(Roundup of news from February 2023)
Scott promotes setting $150M aside for federal infrastructure match
Governor Scott at a press conference with senior members of his cabinet highlighted his proposal to set aside $150 million of state funding for future fiscal years. The purpose is to ensure state matching funds are available in future fiscal years to draw down all available federal funding. Pandemic-era federal programs such as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provide funding at higher levels so long as states can provide matching funds. While Vermont is in good shape to match federal programs this year, state economists have warned that future fiscal years may be leaner, putting matching funds at risk.
Democrats have also stated their desire to ensure no federal money is left on the table, but the governor’s press conference comes at a time when the House and Senate are about to begin negotiations on the FY2023 BAA, which currently includes more spending than the governor supports. These could be the early days of a growing budget standoff, particularly as the legislature works through the FY2024 budget.
Tax revenues sail past targets again
With personal and corporate income taxes again leading the way, General Fund tax revenues in January again surpassed recently updated targets. Personal income taxes were a whopping $11 million ahead of targets and corporate income was over $6 million ahead, or by more than 50 percent. The state’s General Fund, Transportation Fund, and Education Fund receipts in January were a combined $345.8 million, or 6.5%, above monthly consensus expectations. This continues the trend of the first six months of the fiscal year, where combined revenues across all three funds were 6.3% above the consensus target set at the July 2022 Emergency Board meeting.
For the fourth month in a row, both the General Fund and the Transportation Fund ended with revenue above projections. The Education Fund missed its target by just under $1.1 million.
Year to date, the General Fund (1.72%) and the Transportation Fund (0.69%) remain ahead of target, while the Education Fund is slightly behind (-0.24%) the updated consensus forecast accepted at the January 17, 2023, meeting of the Emergency Board.
The State’s General Fund, Transportation Fund, and Education Fund receipts in January were a combined $345.8 million, or 6.5%, above monthly consensus expectations.
Affordable Heat Act passes unanimously through Senate committee
The Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee has voted 5-0 to advance the Affordable Heat Act (S.5). This legislation is the culmination of years of work and analysis, represents a key pillar of the state’s adopted Climate Action Plan, and is a top priority in the 2023 Environmental Common Agenda – a policy agenda signed onto by 19 environmental organizations. The Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee has taken weeks of detailed testimony and made many notable improvements to the policy to ensure that it helps build an equitable and affordable transition to a local, clean energy economy by keeping dollars spent on energy here in Vermont – and requiring that the majority of residential clean heat services go to low- and moderate-income Vermonters.
Scott renews hope in billion-dollar underwater powerline
Governor Phil Scott has updated a renewed effort to bring an underwater power line under Lake Champlain from Quebec to hook into the New England electric grid. The proposal was first raised more than eight years ago in 2014. He said that while meeting with New England governors last week, as part of the National Governors Association annual meeting in Washington, there was interest in putting the proposal back on the table.
TDI, the fully permit permitted 1,000 megawatt transmission line, would come through Vermont and then connect Southern New England to clean energy from Quebec.
The cost of the New England Clean Power Link was estimated at $1.2 billion in December 2014. The 1 gigawatt line would run from the Quebec border under Lake Champlain to Benson, Vermont, where it would follow existing rights of way to a substation in Ludlow. Existing transmission would then link to the power grid under contracts with utilities in southern New England.
During the projected 40-year life of the transmission line, Vermont ratepayers would get about $2.5 million a year and another $121.5 million in funding was to go to Lake Champlain phosphorus cleanup. Money for that cleanup has since been found from other sources, leaving that money possibly available for other projects. The southern New England states ultimately would have to give the project the green light.
UVM Cancer Center to offer innovative new cancer treatment
The University of Vermont Cancer Center will offer a novel, highly effective form of cancer treatment called CAR T-cell therapy beginning in February, when final accreditation and approval to begin treating patients is expected. The Cancer Center will be the only healthcare institution in Vermont and northern New York to provide the treatment. CAR T, as it is known, uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer. Unlike other immunotherapies, CAR T uses genetically modified T cells from the patient to attack cancer cells. Approved by the FDA in 2017 for a variety of blood cancers, CAR T-cell therapy induces a “complete response” — where no remaining cancer is detectable — in 50 to 80 percent of patients treated with it, depending on the cancer type — including in 70 percent of patients with mantle cell lymphoma and 80 percent with follicular lymphoma.
Governor requests major disaster declaration for December 2022 storm
Governor Phil Scott has made a formal request for federal disaster funds to assist communities and public utilities recover costs for repairs and power restoration following the December 22-24, 2022, winter storm. The request seeks a federal eligibility for entities in Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, and Washington counties. If granted, a federal Major Disaster Declaration unlocks Federal Emergency Management Agency Public Assistance Program funding to reimburse municipal and non-profit utilities for 75% of eligible restoration costs. A declaration could also provide payment to municipalities for 75% of funds already spent on things like debris removal, road repairs, and staff overtime cleaning up after the storm.
