WTSA News for your Wednesday, June 19th:
Vermont now officially has one of the strictest plastic restrictions in the country following Gov. Phil Scott’s signing of a new law Monday. The law bans stores from using plastic bags and restaurants from handing out straws unless requested. Certain foam carryout food containers and cups are also on the banned list. The ban will go into effect in 2020. Similar bans are happening in big cities around the country, and in Canada and the European Union.
A court has given members of a now-closed private Vermont ski area approval to participate in the club’s bankruptcy proceedings. Some people on an ad-hoc committee of Hermitage Club members favor a petition filed against the club for involuntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which seeks asset liquidation, because it would allow members to gain influence over the club and its future. Others say Chapter 7 will eliminate unsecured debt and hurt certain creditors. The two companies that own the club filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which seeks reorganization, in Connecticut last month and filed a motion to move the proceedings there. The Hermitage is at Haystack Mountain in Wilmington. The state shut down its business operations last year for failure to pay sales and use taxes.
A bill requiring the testing of water for lead in Vermont schools and registered or licensed child-care centers has become law. Republican Phil Scott on Monday signed the legislation which also requires schools and childcare facilities to make fixes if the results show lead at a certain level. Last year, the Vermont Department of Health tested water in 16 schools and found all had traces of lead and five schools had levels high enough to require immediate action. The governor says, “the harmful impact of lead, particularly in children, is clear. That’s why this legislation and our statewide efforts are so critical.”
As fish migrate on the Connecticut river and its tributaries an expert will be giving a talk next weekend about those species and their journey to and from the ocean. The Connecticut River Conservancy’s River Steward Kathy Urffer will give the presentation on Saturday, June 22, at the Bellows Falls Fishway & Visitor Center. she will be discussing the migratory fish species and how they navigate fish ladders on their journey. Officials say the number of shad, alewife and blueback herring already exceeded last year’s totals and American eel and sea lamprey are starting their journey up the river to Vermont and New Hampshire.
An annual report is once again highlighting Vermont’s rental housing crunch. The “Out of Reach” report shows Vermont has the sixth largest affordability gap for renters of any state in the nation. There isn’t a lot new in this report. It affirms what a lot of people already know — rental housing is expensive in many parts of Vermont, particularly Chittenden County. And that’s in large part because of supply and demand. There simply is a low vacancy rate for apartments that pushes rents higher, while wages in Vermont have not kept pace. The group’s goal is that a person not spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing. With the average two-bedroom apartment in Vermont going for $1,184 a month, a single renter would need to earn a wage of $22.78 an hour. But the average renter in Vermont only makes $13.40 an hour, leaving a rental wage gap of $9.38.
LOTTERY NUMBERS:
TRI STATE PICK 3 7-5-6
TRI STATE PICK 4 2-5-8-3
LUCKY FOR LIFE 3-25-29-40-47 LUCKY BALL 8
MEGA MILLIONS 12-14-22-24-48 MEGA BALL 21
MASS CASH 9-15-22-25-35
WTSA SPORTS:
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Celtics center Al Horford will decline to exercise his $30.1 million option for the 2019-20 season and seek to leave the franchise as an unrestricted free agent this summer, league sources told ESPN. Talks on a new deal with the Celtics have perished, with too great of a gulf between what the team is willing to offer and what Horford wants on a long-term deal, league sources said.