WVTK Local & State News April 4, 2011

A Middlebury College student captured by Syrian authorities two weeks ago is finally back in Vermont. Tik Root was reunited with his parents at Boston's Logan Airport Saturday night. The Middlebury College student had been studying Arabic in the Middle East and disappeared after reportedly taking photos at a political demonstration in Syria. Root was held by the Syrian government and was unable to communicate with his parents in Ripton for more than a week. But through the diplomatic efforts of Senator Patrick Leahy and television correspondent Dr. Bob Arnot, he was able to come home.

Vermont State Police are investigating the theft of maple syrup from several local sugarhouses. Troopers said the thefts happened in Addison, Fairfield, and Enosburg over the weekend. 16 gallons were taken from the sugarhouse in Addison, and three 40-gallon drums were taken from the houses in Fairfield and Enosburg. Anyone with information is asked to call state police.

In Vermont, a new bill would tax anyone who pumps water from the ground and sells it for profit. That is even if they get the water from beneath their own private property. The royalty would be 28 cents for every gallon of water pumped. A few years ago, Vermont passed a law saying that ground water belongs to the public. Rep. David Sharpe, Addison-4, said the proposed royalty is only fair based on that fact. Ron Colton, owner of a company that pumps water to sell to bottlers, said it could ruin his business.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Friday that would, among other provisions, end the subsidy for passenger service at the Rutland airport. The bill, which reauthorizes Federal Aviation Administration programs, now goes to a conference committee. Peter Welch said air service in Rutland is particularly important because of the lack of an interstate highway connection and pointed out that the federal aviation budget totals $16 billion.

Port Henry officials are trying to whittle down spending to keep the village tax levy flat. So far, the amount to be raised by taxes in the draft 2011-12 budget is about $500,000. A recent give-and-take budget session by the Village Board produced $15,500 in cuts to the tentative tax levy. The Mayor said they expect to reduce the levy even more before they adopt a tentative budget and set a public hearing.

Essex County has been declared eligible for Farm Service Agency disaster emergency loan assistance from to losses due to blizzard, excessive snow, high winds, freezing rain, ice and sleet that occurred during the period of February 2nd. Family farmers who have suffered loss of at least 30 percent of their production may be eligible. Applications will be accepted until November 23rd.

Funds are available to help grocery stores market and promote locally grown or made-in-New-York products. The Pride of New York Retail Promotion Grant Program will help consumers identify New York food items and help increase sales for farmers and retailers. The program is open to individual food stores as well as grocery store chains.

Rutland voters will have a second say on Giorgetti Arena. The City Clerk said that at least 590 of the signatures on a petition calling for a revote of the $3.9 million bond were legitimate, getting it over the threshold of 577. The Board of Alderman will have to schedule a vote no later than May 30th.

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin is strongly supporting a proposal to expand natural gas service from northwestern Vermont as far south as Middlebury. But some are questioning whether expanding Vermont's use of Canadian natural gas squares with the governor's long-time support for getting Vermont to use smaller amounts of imported fossil fuels. Matt Cota of the Vermont Fuel Dealers Association - who fears his membership could be hurt by expansion of natural gas - is accusing Shumlin of hypocrisy on the issue. But Shumlin and other supporters of natural gas note that it burns more cleanly than other fuels like coal and oil, and that it is currently much cheaper than oil.

The future of Vermont’s court record keeping will soon be available in Rutland. Rutland civil court and the civil court in Windsor County are serving as testing grounds for a $312,000 electronic filing system that will allow lawyers and litigants to file and pay court fees over the Internet. It would also connect the public through courthouse terminals to a statewide database that will eventually include every public court document filed anywhere in the state.

The Vermont House is poised to take up legislation updating the state's public records law. The bill, scheduled for debate tomorrow contains a key provision sought by open-records advocates. Current law says judges have the option of awarding attorneys' fees to someone who is denied access to records, goes to court and wins. The bill before the House would require judges to do that, with one exception. The exception would come if a lawyer for the public agency trying to deny access to records relented within 10 days of his or her first appearance in court on the case.

Burlington bus drivers are holding a picket Monday in preparation for a possible strike. That is because of language the Chittenden County Transportation Authority wants to put in their union contract. It would potentially cut two and half hours from their workweek. Instead 13 new part-time workers could be assigned to those hours. That cuts about $50 from their paychecks per week.

Employees at the Vermont State Hospital are upset over the firing of the mental facility's new nursing director. The dismissal in late February of nursing director Nancy McGreevy has sparked more turmoil among workers at the troubled hospital. Hospital education and training coordinator Paul O'Kane says a lot of people are upset about how the hospital is being run.

Drug companies at odds with the state of Vermont over the collection of information about doctors' prescription-writing habits are getting support in a legal battle now pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. Various groups and more than 50 organizations have filed friend-of-the-court briefs urging the Supreme Court to reject a Vermont law, aimed at preventing pharmacies from sharing information about drug prescription practices.

The Vermont National Guard is on the hunt for new property. The guard plans to build a new $10 million Readiness Center. There are three locations in consideration in three different cities and towns. Bennington, Pownal, and Sunderland. The current center, which is in Bennington, is set to close next month. It's nearly 90 years old.

New England's tourism industry is looking to attract more overseas visitors by emphasizing a variety of recreational activities, from sailing trips to bed & breakfast bike routes. More than 1.6 million overseas visitors came to New England in 2009. That's a slight decrease from the year before because of the global economy. But projections indicate a growth in overseas visitors through at least 2015, according to Discover New England, a marketing alliance for the six-state region that's holding its annual tourism summit today in New Hampshire.

Many Sugar makers are making maple syrup again now that the weather is cooperating. Last week's freeze up put many operations on hold, but the recent cold nights and warm days mean makers are busy boiling sap into syrup. Last year Vermont led the nation in production with 890-thousand gallons of maple syrup. New York was second with 312-thousand gallons, and New Hampshire made about 87-thousand gallons of syrup.

Vermont transportation officials say construction on the Checkered House Bridge in Richmond will force some brief road closings - including part of Interstate 89. Blasting is needed for construction of a temporary detour for Route 2 as it passes over the Winooski River. Starting Tuesday, there will be two blasts a day - one at 11 a.m., one at 3 p.m. - on weekdays for up to four weeks. During it, no traffic will be allowed into the blast zone. Vermont State Police will manage "rolling roadblocks" with traffic stoppages of up to 10 minutes apiece on the affected roads, which include Interstate 89 between Exit 11 in Richmond and Exit 12 in Williston, Johnnie Brook Road, Kenyon Road, Route 2 and Route 117 in the area of Route 2.

A big vote is expected in the Vermont Senate this week on a bill that would create places where people could legally purchase medical marijuana. Legislation before lawmakers would allow a limited number of marijuana dispensaries that could sell to patients on the medical marijuana registry. The bill has the backing of Gov. Peter Shumlin. Opponents say it's a risky move that could lead to more crime.