Mountain Times - Volume 49, Number 40 - Sept. 30-Oct. 6, 2020
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The <strong>Mountain</strong> <strong>Times</strong> • <strong>Sept</strong>. <strong>30</strong> - <strong>Oct</strong>. 6, <strong>2020</strong> LOCAL NEWS • 5<br />
The <strong>2020</strong> legislative session came to a close on Friday<br />
evening, <strong>Sept</strong>. 25. It was a session like no other, with issues<br />
like emergency Covid related measures and funding,<br />
online meetings via Zoom since March and a two month<br />
break in the summer thrown in<br />
to get a better handle on state<br />
revenue forecasts.<br />
The extended session length<br />
no doubt tested some members of<br />
Vermont’s part-time citizen legislature,<br />
especially those with other<br />
job or family commitments.<br />
In his closing remarks to<br />
legislators Friday, Governor Scott<br />
By Rep. Jim<br />
Harrison<br />
At long last… ‘Fini!’<br />
thanked members of the General<br />
Assembly for their collective efforts<br />
at sharing pertinent information<br />
with their districts, especially the<br />
early days of the pandemic and the changing rules under<br />
the state of emergency.<br />
Scott also pointed to:<br />
• Passing a balanced budget without raising<br />
new taxes.<br />
• Modernizing our professional licensing system<br />
to make it easier for most licensed occupations to<br />
relocate here.<br />
• Expanding the work of mental health and social<br />
workers within our state police<br />
• Allocating nearly $1.25 billion of federal stimulus<br />
funds including: Close to $2<strong>30</strong> million in economic<br />
recovery grants, $<strong>30</strong> million in grants to support<br />
farmers, over $100 million in federal funds to<br />
support education, $<strong>30</strong>0 million to stabilize our<br />
healthcare system.<br />
Little mention was made of differences with the<br />
Legislature, such as the override of his veto of the climate<br />
bill and potential objections on the police use of force<br />
measure coming his way or the Act 250 legislation. A hint<br />
of disagreements was made with this statement, “And only<br />
in a small number of cases, from my perspective, did we<br />
see election year partisanship make an appearance. But,<br />
all things considered, I think we can chalk that up to bad<br />
habits being hard to break and the unnecessary influence<br />
of national politics,” Scott said.<br />
The climate legislation, which gives broad powers to<br />
a new, un-elected panel to direct the Agency of Natural<br />
Resources to implement measures to reduce greenhouse<br />
gases, was sent to the governor in time to get the bill back<br />
for an override vote.<br />
The police use of force and Act 250 bills will have different<br />
outcomes if the governor chooses to veto those<br />
as the Legislature has adjourned and override votes are<br />
not possible.<br />
The extended session length<br />
no doubt tested some<br />
members of Vermont’s parttime<br />
citizen legislature.<br />
The use of force bill by law enforcement was called the<br />
most restrictive law in the country by the Vermont Dept. of<br />
States Attorneys & Sheriffs. It is also opposed by most law<br />
enforcement agencies, as well as the governor’s own public<br />
safety commissioner, Michael Schirling.<br />
The Act 250 legislation was scaled back quite a bit by<br />
the Senate and sent back to the House with a take-it-orleave-it<br />
message (the Senate had adjourned before a<br />
House vote was even taken). The bill now sets up a path<br />
to place outdoor trails into a regulatory model and adds a<br />
new criterion to Act 250 that requires the review of impacts<br />
on forest fragmentation when developing a parcel. The<br />
administration has expressed disappointment with the bill<br />
as other measures, such as exempting certain downtown<br />
Harrison > 10<br />
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Table of contents<br />
Local news....................................................................2<br />
State news.....................................................................7<br />
Opinion.........................................................................8<br />
News briefs.................................................................11<br />
Calendar......................................................................12<br />
Puzzles........................................................................15<br />
Living ADE..................................................................16<br />
Food matters...............................................................20<br />
Columns......................................................................24<br />
Pets..............................................................................26<br />
Horoscopes.................................................................27<br />
Classifieds...................................................................28<br />
Service directory.........................................................29<br />
Real estate...................................................................31<br />
Mou nta i n Ti m e s<br />
is a community newspaper covering Central<br />
Vermont that aims to engage and inform as well as<br />
empower community members to have a voice.<br />
Courtesy Ballotpedia.org<br />
Kirk White (Bethel)<br />
><br />
White and Braun said $12.55 is<br />
not enough.<br />
Vermont is an expensive place to<br />
live, Braun said.<br />
White said higher minimum wages<br />
will help the economy.<br />
Townsend suggested lowering state<br />
taxes would make the minimum wage<br />
go farther, achieving the same end.<br />
The <strong>Mountain</strong> <strong>Times</strong> asked the<br />
candidates their main goal for running<br />
to replace Haas.<br />
White listed a menu of policies he<br />
Courtesy Ballotpedia.org<br />
Sheila Braun (Rochester)<br />
Courtesy Ballotpedia.org<br />
Wayne Townsend (Bethel)<br />
Debate: Candidates for the Rutland/Windsor house seat meet in Rochester<br />
from page 4<br />
would pursue, but his general agenda<br />
is finding “creative ways to empower<br />
the revitalization of our small towns<br />
so that new families will want to move<br />
here and our kids want to stay.” He<br />
suggests state support of “a regional<br />
non-profit collaborative to coordinate<br />
economic and community<br />
development.”<br />
Braun told us she is running as<br />
an Independent so she won’t be beholden<br />
to any political party.<br />
“The legislature’s first priority<br />
at this time should be to protect<br />
Vermonters from the pandemic and<br />
its economic fallout,” Braun wrote.<br />
“Then we need to transform the<br />
political landscape from a … system<br />
in which candidates represent their<br />
parties, to a group of legislators who<br />
give voice to the people. The most<br />
important thing that I think is that<br />
my thoughts are less important than<br />
those of my constituents.”<br />
Wayne Townsend did not respond<br />
to our requests for his perspective.<br />
Polly Lynn-Mikula .............................. Editor & Co-Publisher<br />
Jason Mikula .......................... Sales Manager & Co-Publisher<br />
Lindsey Rogers ...................................... Sales Representative<br />
Krista Johnston............................................Graphic Designer<br />
Brooke Geery........................................ Front Office Manager<br />
Katy Savage Dom Cioffi<br />
Julia Purdy<br />
Mary Ellen Shaw<br />
Curt Peterson Paul Holmes<br />
Gary Salmon Merisa Sherman<br />
Flag photo by Richard Podlesney<br />
©The <strong>Mountain</strong> <strong>Times</strong> <strong>2020</strong><br />
The <strong>Mountain</strong> <strong>Times</strong> • P.O. Box 183<br />
Killington, VT 05751 • (802) 422-2399<br />
Email: editor@mountaintimes.info<br />
mountaintimes.info<br />
Dave Hoffenberg<br />
Virginia Dean<br />
Aliya Schneider<br />
Ed Larson