Current News

by Laura Krantz vtdigger.org Lawmakers on Wednesday struggled to decide how much detail to write into a law designed to offer a second option to alleged criminals who might benefit from substance abuse or mental health treatment instead of jail time.
S.295, known as the ‘risk assessment’ bill has become a key focus of the Senate Judiciary Committee this session. It establishes a way that people who are arrested can be assessed before, or after, they are charged, and also attempts to crack down on burglary committed with the use of threat or a weapon.
After three hours of testimony, the committee asked its attorney to tweak the bill yet again, with the goal of voting it out of committee by the end of next week.
Discussion Wednesday centered around the testimony of an advocate who works with victims of domestic and sexual violence.

Green Mountain Power today announced that a new sound monitoring report just released finds Kingdom Community Wind continues to meet strict standards set by state regulators. Green Mountain Power filed the results with the Vermont Public Service Board Thursday. The report is part of an ongoing comprehensive monitoring program.
‘We are glad to share this important information with our customers,’ said Dorothy Schnure, GMP’s corporate spokesperson. ‘Kingdom Community Wind continues to operate efficiently and as a result we are able to generate cost-effective and local energy.’
The testing was conducted at four different locations near the wind project. The report analyzed 1,343 hours of continuous monitoring between November 13, 2013 and December 19, 2013. The sound levels set at Kingdom Community Wind are among the strictest in the country, set at 45 decibels, which experts say is comparable to the inside of a library.

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Congressman Peter Welch (D-Vermont), who have advocated for additional home heating aid as near-record winter cold grips Vermont, Thursday announced the federal release of an additional $2.5 million in heating assistance to the state.
Leahy, Sanders and Welch have long championed the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Thursday released $2,536,734 to Vermont, bringing the total federal funding for the state to $19,139,734 for fiscal year 2014.
In a joint statement, Leahy, Sanders and Welch said: ‘With families across Vermont struggling to heat their homes during the brutally cold winter months, any relief is welcome, and we have pushed for this, and more. But more must be done, and we will continue to press for additional support for LIHEAP to ensure Vermonters are able to heat their homes.’

Campaign for Vermont, the state’s fastest-growing statewide advocacy organization, today announced its expanded board of directors. Bruce Lisman, a founder of the non-partisan organization, said that the founding officers have expanded Campaign for Vermont’s board to include nine more seats, adding a number of respected leaders from all regions of Vermont. Joining the Campaign for Vermont Board of Directors are:
· George Clain of Barre
· Mary Evslin of Stowe
· Louise McCarren of Charlotte
· Ed Morrow of Manchester
· Patty O’Donnell of Vernon
· Stefanie Pigeon of Essex
· John Powell of Colchester
· Edward Zuccaro of St. Johnsbury
· Steve Wilk of Rutland
‘The new board members are committed to putting progress ahead of partisanship and believe that government should be transparent, accountable and accessible,’ Lisman said.

The Vermont Transportation Board has released its annual report, which documents the comments collected during the Board’s 2013 series of public hearings.
The report contains several findings, including the growing number of alternate-fuel vehicles on Vermont roads is spawning public support for a possible switch from a gas tax to some form of a miles-traveled tax, many Vermonters support an increased registration fee for large motor vehicles, may people want policy makers to get tough on repeat DUI offenders and impound their vehicles, and municipal officials would like the State to offer a grant program aimed at constructing sidewalks that has less red tape so that walkways can be constructed both faster and cheaper.

The EPA has completed its review of site cleanups at 22 Superfund Sites across New England, including a Vermont one at the Old Springfield Landfill, by doing routine Five-Year Reviews of each site.
EPA conducts evaluations every five years on previously-completed clean up and remediation work performed at Superfund sites and Federal Facilities listed on the ‘National Priorities List’ (aka Superfund sites) to determine whether the implemented remedies at the sites continue to be protective of human health and the environment. Further, five year review evaluations identify any deficiencies to the previous work and, if called for, recommend action(s) necessary to address them.

The president Wednesday declared a major disaster exists in the State of Vermont and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe winter storms during the period of December 20-26, 2013.
Federal funding is available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe winter storm in the counties of Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, and Orleans.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named James N. Russo as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area.

Students and faculty from the Center for Legal Innovation at Vermont Law School will attend LegalTech 2014 in New York City, bringing with them ideas and expertise that are sought after by industry leaders like Google, LexisNexis, and Capital Novus. This is the fourth year Vermont Law has attended the conference, which has resulted in jobs for students and research support for faculty.
Considered the largest and most important legal technology event of the year, LegalTech annually draws tens of thousands of attorneys and legal staff seeking the latest information in an estimated $20-30 billion industry to improve the way they practice law in an ever-changing technological world.
Among the Vermont Law faculty attending LegalTech is Professor Oliver Goodenough, director of the Center for Legal Innovation (CLI) and recipient of a Google grant on how technology is changing the study and practice of law.

by Hilary Niles vtdigger.org The House and Senate agriculture committees are gearing up for a showdown over changes to the state’s flagship land conservation program. A special study committee chaired by Sen. Bobby Starr, D-Essex/Orleans, struck all the language from a bill that passed the House in 2013, sponsored by Rep. Alison Clarkson, D-Woodstock, and five others. The Senate version ‘ still a rough draft ‘ was discussed at the Statehouse on Tuesday evening at the fifth and final in a series of public hearings.

by Hilary Niles vtdigger.org A new method of harvesting sap from young trees could revolutionize maple syrup production in Vermont ‘ and potentially around the world.
Researchers at the University of Vermont’s Proctor Maple Research Center have discovered that sugar maple saplings produce the same sweet liquid that mature trees yield.
Abby van den Berg and Tim Perkins at Proctor Maple Research Center with new technology they are applying to maple saplings for maple syrup. Photo by Sally McCay/UVM
Sugar maple saplings can out-produce mature trees by an order of magnitude. A plantation-style crop of 6,000 saplings can produce 400 gallons of syrup per acre, while a mature sugarbush of 80 mature maple trees produces 40 gallons per acre, researchers say.
Saplings are ready to harvest in seven years, while mature trees take four decades to tap.

A GasBuddy analysis released this week tracked trends over the last four years showing what day of the week saw the cheapest gasoline price. The analysis also provided a conclusion for what day of the week offers the lowest price, showing a wide variation of the cheapest day to get gas, but not every day was well-represented.
Meanwhile, gasoline prices in Vermont continue to fall and are now under $3.50 a gallon average.
‘Surprisingly, many states see the lowest gasoline prices for the week during the weekend, which may come as a surprise to many motorists,’ said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst with GasBuddy.com.
According to the analysis, 65% of states saw lower prices during the weekend than the week, which included Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. GasBuddy’s data also found that very few states sawTuesday or Wednesday as the best day to fuel up. The complete listing is included below.

Kilawatt Technologies has reduced Vermont Mutual Insurance’s total annual building energy use by 31% since it began working with Vermont Mutual in 2011.That includes a 23% reduction in electrical consumption and an amazing 43% reduction in #2 fuel oil consumption. As a result, Vermont Mutual has saved more than $50,000 per year in energy costs by optimizing their existing HVAC equipment. In 2013, alone, Vermont Mutual eliminated more than 166 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. According to the US EPA, that is the equivalent of 306,900 miles of driving or 14.5 flights around Earth. Kilawatt remains committed to reducing its clients’ energy use, operating costs, and carbon emissions.
Kilawatt Technologies, founded in 2008, provides a data-centric, statistically based energy and environmental management program. The methods involve continuous trending and analysis of energy and interior environmental data for commercial, multi-family, and industrial buildings.