb, the attorney for Thomas H. Velde Jr., 42, says his client will not be able to get a fair trial in Rutland County. Leo Branchaud, 57. a farmer, was struck and killed April 22, 2016, by a vehicle Velde
  
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• YWP: ‘Quickly Now’

  03-11-2017 16:45 via vtdigger.org
  Young Writers Project, an independent nonprofit based in Burlington, engages young people to write and use digital media to express themselves with clarity and power, and to gain confidence and skills for school, the workplace and life.Check out the most recent issue of The Voice, Young Writers Project’s monthly digital magazine. Click here.Each week, VTDigger features a writing submission – an essay, poem, fiction or nonfiction – accompanied by a photo or illustration from Yo
  
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• SCOV Law Blog: Public records on private emails

  03-11-2017 16:30 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This piece from the SCOV Law Blog is by Elizabeth Kruska. 
  Toensing v. The Attorney General of Vermont, 2017 VT 99
  Creative Commons photo by walknboston via FlickrThis decision seems like a big deal, but when you boil it down, it actually seems a lot more like common sense. I will sum up: Sometimes state officials use their personal email accounts to send “work email” and if they do, sometimes those documents are public records. If those documents are public
  
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• Burlington city councilor quits job to cast vote in telecom sale

  03-11-2017 16:06 via vtdigger.org
  Karen Paul, Burlington city councilor. Photo by Bob LoCicero/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — City Councilor Karen Paul, D-Ward 6, has quit her job at an accounting firm in order to cast a vote on the sale of Burlington Telecom next week, according to the city attorney.
  Paul, a staff accountant at McSoley McCoy & Co., announced at this week’s city council meeting that a “professional conflict of interest” for her came to light over the weekend and she would need to recuse herself
  
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• Whitingham sues over education property taxes

  03-11-2017 14:51 via vtdigger.org
  (This story by Chris Mays was published in the Brattleboro Reformer on Nov. 3, 2017.)
  WHITINGHAM — The town is moving ahead with a lawsuit against the state over a property tax system it considers unconstitutional.
  The town of Whitingham filed a lawsuit with Twin Valley student Sadie Boyd and Whitingham resident Madeline Klein on Oct. 27, according to a news release.
  “The plaintiffs are asking for an injunction against the aspects of the education funding and property taxation system
  
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• Whitingham files lawsuit against state over education property taxes

  03-11-2017 14:51 via vtdigger.org
  (This story by Chris Mays was published in the Brattleboro Reformer on Nov. 3, 2017.)
  WHITINGHAM — The town is moving ahead with a lawsuit against the state over a property tax system it considers unconstitutional.
  The town of Whitingham filed a lawsuit with Twin Valley student Sadie Boyd and Whitingham resident Madeline Klein on Oct. 27, according to a news release.
  “The plaintiffs are asking for an injunction against the aspects of the education funding and property taxation system
  
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• Cabot Creamery chooses FirstLight for data services

  03-11-2017 14:50 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — FirstLightNov. 2, 2017
  Media Contacts:Jaymie Scotto & Associates (JSA)1-866-695-3629 ext. 6
  [email protected]
  Nate Formalarie – Cabot Creamery193 Home Farm WayWaitsfield, VT 05673
  [email protected](802) 496-1254
  FirstLight’s Fiber-Based Services Provide Reliability and Scalability for New England and Upstate New York Farm-Family Owned Dairy Cooperative
  Albany, NY – November 2, 2017 – FirstLight, a leading fiber-optic bandwidth infrastructure s
  
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• Vermont Farm to Plate Network addresses workforce development and business succession challenges

  03-11-2017 14:45 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont Farm to Plate NetworkNov. 1, 2017
  Media Contact:Rachel Carter802-318-5527
  [email protected]
  www.VTFarmtoPlate.com
  Workforce development and business succession necessary for continued growth in Vermont’s food system
  Vermont Farm to Plate Network identifies skilled and larger workforce, shifts in food system career perceptions, and business exit strategies needed to sustain Vermont farm and food economy
  Montpelier, VT – Over 270 members of the Vermont Farm t
  
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• Seth Meyers to be guest of honor at Landmark College’s 2018 ‘Champions of Change’ Gala

  03-11-2017 14:35 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Landmark CollegeNov. 2, 2017
  Contact:Christopher Lenois
  [email protected]
  Putney, VT – (November 2, 2018) – Emmy Award-winning writer, actor, and talk show host Seth Meyers will be Landmark College’s guest of honor at its 2018 fundraising gala in New York City. The event, Champions of Change: Building a Neurodiverse Workforce, will be held April 24, 2018, and will recognize the partnerships between business and education that create opportuniti
  
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• Vermont Health Connect’s 2018 open enrollment off to a smooth start

