News That Affects You!
by Guy Page March 12, 2020 – S54, commercial cannabis, was approved by the House Feb. 26. The Senate did not concur with the changes made by the House, and a conference committee was established today. Sens. Richard Sears (D-Bennington), Joe Benning (R-Caledonia) and Jeanette White (D-Windham) were appointed to represent the Senate. Majority Leader Read More…
State Agency of Education releases guidelines for Covid-19 public school closures By Guy Page March 10, 2020 – Today, Middlebury College announced it will send students home on spring break early this Friday, and will conduct all classes by remote learning for the rest of the semester. (For details see Vermont Daily Chronicle post.) Yesterday, the Read More…
By Guy Page March 11, 2020 – The House Ways & Means Committee is scheduled to discuss a sales tax on candy tomorrow morning, according to its weekly agenda. According to a member of the committee, the proposed tax will be six percent, the same as the general sales tax. At present, candy is considered a Read More…
By Guy Page March 9, 2020 – The Vermont House Transportation Committee is shelving – for now – a plan to require Vermont employers to participate in “the statewide reduction in single-occupancy pleasure car trips.” Virtually all cars are defined by state law as “pleasure cars.” The aim of the legislation is to decrease the Read More…
Masks don’t keep healthy people saferState has no plans to enforce quarantines (for now) By Guy Page March 5, 2020 – Here are 10 takeaways from the coronavirus press conference Governor Scott and his administration held in Montpelier today: 1. There are no known active coronavirus cases in Vermont. Twenty Vermonters have completed the two-week screening and Read More…
100 years ago, political power was decentralized By Job Tate If rural Vermonters feel unheard, misunderstood and largely forgotten, it might have something to do with I-89. Over the past 100 years, Vermont has witnessed its statewide leaders, and where they live, congregate along the I-89 corridor. Like a black hole collapsing in on itself, Read More…
With newspaper circulation in decline and communication going digital, the last newspaper to print in-house finally surrenders By Guy Page February 28, 2020 – The Burlington Free Press called me yesterday afternoon with the stunning news: May 3 would be the last day it could print the Chronicle of the Vermont State House, the newspaper I publish for Read More…
Professional forester says VT forests consume more than half of all VT manmade carbon emissions, are source of 18,000 jobs by Guy Page Feb. 27, 2020 – Ed Larson, professional forester and lobbyist for the Vermont Forest Productions Association, describes in this Vermont Daily Chronicle video about the powerful economic impact and carbon sequestration of Vermont forests Read More…
Concern about new Act 250 review for development next to ‘land trust’ property left unaddressed By Guy Page February 28, 2020 – Deciding to not wait after Town Meeting, the House today approved H926, the proposed revision of Act 250, the 50-year-old land use and development law. The bill passed 88-52 despite no votes by Read More…
February 25, 2020 – The latest round in the legislative battle between the Democrat-Progressive Legislature and Republican Gov. Phil Scott went to the lawmakers Tuesday noon, as the House overrode his veto of S23, raising the minimum wage to $12.55 by January 1, 2022. The House vote was 100-49. The Senate had already voted to override. Read More…
(Editor’s note: this press release from the office of Gov. Phil Scott was received this morning and is printed verbatim. Walke has been the administration’s point person on the development of the Transportation & Climate Initiative, the regional carbon tax supported by the Vermont Climate Solutions Caucus but not – yet, anyway – by Gov. Read More…
February 21, 2020 – Yesterday the Vermont House of Representatives approved H688, the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), by a seemingly veto-proof margin of 105-37. If it becomes law, GWSA would require a 21-member Climate Cabinet to act aggressively to reduce carbon emissions. If it fails to meet target goals, GWSA gives lawyers the right Read More…
At least two of nine proposed amendments – “reproductive rights” and ban on slavery – likely to appear on Election Day 2022 ballot. Photo credit Pat Bradley WAMC.org. by Mary Daly and Guy Page Feb. 18, 2020 – A bill introduced into the Vermont Senate last week would amend the Vermont Constitution to establish clean Read More…
Converting Vermont to 100% renewable electricity would cost $1.2 billion, and that’s just the beginning, power transmission officials tell Senate committee By Guy Page February 14, 2020 – For years, renewable electricity advocates have dreamed of powering Vermont with instate, renewable generation and power storage. Today, the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee learned more Read More…
February 13, 2020 – The failure of House Speaker Mitzi Johnson and House Majority Leader Jill Krowinski to deliver an override of Gov. Phil Scott’s veto of H.107, paid family leave, has them pondering a more successful strategy to override the governor’s latest veto – S.23, increasing the minimum wage to $12.55 by 2022. The Read More…
