Current News

By Anne Galloway vtdigger.org The Senate rejected an amendment to the Budget Adjustment Act that would have required the state to put revenue surplus money toward a gap in the Education Fund transfer from the General Fund.
Sen. Randy Brock, R-Franklin-Grand Isle, and Sen. Peg Flory, R-Rutland, proposed the amendment, which was similar to a plan the House passed. The provision would have required the state to funnel half of future surplus funds toward the $27.5 million gap in the General Fund transfer to the Education Fund that was created last year when lawmakers agreed to ‘rebase’ the transfer amount to 2008 levels.
The General Fund transfer amount, with inflationary increases, would have been $309 million in fiscal year 2012. The new rebased amount is $282 million.
Brock, who is the Republican candidate for governor, proposed the amendment because he said, ‘I believe we should adhere to our commitment to Act 68. This in effect raises property taxes.’

A study conducted at the University of Vermont/Fletcher Allen Health Care and three other sites and published in the February 1 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found significant variability ‘ by both surgeon and institution ‘ in the rates of follow-up surgeries for women who underwent a partial mastectomy for treatment of breast cancer. The research determined that these differences could not be explained by a patient’s medical or treatment history, and hypothesized that they could affect both cancer recurrence and overall survival rates.

Governor Peter Shumlin today signed into law the ‘I Am Vermont Strong’ license plate bill, authorizing Vermonters to purchase the $25 plate and affix it to the front of their vehicles. Money raised by the sales will go to the Vermont Disaster Relief Fund to help people impacted by Tropical Storm Irene, as well as the Vermont Foodbank.
‘Although the Vermont Strong ethic has enabled our state to make huge strides toward recovery following Irene, there is still enormous need remaining,’ the governor said. ‘The ‘I Am Vermont Strong’ plate is a symbol of our commitment -- financial and personal -- to help every family find permanent housing and every Vermonter get back to work.’

Vermont’s local renewable energy industry ‘ made up of manufacturers, construction contractors, installers, developers, and suppliers’ announced today "the industry is equipped to help make 'Vermont energy strong' in the 21st Century."
The industry, which ranges from local fabricators assembling electrical boards and contractors that specialize in hot water, solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biomass heating installations to regional and international manufacturers of innovative renewable energy technologies, held a press conference on pending policy issues today in Montpelier.

Anne Galloway, award-winning journalist and founder/editor of VTDigger.org, will be the keynote speaker at Vermont Communities in a Digital Age. This all-day workshop, presented by the e-Vermont Community Broadband Project, takes place February 16 at Vermont Technical College in Randolph Center. Galloway will discuss the importance of online journalism for reporting community news in Vermont.
e-Vermont is working across the state to help communities solve local issues with 21st century tools. This workshop will highlight some of the projects taking place and bring leaders and learners together to share what they have discovered so far. Topics include mobilizing community resources during emergencies, a hands-on lab about digital tools for business, a showcase of how technology is expanding the classroom for 4-6th graders, and a preview of how town meetings can reach a wider audience.

Vermont Attorney General William H Sorrell today formally joined a landmark $25 billion joint state-federal settlement with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers over foreclosure abuses and unacceptable nationwide mortgage servicing practices. The settlement addresses future mortgage loan servicing practices, affords an estimated $3.1 million in financial relief to Vermonters, and provides approximately $3.6 million to the State. The state funds may be used for housing-related or other purposes.
Vermont's share is relatively modest because the state had far fewer mortgage-related problems, including foreclosures, than most other states. The final deal was struck when large states with relatively high ratios of problem mortgages - California, Florida, New York - joined the settlement.

by Alan Panebaker vtdigger.org As the Vermont Public Service Board considers allowing the state’s two largest utilities to merge, the fate of millions of dollars is still undecided.
Green Mountain Power plans to return $144 million in savings to ratepayers in the first 10 years after the merger. In what form remains to be decided.
The state’s largest utility, CVPS, is obligated to repay $21 million to ratepayers as a result of a bailout in the 1990s in which utilities were allowed to raise rates in order to avoid bankruptcy. Green Mountain Power and CVPS claim this debt will be satisfied through reductions in operational costs over a decade. The utilities say the savings will be passed on to ratepayers.

The Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities & Health Care Administration (BISHCA) has imposed a penalty of $250,000 on the UnitedHealth Insurance Company, part of a negotiated resolution of administrative charges that alleged improper advertising practices by the insurer. ‘With the receipt of United’s payment today this matter has been successfully concluded,’ said BISHCA Commissioner Steve Kimbell.

Green Works/Vermont Nursery and Landscape Association is pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 Industry Award Program. A panel of industry professionals and landscape architects met in Janaury. Projects were judged according to difficulty, proper horticultural practices, craftsmanship, and contributions to the quality of sustainability to the environment. The awards are as follows:
Grand Honor Award
Julie Moir Messervy
Julie Moir Messervy Design Studio, Saxton River, VT
Inspiration Garden Project - Commercial Design
Grand Honor Award
Charlie Proutt and Larry Ratta
Distinctive Landscaping, Charlotte, VT
Corlear Bay Project - Large Scale Residential Build

Exceeds Excellence Award
Caroline Dudek
Landshapes, Richmond, VT
Business Park Indoor Oasis Project - Special Projects

Vermont placed in the top ten states with its graduates participating in AP and scoring a 3 or higher on an AP Exam (21.4 percent). Maryland once again led the nation with the highest percentage. While the national percentage of high school graduates who participated and succeeded in AP is 18.1 percent, 19 states exceeded that national average. The full list of the top 10 states is:

Maryland(27.9 percent )
New York(26.5 percent)
Virginia(25.6 percent)
Massachusetts(25.5 percent)
Connecticut(25.3 percent)
Florida(23.9 percent)
California(23.4 percent)
Colorado(22.3 percent)
Vermont(21.4 percent)
Utah(20.7 percent)

Vermont also achieved one of the top 10 largest positive changes in the percentage of high school graduates participating and succeeding since 2001:

The University of Vermont became the thirty-fourth college in the nation this week to commit to the Sustainable Endowment Institute’s Billion Dollar Green Challenge, agreeing to establish a revolving fund to finance on-campus energy efficiency improvements.

And what a commitment it was.

Thanks to a resolution by the university’s Board of Trustees that passed Saturday, UVM will earmark $13 million for the fund, making it the largest challenge to date. Harvard’s $12 million green energy revolving fund had been the largest.

The Billion Dollar Green Challenge was launched in Oct. 2011 by the Sustainable Endowments Institute and 15 partners. The program invites colleges to invest a total of one billion dollars in energy efficiency upgrades delivered through self-managed revolving funds. To date, colleges have committed nearly $80 million in total.

Gifford Medical Center’s nursing home, the Menig Extended Care Facility in Randolph, has been named among the nation’s 39 best nursing homes.

U.S. News and World Report on Tuesday released a list of its ‘2012 Honor Roll’ nursing homes. The 39 listed were the only out of more than 15,500 reviewed nationally to receive four straight quarters of perfect five-star ratings from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in all three areas that CMS evaluates - health inspections, nurse staffing and quality of care.

Menig, repeatedly recognized in Vermont with quality awards and included among the U.S. News and World Reports ‘2011 Best Nursing Homes’ listing, is the only Vermont nursing home on the 2012 top 39 ‘Honor Roll’ listing.