Former House representative for Cambridge dies of coronavirus
Bernie Juskiewicz, husband, father, dedicated local volunteer, and a Republican legislator who represented Cambridge and Waterville from 2013-18, has died of the coronavirus.
Bernie Juskiewicz, husband, father, dedicated local volunteer, and a Republican legislator who represented Cambridge and Waterville from 2013-18, has died of the coronavirus.
At a press briefing Wednesday, Gov. Phil Scott said Vermonters can expect at least one more extension of the state of emergency order as he prepares to lay out his plans on Friday for getting people back to work.
Reusable shopping bags are being banned in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and even San Francisco. They are also not welcome at many Vermont grocery stores. However, the chair of the House Natural Resources Committee said Vermont’s ban on single-use plastic grocery bags will take effect as scheduled July 1.
With the onset of the coronavirus and subsequent economic shutdown resulting in massive job losses, the Vermont Department of Labor conducted a virtual town hall meeting late last week to take questions from more than 600 employers and employees who need answers on how to survive.
Gov. Phil Scott on Friday said he is extending business closures, which so far have caused more than 60,000 Vermonters to lose their jobs in a matter of weeks.
Gov. Phil Scott said Monday he is working “hand in hand” with legislative leaders on COVID-19 legislation and is fine with the use of remote voting “during this point in time during this crisis.”
The Legislature is supposed to set the “yield” rate for Vermonters’ property taxes, but the economic chaos set off by the COVID-19 response has left the bean counters shrugging their shoulders — there is a great deal of “we don’t know what we don’t know.”
Vermont’s power grid, internet connectivity and state computers are performing well, but some weaknesses are being exposed.
The coronavirus this week hit Vermonters where they live — again — after the Berlin Walmart roped off access to the Straight Talk phone cards, in response to Gov. Phil Scott’s ban on in-person sale of “non-essential products” at big box stores.
In mid-March, the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy heard from energy experts about how effectively doubling portions of the state’s Renewable Energy Standards could have dramatic consequences for ratepayers and require massive amounts of new solar to be built across the Vermont landscape.
The number of Vermonters out of work and scrambling to provide for their families has skyrocketed two weeks in a row due to the Scott administration’s response to fears about the coronavirus.
State transportation officials expect a new federal infrastructure bill will soon deliver a large influx of federal transportation money to Vermont.