Furlough Policies
The mayors of Rutland and Barre City are accusing the Corrections Department of “dumping” a large number of furloughed inmates into their communities to ease crowding in the state’s prison system. (VPR)
American Skiing Company
The stock price of American Skiing Company has fallen far over the last few years. Now regulators have begun moves to remove the stock from trading on the New York Stock Exchange. (VPR)
UVM President
The University of Vermont Monday named Daniel Fogel the institution’s next president. He is the fourth UVM president in the last decade. (VPR)
Enron
Vermont’s three pension funds have lost roughly $4 million because of investments in Enron. State Treasurer James Douglas says recent gains in these funds far outweigh the Enron loss. (VPR)
UVM Fundraising
Newly named University of Vermont President Daniel Fogel says his top priority is to address UVM’s financial situation through fundraising. Fogel says his leadership of a capital campaign at his previous university is helpful experience. (AP)
Electronic Tax Filing
Tax Commissioner Janet Ancel says a software glitch is preventing Vermonters from filing state returns electronically. The tax department is working with a software manufacturer to fix the problem, but in the meantime Vermonters must file their state taxes using paper forms. (AP)
Vermont Yankee
Officials from Vermont Yankee, the state and Windham County agree that more money is needed to fund emergency preparedness efforts around the nuclear plant. There is disagreement over how much more money is needed. (AP)
Dr. Dynasaur
Families with children enrolled in state health care program will have to pay twice as much starting March 1. Increases were approved by the legislature last year. About 40,000 families and individuals are enrolled in the program. (AP)
Agriculture Fines
Republican Senator Vincent Illuzi has asked the Department of Agriculture to be lenient in assessing fines on farmers and farm equipment dealers who used chemicals last summer to battle army-worms. Illuzi says that the worm infestation was an emergency and the farmers’ response was based on the best information available at the time. (AP)
Entergy Corp. Deal
Officials with Entergy Corporation say they hope to purchase Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant by the middle of the year. Two federal agencies and the Vermont Public Service Board will review the deal. (AP)
Check-Cashing Suspect Arrested
Colchester police and the Vermont DMV have identified a man from the state of Georgia in a string of bad checks that have been cashed around the country. Randal Kaufmann generated Vermont identification cards and fake checks which he cashed at supermarkets around the state, totaling about $3,500. Kaufmann was arrested in Pennsylvania and awaits extradition back to Vermont. (AP)
Plane Crash
The bodies of a Pennsylvania couple have been recovered from the plane crash site in Chittenden. Recovery personnel relied on ropes to navigate steep terrain during the 2.5-mile hike into the crash site. An NTSB investigator says the plane appears to have nose-dived. (AP)
Fletcher Allen
Modern Healthcare Magazine ranks Vermont’s biggest hospital among the best integrated health care systems in Northern New England. Fletcher Allen is listed by the magazine as 84th of the best 100 health care systems in the country. (AP)
Vermonters at the Olympics
Ten athletes from Vermont will compete on the US Olympic team in Salt Lake City. They are vying for medals in snowboarding, freestyle skiing, slalom skiing, cross-country skiing, biathlon and hockey. (AP)