  03-11-2017 14:30 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Department of Vermont Health AccessNov. 2, 2017
  Contact:Seán SheehanDeputy Director, Health Access Eligibility & Enrollment UnitDepartment of Vermont Health Access(802) 585-6339
  Record Use for Plan Comparison Tool, Call Center Open an Extra Hour
  WATERBURY, VT – Vermont’s health insurance marketplace kicked off Open Enrollment yesterday as expected. New applicants were able to create accounts, apply for financial help, and enroll in 2018 health plans. C
  
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• Vermont Brewers Association Collaboration Festival will be at Killington Resort

  03-11-2017 14:25 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont Brewers AssociationNovember 2, 2017
  Contact:Amy Cronin
  [email protected](774) 217-0182
  BURLINGTON, VT- For the last 25 years, the Vermont Brewers Association (VBA) has been running a successful brewers’ festival on the waterfront in Burlington, VT. New for 2018, on March 24, the brewers are getting together to create a special collaboration festival outdoors at the picturesque mountain setting of Killington Resort.
  This smaller, more intimate festiv
  
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• Southwestern Vermont Health Care Foundation’s 2017 Jingle Bell announced

  03-11-2017 14:20 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Southwestern Vermont Health Care FoundationNov. 2, 2017
  Contact:Ashley Brenon JowettCommunications & Marketing SpecialistPhone: 802.447.5019 | Fax: 802.447.5214
  [email protected]
  svhealthcare.org
  Facebook.com/svmedicalcenter
  BENNINGTON—November 2, 2017–One of Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) Foundation’s most anticipated events of the year is scheduled for Saturday, December 2, 2017 at the Hermitage Club in Wilmington, VT.
  The Jingle
  
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• Button Up Vermont campaign underway in 32 Vermont communities

  03-11-2017 14:15 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Efficiency VermontNov. 2, 2017
  Media Contact:Alayna HowardEfficiency Vermont
  [email protected]
  November 2, 2017, Burlington, VT – The heating season is upon us, and Vermonters statewide are working together to help fellow residents and homeowners outsmart winter by tightening up their homes. Now in its eighth year, Button Up Vermont is working with local energy groups in 32 Vermont communities to help people reduce their heating and cooling costs through imp
  
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• Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation holding public meetings on Vermont’s forest economy

  03-11-2017 14:10 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Department of Forest, Parks and RecreationNovember 1, 2017
  Contact:Sam Lincoln – (802) 622-4005 – [email protected]
  MONTPELIER – The Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation will be holding four public meetings to provide updates from different sectors of the Department’s work and to hear from those with interest in the forest economy. Department staff are traveling to these locations to give the public an opportunity to communicate directly
  
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• Let’s Grow Kids to host ‘Leading Change for Children,’ a free advocacy conference

  03-11-2017 14:05 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Let’s Grow KidsNovember 1, 2017
  Contact:Nicole Haley, 802.391.0545 or [email protected]
  www.letsgrowkids.org
  Montpelier, Vermont — Let’s Grow Kids is hosting a free advocacy conference for high-quality, affordable child care called “Leading Change for Children” on Tuesday, December 5 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Montpelier. The day-long conference is an opportunity for Vermonters to hone their advocacy skills and connect with advocates fr
  
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• The Deeper Dig: Nuclear options at Vermont Yankee

  03-11-2017 14:02 via vtdigger.org
  An animated video illustrates the decommissioning process for Vermont Yankee. Courtesy EntergyOne year ago, Entergy, the company that owns the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, announced a plan to sell the facility to NorthStar Group Services, a New York-based decommissioning company. Federal and state regulators are still reviewing the proposal.
  Details about Entergy and NorthStar’s transition plan, which both companies say will lead to a faster cleanup, have been released in the me
  
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• University Mall partners with COTS to collect care packages for those in need

  03-11-2017 14:00 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — University MallOct. 26, 2017
  Contact:LuAnn Clarke, University Mall, 802-863-1066,
  [email protected]
  The University Mall has partnered with the Committee on Temporary Shelter (COTS) to host a supply drive for our neighbors in need. COTS is the largest service provider for the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless in Vermont. COTS offers emergency shelter, prevention assistance, support services, and transitional and permanent housing f
  
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• 3SquaresVT program recipients eligible for benefits to replace food lost during recent wind storm

  03-11-2017 03:39 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Department for Children and FamiliesNovember 2, 2017
  Contact:Luciana DiRuocco, DCF Media Liaison, 802-241-0929
  Waterbury, VT – The Department for Children and Families has begun processing requests from 3SquaresVT recipients to compensate for food lost during the recent wind storm. Recipients are eligible to have a portion or all of their October benefit replaced, depending on the value of the food they lost.
  The deadline for requesting replacement benefits is November
  
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• Leahy reaction to withdrawal of the nomination of Sam Clovis to top science post at USDA

