Liz Schlegel

Community Outreach Director, CVCAC

(802) 279-4695

CVCAC OFFERS WEATHERIZATION SKILLSHOP DECEMBER 8 AT

GABLE PLACE; DO-IT-YOURSELF ENERGY EFFICIENCY FOR HOMEOWNERS

Barre VT—November 28, 2011—In response to steady homeowner demand, Central Vermont Community Action’s Energy Education team is offering an evening Weatherization Skillshop at its facility in downtown Barre on December 8 from 5:30 – 8:30 pm. The full-day Weatherization Skillshop workshops have been offered statewide this fall, and busy homeowners have requested a shorter version. The hands-on training on December 8 will focus primarily on teaching air-sealing and insulation skills.

The Weatherization Skillshops are designed to help Vermonters improve energy efficiency in their homes through hands-on skills training for simple home weatherization projects.

As Paul Zabriskie, CVCAC’s Weatherization Program Director, notes: “There are a lot of Vermonters who are committed to working on their homes themselves, and we want them to be able to make these improvements safely. The Weatherization Skillshop program gives folks the knowledge they need to achieve real energy savings – and they’ll save money, too. ”

Skillshop participants receive instruction from a certified building performance contractor. The three-hour evening session will be held at the Weatherization offices at 19 Gable Place (the former P&S Furniture Building) in downtown Barre.

“Once people have gotten some understanding of how their homes lose energy, they should arrange an energy assessment of their home, ” says CVCAC’s Laurie Fielder, who organized the training. “They can work with a contractor to plan their project, while tackling much of the labor themselves.”

Interested homeowners are invited to register at the Weatherization Skillshop website, at www.weatherizationskillshop.com, or call (888) 514-2151. Space is limited, so people are encouraged to register by December 5. The registration fee is $25 and includes a reference book.

Homeowners have given the Skillshops high praise. Noted one attendee: “This was a terrific event – excellent knowledge, hands-on training, fair cost– what a great set-up! It taught me things I didn’t know – and reinforced what I already knew how to do.”
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About Central Vermont Community Action
Founded in 1965, Central Vermont Community Action Council helps people achieve economic sufficiency with dignity through individual and family development. CVCAC is part of the nationwide network of Community Action Agencies; a 501(c)3 nonprofit agency and a Community Development Corporation. The Weatherization Program has been operating since 1978, and has weatherized over 10,000 homes at no cost to the residents. www.cvcac.org

VTDigger

Rep. Topper McFaun, R/D-Washington, discusses the foam insulation he's had blown into the attic and basement of his 18th century Barre farm house. VTD/Josh Larkin

A blast of hot air from a wood pellet stove engulfs visitors who step into Topper McFaun’s living room on a brisk November day. McFaun, a Republican state representative from Barre, says the stove now heats most of his large 18th century farmhouse, which recently got a 21st century efficiency makeover.

McFaun said the basement used to flood, and cracks in the rock walls let in cold air in the winter and hot air in the summer. Where gaps in the rock foundation of the cellar once leaked heat, insulating spray foam now coats the walls.

“Water used to come in through there and mice and everything else,” McFaun said.

Now, after two years worth of efficiency upgrades, the old house is toasty in the winter and cool in the summer. McFaun “enveloped” nearly his entire house, thanks to technical help from Efficiency Vermont and some financial assistance. His electricity bill, he said, has dropped by more than half.

Vermont Energy Consulting and All Seasons Urethane Foam contracted to weatherize the house. McFaun footed most of the bill, which totaled $13,650; Efficiency Vermont pitched in $2,400.

Efficiency Vermont, a state-funded entity, offers expertise and funding assistance for businesses, community groups, and individuals. Its efforts are funded through a renewable energy efficiency surcharge on ratepayer electricity bills based on usage. Last year the surcharge produced close to $40 million in revenue.

Currently, Efficiency Vermont is offering free flood repair assessments, workshops and rebates for appliances for people who have been affected by Tropical Storm Irene. Residents need to apply by Nov. 30 to receive benefits.

