WVTK Local & State News August 8, 2011

Addison County Fair & Field Days begins tomorrow and you are being advised now that James Road will be closed in Weybridge for Field Days week. If you travel James Road frequently you should make plans now to find an alternate route for the week. Also, stay up to date on all of the Addison County Fair & Field Days events by clicking HERE!

The Department Of Health says you should take precautions after West Nile virus was detected in mosquitoes in Brandon. The health department collected the infected mosquitoes from a mosquito trap in Brandon on July 18th. Officials say West Nile virus can be found in many parts of the state. For more information of the West Nile virus, visit the Department of Health website at www.healthvermont.gov.

A Ferrisburgh man is facing charges after police say he tried to set his sister's home on fire. Robert Companion allegedly poured gasoline around his sister's porch. Police say he then attacked his sister's husband when he tried to confront him. The man suffered minor injuries. Companion is being charged with domestic assault and attempted arson.

Green Mountain Power Corp. has pledged to make Rutland the state’s “solar city,” and they some expertise in that area with their three-year-old SolarGMP program. SolarGMP pays customers a premium for power generated from small-scale solar installations at homes and businesses. GMP itself has installed several solar facilities at its offices around the state. GMP’s solar customers are credited 14 cents per kilowatt-hour, plus a 6-cent premium.

Elizabethtown Town supervisors got a first-hand report last week on plans for the new animal shelter in Essex County. North Country Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has outgrown its space on Lakeshore Road in Westport. The entirely new, state-of-the-art shelter will sit on 18 acres of land near Route 9N in Elizabethtown. The NC-SPCA hopes to break ground at the new site in October. The agency is looking to raise $250,000 by October 1st.

The Town of Moriah is sponsoring a series of energy information meetings to make information about new free and low-cost energy services available to local residents. The sessions will take place at 1, 4 and 6PM on Wednesday at the Moriah Fire House. Speakers from New York's EmPower Program and Green Jobs, Green New York Program will share the latest information about free and low-cost energy services available to homeowners at all income levels.

A Killington woman is facing a criminal charge after she allegedly tried to run her ex-boyfriend off the road. Kristin Leggett pleaded innocent last week in criminal court in Rutland to a charge of aggravated domestic assault. According to court records, she was arrested in Bridgewater Corners last Tuesday after police officers responded to a motor vehicle crash on Route 4 on the Killington Flats in Killington.

Police said a former Killington employee and an accomplice stole thousands of dollars worth of copper and other materials from several ski resort facilities. Charles J. Keefe pleaded innocent Friday in Rutland criminal court to five charges of burglary and one of possession of stolen goods. Lance J. Smith pleaded innocent to four felony burglary charges. Court records listed both men at River Street addresses in Rutland.

Secretary of the Army John McHugh announced a change in the length of future deployments. They will be reduced from 12 months to nine months. The change will be fully implemented by April 2012. It applies to division level and below units. This policy will not affect personnel or units currently deployed or deploying before Jan. 1, 2012. The deployment period for high demand and low-density units and individual deployers will remain one year. The change is contingent on global security conditions.

Woodworkers, landowners, foresters, sawmill owners and others are planning to gather in Montpelier on August 17th to talk about the future of their industries. The full-day event at Montpelier's Capitol Plaza hotel includes panels and presentations about trends in the forest and wood products industries during the past decade and prospects for the future. One topic is expected to focus on how to enhance the industry beyond an emphasis on logging by strengthening value-added aspects, from production of finished lumber to furniture making.

Spending reductions to government-subsidized health programs this year will mean higher insurance premiums for private plans. Operating costs at Vermont’s 14 hospitals will rise by nearly 5 percent next year, but government spending on state-subsidized health programs won’t come close to keeping pace. Steve Kimbell, commissioner of the Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration, says many Vermonters will be forced to cover the difference in the form of higher private insurance premiums.

Captive insurance professionals from throughout the United States and around the world will be gathering in Burlington this week for the world's largest captive insurance conference. Though more than half of the US states now have captive insurance laws on their books, Vermont continues to be the premier host in the United States and the third largest in the world for the industry. Captive insurance is a specialized form of self-insurance.

Vermont utility regulators have approved a three-year budget for the statewide energy efficiency utility program that calls for gradual growth and increases electric rates in each of those years by less than 1 percent. Officials with the Vermont Energy Investment Corp., which administers the Efficiency Vermont program, said that under a board order, the state will invest about $128 million in efficiency in 2012 through 2014, but reap about $259 million in saved energy costs as a result — a better than two-to-one return on investment.

A legally blind law school student has won her first big court victory. Deanna Jones of Middlesex sued the National Conference of Bar Examiners in July, accusing it of violating the Americans With Disabilities Act. The examiners would not let her take a legal ethics exam with software she's used for reading in college and in law school. A federal judge ruled last week the NCBE must provide her a computer equipped with the software. She took the test with it Friday and thinks she passed.

A Winooski police officer is accused of driving drunk, at more than four times the legal limit, on Interstate 89. State Police say they received a call Friday afternoon about a red truck swerving all over the northbound lane. It then reportedly stopped in the middle of the highway before ending up in the median. When police arrived, they found 40 year old Jason Nokes unresponsive in the truck. He was transported to the hospital. Police say Nokes' blood alcohol content was .332. He was processed for suspicion of drunk driving. He is a corporal with the Winooski Police Department and was off duty at the time. He is a 15-year veteran with the force. Chief Steve McQueen has placed him on paid sick leave.

AnC Bio, a research and manufacturing biotech company, is opening its newest location in Newport through the federal EB-5 program. The Korea-based company said the new location would bring 200 new jobs to Newport. It picked the Northeast Kingdom because of its proximity to four research universities. Sen. Patrick Leahy wrote part of the EB-5 program and said this plant will bring jobs and have an economic ripple effect for the Northeast Kingdom.

According to a new study, Vermont is one of a handful of states that have complied with the first key requirement of the new federal health care law. The requirement calls for the creation of ‘health care exchanges' that are designed to act as a marketplace for health insurance policies beginning in 2014. A central part of Act 48, the new health care law passed by the Legislature this past session, is the establishment of so called health care exchanges. The Green Mountain Care Board will develop the details of the benefit package for policies sold under the exchange. Governor Shumlin is expected to announce the appointment of the Board's five members by the end of next month.

Thousands gathered in Burlington to raise money and have some fun, all for a good cause. Sunday was the annual Citizen's Bank Lake Champlain Dragon Boat Festival. Two thousand paddlers competed in the event to raise money for "Survivorship Now," a program to provide local cancer survivors the means to enhance their recovery even after medical treatments have ended. This year, organizers hoped to raise $250,000 to give to the program. The winners for the 2011 race are the Crossfit Cavemen; they take home the coveted Citizens Bank Champ Cup.

It's still summer, but some winter U.S. Olympic athletes were involved in their own competition in Vermont over the weekend. Members of the National Biathlon Association came to Jericho for a roller-ski biathlon championship. They say roller skis are very similar to regular snow skis, so it's a good way to train for the sport, which combines Nordic skiing with target shooting. The competition was more than just training, though, as it helps in selection of the U-S Olympic team for the 2014 Games in Russia.

An 11-year-old northern New Hampshire girl will be honored tonight at a Vermont school. An event honoring Celina Cass’ life is scheduled at the Canaan School gymnasium. Celina played basketball for Canaan School.

Antique car enthusiasts from around the northeastern United States and eastern Canada are getting ready for an annual summer event in Stowe. The Stowe Antique and Classic Car Meet is set for this Friday through Sunday at Nichols Field on Route 100.