Wednesday, March 25, 2015
If they stick together, they can join most of the House Republicans and independents to defeat the tax bill, which would give them leverage over the future of the tax and budget bills, members argued. “This is our first chance to make a statement,” said Rep. Chris Pearson (P- Burlington), a member of the legislature's Working Vermonters' Caucus.
And House Speaker Shap Smith (D-Morristown) knew the threat was real. He took a walk down to the caucus' noontime meeting. “I know that people have real concerns about the budget,” Smith told the caucus. “I want people to understand there are a lot of things that we’re doing that are good in that budget.”
In front of this group — about 25 Progressives and liberal Democrats upset that the budget cuts $53 million from state programs and includes $10.8 million in personnel savings — Smith emphasized that the budget is actually growing. The general fund budget is up 4.8 percent, he noted. That’s a number he would undoubtedly downplay if he’d been talking to Republicans. Instead, he was trying to sell this crowd on the fact that despite all the talk of cuts, the budget merely curbs the level of increase.
Tags: Vermont legislature , Shap Smith , Chris Pearson , Johannah Donovan , taxes , Image , Web Only
So seemed to be the message Wednesday out of the Vermont Senate, which voted 20 to 8 in favor of new restrictions on who can bear arms.
The legislation, up for final passage Thursday, does not go nearly as far as gun-control activists had hoped earlier this year. It does not, for instance, require those who purchase guns through private sales to undergo background checks. Rather, it bars certain convicted criminals from possessing firearms, and it forces the state to report the names of potentially violent, mentally ill Vermonters to a federal database.
Nevertheless, Wednesday's lopsided, tri-partisan vote demonstrated that despite intense opposition from gun rights supporters, legislators appear willing to take on the politically fraught issue.
Tags: Guns , firearms , Vermont Senate , National Instant Criminal Background Check System , Dick Sears , John Rodgers , Joe Benning , Image , Web Only
When Mayor Miro Weinberger delivered his victory speech at Nectar's on election night, he made a point of recognizing contributions from both the city and state parties. "I want to thank the Burlington City Democrats and the state Democratic party for the incredible effort that they organized... It was an awesome thing to watch and incredibly exciting to head down to College Street [Democratic headquarters] and see that kind of effort going down day in and day out. In both of the campaigns I’ve been fortunate enough to run in, we’ve had a huge piece of help from the Democratic Party, and I want to thank everyone who’s been involved in that effort."
How huge the help remains unclear. The campaign finance report shows that the Vermont Democratic Party raised $20,641 during the election cycle, including a $10,000 donation from David Blittersdorf, president and CEO of AllEarth Renewables. It spent $44,255, but a large portion of the spending was money transferred to its federal fund, according to the VDP's compliance officer.
Tags: Town Meeting Day , Burlington city council , Vermont Democratic Party , Image , Web Only
But along comes news that reminds us of all that is good and just in Vermont and the world.
The men of Broken Lizard, better known as the maple syrup-chugging, meowing, faux Vermont State Police troopers from the cult film Super Troopers, announced yesterday that they have written a sequel and hope to begin filming this summer.
"We’ve been waiting for years to do this, and meow the time has come," the comedy troupe announced yesterday. "Our mustaches are thick, furry, and authoritative. The script is written and we’re getting all antsy in our pantsy to start shooting. There’s just one problem..."
They need money. On their Indiegogo crowdfunding page, Broken Lizard says it needs to raise at least $2 million to make the movie. Anything above $2 million would allow the team to make the "best movie ever" complete with "more full-frontal Farva" and "the ability to hire someone who knows how to operate a camera."
Judging from the early results, Captain O'Hagan will be pistol-whipping anyone who says "shenanigans" again in no time. As of this writing, which comes one day into the fundraising campaign, the comedy troupe has raised more than $1.9 million.
Super Troopers 2 - Official Indiegogo Campaign Video from Broken Lizard Industries on Vimeo.
Broken Lizard didn't reveal much about the script, or where they would film Super Troopers 2. (The original movie was filmed in upstate New York.)Perks for donations include copies of the script, aviator glasses and a badge, premier tickets, and even an appearance as an extra in the film. We at Seven Days are passing the hat in hopes of scrounging up $35,000, which would score us one of the patrol cars used in the movie: The chickenfuckers at other Vermont media outlets would be totally envious of our new company vehicle.
Tags: Police , Super Troopers , Broken Lizard , Image , Web Only , Video
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
A bill pending in the Senate would have allowed them to, by enacting same-day voter registration in 2016. But faced with opposition from some town clerks, key senators decided Tuesday to push that date to 2017.
"Town clerks earn a fair amount of deference because they run the world at home," said Sen. Chris Bray (D-Addison), a member of the Senate Government Operations Committee. Clerks have raised concerns about potential voter fraud and an increased election-day workload, particularly in a heavy-turnout, presidential-election year.