“The idea is to help homeowners understand what they need to do to rebuild with health and safety in mind,” says George Twigg, deputy policy director for the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation, the nonprofit that operates programs for Efficiency Vermont.

Efficiency Vermont has partnered with another nonprofit, the Central Vermont Community Action Council, to offer the Button Up Vermont program — an educational workshop that helps people learn about how homes use energy.

The Community Action Council weatherization program, which has been in place since 1978, focuses on low-income residents, although the group also offers assistance for people who don’t qualify.

Liz Schlegel, community outreach director for the council, said the program helps residents spot problem areas in attics and basements that make homes less comfortable, and more costly to heat.

While the Community Action Council focuses primarily on individuals, Efficiency Vermont also offers programs for businesses that use a large amount of energy. Last year, the organization partnered with Sugarbush Resort to invest in new snowmaking machinery.

Hardy Merrill, chief administrative officer at Sugarbush, said the resort spent about $500,000 on new snowmaking guns. Efficiency Vermont offered technical expertise and about $120,000 in matching funds. Merrill said snowmaking is by far the largest energy user for ski resorts. He hopes the more efficient guns will allow the resort to use 20 percent less energy in the upcoming season than in the past.

“If you look at a large ski resort like ours, and you look at the electrical energy we consume in a year from all sources, about 80 percent of our annual electric use is related to the snowmaking process,” Merrill said.

New technology from a company called Snow Logic allows a single gun to produce the same amount of snow at 28 degrees as a traditional gun — with one hundredth the amount of pressure. The new snowmaking guns are like a small compressor that would power a nail gun about 5 cubic feet per minute. Older guns use 500 cfm to create the same amount of snow. The efficiency level decreases as the temperatures drop, Merrill said, but the savings are still substantial.

Community groups, like the South Burlington Energy Committee, have utilized the expertise Efficiency Vermont offers to develop an aggressive ad campaign to get people to switch from older, less efficient incandescent bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs.

Don Cummings, a member of the committee, said they found that electrical use produced as much carbon dioxide emissions as all heating sources in South Burlington. In an effort to help residents save money and shrink their carbon footprint, the group set out to replace 30,000 incandescents with fluorescent bulbs. In 11 months, the city had sold about 41,000 bulbs. Cummings said the campaign likely saved South Burlington residents more than $300,000 annually.

While those who have been involved in efficiency measures through Efficiency Vermont applaud the state’s efforts to reduce energy consumption, some business groups have been skeptical of the state’s extra charge for efficiency when energy costs already strain some budgets.

Twigg said that while there are concerns about the efficiency charge on electric bills, it’s worth the tradeoff in his view. According to the organization’s annual savings claim report, efficiency efforts resulted in 114,000 megawatt hours of electricity saved and 718,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions avoided.

“The state as a whole is benefiting economically by reducing energy use and consumption,” Twigg said.

Beyond the environmental and economic benefit of using less electricity, there are spin-off benefits. For example, people hire local contractors to do efficiency projects, and these contractors buy supplies from local retailers.

“It’s a very good buy overall,” Twigg said.

To learn more about Efficiency Vermont projects related to Irene, visit www.efficiencyvermont.com/Irene.

VTDigger

Contact
Todd Bailey
802-917-1227

Liz Schlegel at CVCAC
802-279-4695

Barre, VT – The VT Irene Flood Relief Fund announced October 10 that it has received a $30,000 grant from the Newman’s Own Foundation, the private foundation started by the late actor and philanthropist Paul Newman. The grant will bolster the Fund’s flood relief efforts in support of small businesses affected by the Tropical Storm on August 28. The Foundation’s gift is part of a total commitment of $150,000 in grants donated by Newman’s Own Foundation to five Vermont organizations.

Todd Bailey. the VT Irene Flood Relief Fund’s founder, was on hand with Central Vermont Executive Director Hal Cohen to receive the check in person on October 7, “This is just a wonderful show of support from the Newman’s Own Foundation – we are incredibly grateful. We continue to get requests for assistance and this will give us the opportunity to help even more businesses recover.”

