Vermont news

• Final Reading: Service providers are wary of looming changes to Vermont’s case management structure

  19-04-2024 00:48 via vtdigger.org
  
  Rep Ann-Donahue, R-Northfield, third from left, speaks during a meeting at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Thursday, January 25. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  For years, the state of Vermont has been out of compliance with federal rules around home and community-based services.The state’s system for caring for older Vermonters, Vermonters with physical and developmental disabilities, and Vermonters with traumatic brain injuries is operating in violation of federal regulations governing
  
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• Grow your kids’ opportunities this May with VT529

  01-05-2024 18:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  National 529 Day is May 29 (5-29, get it?), highlighting the advantages of 529 savings plans in helping families prepare for education after high school. In the Green Mountain State, we have a plan—called VT529—with added tax benefits to help your savings for college or training grow further.What is a 529 plan? These education savings plans are designed to help families set aside funds for future training costs, with tax advantages to help make saving easier. The plans are named
  
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• Kevin Chu and Amy Spear: Eclipsing 802,000, making Vermont a destination for a lifetime

  01-05-2024 15:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Kevin Chu, executive director of the Vermont Futures Project, and Amy Spear, vice president of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce.
  On April 8, more than 160,000 people visited Vermont to observe the solar eclipse. Vermont briefly surpassed the 802,000 population goal that the Vermont Futures Project set last year, and we saw a glimpse of the vibrancy that’s possible in our state. Our downtowns and villages were full of life, full of people engaging in commerce and conne
  
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• Ryan Heraty: Where is the equity?

  01-05-2024 13:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Ryan Heraty, superintendent of the Lamoille South Supervisory Union.
  In Morrisville, a recent Front Porch Forum post reads: “Vote down the school budget! They don’t want to just survive, they want to thrive.”Is this really where we are in 2024? Are Vermonters really ready to let our most vulnerable children be the victims of state-level politics? The Brigham Decision was predicated on the state providing “equal educational opportunities.”
  
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• Third-generation writer Bianca Stone named Vermont’s new poet laureate

  01-05-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  Third-generation writer Bianca Stone has been named Vermont’s new poet laureate. Provided photo
  When Robert Frost was named Vermont’s first poet laureate in 1961, he had just written a new work for then President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration, only to recite an old one from memory after glare from the sun prevented him from reading his intended piece.Six decades later, Bianca Stone understands such a last-minute change in course.Some days I get up to go for a runbut instead j
  
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• Imogene Drakes, Dr. Rebecca Jones and the NAACP Health Justice Committee: Fixing racist algorithms in medicine 

  01-05-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Imogene Drakes, PhD, Dr. Rebecca Jones and the members of the Windham County NAACP Health Justice Committee’s “Anti-Racism in Medicine” group.
  Unbeknownst to many of us, racism in health care impacts Black, Indigenous and people of color, also known as BIPOC, from many directions. The deleterious effects exacerbate myriad health problems in BIPOC patients and especially in Black women. BIPOC patients are more likely to receive lesser care from our me
  
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• Final Reading: Right to repair resuscitated in Senate agriculture committee

  01-05-2024 01:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  A tractor. Stock photo via PxHere
  More than a year since its introduction and with time running out this biennium, a bill that would allow Vermont farmers and loggers to independently repair their agricultural equipment is headed to the Senate floor.H.81 first made its debut last year, and was quickly met with a “flood” of lobbying opposition from major national interest groups and equipment manufacturers. The bill would compel manufacturers like John Deere, Caterpillar or Tigercat
  
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• 900% increase in blood infections at UVM Medical Center likely due to opioids cut with animal tranquilizer, study finds

  30-04-2024 23:30 via vtdigger.org
  
  The University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington on Thursday, June 6, 2019. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Monica Raymond, an infection preventionist at the University of Vermont Medical Center, said some of the wounds she sees are unlike anything she has seen before. “Some of these are very extensive, even down to the bone,” said Raymond. Two years ago, physicians at the UVM Medical Center began receiving more and more patients  with searing, necrotic fle
  
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• ‘A very hard way to make a living’: Herd departs Hartford’s last remaining dairy farm

  30-04-2024 22:12 via vtdigger.org
  
  George Miller comforts his wife Linda as their Jersey cows are loaded onto a trailer to be shipped to Canton, N.Y., on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, in Harford, Vt. The Millers have farmed the land since 1907, when George’s great-grandfather started the farm. After the morning milking, the couple shipped their 27 milking Jersey cows and six heifers. The couple graduated from high school in June 1976 and by August were milking their own herd. They will continue to grow hay and sugar at the fa
  
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• Vermont Senate rejects Zoie Saunders as state education secretary

  30-04-2024 16:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders speaks at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Education Committee at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  After a dramatic debate Tuesday morning, the Vermont Senate voted against the confirmation of Zoie Saunders as state education secretary.Saunders needed a majority of the 29-member Senate to approve her appointment, but 19 senators opposed it. Nine voted in favor of her confirmation. One senator was
  
