Friday, January 26, 2018
Records obtained by Seven Days show that Scott met with representatives of CoreCivic, formerly known as Corrections Corporation of America, during a February 2017 trip to Washington, D.C. According to Scott spokesperson Rebecca Kelley, the 15-minute meeting included CoreCivic's Ohio-based lobbyist, Dan Kaman, and the company's Vermont lobbyist, Andrew MacLean.
"I don't recall that there was any ask," the governor said. "They just wanted to say hello and wanted to have a chance to meet and congratulate me on the election."
Several months later, in July 2017, MacLean emailed the Vermont Department of Corrections to request a meeting with Commissioner Lisa Menard, according to separate records obtained by Seven Days. He wrote that CoreCivic had been "discussing different methods for financing the construction of human services infrastructure in Vermont." MacLean, who works for the Montpelier firm MMR, wrote that he had already spoken about the issue with Menard's boss, Secretary of Human Services Al Gobeille.
"As a result of that recent conversation with [Secretary] Gobeille, it was suggested that a meeting might be an efficient way for us to present ideas and thoughts about the best ways [for] the state to develop buildings and facilities to meet its needs," MacLean wrote.
Tags: CoreCivic , Department of Corrections , Al Gobeille , Phil Scott , Agency of Human Services , Image , Web Only
Thursday, January 25, 2018
House Bill 707 has 56 cosponsors, including Republicans, Democrats, Progressives and independents. House Minority Leader Don Turner (R-Milton) and Senate Minority Leader Joe Benning (R-Caledonia) both attended an announcement about the bill in the Statehouse's Cedar Creek Room.
The bill is designed to remove barriers to reporting sexual harassment and protect those who report offenses. It would prohibit employment agreements that bar victims from filing complaints or gaining redress, protect employees from being fired after making a complaint, and extend protections to people working as independent contractors.
"The #MeToo movement brought forward a critical and long-overdue conversation," said Rep. Sarah Copeland Hanzas (D-Bradford), the bill's lead sponsor. "Women and men have come forward in unprecedented numbers to confront lawless workplace sexual harassment."
Tags: Sarah Copeland Hanzas , Don Turner , Joe Benning , Cary Brown , Julio Thompson , sexual harassment , Image , Web Only
The cut prompted concerns from Rep. David Yacovone (D-Morristown), who said it seems to contradict Scott’s governing platform of protecting Vermont’s most vulnerable.
“This is what’s most upsetting to me: It’s the fairness of, other people throughout this budget are going to get subsidies who have far more wealth, and yet these people are not,” Yacovone said of the disabled Vermonters using the Attendant Services Program.
Tags: Attendant Services Program , Phil Scott , governor , David Yacovone , Monica Hutt , budget , disability , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott unveiled a $5.9 billion state budget proposal Tuesday that was notably devoid of any sweeping new initiatives.
Scott began his budget address by telling the assembled lawmakers that he envisions a “future filled with endless potential, a growing workforce, a stronger economy and where no Vermonter must look elsewhere for prosperity.”
But getting there, the first-term Republican continued, requires “restoring our fiscal foundation, having the courage to confront the challenges we face and spending only what Vermonters can afford.”
Scott proposed a state spending increase of 2.33 percent — or $82 million — for fiscal year 2019, which he said was roughly equivalent to the rate of growth in Vermonters’ wages. As promised, Scott said his plan included no additional taxes or fees.
“There are no bells and there are no whistles in this budget,” Commissioner of Finance and Management Adam Greshin told reporters at a briefing prior to the governor’s speech.
Tags: Phil Scott , budget address , Vermont , governor , Vermont budget , Image , Web Only
Monday, January 22, 2018
His signature makes Vermont the first state to legalize pot by legislative action; other states used public votes on the issue.
The signing was not a surprise. Scott said last week that he planned to sign the bill privately before his Monday night deadline. The bill could also have become law if he hadn't signed or vetoed the legislation before the deadline.
Scott said in a statement Monday that he signed "with mixed emotions."
Tags: Cannabeat , marijuana , Phil Scott , H.511 , cannabis policy , Image , Recommended Reading , Web Only
Friday, January 19, 2018
Secretary of Administration Susanne Young sent a memo to legislators Thursday evening outlining 18 ideas to tamp down school spending and change the state's K-12 education funding system.
One of the more drastic measures would require school districts to reduce staff in fiscal year 2019 — increasing the staff-to-student ratio from 4.25-to-1 to 4.45-to-1. The memo claims this could be accomplished through attrition. Another proposal would cap state spending at $17,000 per student, forcing districts that spend more to raise the additional money themselves.
In the category of "five-year initiatives" is a proposal to create a commission to identify "nonviable" small schools and "consider the most cost-effective way" to consolidate them.
Scott has pledged to hold property taxes level in 2019, but he's also hinted at the need to make more fundamental changes to the state's education system.
“It is our view that Vermonters want us to work together and be willing to think outside the box that has constrained education financing discussions for many years," Young’s memo states. "And we know they want us stave off the continued growth in statewide property tax rates, which has been increasing faster than wages.”
Tags: Phil Scott , Tim Ashe , Mitzi Johnson , Vermont NEA , Image , Web Only
Thursday, January 18, 2018
The governor's chief counsel, Jaye Pershing Johnson, is currently reviewing the bill. Scott said that is the only remaining step in the process, and he expects to sign it in short order.
"It won't be a public signing, but I'll sign it," he said.
Tags: Cannabeat , Phil Scott , Jaye Pershing Johnson , marijuana , Image , Web Only
"We're standing on much softer ground than usual," said Tom Kavet, the legislature's economist, at a Thursday meeting of the state's Emergency Board. He made his presentation along with Scott administration economist Jeffrey Carr.
The Emergency Board includes the governor plus the chairs of the legislature's four money committees — House Appropriations and Ways & Means, and Senate Appropriations and Finance. The E-Board meets twice yearly to review and adopt state revenue forecasts. This year, board members expect to have at least one extra session due to the extreme volatility of the state's finances.
Tags: Phil Scott , Tom Kavet , Jeffrey Carr , Emergency Board , Kitty Toll , Ann Cummings , Donald Trump , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Natural Resources Secretary Julie Moore told lawmakers on January 3 that the state’s standards to reduce polluted runoff from large developed sites should be changed in favor of more “environmentally efficient” regulations.
Moore also sought another year to finalize permit requirements that were supposed to be finished by January 1.
Lawmakers, frustrated that the agency has already missed its deadline for the permitting requirements, want to be sure that they aren't being asked to weaken environmental protections.
Tags: Julie Moore , Agency of Natural Resources , David Deen , Trevor Squirrell , James McCullough , Lake Champlain , Lake Carmi , water , Conservation Law Foundation , Rebekah Weber , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
The company, which rebranded in 2016, is one of the country’s largest private prison operators. For a decade, it housed several hundred Vermont inmates in Kentucky and Arizona.
Under the Scott administration’s proposal, Vermont would contract with a private company to construct a $140 million prison in Franklin County over a 10-year period, which the state would then operate. The vision is far from becoming a reality. Lawmakers only started reviewing the concept Tuesday.
In an apparent effort to position itself for that contract, CoreCivic lobbyists are making overtures to key state lawmakers. The company has four employees registered to lobby in the state and is also represented by the Vermont lobbying firm MMR.
Its outreach isn’t going over well in some quarters of the Statehouse.
Tags: Phil Scott , Corrections Corporation of America , CoreCivic , Vermont , Tim Ashe , prisons , Image , Web Only