“Newman’s Own Foundation salutes the tremendous strength and resolved of Vermonters and their nonprofit organizations is responding to the devastation from Irene, said Lisa Walker, Vermont native and managing director of Newman’s Own Foundation. “We are proud to support the VT Irene Relief Fund and the important work they are doing.”

About the Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund

The Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund has been founded by Montpelier resident Todd Bailey to raise funds for small businesses damaged by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene in August, 2011. All funds raised will be donated to help Vermont businesses come back from damage or losses sustained. www.vtirenefund.org

About Central Vermont Community Action Council

Founded in 1965, Central Vermont Community Action Council (CVCAC) helps people achieve economic sufficiency with dignity through individual and family development. CVCAC is part of the nationwide network of Community Action Agencies; a 501(c)3 nonprofit agency and a Community Development Corporation. The organization serves over 15,000 low-income Vermonters each year in Washington, Orange and Lamoille counties and offers a number of statewide programs. www.cvcac.org

VTDigger

October 14, 2011

Contact:

Liz Schlegel, lschlegel@cvcac.org

Central Vermont Community Action Council, 802-279-4695

Button Up After the Flood –

Community Action and Efficiency Vermont Offer Tips for Moisture, Reconstruction & Energy Efficiency

Barre, Vermont – Central Vermont Community Action Council and Efficiency Vermont are partnering to bring a special version of their popular Button Up workshop to building owners in flood-affected communities. A free workshop will be held on Wednesday, October 26, at the Pittsfield Town Hall at 7 pm.

Flood-affected residents of Pittsfield and the surrounding towns are encouraged to attend and get answers to pressing questions about repair and rebuilding for energy efficiency, heath and safety. There will be a presentation by a BPI (Building Performance Institute) certified contractor and additional experts will be on hand to answer questions about dealing with drying walls and basements, addressing mold, and improving building efficiency while rebuilding.

The program is free and plenty of information will be available about the various support programs available to flood-affected residents from Efficiency Vermont and Central Vermont Community Action Council.

Additional flood-focused workshops are being held around the state, including in Brattleboro on October 29. Any community wishing to schedule a flood-focused workshop should call Liz Schlegel at Central Vermont Community Action at 802-477-5237.

Those Vermonters who are not flood-affected but still wish to learn how to make their homes and businesses more energy-efficient are encouraged to find a Button Up workshop near them at www.buttonupvt.org.

About Central Vermont Community Action

Founded in 1965, Central Vermont Community Action Council helps people achieve economic sufficiency with dignity through individual and family development. CVCAC is part of the nationwide network of Community Action Agencies; a 501(c)3 nonprofit agency and a Community Development Corporation. The Weatherization Program has been operating since 1978, and has weatherized over 10,000 homes at no cost to the residents. www.cvcac.org

About Efficiency Vermont

Efficiency Vermont was created by the Vermont Legislature and the Vermont Public Service Board to help all Vermonters reduce energy costs, strengthen the economy, and protect Vermont’s environment. Efficiency Vermont is currently operated by Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC), an independent organization under appointment to the Vermont Public Service Board. VEIC is a Vermont-based nonprofit organization founded in 1986. For more information, contact Efficiency Vermont at 888-921-5990 or visit www.efficiencyvermont.com.

VTDigger

Contact
Liz Schlegel
Central Vermont Community Action Council
lschlegel@cvcac.org
802-279-4695

Barre — Central Vermont Community Action Council and Efficiency Vermont are partnering to bring a special version of their popular Button Up workshop to building owners in flood-affected communities. The next in the series will be held in Northfield on October 13, in the Brown Public Library Community Room at 7:00 pm.

