Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
As state leaders struggle with growing Corrections Department costs, a consultant’s report says Vermont could save $54 million and decrease the prison population by 436 inmates over the next decade by making five changes; political leaders have started the legislative session with promises that they’ll work together; a plan to have Verizon Communications sell its northern New England phone lines to FairPoint Communications is another step closer; and workers’ compensation rates are expected to drop by 4.2 percent next year.