  03-11-2017 03:32 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Sen. Patrick LeahyNov. 2, 2017
  Press Contact:David Carle(202) 224-3693
  Reaction Of Senator Patrick Leahy,Member Of The Senate Agriculture Committee,On The Withdrawal Of The Nomination Of Sam ClovisTo The Top Science Post At USDA
  “Sam Clovis was almost a comically bad nominee, even for this administration. He is inarguably unqualified, and he is wrong on almost every major issue relevant to the chief scientist post to which he was nominated. His nomination is all too ty
  
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• VEC power restoration update

  03-11-2017 03:28 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont Electric CoopNov 2, 2017, 12 pm
  Contact:Andrea Cohen, ManagerGovernment Affairs and Member RelationsVermont Electric Cooperative802-696-9036
  VEC continues to make solid restoration progress over the last 24 hours and that continues today. In addition to our full crew we have 18 additional line workers from Illinois and other local crews assisting.
  “It has been a difficult process, but we are closing in,” said Christine Hallquist, VEC’s chief executi
  
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• Coalition releases five-year plan to bolster local renewable wood heating

  03-11-2017 02:49 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Renewable Energy VermontNovember 2, 2017
  Contact:Austin DavisRenewable Energy Vermont
  [email protected]@re_vermont
  Waterbury Center, VT – On Thursday, November 2nd, a coalition of nonprofits, local businesses, and state agencies facilitated by Renewable Energy Vermont unveiled a plan of policy, workforce development, and outreach recommendations to help lower energy costs, boost Vermont’s economy, sustain forestlands, and reduce net carbon emission
  
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• DFR issues bulletin to speed insurance claims from recent storm damage

  03-11-2017 02:45 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Department of Financial RegulationNov. 1, 2017
  Contact:Dale Schaft, Information Management Officer, 802-828-4872
  MONTPELIER – Today the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) issued a bulletin authorizing the use of emergency adjusters and appraisers to review and approve insurance claims resulting from the recent windstorms. This measure will allow insurance companies to use additional resources from other states to more efficiently settle claims and get Ver
  
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• Emergency shelters remain on standby, will be reactivated if need arises

  03-11-2017 02:39 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont State Emergency Operations CenterNovember 2, 2017
  Contact:Mark BosmaVermont Emergency Management802-839-6717
  WATERBURY, VT – The American Red Cross operated three emergency shelters on Wednesday night in Barre, Milton, Middlebury. No residents utilized the facilities.
  Those shelters will be placed on standby status today, set up with staff on call. Should anyone need the facilities they will be staffed. Anyone in need of a place to stay or other services can st
  
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• Rutland mayor misses budget deadline

  03-11-2017 02:07 via vtdigger.org
  David Allaire talks to the media in March after winning the Rutland mayoral race. His first city budget proposal as mayor was due Wednesday. File photo by Alan J. Keays/VTDiggerRUTLAND — Mayor David Allaire missed the city deadline for presenting a municipal spending plan to the Board of Aldermen for the next fiscal year.
  The deadline set in the municipal charter is Nov. 1. However, there is no penalty for missing that. According to Allaire, he plans to present the budget to the 11-member
  
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• Bernie Sanders: The health care crisis no one is talking about

  03-11-2017 02:00 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. It was published in the Boston Globe on Oct. 31.The United States faces a major crisis in primary health care, and unless Congress acts immediately it is likely to become much worse.
  Millions of Americans are at risk of losing their access to health care because Congress did not renew funding for the community health center program at the end of the fiscal year, Sept. 30. Unless we renew funding immediately, 70 percent of fund
  
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• Con Hogan: High-quality child care fosters health and economy

  03-11-2017 01:56 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Con Hogan, of Plainfield, who is on the board of the Permanent Fund for Children and is a former member of the Green Mountain Care Board. He was secretary of the Vermont Agency of Human Services from 1991 to 1999.
  Vermont is facing some very daunting challenges in the economic development world.
  We are beginning to understand the implications of our state’s population not growing. Projections are telling us that the southwest part of Vermont will
  
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• James Maroney: Vermont’s failure at ‘saving agriculture and protecting the lake’

  03-11-2017 01:48 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by James H. Maroney Jr., of Leicester, who has a master’s degree in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School and is a former farmer.
  The blue-green algae blooming in Lake Carmi presents Vermont with an unusually good opportunity to face up to an inconsistency between what the Vermont Legislature has been taxing the people for programs it says are intended to “reduce” lake pollution — programs that go back 50 years &mdash
  
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• Speaker Johnson calls for security breach hearings

  03-11-2017 00:36 via vtdigger.org
  House Speaker Mitzi Johnson discusses the state’s response to the Equifax data breach. Photo by Mike Dougherty/VTDiggerHouse Speaker Mitzi Johnson announced Thursday a series of data security hearings to be held across the state in the wake of the Equifax breach earlier this year.
  The public hearings will be hosted by the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development on Nov. 9 in Springfield and Barton and Nov. 14 in Manchester and Burlington. The hearings will give the public an op
  
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