WVTK Local & State News March 17, 2011

As temperatures rise into the 40s and 50s this week, Vermont officials are reminding anglers to remove ice fishing shanties from the ice by March 27 or possibly sooner. Vermont law requires that shanties be removed before the ice becomes unsafe, loses its ability to support the shanty or before the last Sunday in March. Owners also face fines of up to $1,000 if structures aren’t removed in time.

The earth moved a little in Quebec yesterday, was barely felt in Vermont and New York, and wasn't even a blip when compared to the massive nine-point-o earthquake in Japan last week. This mini-quake of sorts registered four-point-three on the Richter scale and no damage was reported.

It’s a bad year for potholes in Rutland. According to the Department of Public Works Superintendent it’s tremendously worse than it has been in many, many years. He is hearing more complaints about higher-traffic areas like Woodstock Avenue, but is also getting some reports from side streets. He also said it’s not just potholes either, the frost heaving this year is much worse. The city budget has a line item for fixing potholes.

By a mere seven paper ballots, voters in the Village of Port Henry reelected Mayor Ernest Guerin Tuesday. Guerin defeated challenger Frank Slycord, 138 to 131, to win a second term. He said he’d keep the village of 1,200 residents on the same track he steered it on two years ago when he was first elected.

One woman is in jail, while the other is in the hospital, after a stabbing early yesterday morning in South Burlington. Police say 34-year-old Tina Cyr now faces charges of attempted murder. She is now being held without bail. As for the victim, Tiffany Johnson, her condition at Fletcher Allen Health Care is now listed as "good."

Vermont lawmakers may ask the Shumlin administration to produce recommendations for reforming the medical malpractice system in the state with an eye to lowering health care costs. In debates over health care reform both at the state and federal level, the issue of medical malpractice claims often gets raised, with a particular focus on the defensive medicine doctors are said to perform to prevent potential lawsuits.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders has been appointed chairman of a Senate subcommittee dealing with health and aging issues. The panel Sanders will chair deals as well with several issues that have been priorities for the first-term senator, including community health centers, home heating assistance, seniors programs, pensions and dental care.

Teachers in South Burlington finally have a new contract. The South Burlington School Board voted unanimously yesterday to ratify the three-year deal. The district's 250 teachers will get pay raises of at least 2.5 percent each of the next three years but will contribute more for health insurance. Teachers ratified the deal last week.

A new question is cropping up as the debate over health reform in Vermont unfolds against the backdrop of moves in other states to strip public employee unions of their collective bargaining rights. If Vermont adopts single payer, health care system, will that reduce the ability of unionized public-sector workers to negotiate over health benefits as part of collective bargaining? Current Vermont law says health coverage is a subject of collective bargaining.

Proposed cuts in the federal budget could have a big impact on a Vermont Foodbank program. A group of volunteers this week packed meals for the Community Supplemental Food Program. The canned goods and other staples are distributed around the state. The food goes to seniors and new mothers, about 3,600 people in all. Food bank officials say proposed cuts moving through Congress would eliminate about half the money for the program.

Facing opposition from local school boards, Vermont's education commissioner is halting his push to get small supervisory unions to hire interim superintendents. He told the state Board of Education on Tuesday that the issue of interims has become divisive and is distracting from the larger goal of examining the efficiencies of consolidation.

The last of the Vermont Air National Guard members deployed to Korea have returned home to Vermont. The 30 Air Guard members arrived in South Burlington on yesterday morning. Their trip home was delayed by the tsunami. They are the last to return of the 160 Air Guard members that served in Korea to maintain peace and stability in the region. The rest returned about a month ago.

The careers of three Vermont judges are hanging in the balance as lawmakers consider whether to grant them new 6-year terms on the bench. Judge Mark Keller is facing the greatest scrutiny. Lawmakers on the judicial retention committee say they heard disturbing complaints about Keller's manner on the bench. The committee did approve eight other judges, including all five Supreme Court justices.

Things were looking up for the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant last week, when the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission voted to give it a 20-year license extension. Only hours later, the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan triggered a still-unfolding crisis at four reactors of the same design and vintage as Vermont Yankee. That has left state lawmakers - who have been opposed to the plant's continued operation after its current license expires next year - more determined than ever.

The Vermont Health Department is pitching a new service for pregnant women and new mothers. It's called text4baby, a mobile messaging service featuring free tips and information about pregnancy and parenthood. The text messages are available at no charge to cell phone subscribers. The health department calls the service an excellent use of social media to help women care for their health and give their babies the best possible start in life. To sign up, text the word BABY to 511411. To sign up for text4baby in Spanish, text BEBE to 511411. For more information, click HERE.

A bill in New York would require schools to form committees that would keep students from returning to play for at least 24 hours after concussions, even if the athlete has approval from a physician. Republican Sen. Kemp Hannon says yesterday the law would also apply to all students, not just athletes, whether they suffered concussions in physical education classes or just "horsing around." New York's measure would also require a 24-hour waiting period and review by a school committee even with a physician's approval.

A renegade gray squirrel is stalking a Southern Vermont neighborhood. A number of people on Bennington's East Street say a squirrel has attacked them over the last few weeks. Kevin McDonald tells the Bennington Banner he was shoveling when the squirrel jumped onto him. He says he threw the animal off, but it twice jumped back onto him. A game warden says there have been similar reports from the area. One woman is being treated for exposure to rabies.

The sweetest weekend in Vermont is on tap with the 10th Annual Maple Open House Weekend. More than 100 maple producers from across the state are opening their sugarhouses to visitors for the “harvesting” of Vermont’s first crop on Saturday and Sunday. There are approximately 2,000 maple syrup producers in Vermont, making it the largest state of maple producing in the United States. For a complete and up-to-date list of sugarhouses open this weekend, click HERE. A Ski-and-Maple map has also been printed and can be found at any Vermont Welcome Center.

Today is, of course, St. Patrick's Day and there is some musical entertainment on tap to celebrate! Here in Middlebury, Minor Tribal Scuffles will be putting on what they are billing as their “Green Dreads and Ham” St. Patty's Day show at 8 PM at 51 Main. The Celtic duo Trinity will begin their three-night run at McGrath's Irish Pub at Long Trail in Killington today with a holiday marathon show starting at 2 PM You can catch them again on Friday and Saturday starting at 8 PM. And downtown Rutland has plenty of options as well.