Current News

The Lake Champlain Committee (LCC) is looking for citizens interested in monitoring shoreline locations for blue-green algae blooms. Since 2003 LCC has coordinated an award-winning volunteer blue-green algae monitoring program along the lake’s shoreline working in collaboration with Vermont and New York environmental and health agencies. Volunteer monitors assess water conditions from over 50 sites around the lake.

The Senate on Wednesday voted nearly unanimously for a bill to expand hospitals and clinics run by the Department of Veterans Affairs and to hire more doctors and nurses to provide timely, quality care for veterans. The bipartisan bill by Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) would let veterans facing long delays for doctor appointments at VA facilities go elsewhere. Their measure also would hold VA officials accountable for trying to conceal patient wait times.

“Our job is to make certain that every veteran in the country gets quality health care in a timely manner,” Sanders said. “At a time when 2 million more veterans have come into the VA in the last four years, we must ensure that there are enough doctors, nurses and other health care professionals to meet the needs of veterans in every facility in the country.”

The Sanders-McCain emergency funding bill would:

Vermont Gas Systems on Tuesday asked the Vermont Public Service Board to waive part of its Certificate of Public Good so it could begin receiving materials necessary to the construction of its Addison natural gas pipeline. VGS said it is about a month behind schedule because of a delay in receiving the necessary permit from the Agency of Natural Resources, which happened on Monday. The Army Corps of Engineers said it now will have to review the ANR permit before issuing its own, which could take until the end of June. VGS wanted to start the process May 1. VGS is asking for the PSB to act by Friday.

VGS' Certificate of Public Good, issued by the PSB on December 13, 2013, requires the South Burlington based company to obtain permits from the ANR, VTrans and the ACOE before beginning construction or site preparation for Phase I of the pipeline. VGS has yet to receive a permit from the ACOE and is seeking to begin site preparation before the permit is issued.

The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) has announced the approval of $12 million in economic development financing to support commercial, energy, small business and agricultural projects throughout Vermont. The approved financing will leverage additional resources to fund a total of more than $26 million in economic development activity throughout the state. Included in the financing are: Circus Smirkus, Clarendon Solar Farm, Black River Produce and Greenfield Capital.

For the first time, voluntary consumer blood alcohol content (BAC) data is available, providing insight into alcohol consumption patterns around the nation. The data was collected anonymously from users of BACtrack Mobile. Collectively called the BACtrack Consumption Report, the data will be regularly updated and analyzed to garner insights into global drinking habits. The US National Transportation Safety Bureau (NTSB) has recommended lowering the legal driving limit from 0.08 percent to 0.05 percent BAC. BACtrack breathalyzers are designed to help consumers understand their alcohol levels and make smarter choices. Vermont ranked among the top ten highest levels in these self-administered tests at 0.087 percent.

The Vermont Department of Taxes announced statistical findings for the 2014 tax season showing a rise in tax refund fraud in Vermont, a decrease in paper-filed returns coupled with an increase in e-filed returns, and other taxpayer trends in Vermont. According to Tax Commissioner Mary Peterson, a top priority for the department is guarding taxpayers and taxpayer money against tax refund fraud. “While the additional scrutiny affected the timing of some refund payments, it is critical to protect taxpayers,” Peterson said. “We believe our diligence has paid off. As of the beginning of June, the department detected 504 fraudulent tax returns, putting a stop to more than $900,000 worth of income tax refunds from going out the door and into the wrong hands.”

The Burlington Telecom Advisory Board held a special meeting recently to discuss CCTV, VCAM & RETN’s (Burlington’s Access Management Organizations – BAMO) proposal for a transparent, public process to protect the public interest when the City of Burlington sells Burlington Telecom to new owners. The city has been trying to sell BT because of the financial burden the all-fiber network has been on the city. BT owes the city $17 million and has dragged down the city's bond rating, which includes Burlington International Airport. BT finances have stabilized with an agreement in March involving local investors and debt-holder CitiBank, but Mayor Miro Weinberger wants to rid the city of the obligation.

On the heels of the Obama administration’s climate change plan announced last week and a recent government-funded report on climate change’s threat to national security, Vermont Law School’s Vermont Journal of Environmental Law (VJEL) explores the national security implications of a warming planet.

Released Monday and available online, “Rising Temps and Emerging Threats: The Intersection of Climate Change and National Security in the 21st Century” is a compilation of scholarship and remarks from VJEL’s 2013-2014 symposium of the same name, held last October at VLS. The publication includes articles by experts in climate science, international security, military law, and global migration.

FairPoint Communications, Inc (Nasdaq: FRP), a leading provider of advanced communications in northern New England, has expanded broadband to 140 homes and businesses in Rochester. FairPoint’s new fiber-based, high-capacity network offers customers a better, faster way to communicate.

“Our next-generation network allows us to expand broadband service into areas with no high-speed Internet access and provide enhanced services across the state,” said Beth Fastiggi, FairPoint state president for Vermont. “Broadband availability opens the doors to the world for the residents and businesses in Vermont and is fundamental to the state’s future economic growth.”

Manchester Designer Outlets announces the opening of The Marble Mill, a new 20,000 square foot retail complex located in the heart of Manchester Center, VT at 135 Depot Street. Leading designer brands located at The Marble Mill include such world-class names as Armani Outlet, Eileen Fisher Company Store, Eddie Bauer Outlet and New Balance Factory Store.

With the addition of The Marble Mill, Manchester Designer Outlets is the largest retail group in
Manchester, Vermont. This development, the first new major commercial venture in Manchester in
more than five years, has stimulated new economic energy in the region with several new hotels and
restaurants forthcoming. It was designed, developed and built by Vermont architects
Contractors and artisans embracing historic New England architectural features such as Vermont
serpentine stone sitting walls, flower gardens, the addition of more trees and open stone plazas.

The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) has announced that aggregate loan limits for agricultural and forest products borrowers have increased substantially. Effective July 1, 2014, the statutory limit on the aggregate outstanding loan balances to any borrower at any time through VEDA’s agricultural loan program, the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation (VACC), has gone from $1.355 million to $2.0 million.

“This significant increase in the agricultural loan limit will make a huge difference to farmers, forest product producers and other agricultural borrowers in Vermont,” said Jo Bradley, VEDA CEO. “VEDA’s and VACC’s efforts to secure this statutory change would not have been possible without the strong support of the Administration and Legislative Leaders, and for that, we are most thankful.”

Governor Peter Shumlin today signed into law a bill requiring manufacturers of products with toxic chemicals that can cause harmful health effects to disclose when those chemicals are present in children’s products. The new law identifies some chemicals of particular concern.

“This law now allows Vermont parents and all consumers to make choices about the type of chemicals in products they buy,” the governor said. “Preventing potential exposure to toxic chemicals is the best way to protect adults and children, as well as the environment. The first step in prevention -- and the point of this law -- is to make people aware of toxic chemicals in children’s products.”

Commissioner of Health, Harry Chen, MD, said, “The Department of Health supports and is ready to implement the law. Using good science to inform Vermonters of, and protect them from, toxic chemicals is the right thing to do.”