Vermont gets over $11.3 million for clean water infrastructure upgrades
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that Vermont would receive $11,390,000 from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure through this year’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF). The funding will support Vermont communities in upgrading essential water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure that protects public health and treasured water bodies. Nearly half of this funding will be available as grants or principal forgiveness loans helping underserved communities across America invest in water infrastructure, while creating good-paying jobs.
VHCB awards funding to create 202 new homes in 5 towns
At a meeting on January 26, the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board committed $23.3 million in state and federal funding to create 202 new homes statewide, both rental and homeownership, with 36 reserved for households that have experienced homelessness. Nine apartments in Rutland will be rehabilitated and the first year-round shelter in Lamoille County will be created with 21 beds.
Vermont awarded $23M grant to support children, families, early childhood system
Vermont has been awarded a $23 million federal grant to strengthen the state’s early childhood system, support the early childhood workforce and improve the quality and availability of services for children from birth to age 8. The Preschool Development Grant (PDG) Renewal Grant will provide the state with approximately $7.7 million per year for three years (2023–2025), with $2 million of subgrants going to local communities annually to support mental health care for children and families, high-quality child care and family engagement along with support for the early childhood workforce. The award will support Vermont in improving service delivery to families with young children across settings and services, including child care, Universal Prekindergarten Education, Head Start, health care, mental health care and other services and programs that support the health and well-being of Vermont children and their families.
UnitedHealthcare terminating commercial insurance contract with UVMHN April 1
Since last year, The University of Vermont Health Network has worked to reach a new agreement on behalf of patients who receive commercial insurance through UnitedHealthcare. Despite many attempts to preserve patient access to care, United, one of the nation’s largest for-profit insurers, has decided to allow that contract to expire as of April 1, 2023. UVM Health Network proposed a plan that would have allowed current patients to continue accessing care with their United coverage through the end of 2023, under financial terms that would have had a negative impact on the health system. This would have allowed patients time to seek new insurance and treatment plans. However, that request was denied by United, and their more than 2,600 commercial members in Vermont and northern New York will be out of network (with certain exceptions, like for pregnant women and cancer patients).
Crypto execs schemed to donate to ‘Woke’ candidates, so a PAC Got $1M to back Balint
Seven Days has reported that a super PAC’s advertising blitz in support of congressional candidate Becca Balint during last year’s race was part of an illegal scheme by crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried to curry political favor, according to a newly unsealed indictment.
The indictment alleges that Bankman-Fried, founder of the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, used straw donors to funnel misappropriated customer funds to candidates of both parties in hopes of influencing crypto industry regulations in Congress, Seven Days reported. The indictment specifically describes a $1 million-plus donation made by an unnamed FTX executive to a pro-LGBTQ super PAC as an example of the broader scheme.
The description in the indictment mirrors a donation, Seven Days reported, that the LGBTQ Victory Fund Federal PAC received from FTX head of engineering Nishad Singh. In July 2022, Singh donated $1.1 million to the fund, which then spent $991,911 on TV, digital and mailed ads in Vermont that lauded the skills and experience of Balint, who is gay, as Seven Days previously reported.
Sterritt to step down as Saint Michael’s College president in June
Saint Michael’s College President Lorraine Sterritt and Chair of the Board of Trustees Patricia Casey have announced the president’s upcoming retirement, effective June 30. Sterritt, a national leader in higher education with experience at some of America’s finest institutions, was named the 17th president of Saint Michael’s College in January 2018 and began serving as president beginning in July of that year. Saint Michael’s is a residential, liberal arts, Catholic college located in Colchester.
Senate works on abortion ‘shield bill’
The Senate Health and Welfare committee continued its work on S.37, An act relating to access to legally protected health care activity and regulation of health care providers. This is a so-called “shield bill” that is aimed at protecting Vermont health care providers who offer abortion or gender-affirming care services to individuals from states where these services are illegal. The bill codifies the current practice whereby commercial health insurers and Medicaid cover abortion and gender-affirming care services in Vermont. However, the bill adds a new mandate that prohibits commercial health insurers, but not Medicaid, from imposing cost-sharing, such as co-pays and deductibles, for patients seeking abortions. The committee has scheduled a vote on the bill early next week.
Vermont gets nearly $19M to address emerging contaminants like PFAS in drinking water
The US Environmental Protection Agency has announced $18,914,000 from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to address emerging contaminants, like Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in drinking water in Vermont. This investment, which is allocated to states and territories, will be made available to communities as grants through EPA’s Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities (EC-SDC) Grant Program and will promote access to safe and clean water in small, rural, and disadvantaged communities while supporting local economies.
