WVTK Local & State News April 20, 2015

The Vermont Attorney General's Office has announced the formal adoption of regulations requiring the labeling of food produced with genetic engineering. A press release says the new rule is called Consumer Protection Rule CP 121. Attorney General Bill Sorrell said. "We are pleased at the amount of public input we received during the rulemaking process, from the industry and consumers, and are glad that, with formal adoption of this rule, we are giving ample time for food manufacturers and retailers to prepare for the law to take effect in just over fourteen months."

The Vermont House is slated this week to take up legislation that would require employers to give workers paid time off. The bill would require that employees be given up to three paid days off a year starting in January and up to five days beginning in 2018.

The front entrance way for Porter Medical Center is about to get a face-lift. The $140,000 project will add an access ramp for mobility-impaired people and a spruced-up lobby. Officials say the work is long over-due. The work is being funded by the Porter Medical Center Auxiliary and from donations. Work on the lobby will include new paint, flooring, furniture and other pleasing features.

Some states are more efficient than others at spending tax dollars, and Vermont is in the top 20. WalletHub reports a new study ranks states for the return on investment they give to taxpayers. Vermont is ranked 13th. Alaska had the highest taxpayer return-on-investment. The worst state at spending tax dollars efficiently was Arkansas.

The Addison Central Supervisory Union is organizing a bike ride in honor of the Middlebury Resident who was hit and killed last week while on a bike ride with his wife. The “Kelly Boe Memorial Bike Ride” will take place on Monday, May 4, at 4 p.m., to provide seed money for a scholarship fund in honor of Kelly Boe. The ride is being spearheaded by ACSU Superintendent Peter Burrows, an avid cyclist. The Kelly Boe Memorial Ride will include a police escort, leaving MUHS at 4 p.m. Participants will ride out to Weybridge, taking a right on Hamilton Road, and then another right onto Morgan Horse Farm Road back into Middlebury.