Education

May Day: A Celebration Of Worker Power 05/01/2024

From the organizer:

Celebrate International Workers' Day at Battery Park in Burlington alongside local unions and labor activists, with live music, speeches, and food from People's Kitchen!

May Day is a fun, family-friendly festival of worker power. Cosponsors include the Vermont AFL-CIO, Teamsters Local 597, the Howard Center Union, the Burlington Education Association, UVM Graduate Students United, UVM Staff United, AFSCME Local 4802, UE Local 208, and the Vermont IWW.

For more information visit: www.actionnetwork.org/events

Voices of Vermont: Student Encampments, Burlington's Budget Deficit, and May Day 05/01/2024

Hosts Sandy Baird and Steve Goodkind discuss ongoing student encamptments and protests, as well as the budget deficit in the City of Burlington. Sandy also discusses May Day.

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont House Republican Caucus - Discussion of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law 04/30/2024

Discussion of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law at the House Republican Caucus.

On Tuesday, Representative Higley presented an update on the bill to the House Republican Caucus. Representative Higley said the committee was considering an amendment to allow CUDs not to comply with open meeting law requirements due to their vast geographic jurisdiction

S.55: Draft 1.3, 4-11-2024:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/House%20Government%20Operations/Bills/S.55/Drafts,%20Amendments,%20and%20Legal%20Documents/S.55~Tim%20Devlin~%20Draft%201.3,%204-11-2024~5-1-2024.pdf

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Committee of Conference - Approval of VAN FY25 Request 04/30/2024

Approval of VAN FY25 Request at the Committee of Conference.

Later on Tuesday, in a blink-and-you-missed it moment, the CoC closed (approved) the language about VAN in Section E.232 of the budget:

Sec. E.232 SECRETARY OF STATE; VERMONT ACCESS NETWORK BUDGET (a) The Office of the Secretary of State shall request that Vermont Access Network submit a proposed operating budget required to maintain its current level of operation and programming. The Office of the Secretary of State shall include the proposed operating budget as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget presentation. (Line 102 in the Document linked below).

The CoC uses a document to track items they have to resolve - differences between the House and Senate versions of the FY25 budget as passed. The VAN appropriation difference can be found on Line 19 of this document, which can be found here:
https://ljfo.vermont.gov/assets/Uploads/de4906780b/GENERAL-376517-v1-H_883_-_FY_2025_Budget_Committee_of_Conference_-_Gray_Out_Document.pdf

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Committee of Conference - Discussion of VAN FY25 Request 04/30/2024

Discussion of VAN FY25 Request at the Committee of Conference.

On Tuesday, at its first meeting, the Committee of Conference (CoC) on the FY25 Budget discussed the VAN appropriation, as one of the differences in the House/Senate versions of the FY25 Budget that they will have to resolve. As you know, the House appropriated $1 million in one-time funds, and the Senate $1 million in base funding. Rep. Lanpher related this issue to S.181, saying she understood the Senate’s position relied on that bill, which currently sits in the House Energy and Environment Committee. Sen. Kitchel had been under the impression the bill was in the House Ways & Means Committee. Rep. Scheu said she thought “the bill would move soon” (we don’t believe it will). Rep. Lanpher also said “the commitment to the Vermont Access Network” is there, so it’s something of a technicality to resolve exactly how the appropriation will be made. The Committee left this item open for further discussion.

From Homebrew to the House of Fermentology 04/29/2024

From Preservation Burlington and Bill Mares:

Bill Mares started making his own beer 45 years ago, when homebrewing was illegal and there were no microbreweries in America. Today there are over 7,000 such breweries nationwide, and Vermont has the highest percentage of breweries per capita in the country. Mares has written three editions of “Making Beer,” and fathered Vermont’s brewpub-enabling law in the 1980s.

In this presentation, Mares will offer a short history of beer itself, and discuss the American beer revolution, Vermont’s small but significant contribution, and his co-ownership of a brewery.

The North Star Community served as a gathering place -- and beer hall -- for generations of German-American Old North End residents, and is an ideal location for a talk on the history and culture of Vermont beer making, and consumption.

This program is made possible by a grant from the Vermont Humanities Council's Speakers Bureau.

Learn more at: www.preservationburlington.org/calendar/from-homebrew-to-the-house-of-fermentology

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Senate Committee on Finance - Testimony of H.657 Modernize Vermont’s Communications Taxes and Fees 04/26/2024

Testimony of H.657 a bill meant to modernize Vermont's communications taxes and fees at the Senate Committee on Finance.

On Friday, the Cmte returned to H.657, looking at a new draft from Leg Counsel, and also heard testimony from John Adams at the Vermont Center for Geographic Information. Adams testified that they have a lot of data on state rights of way and pole locations, but the data is not consistent. Given that there are several hundred thousand utility poles in Vermont, and 14,000 miles of right of way, it would be a significant undertaking to complete a thorough and accurate inventory of all of that data. H.657 as drafted contemplates this inventory, and the Cmte debated for some time how much time to give the Agency of Transportation to complete it before settling on 2026. The Cmte then voted out the bill favorably as amended (version 1.4) on a vote of 7-0-0.

H.657 draft 2.1 (as amended by Senate Finance in draft) :
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/Senate%20Finance/Bills/H.657/Drafts,%20Amendments,%20Other%20Legal%20Documents/H.657~Maria%20Royle~%20Draft%201.2,%204-23-2024~4-23-2024.pdf

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont House Committee on Government Operations - Testimony of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law 04/26/2024

Testimony of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law at the House Committee on Government Operations.

On Friday, the House Government Operations and Military Affairs committee continued testimony on the bill. Kate Larose from the Center of Independent Living gave testimony, she testified that until there is statewide mandate then there will always be a reason that it is too difficult to make meetings accessible.

S.55: Draft 1.3:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/House%20Government%20Operations/Bills/S.55/Drafts,%20Amendents,%20and%20Legal%20Documents/S.55~Tim%20Devlin~%20Draft%201.3,%204-11-2024~4-12-2024.pdf

Traveling For History with Patricia Araujo: Preservation Burlington and Advocacy 04/26/2024

From Patricia Araujo:

Host Patricia Araujo interviews guest Ron Wanamaker from Preservation Burlington about the organization's advocacy efforts. They also discuss The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

For more information visit: www.travelingforhistory.com | www.preservationburlington.org

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont House Floor - Vermont Access Network (VAN) Recognition 04/25/2024

Vermont Access Network (VAN) Recognition on the House Floor.

On Friday, VAN set up a display and maintained a presence in the Card Room at the State House for engaging with legislators about its work, its budget ask, and S.181. Rep. Headrick gave a brief speech about local access television on the House Floor, and the House as a body recognized the Vermont Access Network.

Featured Story

CCTV Receives NEH Grant to Support Community Archives

CCTV Center for Media & Democracy is pleased to announce receipt of a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Humanities Collections and Reference Resources grant alongside 32 peer archival institutions across the country. This $49,927 grant award will support efforts to preserve and expand access to audio/visual community history materials in the CCTV Archives. Read more about this opportunity here!