Current News

Average retail gasoline prices in Vermont have fallen 7.1 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.75/g yesterday. This compares with the national average that has fallen 1.9 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.70/g, according to gasoline price website VermontGasPrices.com.
Including the change in gas prices in Vermont during the past week, prices yesterday were 11.4 cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 16.1 cents per gallon lower than a month ago. The national average has decreased 18.0 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 5.9 cents per gallon higher than this day a year ago.
Source: VermontGasPrices.com. 6.14.2010

US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has joined what appears to be a futile effort to urge Vermont Governor Jim Douglas to reconsider plans to reduce state benefits to seniors who are enrolled in the state s VPharm supplemental prescription assistance program, in response to the new Medicare Part D rebate checks. The Douglas Administration said Monday that it will continue to ask for the money back. Vermont Senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders asked last week that the administration reconsider the move.
The rebate checks are intended to provide fiscal relief to seniors, not states, said Secretary Sebelius in a letter today to Governor Douglas. Seniors who enter the donut hole have serious illnesses, take more medication, and need additional financial help. They have extremely high out-of-pocket costs; for example, they must personally spend at least $2,830 to qualify for rebate checks in 2010.

NeighborWorks of Western Vermont won a $4.5 million grant for innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy programs, the Vermont congressional delegation announced today.
The Rutland County nonprofit housing lender was awarded the grant one of only 20 nationwide for its proposal to save energy and create jobs retrofitting homes and municipal buildings.
The award comes through a nationwide energy efficiency block grant program created in legislation authored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) played critical roles securing the grant funded by the economic stimulus bill that Congress passed last year.

US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) today issued a joint statement about the state of Vermont’s plans to ask some seniors, who participate in the state’s VPharm supplemental prescription assistance program, to turn over part or all of their new federal Medicare prescription drug rebates.
“At a time when Vermont seniors are hurting, the state should reconsider its plans to ask many low-income seniors to return this much-needed help. The state’s rebate recall also would add confusion and new layers of complexity for seniors and for the state. Vermont seniors who are struggling enough already to pay for the medicine they need can use all the help they can get.”

Vermont Yankee was nearly forced to shut down due to a new leak from a valve in an emergency cooling system. The leak was fixed early on Wednesday, in time to avoid a required shutdown.
The allowable limit for leakage is 1 gallon of water per minute. Tuesday morning a valve in the main reactor building was leaking 1.6 gallons of radioactive water per minute. The water did not drain into the outside environment; it was being collected in a drain system. The leak was repaired in five hours.
Though there was no direct threat to the public, regulations would have required the plant to shut down within 24 hours if the plant could not repair the leak.
Source: The Burlington Free Press 6.11.10

Vermont s filing deadlines for candidates were changed during the 2010 legislative session. Independent petitions for statewide, legislative and county office, as well as justice of the peace, for the general election are due no later than 5 pm on June 17, 2010 (the same deadline as major party candidates).
All independent candidates, except for independent candidates for justice of the peace, must file petitions with the office of the Vermont Secretary of State by 5 pm, June 17, 2010.
Independent candidates for justice of the peace must file petitions with 30 signatures or one percent of the checklist, whichever is less, with the town clerk by 5 pm, June 17, 2010.
Major party candidate petitions and consent forms and minor party nominations for all offices - except justice of the peace - must be filed by June 17, 2010; all major party and minor party nominations for justice of the peace must be received by the town clerk by August 27, 2010.

Vermont Governor Jim Douglas and New York State Governor David A. Paterson today broke ground on a new Lake Champlain Bridge spanning the lake between Crown Point, New York, and Addison, Vermont. The governors were joined at the site of the approach to the former bridge by state and local elected officials, local business leaders and community members to officially kick-off the start of construction of the new bridge.
Those who live and work in the area surrounding the Lake Champlain Bridge share family, friends and business relationships on both sides of the lake, Governor Douglas said. The ease and timeliness of transportation across Lake Champlain is critical to their way of life and economy. Everyone involved in this bridge project should be commended for getting us to this point so quickly.

US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Kit Bond (R-MO), the co-chairs of the Senate National Guard Caucus, are requesting an additional $870 million to help the National Guard and Reserves address critical equipment shortfalls. The National Guard Caucus request was sent to Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Vice Chairman Thad Cochran (R-MS). Bond and Leahy also are senior members of the Appropriations Committee and of its Defense Subcommittee, which handles the Senate s work in writing the annual Defense Department budget bill.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation beginning the week of June 14 will restrict a portion of Route 102 in the Town of Guildhall to one lane as crews prepare to replace a culvert. The lane restriction will last about a week, and then crews will close the road completely for a period of about three days.

Some of the work is weather dependent, so it is impossible to know exactly when the road will be closed. But if Mother Nature cooperates, the plan is to have the road closed from June 22 through June 24. During the closure, traffic will be detoured onto Route 3 in New Hampshire.
Later this summer, VTrans will pave a 10.6 mile segment of Route 102 between Guildhall and Maidstone. The culvert replacement is being conducted before the paving job commences so that the new blacktop does not need to be disturbed.
Source: VTrans

CVPS customers will see a slight decrease in their electricity bills starting with bills rendered July 1. Last year, the Vermont Public Service Board approved a 1.15 percent surcharge on bills to pay for the extraordinary costs of the 2008 ice storm, the most expensive in company history. CVPS has been collecting that surcharge as part of its alternative regulation program, but the recovery period ends June 30. As a result, the surcharge will end with bills rendered starting July 1.
Customers have also been receiving a power cost adjustment credit of $0.00206 per kilowatt-hour. The credit for the upcoming quarter will be smaller, $0.00089 per kWh. Combined with the end of the surcharge, the effect is a rate decrease of 0.24 percent starting July 1.
For a typical residential customer using 500 kilowatt-hours per month, the net change will reduce the bill by 32 cents, from $77.07 to $76.75.

The Vermont Small Business Development Center (VtSBDC) will provide a full time Project Manager in Hardwick whose responsibility will be to provide area agribusinesses with technical assistance, consultation, and training programs. The VtSBDC will also assist in both expanding new businesses and selecting and recruiting new ones. A technical assistance focus will be on the new Vermont Food Venture Center in Hardwick.
The Project Manager position was made possible through a USDA Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) and under contract to the Center for an Agricultural Economy (CAE) in Hardwick.

Anthony Pollina is running for the State Senate in Washington County as well as for the Democratic Primary.
Pollina ran for governor as an Independent two years ago, receiving almost 30 percent of the Washington County votes. Democrat Gaye Symington, who barely came in third after Pollina, only received 18 percent of the votes for Washington County.
Governor James Douglas received little under 50 percent of the Washington County vote, and won statewide with 53 percent.