Dear Editor, I’ve asked two simple questions. Killington Selectboard Chair Patty McGrath believes she’s answered them. As a voter, I do not. To summarize my point: page 7 of our town report lists a Town of Killington Debt Summary, which does not include FEMA/flood debt. Since my questions regarding this, Patty, the Selectboard and management…

Dear Editor, We are a small group of people that live on Barrows Towne Road. Even smaller if you only count those of us that live on the stretch between Route 4 and Green Mountain National Golf Course. It is this stretch of road that is increasingly becoming more dangerous due to speeding traffic. Though…

By Scott A. Giles Nobody likes to take tests, myself included. So it was with a fair amount of trepidation that I accepted Secretary Holcombe’s invitation to take the new Smarter Balanced Assessments in April. My anxiety increased when I entered Montpelier High to discover we would be taking the 11th grade math assessments. Three…

Dr. Stephen Pitmon Vermont’s secretary of human services recently saluted the 50th anniversary of Medicaid. As the secretary pointed out, there’s much to celebrate. There are also many elements of the program that must be reformed if Vermont is to succeed in making health and dental care affordable for everyone. First, state government must acknowledge…

By Lee H. Hamilton The most important function Congress serves is to debate and pass the federal budget. I know—it also levies taxes, imposes or relaxes regulations, and once in a while nudges our social, economic or political order in a meaningful way. But the budget tells the government what to do and makes it…

Dear Editor, Earlier in July, Mr. Haff asked why the Town Report doesn’t show a deficit with flood funding and FEMA in the Town Report like the auditor’s report does? I answered his question in my July 29th letter to the Mountain Times (see “Killington Selectboard Chair addresses flood financing plans, transparency” on their website). Since,…

Dear Editor, I was disappointed when I learned that solar wasn’t a fit for my home. Here in Montpelier, the city has launched a Net Zero initiative—meaning we will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by investing in renewable energy. I wanted to be a part of that movement. I wanted to do my part…

Dear Editor, The inexorable march towards eliminating the West Hill Road slip lane advanced further at the Aug. 4, 2015, Select Board meeting wherein Chet Hagenbarth, town facilities and road manager, introduced his "West Hill Road signage package," which included removing the West Hill Road street sign from the top of the slip lane and…

Dear Editor, My second question about transparency in Killington was what are the town’s plans to fix the issue that the auditor pointed out about not having enough funds to sustain government operations for approximately two months? The response we received back from Killington Selectboard Chair Patty McGrath in her letter in last week’s edition…

Dear Editor, Concrete and asphalt do not constitute progress. Progress is having the vision to reserve fertile and open land for any number of agricultural purposes. Progress is assisting former vibrant downtowns to become healthy again by focusing economic activity and workers and customers in these already existing downtown centers. Think Randolph and Bethel. Progress…

Dear Editor, I would like to reply to Richard Kropp’s letter to the editor from June 17. Mr. Kropp suggests our town is not using the options tax money to reduce taxes as Rutland Town does and questions the golf course debt, as well as the repair and maintenance of assets such as the pool…

By Frankie L. Trull Blind mice are famous in nursery rhymes—and maybe soon, in scientific laboratories. A team of Swiss scientists recently restored sight in blind lab mice by injecting new, light-sensing cells into their eyes. They’re working to develop a cure for acquired blindness in people. Today, millions of mice are bred for medical…

By Deb Markowitz, Secretary of Vermont Agency of Natural Resources When Vermonters see a problem, we work to fix it. That is why earlier this year Vermont signed onto two historic climate agreements which will strengthen our state’s resolve to combat carbon pollution and transition to a new clean energy economy. In April, Governor Shumlin…

Dear Editor, My letter to the editor in the July 16-22 edition was a simple question of transparency. I asked why the auditor’s report showed (on page 9) a $815,491 debt from Irene. Nowhere did I mention this money was due to an outside entity. In Selectboard Chair Patty McGrath’s response last week (the July…

Dear Editor, On June 2, 2015, Governor Shumlin signed into law Act 46 of 2015. This landmark education legislation calls on school boards and administrators to lead changes in their districts and supervisory unions that will result in greater opportunities for students, increased efficiency in delivering services, and more sustainable governance structures. Act 46 provides…