WTSA News For Your Thursday, February 23rd:
Covid 19 continues at a low level in Vermont. So far this month, there have been 15 covid related deaths, with 7 in the past week. There were 433 newly diagnosed cases of the virus, with 42 new hospital admissions.
Vermont Governor Phil Scott has made a formal request for federal disaster funds to assist communities and public utilities recover costs for repairs and power restoration following the pre-Christmas winter storm. The request seeks a federal eligibility for entities in Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, and Washington counties. Federal assessors identified nearly $3 million in program eligible costs incurred by public and non-profit utilities and communities in recovering from the storm, far exceeding the minimum threshold of $1.14 million in damages for Vermont to request a major disaster declaration. The counties included in the request incurred public infrastructure damages and recovery costs near or exceeding the $4.44 per capita threshold to qualify.
A Windham County group is on the list of grant awards from a new competitive round of Local Food Purchase Assistance funding. The SUSU Community Farm will receive 50 thousand dollars to launch an expanded free CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program to provide locally grown, culturally relevant vegetables for BIPOC families and new refugees. Approximately $200,000 will be awarded to nine Vermont organizations that have diverse projects to purchase from socially disadvantaged Vermont farmers and producers and distribute to underserved community members across the state.
Vermont congresswoman Becca Balint has become a member of the Congressional Gun Violence Prevention Task Force in the 118th Congress. The task force is chaired by Mike Thompson of California and includes 169 members. Balint helped pass Vermont’s first gun safety laws and says she will continue to fight to end gun violence. I
New Hampshire Senator Jeanne Shaheen is co-sponsoring , a bill to reauthorize the Northern Border Regional Commission . This bill would extend the authorization of the NBRC and support job creation and community development in the most economically vulnerable parts of rural New Hampshire and the Northeast. The Legislation encourages business retention and expansion, invests in public infrastructure, and promotes tourism across the region. To address unique challenges facing rural workforces, the legislation also invests in projects that expand rural access to childcare, health care and affordable housing.
Lawmakers in New Hampshire are once again trying to legalize the retail sale of cannabis. A bipartisan bill to legalize recreational marijuana sales overwhelmingly passed in New Hampshire’s House on Wednesday on a vote of 234-127. The bill would pave the way for retail stores. Supporters hope New Hampshire will join 21 other states, including the rest of New England, that have already legalized the drug. Even though the full House passed the bill, it still needs approval from the Ways and Means Committee because of the 15% tax it imposes on cultivators. Most of the revenues from sales in New Hampshire would go toward reducing the state’s pension liability and the state’s education trust fund, with some set aside for substance abuse prevention programs and police training.
LOTTERY NUMBERS:
TRI STATE PICK 3 3-1-0
TRI STATE PICK 4 5-4-3-8
TRI STATE GIMME 5 4-6-10-23-24
TRI STATE MEGABUCKS 2-6-8-16-40 MEGA BALL 4
POWERBALL 11-19-39-44-65 POWERBALL 7
MASS CASH 11-12-27-30-34
WTSA SPORTS:
The Bruins visit Seattle tonight, puck drops against the Kraken at 10pm.
The Celtics visit Indiana tonight, tip-off is at 7pm.
Locally, you can hear Brattleboro take on Woodstock in Boys High School Basketball tonight, on 99 5 The Beast Fm, Am 1450, and at 99 5 The Beast Dot Com, beginning at 6:45 with the Colonels Pre-Game Show.