Flood-affected residents of Northfield, Roxbury and the surrounding area are encouraged to attend and get answers to pressing questions about repair and rebuilding for energy efficiency, heath and safety. There will be a presentation by a BPI (Building Performance Institute) certified contractor and additional experts will be on hand to answer questions about dealing with drying walls and basements, addressing mold, and improving building efficiency while rebuilding.

The program is free and plenty of information will be available about the various support programs available to flood-affected residents from Efficiency Vermont and Central Vermont Community Action Council.

Other workshops have been held in Richmond, Duxbury, and Randolph, and additional flood-focused workshops are being held around the state. Those Vermonters who are not flood-affected but still wish to learn how to make their homes and businesses more energy-efficient are encouraged to find a Button Up workshop near them at www.buttonupvt.org.

About Central Vermont Community Action

Founded in 1965, Central Vermont Community Action Council helps people achieve economic sufficiency with dignity through individual and family development. CVCAC is part of the nationwide network of Community Action Agencies; a 501(c)3 nonprofit agency and a Community Development Corporation. The Weatherization Program has been operating since 1978, and has weatherized over 10,000 homes at no cost to the residents. www.cvcac.org

About Efficiency Vermont

Efficiency Vermont was created by the Vermont Legislature and the Vermont Public Service Board to help all Vermonters reduce energy costs, strengthen the economy, and protect Vermont’s environment. Efficiency Vermont is currently operated by Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC), an independent organization under appointment to the Vermont Public Service Board. VEIC is a Vermont-based nonprofit organization founded in 1986. For more information, contact Efficiency Vermont at 888-921-5990 or visit www.efficiencyvermont.com.

VTDigger

Hal Cohen, executive director of Central Vermont Community Action Council, speaking in Waterbury on Monday. VTD/Josh Larkin

A mechanic is useless without tools, and no one knows that better right now than Albert Caron. Caron lost most of his equipment in the floodwaters from Tropical Storm Irene that swamped Waterbury on Aug. 28. Though his shop – Waterbury Service Center — is still standing, he can’t stay in business without the thousands of dollars worth of specialized tools he uses to ply his trade.

What Caron needs more than anything before winter sets in is a tire machine, but he doesn’t have $5,000 on hand to buy one, and he worries about repaying “loans on top of loans.”

“How much can a business handle before it can’t pay it back?” Caron asked.

Cash assistance may be on the way for Caron and the many businesses like his that suffered a mortal economic blow from Irene. A group of concerned businesses has formed a fund that will provide grants to small businesses that suffered flood damage to facilities, goods, equipment and vehicles.

Business leaders converged on Caron’s garage lot in downtown Waterbury to announce the launch of the VT Irene Flood Relief Fund, a grant program for victims of the tropical storm on Monday. The fund, which is being administered by the Central Vermont Community Action Council, offers as much as $5,000 to small businesses. So far, 225 individuals have contributed $105,000 to the fund. About 25 businesses have applied for grants.

Todd Bailey, an associate at KSE Partners, a Montpelier-based lobbying firm, founded the group on Sept. 1. He hopes to raise $250,000 in donations and 20 fund-raising events around the state. Early support for the fund shows how much Vermonters care about the hundreds of independent companies that were afflicted by damage from Irene, Bailey said, and they understand that “Vermont’s small businesses are the lifeblood of our cities, towns and villages.”

In Waterbury alone, about 65 businesses were affected by flooding. Many businesses in central and southern Vermont have had to stop operations and lay off employees in the aftermath of Irene.

“When this flood happened, there were a lot of individual relief (programs) set up for residential loss, but not many set up for small businesses,” Bailey said.

The VT Irene Flood Relief Fund is set up to provide grants to any business in the state that was damaged by the tropical storm. Donors can designate gifts for specific areas. One contributor, for example, gave the fund $50,000 for small businesses in the Woodstock/Quechee area.

The community action council is providing free administrative services for the VT Irene Flood Relief Fund. Hal Cohen, executive director of the council, said the more donations the fund receives, “the more money we can deploy.”

