Maple producers in a global market pg. 2
ECRWSS PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID DENTON PUBLICATIONS PO Box 338 Elizabethtown NY 12932 Postal Patron
State takes high ground in maple production, marketing.
VERMONT
January 18, 2020
Published by Denton Publications, Inc.
Serving Addison, Rutland & Chittenden Counties
Gov. Scott’s speech: Protests amid a call for unity Governor’s troubled 2020 State of the State Address By Lou Varricchio EDITOR
MIDDLEBURY | Vermont Gov. Phil Scott’s fourth “State of the State” address to lawmakers was faced with hecklers from inside the State House last Thursday. The annual address was carried live by Vermont Public Radio as well as multiple streaming outlets online.
The Census Bureau has moved to integrate technology into many components of the 2020 Census in Vermont. Photo by U.S. Census Bureau
No foolin’: April 1 is Census Day Clerks, volunteers gear up for 2020 Census in Addison County By Lou Varricchio EDITOR
MIDDLEBURY | It’s the star of a new decade and that means Census takers will be seen throughout the local area. According to the U.S. Constitution, all persons in the United States must be counted and that’s what is commonly referred to as the Census. Town clerks around Addison County are starting to get the word about the upcoming 2020 Census. Residents should become aware of the Census procedures and to expect contact with census takers. According to the Middlebury Town Clerk’s Ann Webster’s office, “Vermont relies on federal money for roughly one-third of its annual budget. George Washington University’s GW Institute of Public Policy, estimates that, in 2016 alone, nearly $2.5
R. Christopher Di Mezzo: “Governor Scott’s three years in office have proven him to be nothing more than a passive obstructionist trying to get reelected.” Pictured: Gov. Phil Scott speaking in Middlebury in 2016. Photo by Lou Varricchio
While Scott made no new revelations, as he sought for unity in Montpelier and across the state. Scott’s speech was met with quiet support from fellow Republicans, and far less so by Democrats and Progressives under the Montpelier’s Golden Dome. See SCOTT SPEECH » pg. 3
billion in funding flowed to Vermont via 55 large federal spending programs.” The potential impact of a census under-count is not to be taken lightly. That’s why getting out the word about the 2020 Census is already underway in advance of April 1, Census Day. For the first time, residents will have three options for participating in the 2020 Census: online, by telephone, or with a traditional, short-form written response. “Look for your invitation to respond in the mail or at your door,” according to the town clerk. “It is critical that everyone participate and that all household members be counted. The 2020 Decennial Census (as it’s officially known), will be available online in midMarch. Please do your part to make sure that Middlebury and all of Addison County counts.” This year’s count will determine how more than $675 billion will be distributed to 50 states and localities for the next ten years through more than 65 federal programs. “For Vermonters, the stakes are high,” according to Webster. “These programs include special education funding, school lunch programs, meals on wheels, fuel assistance, Medicare, housing rehabilitation, community economic development and
revitalization block grants, early childhood education and cooperative extension offices.” The goal of the U.S. Census is to collect an accurate count of the number of individuals at each address on Census Day, April 1, 2020. Why is an accurate count so important? Here are some of the ways that Census data impact you, either directly or indirectly: The census determines the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives; it defines congressional and state legislative districts, school districts and voting precincts; it determines the allocation of dollars to Medicaid, SNAP, Vermont highway aid, Section 8 housing, special education grants, S-CHIP, Title I grants, National School Lunch Program, WIC, Head Start, Foster Care, and health venter programs, and more. According to VTDigger, “Multiple regions in Vermont had rates of returning Census surveys by mail below 73% in 2010. Parts of Lamoille, Orange and Washington counties, along with parts of the Northeast Kingdom ranked among some of the ‘hardest to count’ Census tracts in the country.” For more information, check out the 2020 Decennial Census page on the town of Middlebury’s website: townofmiddlebury.org/ ■
EARTHQUAKE RATTLES BORDER TOWNS By Kim Dedam
Magnitude 3.3 centered north of border
STAFF WRITER
JAY |A small earthquake rattled parts of the northern Adirondack region at 5:38 a.m. Eastern Time on Monday.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured the quake at 3.3 on the Richter Scale, 10 kilometers south of Ormstown, Quebec, just on the U.S.-Canadian border. The quake occurred at a depth of 6.6 miles as measured by the Lamont-Dherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University. See EARTHQUAKE » pg. 2
Rep. Peter Reed seated in O-W-Addison District Independent appointed by Gov. Scott By Lou Varricchio EDITOR
Tunnel vision
This aerial photograph shows Kubricky Construction workers along the slope of the planned rail tunnel next to St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in downtown Middlebury. “In Schuylerville, New York, the Fort Miller Company has begun fabricating the precast concrete that will form our new tunnel and the abutments for the rail corridor,” according to Jim Gish, community liaison of the Middlebury Bridge and Rail Project.” To date, Fort Miller, privately held, family owned company founded in 1939, has produced some 35 of the nearly 400 pieces of pre-cast concrete that will be set in place downtown. The concrete will be stored temporarily at the Fifield farm on Route 30 in Middlebury starting later this spring.” Photo courtesy Jim Gish
GRANVILLE | After five months being vacant, Gov. Phil Scott announced the appointment of Peter Reed (I) to fill the Orange-Washington-Addison House District seat. Reed follows August 2019 resignation of Independent Rep. Ben Jickling. “Peter understands the importance of economic development and growing our economy to address our state’s challenges, and those of the communities he’ll represent,” said Scott. “I believe his experience will bring an important perspective to the House and I look forward to working with him this session.” Scott said that Reed has lived in Braintree since 2014, following a 35-year career in banking and securities in Puerto Rico, Chicago, New York and Connecticut. “I am honored to have been selected from a strong field of candidates, and appreciate
Independent Rep. Peter Reed represents a portion of Addison County in the State House. Photo provided
the opportunity given to me by the governor,” said Reed. Reed graduated from Earlham College with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and received his MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. In keeping with tradition, Scott appointed an Independent to a seat vacated by an Independent. ■
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