Current News

by John Herrick vtdigger.org The House Ways and Means Committee gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a 0.2 percent increase in the property transfer tax. The money will be used to restore polluted waterways in Vermont. The tax is paid by property buyers. It can be added to the total closing cost of the property. The current rate is 1.25 percent the total value of the property. The 0.2 percent surcharge would increase the tax to 1.45. Properties under $100,000 or those purchased through the the Vermont Housing Finance Agency under $110,000 would not pay the surcharge.

by Jeffrey R Wakefield Quebec has an abundance of electric power. Vermont and New England have a growing need for it. But what are the political, environmental, economic and policy issues involved in getting power from north to south? A conference at the University of Vermont March 23 and 24, "Power from the North," will put context around those questions, examine current realities and develop potential pathways for the future.

“The energy relationship between Vermont and Quebec has had its ups and downs over the last 30-plus years, but it’s been durable, with the state today purchasing large amounts of power from the north,” said Richard Watts, director of the Center for Research on Vermont and one of the conference organizers.

“The conference," Watts said, "will take a close look at the past and present in order to determine what the future relationship might look like."

Seventh Generation, a leading brand of non-toxic and renewable bio-based household, baby and personal care solutions, has called on Congress to strengthen the country's outdated chemical policy. Seventh Generation, along with the American Sustainable Business Council, are founding members of Companies for Safer Chemicals, a group of the country's leading consumer brands -- 3,000 businesses strong -- joining together to press Congress to modernize the nation's ineffective chemical safety laws. Strong lobbying by other industry groups has given policymakers the impression that business is monolithic in its support for weak legislation. Companies for Safer Chemicals makes a business argument for strong reforms that support the industry innovating safer and cleaner products.

Julia Alvarez, a highly regarded novelist, poet, and essayist, and a 1971 Middlebury graduate, will deliver the 2015 Middlebury College commencement address on Sunday, May 24. Alvarez’s acclaimed novels In the Time of the Butterflies and How The García Girls Lost Their Accents are based on her life experience, the foundation for much of her work. She spent most of her childhood in her parents’ native Dominican Republic before her family was forced to flee the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in 1960. Among her many awards is the National Medal of Arts, bestowed by President Barack Obama in 2013, and the highest honor given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government.

US Senator Patrick Leahy will welcome US Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to Vermont this Friday, as she delivers the keynote address at the 2^nd Leahy Center Environmental Summit. Leahy will introduce Jewell’s remarks at 2 pm, followed by a question and answer session with local news media representatives. Immediately following, Leahy and Jewell will visit a US Geological Survey lake gage on the Burlington waterfront.

The theme of this year’s summit is “Climate Change Resilient, Floodwater Smart.”

FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2:00 P.M.;

ECHO AT THE LEAHY CENTER FOR LAKE CHAMPLAIN;

1 COLLEGE STREET, BURLINGTON

Despite lower gasoline and diesel fuel prices in the second half of 2014, the registrations of fuel-efficient clean diesel and hybrid cars and SUVS both showed double-digit increases in vehicle registrations in 2014, according to the latest data compiled by IHS Automotive for the Diesel Technology Forum. Vermont ranks 10th in growth of diesel vehicles sold from 2013 to 2014..

Diesel cars and SUVs showed an increase of 13.5 percent in 2014 over 2013, and hybrid cars and SUVS increased by 15.1 percent.

Mindy S Lubber, one of the world’s most influential leaders in harnessing capitalism for positive environmental outcomes, will be Green Mountain College’s 2015 commencement speaker on Saturday, May 16. Lubber is the president of Ceres, the leading US coalition of investors and environmental leaders working to improve corporate environmental, social and governance practices. Ceres has succeeded in persuading more than 1000 companies to sign its “Climate Declaration” urging Congress to adopt new laws to combat global warming. She also directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), an alliance of more than 100 institutional investors representing over $10 trillion in assets.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) is pleased to announce the publication of a new resource, Using Food Hubs to Create Sustainable Farm to School Programs (available here), which explores the key roles that Food Hubs can play in the development, support, and maintenance of successful Farm to School (FTS) programs. While Food Hubs remain a relatively new and evolving concept within the national food movement, Vermont is home to over a dozen Food Hubs, whose missions range from the aggregation, processing, and distribution of locally made foods, to consumer education, to farmer/producer technical assistance.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets (VAAFM) has announced the availability of grant funds for the purpose of enhancing the competitiveness of Vermont specialty crops including fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, horticulture and nursery crops. These funds are awarded through a competitive review process guided by industry, nonprofit and government stakeholders. Interested applicants may download the Vermont Specialty Crop Block Grant Program Request for Proposals on the Agency’s website.

Public Assets Institute Fewer Vermonters were working in 2014 than in 2004, according to revised figures from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The decade of stagnant employment contrasts with the previous 10 years. In 2004 the average number of working Vermonters was 34,000 greater than in 1994. The revised figures also show that employment has declined for the last three years, after a brief recovery following the recession.

On Wednesday, March 18, Lyndon State College President Joe Bertolino announced details of a plan developed to “right size” the College’s budget in response to projected deficits in the coming years. The College entered the 2014-15 academic year with an unexpectedly large decline in new students — resulting in a $1.5 million gap that was closed with a combination of one-time initiatives including budget cuts, increased efficiencies, a hiring freeze, and monies from reserves. The plan also includes the layoff of five staff memebers and the cutting of some adjunct positions.

The issue of climate change is one that affects everyone across the globe especially people in vulnerable communities from Vanuatu to Red Hook. But what has been clear for sometime now, is that to change everything, it’s going to take everyone. These impacts will affect everyone alike and require an equivalent response for people to step up and take action. Ben & Jerry’s has long fought to bring this issue into the spotlight and stimulate change, and 2015 is no different. The ice cream maker is taking to the streets in its new emissions-free Tesla retro-fitted ice cream vehicle to deliver free scoops of ice cream and encouragement for fans to join the climate movement. The year-long Save our Swirled campaign will inspire citizens around the world to support the global climate movement by joining Avaaz and calling on world leaders to support a transition to 100 percent clean energy.