March 5, 2004 – News at a glance

Print More

Yankee Rowe debris
The Yankee nuclear power plant in Rowe, Massachusetts is nearing the end of a 10-year decommissioning, the first in the country for a commercial plant. Yankee Rowe is only a mile or so from Vermont, and some of the demolition debris is being trucked through Windham County. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)

Act 68 tax relief may be short lived
School officials say they believe that recent changes to Act 60 are responsible for the passage of most school budgets on Town Meeting Day. But some officials are concerned that tax pressures will emerge in just a few years, if a number of issues aren’t addressed by local school boards. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)

Clavelle seeks Dean supporters
Peter Clavelle, the Democratic candidate for governor, is reaching out to the network of supporters for Howard Dean. The Burlington mayor wants to tap into the grassroots campaign organization that was the hallmark of the Dean campaign. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)

Fletcher Allen trains medical transcriptionists
Vermont’s largest hospital is teaming up with a non-profit company and the state to train medical transcriptionists. Fletcher Allen Health Care says the program should help the hospital find local workers and end the need to send 20 jobs out of state or overseas. (VPR)

Vermont Yankee inspections
The Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant needs a more rigorous inspection, according to a leading critic of the proposal to increase power at the facility. (VPR)

Sale of Citizens Utilities approved
The Vermont Public Service Board has approved the sale of the Citizens Utilities properties in northern Vermont to the Vermont Electric Cooperative. (AP)

Low unemployment rate
Vermont officials are guardedly optimistic about the latest statewide unemployment figures. The unemployment rate for January was 3.8 percent, almost a whole percentage point lower than the rate for December. (AP)

Stormwater regulation
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is disagreeing with parts of a plan to regulate stormwater runoff in Vermont. But the Vermont environmental officials who helped draft the proposal are welcoming the EPA’s comments. (AP)

State college tuition increase
Trustees of the Vermont State Colleges system are considering a nearly six percent tuition increase to help close a one million dollar gap in next year’s budget. The increase would add $319 to this year’s average tuition of $5,600 for in-state students. (AP)

Health care referenda
Seventeen towns are calling for universal health care in Vermont. Voters in the several Windham county towns have approved a resolution that calls for a tax supported health care system for all Vermonters. (AP)

New contract for General Dynamics
General Dynamics of Burlington has won a $57.5 million defense contract to produce rockets for the U.S. military. Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy helped secure the funding for the order from the Pentagon’s budget for the current fiscal year. (AP)

Town to purchase destroyed hotel
Waterbury village residents are giving the green light to officials to buy the fire-gutted Gateway Motel. Voters agreed Wednesday to let the village’s trustees spend $300,000 for the downtown property, which some view as prime real estate. (AP)

Comments are closed.