Andrew Brewer, owner of Onion River Sports and one of the directors of the fund, said even when money is available, too often businessowners are afraid to ask for help. “Business owners are proud, but if they don’t ask, we don’t know where the need is,” Brewer said.

For more information about how to make a donation or to download a grant application go to www.vtirenefund.org or call 802-552-3449.

Full disclosure: KSE Partners, Capitol Connections and Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, three entities that are helping to sponsor the fund, have provided underwriting support for VTDigger.org.

VTDigger

Moretown, VT

John Hoogenboom, Moretown Selectboard Chair and Incident Commander for the Town of Moretown recovery effort has issued the following bulletin that contains important information for the residents of Moretown, travelers, and others affected by the flooding in Moretown:

John Hoogenboom can be reached at 802-496-3645. Sean O’Brien is the Safety Officer and can be reached at 802-917-3083. Email for the selectboard is: mselectboard@gmavt.net

THE NEXT SELECTBOARD SPECIAL MEETING IS 6 PM THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 AT THE TOWN HALL TO DISCUSS FLOOD TOPICS AND OTHER BUSINESS.

HOUSING HELP – The Moretown Selectboard wants to make sure that residents displaced from their homes get the help they need. The Vermont State Housing Authority will be taking applications for Section Housing Choice Voucher Assistance. Contact Bethany Lunn 828-3020 or email Bethany@vsha.org .

If you are displaced by the flood — or if you have a vacant house or condo/apartment in the area that you can share — contact Betsy Jondro 793-8976 (jondro@madriver.com ) or Sarah Dillard 496-9538 (sarah@sarahdillard.com )

Central Vermont Community Action Council has a Flood Resource Center at (802) 479-4526; Noon to 4pm Monday – Friday providing advice, referrals & resources – help with emergency & transitional housing, food, clothing, and other essentials.

SMALL BUSINESSES AND FARMERS – Moretown businesses and farmers are urged to contact the town office if they need assistance. VEDA grants are available from State of VT: $20,000. Only a short form application required. For info or to apply 802-828-3211 or www.veda.org

Small businesses can also get assistance from the Vermont Irene Flood Relief Fund – http://www.vtirenefund.org/about-the-fund/

Emergency grants from the MAD RIVER COMMUNITY FUND are available to residents and business owners. For those needing assistance greater than $1,000, additional grants and no-interest loans will also be available. Visit http://mrvcommunityfund.org, or email info@mrvcommunityfund.org, or call 802-496-3638.

VTDigger

Who will be first?

On day 30 of the 36-day Army-McCarthy Hearings in June, 1954, attorney Joseph Nye Welch finally had enough.  “Until this moment, Senator, I think I never gauged your cruelty or your recklessness…Let us not assassinate this lad further, Senator. You’ve done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”

I look at the cultural landscape of this great country during this very difficult period of deep recession, high unemployment, massive state and federal deficits, religious and ethnic mistrust, global warming, and polarizing media, and have to ask­, “Have we left no sense of decency?”

Decency means many things in this context.  It means possessing a concern for others, a balanced sense of morality, a basic understanding of fairness, an ability to accept blame when it is deserved and offer forgiveness where it is warranted. Above all else, it means doing the right thing at the right time for the right reasons.

It feels as if our nation has lost its collective sense of decency. We still fight two wars on the opposite side of the globe. Our Supreme Court considers corporations to be individual people.  We bail out incomprehensibly wealthy “people” who work in the financial industries (whose primary purpose is to collect transaction fees from the buying and selling of shares as opposed to producing anything of tangible value) and yet slam our working class union members including our public servants and school teachers.  Even worse, we elect political leaders whose best idea for solving our problems is to reduce government’s capacity for serving the public so much that it fails completely.

Almost every day I read an article or have a conversation in the Statehouse about the latest “indecent” proposal to cut programs and services from those most in need.  I see well-intentioned people try to make decisions about what to spend public money on based only on how much those services cost, not also on what benefit they offer.

