Vermont news

• Selectboard member snags land intended for public right-of-way

  01-03-2018 23:54 via vtdigger.org
  Pownal still cut off from recreation area close to the Taconic Crest hiking trail because Selectboard member bought the land. File photo by Jim Therrien/VTDigger
  POWNAL — Selectboard members are expressing dismay at a fellow board member’s move to snag a parcel of land the board had been planning to buy, to preserve access to a town recreation area.
  Without telling his fellow board members, Ronald Bisson bought the 40-acre meadowland parcel, at the end of Snake Hill Road. The land, w
  
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• Burlington School District unveils $85 million budget

  01-03-2018 23:11 via vtdigger.org
  Yaw Obeng, the superintendent of the Burlington School District, said he is proud of the district’s budget. File photo by Jess Wisloski/VTDigger
  BURLINGTON- The Burlington School District is releasing its nearly $85 million budget for the coming fiscal year before town meeting on Mar. 6.District Superintendent Yaw Obeng said it was a budget he was proud of. “It represents months of hard work and comprise and it balances the needs of our students with the reality that every financial
  
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• Emerald ash borer invades Vermont

  01-03-2018 22:25 via vtdigger.org
  The emerald ash borer has spread to 32 states, now including Vermont. Photo public domain.
  This story by Matt Hongoltz-Hetling was first published in the Valley News on Mar. 1, 2018.Michael Polhamus of VTDigger.org also contributed to this report.
  The emerald ash borer, the Asian beetle that has been chewing its way through North America’s ash trees, has arrived in Vermont, an event as long-anticipated as it is unwelcome.
  “It’s something we’ve been expecting,” said
  
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• LISTEN: Gun Owners: What Should Gun Control Look Like In Vermont? dlvr.it/QJLtGs https://t.co/JgZrOAT4rv

  01-03-2018 20:10 via twitter.com
  
  LISTEN: Gun Owners: What Should Gun Control Look Like In Vermont? dlvr.it/QJLtGs https://t.co/JgZrOAT4rv
  
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• Tax committee replaces school income tax with ‘surcharge’

  01-03-2018 16:29 via vtdigger.org
  The House Ways and Means Committee voted Wednesday to add a surcharge to income taxes that will help support low-income taxpayers.
  The new education funding plan is folded into a comprehensive tax reform bill, H.911, which includes significant changes to the income tax.RELATED STORIESSchool income tax to get public vettingFinance commissioner says education funding proposal falls shortProperty taxes slashed in proposed school funding overhaulSchool boards: Go slow on income tax proposalLawmakers
  
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• Saint Michael’s Professor Griffith advancing in national ACLU leadership

  01-03-2018 15:25 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Saint Michael’s CollegeFebruary 26, 2018
  Contact:Mark TarnackiSaint Michael’s [email protected]
  Colchester – Saint Michael’s College journalism Professor Traci Griffith was elected to the Executive Committee of the National American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Board during a late-January meeting in Atlanta.
  “It’s an opportunity to step up and have Vermont have a more significant role in setting an an agenda for the na
  
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• Innovative device could save Vermont’s food producers thousands annually

  01-03-2018 15:20 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — University of VermontFebruary 26, 2018
  Contact:Jeffrey WakefieldUniversity of [email protected]
  Burlington – A University of Vermont Extension professor has invented a $300 device that could save Vermont’s produce growers an average of $6,500 annually in improved storage conditions and its artisanal cheese and meat producers up to $10,000 a year in higher yields during processing.
  The device, called a DewRight, modernizes 200-year old technology to
  
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• Get ready to apply for Vermont Produce Safety Improvement Grants – round two

  01-03-2018 15:15 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & MarketsFebruary 26, 2018
  Montpelier – The Vermont Produce Safety Improvement Grant program will begin accepting applications on Wednesday, February 28 at 9:00 AM. The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, & Markets (VAAFM) offers Produce Safety Improvement Grants to help Vermont produce growers prevent or reduce produce safety risks on their farms. Round One grants were awarded in December 2017.
  Program staff are eager
  
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• Norwich University Peace and War Center Presents NATO and Defense Expert

  01-03-2018 15:10 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Norwich UniversityFebruary 28, 2018
  Contact:Daphne LarkinNorwich [email protected]
  Northfield – Norwich University’s Peace and War Center presents “The U.S., NATO and the transatlantic defense,” a talk by adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) Jim Townsend on Tuesday, March 6, at 12:15 p.m. in Room U125-Partridge Hall.
  This event is free and open to the public.
  At CNAS Townsend is building a Tran
  
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• Statement of Jack Crowther on proposed Rutland budget

