When he was running for governor, Phil Scott made a point of saying that “Listening is more important than talking; and actions speak louder than words.” He added that “By genuinely listening to Vermonters, I have found that constituents have the best ideas…”1 But in a social media post last…
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On Wednesday night 65 people crowded into the banquet room of the Kingdom Taproom in St. Johnsbury to offer varying perspectives on how the Governor’s newly formed Climate Action Commission should address the climate crisis here in Vermont. Of the 65 people present, 37 provided comments to the four commissioners…
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On Monday August 7th, the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) passed with broad bipartisan support a resolution (starts pg. 42) urging Congress to fully fund the Department of Energy’s (DOE) appliance efficiency standards program. The resolution, which passed with broad bipartisan support, was sponsored by Vermont Representative Curt McCormack…
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On Friday, July 7th, the Public Utility Commission (PUC), formerly known as the Public Service Board, rejected the Scott Administration’s recommendation of an 8% cut to Efficiency Vermont’s budget. Instead, they chose to adopt the recommendation put forth by the organization that runs Efficiency Vermont, the Vermont Electric Investment Company…
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In May 2017, the Public Service Board issued a final proposed rule on sound from wind turbines. Unfortunately, they chose to ignore the clear evidence and issue a rule that, if approved, will functionally take wind off the table as a viable resource here in Vermont. VPIRG has been involved…
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Montpelier, VT – President Donald Trump thinks climate change is a “hoax.” Today, he’s poised to quit the 2015 Paris climate agreement, which united most of the world around a plan to fight global warming. In fact, of the 197 countries that are part of the United Nations group on…
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Given what’s happening in Washington DC and the real threats to what we would consider Vermonters’ well being–our health, our environment, many of our values–we expected more activity on the part of Vermont legislators to push back against these threats. Some people have suggested that the new leadership in the…
Read MoreOn Friday, March 17, the House Energy & Technology Committee voted to pass H.411, a bill that protects the Federal appliance efficiency standards from Federal rollbacks. The bill passed with tripartisan support, with only one representative (Representative Van Wyck, Addison-3) voting against it. It then passed the full House on…
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On Wednesday, February 8th, VPIRG and a host of other Vermont environmental organizations co-hosted a webinar featuring Senator Bernie Sanders. The webinar, titled “Moving Forward on Climate without DC,” attracted nearly 1,000 viewers across the state and around the country. Senator Sanders reiterated the importance of climate action, and emphasized the…
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The 2017-2018 legislative session began this week with the swearing in of recently elected candidates and the election of legislative leaders, including a new Governor, Lt. Governor, Speaker of the House, and many other key positions in the legislature. Late this morning, VPIRG delivered a petition to every legislator in…
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