UVMMC submits plan to GMCB for new outpatient surgery center
The University of Vermont Medical Center has submitted a certificate of need (CON) to the Green Mountain Care Board for a multispecialty outpatient surgery center (OSC) to be located at its current Tilley Drive campus in South Burlington. The new facility will help meet the need for surgical services for an aging and growing population in the hospital’s service area. Population forecasts show that by 2030, the total population in our service area will grow by 4 to 8 percent, and the 65-plus population will grow by 30 to 60 percent.
BED, union balk at proposal to remove McNeil plant as renewable energy source
The Burlington Electric Department (BED) and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 300 have made a statement in response to a legislative proposal supported by Renewable Energy Vermont: “The REV proposal attempts to phase out the eligibility of the McNeil Generating Station wood chip plant to count toward Vermont’s renewable energy targets. On behalf of BED and the members of the IBEW unionized workforce at McNeil, we oppose the REV proposal in the strongest possible terms.”
Scott announces $12.6 million in Healthy Homes Initiative awards
Governor Phil Scott and the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) have announced $12.6 million in Healthy Homes Initiative awards to help 36 manufactured housing communities (also known as mobile home parks) repair, replace, and upgrade water infrastructure. Most of the awards will address significant problems with outdated and failing wastewater and drinking water systems. Awardees will use the funding to cover the costs of: A needs assessment with a State-contracted engineering firm, Technical and permitting assistance, and/or Construction needed to improve water infrastructure. Eligible manufactured housing communities included those that are registered through the state’s Mobile Home Park registry, and awardees included communities in every county from which an application was received.
Appeal allows Vermont to use gender X marker on initial birth certificate
Efforts by the South Royalton Legal Clinic at Vermont Law and Graduate School (VLGS) have secured the first-ever non-binary gender marker to appear on an initial birth certificate in the state of Vermont. This is a historic moment for Vermont, allowing for the first time individuals to use the gender X marking on initial birth certificates.
Until now, gender markers could be amended to reflect X, but the identifier was not recognized on the initial, at-birth document. The appeal was filed on behalf of Vermont parents who submitted a birth certificate for their newborn child with X gender, abstaining from assigning the child a binary gender at the time of birth.
The Vermont Department of Health, with which vital records are filed, denied the application for the birth certificate. Prior to the appeal, Vermont’s state registrar required an initial birth certificate(link is external) to include a binary sex with the option to amend and reflect gender identity.
Weinberger announces the Elmwood Emergency Shelter is ready for guests
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger has announced that the City’s Elmwood Emergency Shelter Community is ready for occupancy and up to 35 guests will be welcomed into the shelter by the end of February. CEDO Director, Brian Pine, CEDO Assistant Director for Community Works, Samantha Dunn, and Champlain Housing Trusts (CHT) CEO, Michael Monte were also present for the announcement. Brian, Samantha and Michael joined the Mayor in thanking many key partners for delivering an innovative new approach to building emergency low-barrier shelter, and for supporting the incoming shelter guests with robust services as part of the City’s public health approach to ending homelessness.
House bill would limit public money for private schools
The House Education committee continued their review of H.258, a bill that restricts public dollars to independent schools. Among other provisions, H.258 requires a school district that does not maintain an elementary or high school to designate up to three public schools to serve as the public school of the district. The bill also repeals the definition of approved independent school and the approved independent school approval process. The bill would essentially prohibit most independent schools from receiving public dollars. This proposal is particularly concerning in more rural areas of the state where towns are often too small to operate their own public schools. Many lawmakers across the political spectrum represent districts that depend on independent schools to educate their children, and this issue is expected to be contentious in both chambers.
Woman indicted in credit card fraud at VA Federal Credit Union
A former branch manager for the Vermont VA Federal Credit Union in White River Junction has been indicted for charging more than $140,000 on a fraudulently obtained credit card, federal court records show. Tracy Thibodeau, 46, of Windsor was named in the federal indictment for illegal conduct while employed at VVAFCU between 2015 and April 2022, U.S. District Court records show. Thibodeau, formerly known as Tracy Hill, developed a scheme that involved the fraudulent procurement and use of a personal VVAFCU credit card between April 2019 and April 2022, the indictment said. She had been promoted to branch manager in 2016.
Scott announces $4M program to help revitalize manufactured home communities
Governor Phil Scott and the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) have launched of the Manufactured Home Improvement and Repair Program (MHIR), offering financial assistance to manufactured home communities (commonly known as mobile home park) as well as current and prospective manufactured home owners. The program, funded by $4 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), will provide financial assistance for park improvements, home repair and foundation installation. MHIR is a three-part program that aims to financially assist park owners in preparing vacant or abandoned lots for new manufactured homes, aid existing mobile homeowners in improving the habitability of their homes, and support new and existing mobile home owners with installing new foundations.