  01-03-2018 15:05 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Jack CrowtherFebruary 27, 2018
  Contact:Jack [email protected]
  Rutland – Jack Crowther, a candidate for Rutland alderman in the March 6 election, released the following statement on Tuesday, Feb. 28, regarding the proposed fiscal 2019 budget, drafted by Mayor Allaire and approved, with minor modifications, by the Board of Aldermen Dec. 20.
  His statement follows:
  In conducting my campaign for alderman, it is only in the last few days that I&rs
  
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• Seeking food truck & ice cream vendors for Sand Bar State Park

  01-03-2018 15:00 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Vermont State ParksFebruary 28, 2018
  Contact:Rob [email protected]
  Montpelier – Building on last year’s success, Vermont State Parks is requesting proposals for food truck and ice cream vendors at Sand Bar State Park this summer.
  Food truck vendors are wanted for busy, peak summer weekends mid-June through Labor Day and may apply for as many weekends as they want, or for the entire season.
   
  The state is also seeking one ice cre
  
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• Fair Haven police chief: ‘I think we dodged a bullet’

  01-03-2018 14:50 via vtdigger.org
  Fair Haven Police Chief Bill Humphries speaks Wednesday night at a community forum held in the wake of an arrest in the case of foiled school shooting plot in the town. Photo by Alan J. Keays/VTDigger
  FAIR HAVEN — Fair Haven Police Chief Bill Humphries was both thanked for quick actions and pressed about why he didn’t move forward on an arrest sooner in the case of a teenager charged last week with threatening to shoot up the high school in town.
  “Fortunately, this developed th
  
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• House tax reform plan focuses on middle income Vermonters

  01-03-2018 11:59 via vtdigger.org
  Rep. Janet Ancel, D-Calais, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. File photo by John Herrick/VTDiggerThe House Ways and Means Committee passed an income tax plan Tuesday that would protect Vermonters from paying about $28 million in additional taxes. Gov. Phil Scott’s proposal would return $32 million to taxpayers.The legislative income tax plan is focused on middle income Vermonters and does not provide as much tax relief to high income households as Scott’s proposal does.Bot
  
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• Vermont Air Guard details F-35 plans ahead of contentious ballot measure

  01-03-2018 11:27 via vtdigger.org
  Capt. Jason Villemaire describes renovations to the squadron operations facility. Photo by Mike Dougherty/VTDiggerVermont Air National Guard officials on Wednesday explained how they are preparing for the arrival of 18 F-35 fighter jets at the base in South Burlington next year.
  Training operations and construction projects for F-35 operations at the Guard base adjacent to Burlington International Airport have been underway since 2016, guard officials said. They expect the first of the new fleet
  
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• UPDATED: Senate unanimously approves ‘extreme risk’ gun bill

  01-03-2018 04:15 via vtdigger.org
  Sen. Dick Sears listens to testimony on new gun control legislation in January. File photo by Mike Dougherty/VTDigger
  Senators gave their unanimous seal of approval on Wednesday to the first of what is expected to be a series of gun control laws after a thwarted school shooting in Fair Haven — following a mass shooting at a Florida high school — “jolted” the state’s policymakers.
  Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington, said he never expected the bill to make it this far when
  
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• Winter invasive species prevention awareness, alewife discovered in Lake Carmi

  01-03-2018 04:05 via vtdigger.org
  News Release — Lake Champlain Basin ProgramFebruary 23, 2018
  Contact:Meg Modley GilbertsonLCBP Aquatic Invasive Species Management Coordinator802-372-3213
  Grand Isle – Ice fishing season is here, and many bays and lakes within the Lake Champlain basin are frozen over. With that beloved winter pastime, comes another opportunity for the public and anglers to help prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species.
  Recently, an avid angler noticed an odd fish in his bait bucket and reported
  
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• Advocates for Bennington drug court meet with lawmakers

  01-03-2018 02:54 via vtdigger.org
  BENNINGTON — Local advocates of alternatives to incarceration for drug offenders launched an effort this week to re-establish a drug court docket in Bennington County.
  Meeting with Sen. Dick Sears, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and other area lawmakers, the group discussed their motivations and the reasoning behind the proposal.
  The goal, said Select Board member Jim Carroll, was “to do whatever we can to re-establish a drug court in Bennington County.”
  Mary Geris
  
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• Can Culcleasure’s lean campaign change city’s political dynamics?