I see teachers required to teach larger and larger groups of students; to serve as social service agents or as parental proxies to the point where I have to believe that we’re not actually teaching our children, we are simply stabling them until they’re old enough to make decisions for themselves. And what kind of decisions can we expect from them? I don’t think anyone contemplating this question needs a high school diploma to come up with the answer.

My wonderful niece, one of the most “decent” people I know, is a junior in college, majoring in local food production and management. She recently told her mother (my sister) that she doesn’t expect to have children. It’s not that she doesn’t like children or can’t have them.  She just can’t, in good conscience, bring them into the world that she will, in less than two years, have to face herself. How depressing is that from a young woman who just turned 21?

So who is going to be first?

Who is going to challenge corporate America and tell it that the real social contract lies in the old French concept of noblesse oblige: that those who have the means must take care of those less fortunate?

Who is going to point out the folly of fighting two foreign wars and paying for them by borrowing money from Asia, in effect saddling our grand-children and great-grand-children with crippling debt or worse, the humiliation of defaulting?

Who is going to explain to elected officials that their job is to lead and to govern, not follow the dictates of the latest opinion poll?

Who is going to explain to the public that too little government results not in less regulation but actual anarchy?

Who is going to explain that the “poverty line” is actually two or three times higher than policy-makers and economists say it is.

Who is going to remind our elected officials that their professional and moral obligation is to maximize revenues just as much as it is to reduce expenses?

Who is going to convince the electorate that returning to the tax structure of the 1990s is going to have virtually no impact on 98 percent of them, and that the remaining 2 percent can certainly afford the marginal increase?

Speaking of the wealthy, who is going to ask them what it’s like, really, living in a gated community?

Who is going to tell the media that Sarah and Christine and Paul and Rush and their ilk are suitable for Entertainment Tonight, E!, or Comedy Central but, frankly, not so much for CNN, MSNBC, FN or any of the broadcast news programs?

Who is going to be the first one to stand up and tell the proverbial emperor (is it Rush or Glenn?) that he has no clothes; that he is lying to himself and to us?

Who is going to say enough already?

Vermont, it seems.

Are we ready?

VTDigger

CONTACT:
Liz Schlegel
802-279-4695 (cell)
lschlegel@cvcac.org
Central Vermont Community Action Council

WASHINGTON, D.C. – At a time when 20,000 Vermonters are out of work, the U.S. House of Representatives’ approach to the federal budget fails those who are struggling most, according to a new report prepared by the Coalition on Human Needs for their “SAVE for All” campaign.

The report draws a sharp contrast between the president’s budget for next fiscal year and the House plan for the remainder of this year, although it also notes serious concerns with elements of the president’s budget. It shows how the proposed budget cuts would both harm individuals and damage the country’s fragile economic recovery.

Ultimately, the biggest deficit-reduction measure is an expanding economy, with more people working and paying taxes, according to the report, A Better Budget for All: Saving Our Economy and Helping Those in Need.

Central Vermont Community Action Council (CVCAC) released the report in Vermont in partnership with The Coalition on Human Needs to help launch the Strengthening America’s Values and Economy for All Campaign, or SAVE for All. SAVE for All is supported by more than 1,000 organizations across the country, including CVCAC.

The report reviews the biggest differences in the two approaches to the federal budget, as well as the cuts with the largest effect on vulnerable people. The House plan includes the largest cuts, on an annualized basis, in domestic appropriations funding in United States history.

Tens of thousands of Vermonters would suffer under the House plan for the rest of fiscal year 2011, even as demand for assistance continues to grow.

CVCAC Executive Director Hal Cohen describes the current demand for services: “Over the past two years, as the economy has been in a deep recession, we have seen unprecedented numbers in every program.  Hard-working Vermonters need the food shelf just to have enough to feed their children — and under this budget, we will have to limit access to our food shelves.  People will not be able to get crisis help to avoid eviction, and more families will be homeless. We’ve been able to make a difference, to give Vermonters some hope that they can turn the corner. It will be hard to keep that going.”

