Current News

There is $20,000 in funding available through an award competition launched by the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council. VTDDC welcomes applications for projects that will engage individuals and organizations in advocacy activities that bring people together to educate and inform policy makers about the needs of people with developmental disabilities and their family members. Project grant awards may be made for up to $10,000 with potential for second year funding. The deadline is October 20, 2014.

VTDDC is a state-wide Board, and 63% of its members are people with developmental disabilities or family members appointed by the Governor. VTDDC also welcomes applications for membership and makes funding available year-round for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members to attend conferences and trainings, as well as for small grants supporting innovative projects.

RunVermont introduced People’s United Bank Monday as the new title sponsor for the Vermont City Marathon. Beginning immediately, the marathon will be known as the People’s United Bank Vermont City Marathon. KeyBank had been the title sponsor of the Burlington marathon for several years. The first race under the People's banner will be held Sunday, May 24, 2015. The Burlington marathon, which winds along Lake Champlain, was first run in 1989.

“RunVermont is excited to be partnering with People’s United Bank as we look to the future,” says RunVermont Board Chair Kevin Dwyer. “We think the partnership is a strong fit with the marathon’s demographic footprint, the shared commitment to community, and the enthusiasm to create a healthy lifestyle. This partnership will leverage the network of People’s United Bank throughout the northeast states and also bring the awareness of the event to a new level within the region.”

by Morgan True vtdigger.org Two teenagers have attempted suicide in the past five months at the Brattleboro Retreat. One of the patients who attempted suicide later died, and her parents say it was a “direct result” of her injuries at the hospital. The two cases and a recent sexual assault on the same adolescent ward could jeopardize federal funding for the psychiatric hospital. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is reviewing the Retreat’s certification, and the state is scrambling to help the hospital ensure patient safety and compliance with federal rules. The Retreat is home to the only child and adolescent inpatient psychiatric unit in Vermont and holds several contracts with the Agency of Human Services to provide substance abuse programs and mental health services for state patients.

He’s not very big, and not very fast.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital has been selected by the Vermont AARP Driver Safety Program as the 2014 Host of the Year. According to David Peters, the Vermont State program coordinator, BMH "has hosted our classes for 20 years and the staff has always provided a level of support and cooperation that is exceptional. I hope that, working together, we have been able to have an impact upon highway safety in Vermont."

The award will be presented at AARP's Annual State Meeting on October 29, 2014, at Vermont Technical College in Randolph.

The AARP Smart Driver Course, offered by AARP Driver Safety, is the nation’s largest classroom and online driver safety course and is designed especially for drivers age 50 and older. Over 15 million participants have gone through AARP Driver Safety classroom and online courses, taught by more than 4,000 AARP Driver Safety volunteers.

by Morgan True vtdigger.org Many people with chronic health conditions who are covered through Vermont’s exchange are finding it difficult to pay out-of-pocket costs for care, a consumer advocate says. Trinka Kerr, who leads Legal Aid’s Office of Health Care Advocate, told lawmakers this week that the problem is the way health plans offered through Vermont Health Connect are designed. People with chronic conditions that require frequent treatment, such as diabetes or heart disease, and who formerly qualified for a subsidized state program, are now liable for copays under the exchange.

At the Community National Bank in Montpelier Monday, Representative Peter Welch unveiled bipartisan legislation to provide targeted regulatory relief to small community banks across the country. Joining Welch at the news conference were community bank leaders from around the state, including Mark Young (First Bank of Orwell), Reagan Howard (Community National Bank), Ken Perrine (National Bank of Middlebury), Steve Kendall (Union Bank) and Chris D’Elia (Vermont Bankers Association). Also participating was Tom Candon with the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation.

On Friday, Absentee and Early Voting began for the General Election. From now until 5 pm or the close of the town clerk’s office on the day before the election, which, for the General Election is Monday, November 3, any registered voter may request a ballot from their town clerk, whether in person, by phone or by mail.

Secretary of State Jim Condos urges any Vermonters who think they may be away on November 4rd or have a schedule conflict to take advantage of Vermont’s early voting law: “Vermont law recognizes how busy its citizens are and that, while some will be able to take time off from work and personal obligations to vote on Election Day, others will not. However, voting is a right that belongs to all of Vermont’s citizens, which is why, if you cannot make it to the polls, I strongly encourage you to exercise your constitutional right and vote early!”

Today, Governor Peter Shumlin’s Climate Cabinet released the Vermont Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Action Plan. The Vermont Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Action Plan sets out tasks and timelines Agencies and Departments including Natural Resources, Transportation, Health, Public Service, and Buildings and General Services will take to promote electric vehicle deployment in Vermont. The Vermont Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Action Plan is the product of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed with seven other governors to put 3.3 million ZEVs on the road by 2025. ZEVs include pure battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles. The state estimates that there will be 700 such vehicles registered in Vermont by the end of this year.

Ski Vermont presented a contribution check of a record breaking $10,800 to the Keep Local Farms Fund at Rosina Wallace Farm in Waterbury, VT on Friday, September 19, 2014.

Norwich University has raised $55 million towards its newly launched five-year, $100 million comprehensive fundraising campaign known as “Forging the Future.” University President Richard W Schneider made the announcement as he kicked-off the campaign Friday night to 1,200 alumni, donors, trustees, faculty and staff at a gala event in Shapiro Field House.

The five-year campaign is timed to culminate during the university’s bicentennial in 2019 and is designed to enhance the university’s strong position as it steps into its third century of service to the nation.

Over the last few months, Congressman Andy Barr (R-KY) and Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin have met with Vermont Castings Group senior management team members at the manufacturer’s facilities in Kentucky and Vermont. The topic, among others, was increasing regulatory restrictions on the hearth industry and their effects on the welfare of the manufacturer, who has production facilities in Kentucky and Vermont employing over 600 people.