  01-03-2018 02:49 via vtdigger.org
  Independent Infinite Culcleasure speaks at a Feb. 15 candidates forum. Photo by Bob LoCicero/VTDigger
  This is the third in a series of profiles of Burlington’s three mayoral candidates running in next Tuesday’s Town Meeting Day election.
  BURLINGTON — Few knew what to make of Infinite Culcleasure, a longtime community organizer with an unusual name, when he entered the race for Burlington mayor as an independent last December.Get all of VTDigger's political news.You'll never mis
  
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• Problems have plagued the F-35 for many years

  01-03-2018 01:56 via vtdigger.org
  An F-35 Lightning II at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. U.S. Air Force photo/Samuel King Jr.
  Rough Landing is a four-part series and podcast on the debate over basing F-35 fighter jets in Burlington. Read Part 1. Parts 3-4 will be published Thursday through Friday.
  Many adjectives have been used to describe the F-35 stealth fighter jet scheduled to arrive at Burlington International Airport next year, and few of them are flattering.Get all of VTDigger's political news.You'll neve
  
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• Sanders fined for accepting foreign donations in 2016 election

  01-03-2018 01:46 via vtdigger.org
  Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Photo by Bob LoCicero/VTDigger
  WASHINGTON — Sen. Bernie Sanders’s presidential campaign will pay $14,500 as part of an agreement with the Federal Election Commission over allegations that the campaign wrongfully accepted in-kind donations from an Australian political party.
  The complaint centered on a group of seven Australians who volunteered for the Vermont independent’s 2016 presidential bid.Get all of VTDigger's political news.You'll never miss a
  
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• Vermont forests vulnerable to climate change, study finds

  01-03-2018 01:32 via vtdigger.org
  Vermont forests are under stress fromwarming temperatures, unpredictable rains and invasive pests. Photo by Ellen Bartlett/VTDigger
  It was an offhand remark Gov. Phil Scott made in December, and probably regretted. “Climate change could be in some ways beneficial to Vermont,” he said, suggesting that in an era of extreme weather events the Green Mountains might be an appealing destination for climate refugees. The comment was criticized as insensitive. And for the state’s fores
  
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• Suit against town solar plan dismissed; new appeal launched

  01-03-2018 01:24 via vtdigger.org
  Solar panels on Route 7A in Bennington. Bennington Banner file photo
  BENNINGTON — A wide-ranging suit filed by a solar developer against Bennington, its town energy plan, the Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC) and local officials and residents has been dismissed at request of the plaintiff.
  However, Allco Renewable Energy is not giving up the fight. Thomas Melone, an attorney for the company, which proposes three commercial-scale solar projects in Bennington, said further legal s
  
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• UVM union protests proposed faculty cuts

  01-03-2018 01:09 via vtdigger.org
  Members of the UVM faculty union protest proposed cuts in positions. Photo by Cory Dawson/VTDigger
  BURLINGTON — The University of Vermont’s faculty union staged a rally on Wednesday to protest a proposal to eliminate more teaching positions in the university’s College of Arts and Sciences.Thomas Streeter, president of United Academics, released a statement to news media at the rally, which was held in the university’s Davis Center. The statement contained details of the u
  
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• Will Adams: Arming teachers proposal is a diversion

  01-03-2018 01:05 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Will Adams, of Barre Town, who teaches sixth grade at Hardwick Elementary School.
  In times of crisis, a good and just society should come together for the common good, examining the causes of the crisis with sober thinking. In such times, we should be resolute in our conviction to make change for the common good.
  In the wake of the school shooting in Parkland two weeks ago, there are renewed calls for action on a variety of gun control measures in Congr
  
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• Peter Shumlin: Curbing the overdose epidemic

  01-03-2018 01:00 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by former Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin.
  The United States currently faces an unprecedented opioid overdose epidemic. In 2016, 42,249 deaths were linked to opioids nationally. Overdose deaths were five times higher in 2016 than in 1999, and many states saw significant increases in overdose deaths from 2015 to 2016.
  The epidemic has additionally worsened following the increasing presence of fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid created for medical use that is
  
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• Dick’s Sporting Goods ends sale of guns to customers under 21

  01-03-2018 00:57 via vtdigger.org
  A Dick’s Sporting Goods store in Manchester, Connecticut. Photo from Flickr/Creative Commons
  RUTLAND TOWN – Dick’s Sporting Goods says it will no longer sell assault-style rifles and will not sell any guns to anyone under 21, a policy that would have prevented a Vermont teen accused of plotting a school shooting from buying a firearm there.The action by the nationwide retailer comes on the heels of a school shooting in Florida and a foiled plot in Vermont where an 18-year-old b
  
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• Jim Condos: Remember to vote on Town Meeting Day

  01-03-2018 00:55 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos.
  Voting is the bedrock of our democracy. One-person, one-vote is an ideal that lies at the corner of our collective democratic values.
  On Town Meeting Day, the first Tuesday in March, citizens across Vermont come together in their communities to discuss the business of their towns. For over 200 years, Town Meeting Day has been an important political event as Vermonters elect local officers, vote on municipal and sch
  
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• Juliana Dixon: Combined sewer systems not the solution

  01-03-2018 00:50 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Juliana Dixon, who is program director at Lake Champlain International. She has a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and a master’s in agricultural development.
  Feb. 22 was Clean Water Day at the Statehouse, an event advocating for the prioritization of swimmable, drinkable, fishable waters in Vermont. More than 150 people participated, representing a dozen organizations. Fittingly, while lawmakers were hearing testimony on the need
  
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