Though the committee previously approved the 2016 start date, one of its members, Sen. Brian Collamore (R-Rutland) said Tuesday he would introduce an amendment to delay its enactment by a year. Committee chair Jeanette White (D-Windham) said she would support the move.
"At least this amendment meets the needs of a ton of town clerks out there," White said.
Tags: Senator , Vermont elections , Bernie Sanders , presidential campaign , Jim Condos , same-day voter registration , Image , Web Only
The answer is uncertain, but it’s one of the most intriguing leads police have come across in the four-plus decades they have been trying to solve the case, police officials said Tuesday. “I think it’s a great lead, but I do not invest myself into any lead 100 percent,” said Middlebury detective Kris Bowdish.
Durst ran a health food store called All Good Things at 15 Court Street in Middlebury. Schulze shopped there on the day she was last seen.
“We don’t know if they had any personal contact,” Middlebury Police chief Thomas Hanley said Tuesday, but the possibility is being actively investigated. He added: “I feel like we’re progressing on this case.”
Tags: Robert Durst , Lynne Schulze , Middlebury College , Image , Web Only
Neale Lunderville, who’s spent the last eight months as interim general manager of the Burlington Electric Department, won glowing praise for his work, and the council voted 13-1 Monday night to approve the mayor’s decision to keep him on permanently. Lunderville gave an animated speech, telling the council, “I see only vast green fields of opportunity” for the department.
Later, Councilor Sharon Bushor told him, “You just ooze with enthusiasm about topics that are really important but that probably wouldn’t hold interest for a lot of people.”
Outgoing Progressive Councilor Rachel Siegel — the lone no vote — also complimented Lunderville, but told him that she opposed his appointment because she wasn’t satisfied with the administration’s efforts to attract a diverse pool of candidates.
In a close vote that did not fall along party lines, the council passed the first reading of a resolution that would prevent the police department from acquiring military weapons. As Seven Days' Mark Davis reported last November, for nearly two decades, local police departments have been requesting and receiving assault rifles, Humvees and other equipment from the U.S. Department of Defense, which distributes its leftovers for free.
Tags: Burlington city council , Miro Weinberger , Burlington police , Image , Web Only
Monday, March 23, 2015
“Good work, team,” committee chair Mitzi Johnson (D-Grand Isle) said just after the committee voted 11-0 to send the budget plan to the full House.
That body is likely to be more divided when the bill comes up for debate on the floor Thursday and Friday. Republicans say it depends too heavily on new taxes. Progressives argue it would cut too many programs. The $5.5 billion overall budget plan contains a 1.4 percent increase over this year's budget. The $1.5 billion general fund would be up 4.8 percent.
The budget bill includes a last-minute deal that could temporarily stave off the Shumlin administration’s proposed closure of two of the state’s four emergency call centers. The bill would provide $425,000 in funding for all four centers through September 15 to give local and state officials time to work out an alternative. The budget then would cut off funding for two centers to save nearly $1.3 million, Johnson said.
The bill offers no solution to the standoff between the Shumlin administration and state workers over the governor’s proposal to seek $10.8 million in personnel savings. The House budget also depends on that savings.
Tags: Vermont legislature , state budget , Rep. Mitzi Johnson , Rep. Don Turner , Image , Web Only
Robert Durst, whose connection to two killings and his wife's disappearance was explored in HBO's "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst," owned a health food store in Middlebury at the same time that 18-year-old Lynne Schulze, a Middlebury College student, vanished in 1971, Middlebury Police Chief Thomas Hanley said in a prepared statement.
"We are aware of the connection between Robert Durst and the disappearance of Lynne Schulze," Hanley said. "We have been aware of this connection for several years and have been working with various outside agencies as we follow this lead."
Middlebury police did not label Durst a suspect in Schulze's disappearance, and did not release additional details of the connection. Durst, from one of New York City's most prominent real estate families, owned All Good Things health food store in Middlebury.
Tags: Middlebury , Robert Durst , Lynne Schulze , Image , Web Only
They were.
"I noticed that a lot of things that are illegal in Washington, D.C., are allowed here," Sterrett says.
Occupying a corner table in the Statehouse cafeteria most days, he observed, was the head of the Vermont Democratic House Campaign, a political action committee run by House leaders and devoted to electing Democratic legislators. The staffer, Katherine Levasseur, sets up shop in the morning, works from her laptop and entertains visits from top lawmakers.
House Speaker Shap Smith (D-Morristown) drops by her corner table. So does House Majority Leader Sarah Copeland Hanzas (D-Bradford), Rep. Tim Jerman (D-Essex), Rep. Kesha Ram (D-Burlington) and Rep. Jill Krowinski (D-Burlington) — all members of the House leadership team.
"That stood out to me as something I'd never see in Washington," Sterrett says. "In Washington, you have an absolute ban on campaign work and fundraising efforts in any public buildings. And that does not seem to be the case in the legislature."
Tags: Katherine Levasseur , Montpeculiar , Image , Web Only