Cohen tells the story of a homeless man who now lives in safe, secure housing because of the federal program funding CVCAC receives. “This man was living in a tent down by the river. He told us we saved his life — he was ready to end it all. We helped him get housing, get back on his feet, and get the benefits he needs to live. He’s getting by in Vermont, instead of losing his hope. We are helping people every day, single mothers, elderly people, homeless people, hungry people. They are all Vermonters.”

The report also analyzes current proposals for changing the federal budget process, pointing out that all of them share a common flaw: they reject revenue increases as part of a balanced solution for reducing the federal deficit and debt. The report calls on Congress to look at the entire federal budget — including revenues, tax loopholes, and military spending — not just domestic annual appropriations.

“Cutting only from a portion of domestic spending that constitutes less than a fifth of our total budget simply cannot solve our federal deficit and debt, but it will cause enormous pain and cripple our economic future,” said Deborah Weinstein, executive director of the Coalition on Human Needs, an alliance of national organizations that promotes public policies to address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable populations.

Here’s a sampling of what the House plan would mean for Vermont:

• Over 37,000 patients would lose health care they would have received at Community Health Centers over the next year; at least one health center site would have to close and 41 jobs would be lost;
• 13,000 low-income Vermont college students would lose some or all of their Pell Grants
• 336 young children would not be able to receive Head Start services, 121 Head Start jobs would be lost, and an estimated 25 classrooms would close
• 1,038 children would lose or have reduced after-school programs, and 7 after-school jobs would be lost
• Job training under the Workforce Investment Act would essentially be shut down until July 2012
• Over 35,000 low-income Vermonters – seniors, children, and the working poor – would have decreased access to Vermont’s food shelves;
• Vermont loses $5.7 million in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds that it could have used for a wide range of community development projects;
• Housing assistance would not be available to the over 5,000 Vermonters who need help each year avoiding homelessness or finding a safe home.
• Heating assistance provided to over 11,000 Vermonters would be much reduced, due to the loss of dollars to fund staff time and the funding for fuel assistance.
• Business coaching and job counseling for more than 1,000 entrepreneurs would be unavailable, resulting in far fewer business starts and many potential jobs lost.
• Hundreds of jobs in agencies that work with Vermont’s low-income community will be lost or staff will face reduced hours.

The report calls for any deficit reduction plan to:

• Make major steps towards deficit reduction gradual and long-term, because the solutions will be much easier and the resulting pain much less severe if the economy is stronger;
• Not rely primarily on cuts in domestic appropriations, which are not the cause of the ballooning federal deficit;
• Include equitable revenue increases;
• Reduce wasteful spending;
• Protect low-income people from harm.

“The recession has put tremendous pressure on Vermonters, and we have seen a significant increase in people needing services. The people who need the safety net, the Vermonters who need just a little extra support to get by, will lose the help they need if these cuts are enacted,” says Cohen. “We are grateful for the leadership shown by our Congressional delegation and for Governor Shumlin’s advocacy at the federal level, but all Vermonters will need to take action to take care of those who are in need.”

The report can be downloaded at www.chn.org/BetterBudgetforAll.html or visit www.chn.org.

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About Central Vermont Community Action Council

Founded in 1965, Central Vermont Community Action Council helps people achieve economic sufficiency with dignity through individual and family development. CVCAC is part of the nationwide network of Community Action Agencies; a 501(c)3 nonprofit agency and a Community Development Corporation. The 200-person organization serves over 15,000 low-income Vermonters each year in Washington, Orange and Lamoille counties and offers a number of statewide programs. www.cvcac.org.

About the Coalition on Human Needs

The Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) is an alliance of national organizations working together to promote public policies which address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable populations. The Coalition conducts analyses of federal budget proposals and policies to determine their impact on people in need. The Coalition’s members include civil rights, religious, labor and professional organizations and those concerned with the well being of children, women, the elderly and people with disabilities. CHN is located at 1120 Connecticut Ave. NW Suite 312, Washington, D.C. 20036.  For more information please visit www.chn.org.

