Current News

Speaker Shap Smith today announced the appointment of Representative Michael Fisher as the chair of the House Committee on Health Care. Fisher, the current vice chair of the committee, replaces former Representative Mark Larson who resigned from the legislature in August to become the Commissioner of the Department of Vermont Health Access. Representative Sarah Copeland-Hanzas will become the committee’s vice chair.
‘Mike has been a leader in the House for over a decade. His expertise in the field of health and human services is vast, and his enthusiasm to tackle the barriers to the access of quality affordable health care for Vermonters is unparalleled,’ said Speaker Smith. ‘The legislature made great strides last year and Mike’s leadership was crucial to those efforts. His leadership will be needed as we continue to move forward with health care reform.’

The stage is set for a beautiful foliage season as early fall color begins to emerge across Vermont’s higher elevations and low-lying areas.
With the current forecast calling for cool nights through the weekend and the combination of adequate soil moisture and healthy green leaves, Vermont foresters are predicting an excellent fall season. In the early stages of fall foliage, the best color can generally be found in higher elevations, the northern sections of the state, and in low-lying areas where red maples are the early sentinels of the seasonal change.
‘The cool nights that are in the forecast may pop a little more color our way by the end of the week,’ says Ginger Anderson, Chief of Forest Management for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. Early morning temperatures are forecasted to dip into the upper 30s this week.

The Kelly Brush Century Ride raised a record amount and drew the largest turnout in the six year history of the annual event held in Middlebury, Vermont. The 100-mile ride held on Sept. 10, raised over $275,000 for spinal cord injury prevention, adaptive sports and ski racing safety. A total of 721 riders participated in the scenic ride through the Champlain Valley.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development today awarded $2,475,000 to protect children and families living in Vermont from potentially dangerous lead-based paint and other home health and safety hazards.
The grant funding announced today is part of $93 million HUD is awarding nationwide to clean up lead and other health hazards in nearly 7,000 high-risk homes, train workers in lead safety methods, and increase public awareness about childhood lead poisoning. Lead is a known toxin that can impair children’s development and have effects lasting into adulthood.
‘Protecting the health and well-being of children is a top priority for HUD. We know that housing conditions directly affect the health of its occupants,’ said HUD Regional Administrator Barbara Fields. ‘This grant will help Vermont communities protect families from lead exposure and other significant health and safety hazards.’

The Vermont Money Smart Child initiative was announced today’as school, State government, business and non-profit officials underscored the need for parents to actively teach their kids about money.

Through a three-way partnership between the Vermont Jump$tart Coalition, State Treasurer’s Office, and People’s United Bank, the groundwork has been laid to reach more than 11,000 families with resources parents can use to instruct their children in personal finance. Fifty-seven elementary, middle school and high schools located throughout the state have requested copies of the booklet, ‘How to Raise a Money Smart Child’A Parent’s Guide.’ The schools will distribute the guides to parents this fall.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin today requested a Public Assistance Declaration for Grand Isle County, with damage estimates finalized on Wednesday exceeding the requirement to meet the federal threshold for assistance. If approved, every county in Vermont will have qualified for federal financial help repairing roads, bridges and other public infrastructure damaged in Tropical Storm Irene.
‘Our state and federal assessment for Grand Isle County found extensive damage to the infrastructure, well above the FEMA requirements for receiving the federal match,’ said Gov. Shumlin. ‘We hope to receive approval of this declaration quickly to prevent delays in repairing damage in Grand Isle.’

Governor's office. 9.15.2011

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin joined Comcast officials today for the launch of Internet Essentials, an ambitious and comprehensive broadband adoption program. The Internet Essentials program addresses three of the primary barriers to broadband adoption that research has identified ‘ 1) a lack of understanding of how the Internet is relevant and useful; 2) the cost of a home computer, and 3) the cost of the Internet service. Available to low-income families across Vermont with children who are eligible to receive a free lunch under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the goal of Internet Essentials is to help close the digital divide and ensure more Americans benefit from all the Internet has to offer.

On September 16, MyWebGrocer will host Vermont’s first ever 24-hour hackathon in the Champlain Mill in Winooski. The nonstop computer programming and code-writing marathon will give students and professionals throughout New England the chance to show MyWebGrocer and their peers what they’re made of, with a chance to win $10,000 in cash prizes.

Here are the event details:
What: Vermont’s first ever Hackathon
Who: Hosted by MyWebGrocer
Where: The Champlain Mill
20 Winooski Falls Way
Winooski, Vermont
When: Friday, September 16, 2011 ‘ Saturday, September 17, 2011
This event is not open to the public.
Friday
à 6 p.m. ‘ Participants check in
à 6:30 p.m. ‘ Opening remarks
à 7 p.m. ‘ Hacking kick-off
Saturday

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin's schedule for Thursday, September 15, 2011.
9:00 ‘Feed the Hungry Donation with UFCW,’ VT Foodbank - Smithfield donation; 33 Parker Road, Wilson Industrial Park, Barre
10:30 Vermont State Dental Society; Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center, Burlington
11:45 Bike Path Opening, South Burlington Recreation & Parks Dept.; Tilley Drive & Community Drive
12:20 Comcast Internet Essentials; The O’Brien Center in Winooski, 32 Mallets Way Ave.
1:30 Press Conference on Jobs; On the Rise Bakery, 39 Esplanade, Richmond
3:00 Tour Waterbury Downtown damaged by Tropical Storm Irene, starting at Fire Station on Main Street
5:50 5 x 5 x 5. Vermont Business Awards; Doubletree, South Burlington

6:30 Governor's Lakeside Gathering, Community Sailing Center; 234 Penny Lane, Burlington

With so much activity taking place around overhead and underground electrical equipment in the wake of Hurricane Irene, Central Vermont Public Service is warning workers to be careful to avoid situations involving contact with these types of devices.
In some areas, utilities may have lost the ground-to-cable clearances they had prior to the flood. Vermont utilities urge all contractors and state and federal agencies to use caution along power lines, and encourage them to report any ‘defects’ to the utility systems, such as low-hanging lines, they may notice in the field.
Central Vermont Public Service offers the following tips to help contractors stay safe during the recovery:

Vermont Secretary of Administration Jeb Spaulding released the August 2011 General Fund (GF) Revenue results today. Led by an increase in personal income tax receipts, the most important component, General Fund revenues totaled $90.06 million for August 2011, and were +$10.89 million or +13.75 percent above the $79.17 million consensus revenue forecast for the month, more than covering the prior month’s shortfall. Year to date, General Fund revenues were $176.33 million, and +$6.00 million or +3.52 percent above the two month target of $170.33 million. August is the second month of fiscal year (FY) 2012.

by Senator Bill Doyle. Last week, I had the opportunity to have a conference call with Secretary of Administration, Jeb Spaulding, Commissioner of Buildings and Grounds, Mike Obuchowski, Waterbury Representatives Rebecca Ellis and Tom Stevens, and Sen. Anthony Pollina. The Waterbury complex may not be repaired for many months, and the question is where would the state employees work or temporarily be relocated.
Spaulding said it would cost the state $20 million just to stabilize the present situation. On an optimistic note Spaulding said the federal/state match might be as high at 90 percent federal and 10 percent state. He made it clear that both the legislative and executive branches would be included in the short and long-term planning.