CHC, AFT union agree on new contract
The Community Health Centers (CHC) and the members of Community Health United (CHU), AFT Vermont have ratified a new union contract. This new agreement builds upon the existing contract with professional staff, and now includes168 support staff. It will: Raise the minimum start rate to $20/hour in August of 2023; Increase paid time off (including 15 days of paid parental leave); Increase staff input to improve orientation, training, health and safety.
Corrections announces leadership changes at NSCF Newport
The Vermont Department of Corrections (DOC) has announced Northern State Correctional Facility (NSCF) Interim Superintendent Lori Madden returned to her role as Assistant Superintendent at Northwest State Correctional Facility (NWSCF) in St Albans on February 10. Effective February 20, Amy Jacobs, Interim Assistant Superintendent at NWSCF, will assume the role of Interim Superintendent at NSCF in Newport. This transition took place following a January 25 letter from Vermont State Employees’ Association Inc (VSEA) expressing a “vote of no confidence” in Madden.
House looks to expand ‘bottle bill’
The House Environment & Energy committee has continued their review of H.158, also known as the “Bottle Bill.” H.158 proposes to expand Vermont’s existing beverage container redemption program beyond beer and soda containers to include water bottles, wine bottles and sports drinks. It would also create a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) beginning in 2027. A PRO is an organization that assumes responsibility for collecting and recycling certain products. Stakeholders who oppose expanding the bottle bill say that the expansion would increase the cost of recycling and create a hefty burden on distributors and redemption centers, among other businesses.
Weinberger et al oppose proposed police Control Board on Town Meeting Day ballot
Mayor Miro Weinberger and local leaders from healthcare and service organizations, labor unions, and the local business community are opposing a proposed charter change on the Burlington Town Meeting Day Ballot. If passed, this would create a new independent department of the City for police oversight called the “community control board.” The proposal is a binding measure on the Town Meeting Day ballot that asks voters if the City should amend its Charter to create a new community control board for police oversight that would be an “independent department” of the City. The Control Board would be empowered to hire staff, investigate any incident, choose its jurisdiction, and discipline BPD staff without input from the Chief or any opportunity for appeal. Control board members cannot include anyone with experience in law enforcement, and would be appointed by a citizen appointment committee.
VAAFM: Apply for a Community Supported Agriculture Grant
Are you an early childhood educator or after school program looking for creative ways to support local farms and promote nutrition, food access, or culinary education for the children and families that you serve? The Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Grant, offered by the Farm to School and Early Childhood Program of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, will partially reimburse childcare providers or after school programs for CSA or farm shares purchased from Vermont farms. The maximum grant award for this funding opportunity is $1,000. The grants will reimburse programs for 70-80% of the cost of a CSA or farm share. Examples of how grantees can use local food purchased through the CSA grant include serving CSA food in meals and snacks, sending them home with children, or using them in cooking activities. The Request for Applications is available now. The application will open in WebGrants on March 10th and close on April 7th at noon.
Lamoille Valley Rail Trail nears completion
Construction is in the final stages on the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, a 93-mile route from Swanton to St Johnsbury that will add another piece to the growing network of multipurpose trails across Vermont — and New England. In addition to the LVRT, the Vermont Agency of Transportation announced Jan 30 that it received $1.44 million in federal funds to rehabilitate the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail through earmarks secured by US Senator Bernie Sanders. The project will improve one of Vermont’s critical rail trails and create economic development opportunities along the corridor. The fully rehabilitated trail will connect to the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail and Canada’s trail network, creating one of the largest regional trail networks in the northeastern United States. Due for completion this winter, the state-owned trail will offer opportunities for a short jaunt or a major trek to both locals and tourists — joggers, walkers, cyclists and equestrians in the warmer months, and snowmobilers, skiers, snowshoers and mushers in the winter.
Army Aviation Soldiers and equipment to deploy to Central Command
Aviation Soldiers from Company C, 3-126 Army Aviation, 86th Troop Command, Garrison Support Command, Vermont Army National Guard, will conduct air ambulance missions across their area of responsibility. The units have been preparing for their deployment to US Central Command for over a year, which has its own set of requirements and missions. This unit previously deployed in 2018. This unit will deploy for up to one year.
Maple Broadband launches service in Addison County area
Maple Broadband has connected its first customers to high-speed, fiber optic internet and has launched service in its initial build area. Maple Broadband leadership, government officials, and new Maple Broadband customers made the announcement at the Cornwall Town Hall. Maple Broadband’s initial build area consists of 25.7 miles and 304 passings in the towns of Cornwall, Middlebury, and Salisbury. Nine customers were connected during its soft launch. 62 more people have already signed up for service and will be connected next.
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