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• After Vermont Senate rejects Zoie Saunders, Phil Scott names her interim education secretary

  30-04-2024 16:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders speaks at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Education Committee at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Updated at 11:07 a.m.After a lengthy and dramatic debate Tuesday morning, the Vermont Senate voted against the confirmation of Zoie Saunders as state education secretary — but the fight over her appointment appeared far from finished. Saunders needed a majority of the 29-member Senate to
  
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• After Vermont Senate refuses to confirm Zoie Saunders, Phil Scott names her interim education secretary

  30-04-2024 16:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders speaks at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Education Committee at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Updated at 4:16 p.m.After a lengthy and dramatic debate Tuesday morning, the Vermont Senate voted against the confirmation of Zoie Saunders as state education secretary — but the fight over her appointment appeared far from finished. Saunders needed a majority of the 29-member Senate to s
  
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• Ali Jalili: ‘Profiteering developers’ are our friends

  30-04-2024 16:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Ali Jalili, a retired Foreign Service officer who served with the State Department all over the world, primarily as an economic officer. 
  Lt. Gov. Zuckerman makes it clear in his latest opinion piece that he doesn’t like “profiteering developers”, a term he uses pejoratively multiple times. Presumably he prefers developers who put in their time, effort and capital… out of the goodness of their heart? Those types of developers (e.g. Habita
  
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• Clare Wool: Let’s not halt progress toward a more equitable educational landscape

  30-04-2024 14:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Clare Wool, chair of the Burlington School Board.
  As the chair of the Burlington School District School Board, I am fortunate to witness firsthand the profound impact of educational policies on our diverse community. Among these policies, Act 127 stands out as a beacon of progress in our continuous effort to achieve equity and finally address the inequity across Vermont’s schools. However, while we navigate the benefits of such transformative legislation, we als
  
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• Drs. Deborah Hirtz, Barbara Frankowski and James Metz: Vermont should protect children from toxic pesticides

  30-04-2024 13:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Dr. Deborah Hirtz of Jericho, a pediatric neurologist; Dr. Barbara Frankowski of Jericho, a pediatrician and Dr. James Metz of Hinesburg, a pediatrician with a specialization in child abuse medicine.
  It’s often said that our children are our most valuable resource, but too many times, we underestimate how fragile that resource is. As physicians who have dedicated our careers to children’s health, we recently spoke out in support of H.706, which seeks to blunt a
  
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• Killington is the East’s largest ski resort. A developer wants to expand on that in a big way.

  30-04-2024 12:02 via vtdigger.org
  
  A proposed Killington resort village lodge to be called “The Crystal,” as rendered by the architecture firm of Moshe Safdie. Illustration courtesy Great Gulf real estate group
  KILLINGTON — Michael Sneyd may work in a tall office tower in Canada’s most populous city of Toronto, but he’d rather talk up the even bigger slopes of this small town in Vermont.“Killington has long been known as the largest ski mountain in the East,” he began a recent video call
  
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• Daniel Smith: A tribute to Ed Barron

  30-04-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Daniel Smith of East Montpelier. He is founding executive director of the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact and founding executive director of the Agritech Institute for Small Farms.
  The nation and Vermont have lost a noteworthy but unsung public servant, Ed Barron. Longtime staffer for Sen. Patrick Leahy, Ed was the go-to expert on the Hill for our nation’s nutrition programs. Over many years and as part of a number of Farm Bills, Ed worked to establish and im
  
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• Timothy J. Chant

  30-04-2024 02:17 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born Aug. 19, 1963Kingston, New YorkDied Feb. 25, 2024Warwick, Rhode IslandDetails of servicesVisiting hours were March 3 and a memorial service was March 4 at the Thomas & Walter Quinn Funeral Home in Warwick, R.I. A video of the service is on the funeral home’s website.Timothy J. “Timmy” Chant (60) of Warwick, R.I., a beloved husband, father, brother, educator, coach, and friend, passed away February 25, 2024. He shared 31 years of marriage with his best friend and wife,
  
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• As UVM pro-Palestinian encampment enters 2nd day, protestors call for action at commencement

  30-04-2024 00:25 via vtdigger.org
  
  Protesters attend a rally at a Palestine solidarity encampment at UVM in Burlington on Monday, April 29, 2024. Among the protesters demands is the cancellation of this year’s graduation commencement speaker U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — University of Vermont students called for more protests at next month’s commencement if the university does not cancel its speaker, as a pro-Palestinian encampment ent
  
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• As UVM pro-Palestinian encampment enters 2nd day, protesters call for action at commencement

  30-04-2024 00:25 via vtdigger.org
  
  Protesters attend a rally at a Palestine solidarity encampment at UVM in Burlington on Monday, April 29, 2024. Among the protesters demands is the cancellation of this year’s graduation commencement speaker U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerBURLINGTON — University of Vermont students called for more protests at next month’s commencement if the university does not cancel its speaker, as a pro-Palestinian encampment ent
  
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• Vermont Statehouse locks doors after receiving shooting threat