VTDigger

John Tracy, right, explains to Head Start employee Linda Farr, left, and Andria and Joria Benjamin that Sen. Leahy is a strong supporter of Head Start. Photo by Josh Larkin.

Chris Louras, the mayor of Rutland, told lawmakers on Wednesday that the state can’t afford to bend the curve of health care costs. At this point, he said, the only way to move forward is to “blow up” the existing system. Louras made the remarks in testimony to the House Health Care Committee.

Louras, who served in the House in 2005-2006 said Rutland’s health care costs are so high that he has been forced to “draw down the staff,” in order to keep the budget in a range that is “tenable to taxpayers.”

“The largest piece of the budget we can’t control is health care,” Louras said.

The city pays about $2.5 million in costs related to health insurance for employees, and about $7 million overall in payroll, Louras said.

Over the last five years, the city has shifted from full health care benefits for its 150 workers, to negotiated contributions toward a high deductible health insurance plan (employees contribute 20 percent of the cost). That move saved the city about $200,000, Louras said, and “kicked the can down the road.”

“Four to five years from now is going to be here real quick, and frankly something needs to be done,” Louras said. A family plan under the union contract now costs about $22,000 a year.

A payroll tax would be preferable, he said.

Louras, who is a Republican, doesn’t see this as a partisan party issue. He has taken a political risk to supporting H.202, says decoupling health care from employment is crucial, but he said it’s going to require sacrifices.

A handful of Head Start workers, mothers and their children strolled in to Sen. Patrick Leahy’s Montpelier office on Wednesday to voice opposition to proposed federal budget cuts that will impact Head Start programs around the state.

Seven Head Start and three Early Head Start programs operate in Vermont providing developmental, educational and social services to low-income children and their families.  With funding for Community Block Grants slated to be cut under President Obama’s $3.73 trillion budget, approximately 330 Vermont children will lose access to Head Start programs and 121 Head Start staff are expected to lose their jobs across the state.

“Head Start helps families make goals,” East Montpelier resident Jenn Neddo told John Tracy, Sen. Leahy’s state director on Wednesday. As her three boys tumbled around the small conference room in Leahy’s State Street offices, Neddo explained how having access to Head Start has helped her children succeed and her contact with the program’s staff has given her the support and guidance she’s needed to progress personally. “One of my goals has been to get into college, and I have. I’ve made the dean’s and president’s list at CCV.”

The messages wouldn’t fall on deaf ears, Tracy said, stating that the mothers and staff were “preaching to the choir.”

“Sen. Leahy has been a firm supporter (of Head Start), and he will continue to be,” Tracy said. “Leahy and the Vermont delegation get it, and they’ll work to reach out to the delegations from other states.”

Holding 13-month-old Joria in her arms, Andria Benjamin of Eden explained how Head Start is an important resource for struggling families and a means for Joria to get a jump on early learning and development. Moreover, Benjamin said, the Head Start programs in her area have provided opportunities that have benefited her whole family, such as CPR courses and dental hygiene information sessions.

Those programs, said Linda Farr, are typical offerings in the three Head Start programs she oversees. Farr, an Area Team Manager in Lamoille County, said the assistance she’d received from Head Start years ago set her life on track and the programs must be preserved so others can benefit as well.

“I came back to Vermont with two kids and two suitcases in my hands and I enrolled my kids in Head Start. And it was those Head Start workers who convinced me to go back to college,” Farr said. “If the cuts happen, those programs could go away.”

In a statement, Leahy said he adamantly opposed the cuts.

“Slashing cuts like these are punitive, not prudent,” Leahy said. “The House bill would yank Head Start from 336 Vermont children and their families, and it would eliminate child care for 486 more.  At a time when getting people back to work should be a top priority, this would make it that much more difficult for struggling Vermonters to find and keep jobs.

“A budget is about choices and priorities, and targeting the most vulnerable members of our communities this way reflects anything but family values, American values or common sense.”

VTDigger