Governor Shumlin assured us that the state will be just fine now that legislators in Washington passed a fix for the fiscal cliff. The Public Service Board granted permission for three wind testing towers to be erected in Windham and Grafton. A bill that would crack down on cases of fraud involving state workers, municipal employees, and teachers, appears likely to come to a vote this session. Scientists find that many ski resorts in Massachusetts, Maine, and New Hampshire will be adversely affected by climate change. And finally, all that snow provided some good conditions for sledding!
These were some of the voices in the news this week:
Budget To Balance, But Caseloads A Concern
(Gov. Peter Shumlin) "It’s pretty clear that the dire consequences that would have been inflicted on the American economy had they not resolved this question would have been a real challenge for us," he said. "I see us emerging from a recession. I see Vermont actually and finally in position to see some real economic growth. I think this is the one thing that that could have set us back into recession."
Wind Moratorium Demanded As Debate Intensifies
(Paul Copelman) "This is the first step towards assessing the viability of a project but it by no means guarantees that we are moving forward with plans to develop a project. At this point we have very little knowledge about the wind itself,"
Shumlin Urges Pension Reform After Police Case
(House Speaker Shap Smith) "We know that most state employees and municipal employees and teachers are hard working and do not breach the public trust but when that happens there is a need for recourse and under our current laws we don’t have that recourse available to us and that’s something that we need to address,"
Climate Science Is A Challenge For Ski Resorts
(Daniel Scott) "We didn’t see them able to sustain at least a 100-day ski season," Scott said. "And if that’s their main product, if they haven’t diversified their revenue streams into other activities – whether it be spas or whatever else – I couldn’t see them sustaining a purely ski business based on a reliable snow product."
http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/97003/snowfall-gift-for-sledders/