  29-04-2024 23:55 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, May 12, 2023. Photo by Natalie Williams/VTDigger
  The Vermont Statehouse locked its doors on Monday and set up patrols inside and outside the building after receiving threatening calls, officials said.Statehouse Sergeant-at-Arms Agatha Kessler said that, around 9:30 a.m. Monday, her office got a threatening phone call ­— about the same time Montpelier police dispatchers said they also received an active shooter threat against the Statehouse.The c
  
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• Aline Harter

  29-04-2024 23:36 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born Sept. 18, 1923McDonald, PennsylvaniaDied April 26, 2024Westmore, VermontAline B. Harter (Whitney) passed away peacefully on April 26 surrounded by family. Aline was born on Sept. 18, 1923 in the small town of McDonald, PA. She excelled in high school, attended business school, and shortly after moved to Chicago. There she worked as a secretary for CBS Radio. During a girls’ night out with her colleagues, she met her “Prince Charming” Jack Harter (a naval aviator in trainin
  
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• Former Bristol man gets 18 years in prison for plotting with mother to kill his stepfather

  29-04-2024 22:22 via vtdigger.org
  
  A former Bristol man has been sentenced to at least 18 years in prison for conspiring with his mother to kill her husband, who was also his stepfather.In a deal with prosecutors last year, Kory George, 36, pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the 2019 death of David Auclair, 45.Kory Lee George. Vermont State Police photo
  Both the judge and the victim’s sister chastised George during the sentencing Monday in Chittenden County Superior criminal court in
  
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• Walter Carpenter: I support H.766 for the sake of physicians and patients

  29-04-2024 21:29 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,I heartily support H.766, the bill to ease provider burdens, most notably the process our insurance companies have inflicted on us called “prior authorizations.” As someone who nearly died from a life-threatening disease largely because these prior authorizations kept standing in the way of care, I know what it means to be on the receiving end of this chokehold. I heartily applaud Rep. Alyssa Black (D-Essex), a primary sponsor of the bill, when she said “Payers
  
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• Phil Scott calls on Senate to push back confirmation vote on Zoie Saunders for education secretary

  29-04-2024 21:27 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders speaks at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Education Committee at the Statehouse in Montpelier on April 23. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Facing a daunting confirmation vote Tuesday, Gov. Phil Scott on Monday called on the Vermont Senate to postpone its consideration of Zoie Saunders for education secretary.“I’m concerned about the prospects for a civil and fair Floor debate and vote at this time,” Scott wrote Senate leadership in
  
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• Citing ‘toxic’ debate, Phil Scott calls on Senate to delay vote on Zoie Saunders for education secretary

  29-04-2024 21:27 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders speaks at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Education Committee at the Statehouse in Montpelier on April 23. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Ahead of a daunting confirmation vote scheduled for Tuesday, Gov. Phil Scott on Monday called on the Vermont Senate to postpone its consideration of Zoie Saunders for education secretary.“I’m concerned about the prospects for a civil and fair Floor debate and vote at this time,” Scott wrote Senat
  
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• Peggy Stevens: What new EPA rules mean for Lake Memphremagog and the Coventry landfill

  29-04-2024 20:34 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Peggy Stevens of Charleston, a member of the advisory committee for DUMP — Don’t Undermine Memphremagog’s Purity.
  In recent weeks, the EPA has handed down two historic rules on toxic PFAS chemicals — the chemicals found in water and stain resistant fabrics and non-stick products like cookware, as well as literally hundreds of other commonly used household goods. These chemicals are proven to cause a multitude of health concerns, from reproductive an
  
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• Stephanie Gomory: On civil liberties, Gov. Scott gets a failing grade  

  29-04-2024 19:30 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Stephanie Gomory, communications director for the ACLU of Vermont.
  The ACLU of Vermont recently published its Civil Liberties Report Card, a pass/fail assessment of Gov. Phil Scott’s record on civil rights and civil liberties during his most recent term, 2023–2024. The assessment gives the governor a failing grade across several categories, including education, drug policy, criminal justice, police accountability, homelessness and economic justice. As
  
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• Pat Suozzi: Pass S.146 this year to protect Vermont’s most pristine lakes

  29-04-2024 18:23 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Pat Suozzi of Hinesburg, president of the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds.
  Last year the Vermont Senate passed S.146, a bill relating to the permitting of indirect discharges. What does this mean? It will mean more protection for our lakes and ponds. To protect Vermont’s high quality waters, those lakes that exceed the Vermont Water Quality Standards should be reclassified from B2 to A1 watersheds. A1 reclassification would better protect water quality, re
  
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• The future of fertilizer? Pee, says this Brattleboro institute

  29-04-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  Rich Earth Institute sends a pump truck out to donors’ homes to collect urine to treat and turn into fertilizer. Photo courtesy Rich Earth Institute
  Kate Kampner is a reporter with Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.When Peter Stickney walks along his cow paddocks in the morning, he notes the scattered patches of greener grass across the pasture. He knows what this means: It’s where his cows have peed.&n
  
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