WVTK Local & State News January 22, 2010

Former Middlebury College President John McCardell is urging Vermont lawmakers to consider changing the drinking age to 18, instead of 21. McCardell testified in favor of the change at the Statehouse along with alcohol policy expert David Jernigan, of Johns Hopkins University, who opposes it.

Gov. Jim Douglas says he hasn't changed his position about relicensing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant despite recent revelations about radioactive tritium leaking from the plant. Douglas said at a news conference on Thursday that he still believes the Legislature should vote to allow a 20-year license extension for Vermont Yankee.

With work still going on to build new ramps, officials say a new Lake Champlain ferry linking Vermont with New York should be carrying passengers by the end of January. The Burlington Free Press reports the ferry service is being set up after the closure and demolition of the bridge between Addison and Crown Point, New York.

Residents of Port Henry can soon comment on a plan for dissolving the village.  Following the public hearing 7 PM, February 11, at the Port Henry Knights of Columbus building, the board will vote on a resolution to place dissolution on the March 16 village election ballot.  A successful public vote means the village would cease to exist and become part of the town at the end of 2011.

The Vermont Department of Labor says the state is seeking to borrow $58 million from the federal government to pay its unemployment benefits through the end of March. The department said Thursday that Vermont is paying more than $4 million a week in unemployment benefits and expects its unemployment trust fund to run out in early February.

The federal government is giving Vermont about $1.8 million in emergency home heating assistance, but the state's congressional delegation says it should be more.

U.S. Sens. Bernard Sanders and Patrick Leahy and U.S. Rep. Peter Welch say Vermont's share of the $490 million distributed nationally Wednesday is less than it should be. They're asking for President Barack Obama to release another $100 million.

A mistake in Congress means heavier trucks cannot drive on a major road in South Burlington. A new law upped the highway weight limit on trucks -- to keep big rig traffic out of downtowns. But it turns out the federal bill left out Interstate 189 … connecting Route 7 and Interstate 89.

Officials hope a new lottery game in Vermont will help generate more money for the Vermont Education fund. Mega Millions starts this month in Vermont. Mega Millions is similar to PowerBall and played in New York as well as a number of other states.

New York State’s unemployment rate rose to 9 percent in December, matching a 26-year-high. The state labor department says the lowest rate among counties outside New York City -- 5.3 percent -- was in Tompkins County. The highest rate was in 11.2 percent in Hamilton County.

The town of Bennington's hydroelectric generator is now making electricity with water power from the Bolles Brook. The long-planned facility went online earlier this week and officials hope it can help cut the town's electric bill in half.

An advocacy group suggests caves on federal lands should be closed nationwide to help check the spread of white-nose syndrome, which has caused mass die-offs of bats across much of the Eastern U.S. The group is also seeking to get endangered species status for two hard hit species.