For many, fireworks are the literal highlight of July 4 celebrations. Ending a day of cook outs, music and summer fun celebrating the birth of our nation with a literal bang.

We all know the hassle of getting to the site early to grab the best seats, wrangling a number of friends and family into the car, and waiting in the summer heat for several hours. Knowing all this, you may wonder, why not just have your own fireworks show in your backyard?

If you’re asking that question, it means it’s time for another July 4 tradition, folks – the annual reminder that fireworks are illegal in the state of Vermont without a permit.

What fireworks are legal in Vermont

Unlike Massachusetts, this is not a complete ban on pyrotechnics. As far as Vermont law is concerned, sparklers and other novelty devices are not considered fireworks and are therefore permitted.

However, sparklers must be less than 14 inches long with no more than 20 grams of pyrotechnic mixture. Novelty sparkling items are limited to snakes, party poppers, glow worms, smoke devices, string poppers, snappers, or drop pops with no more than 0.25 grains of explosive mixture.

Anything over these limits on explosive material are illegal for sale and use in Vermont.

What is the potential penalty for illegal fireworks in Vermont?

According to the Vermont Legislature, Title 20, Chapter 177, sale, possession, or use of fireworks without proper permit is considered a misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $100 and up to 30 days in jail.

A permit for a public display is also required by the local chief of police and fire departments of the town or city in which the display is being held.

Applications for a permit must be made at least 15 days in advance of the fireworks display. The use, possession, sale and distribution of fireworks is legal only after the permit is granted.

Holding a firework display without a permit as required is also a misdemeanor but carries a heavier penalty, with a fine of up to $5,000 and up to a year of imprisonment.

Earlier this week a small crowd of 30 or so people gathered on Burlington’s waterfront.

They were there to get the first glimpse of a new sign, which was created specifically to improve accessibility for those who are blind or visually impaired. It is the first in Vermont’s Queen City, according to organizers.

It provides information about well-known locations like the Burlington Community Boathouse Marina, the lake, the ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain and the A_Dog Skatepark through the use of raised images, along with Braille lettering, contrasting colors, text and photo images.

Steve Pouliot, executive director of the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (VABVI), one of the collaborating groups that worked on this project, praised the effort.

“This will provide an enriching, inclusive experience for everyone who visits the waterfront, regardless of what their level of sensory access might be,” he said during Tuesday’s dedication ceremony. “So we hope that this will be a model that could and should be emulated across the city and even our state.”

The association worked with Burlington Parks, Recreation and Waterfront for more than 2 years on the project.

The groups said they solicited feedback from many different people with impaired vision or other differing abilities. Cindy Wight, director of the parks department, said she hopes the sign will benefit everyone.

“If you’re coming down to waterfront park for the first time and you’ve never been here, you don’t know that there’s a fishing pier all the way out on the other end of the park,” she said.

Tom Frank, of Milton, agreed. Frank is blind and first began to lose his vision at 21.

“You don’t know what you don’t know. You can’t see it,” he said. “So when you’re checking out the map and going, ‘Here, OK so what’s that sticking up here?’ Oh well that’s a wharf! Well I didn’t know there were wharfs down that way.”

He said for some people who are blind or have vision impairment, simply physically orienting themselves and determining distances can be a challenge.

“It’s very difficult to determine how far something is away. You just don’t have any perspective,” Frank said. “So if a relief map like this one, you can look at it and say, ‘Well, I know where this is and I know how long it takes me to walk here. Oh, it’ll take me so much longer to get down to this point.’”

The new map also alerts visitors of certain terrain types. That’s especially helpful for people like Nate Besio, who is a power chair user. The Colchester resident is also the chair of Burlington’s Advisory Committee on Accessibility.

Besio said both the parks department and VABVI listened to input from the disabled community during the creation of the tactile sign.

“This is really a good collaboration, this tactile sign,” he said. “It was really something where people from both sides got together. We got our feedback from people with disabilities, we were able to arrange people to come down and provide feedback on a lot of different aspects of it. So it was really an exciting collaborative effort.”

More services to assist blind and visually impaired visitors who might use the sign are coming soon including a scannable QR code that will unlock additional information. There’s also a plan to film an interpreter using ASL to translate the signage info, and more tactile signs are in the planning stages. 

Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message.

Two Vermont senators are suing Gov. Phil Scott over his controversial appointment of interim Secretary of Education Zoie Saunders.

In a lawsuit filed on June 19, Sens. Tanya Vyhovsky, P/D-Chittenden, and Richard McCormack, D-Windsor, accused Scott of violating the Vermont Constitution when he selected Saunders to serve as interim Secretary of Education after the Senate blocked her permanent appointment to the position.

The lawsuit argues that Scott is constitutionally obligated to “obtain the advice and consent” of the Senate before filling a secretary of state agencies seat.

“The governor can’t strip away the power granted to the senate by both the VT constitution and state law,” Vyhovsky said in a Facebook post about the lawsuit on June 21, “but by disregarding our unambiguous decision to reject his appointment for Secretary of Education he did exactly that.”

Scott, however, said back in April that he had followed historical precedent, contending that former Gov. Howard Dean also bypassed Senate opposition to appoint his nominees, according to VTDigger. VTDigger, however, pointed out that none of the nominees Dean reappointed held cabinet positions.

More: Vermont Legislature makes history, overrides six vetoes

Scott spokesperson Amanda Wheeler disparaged the lawsuit as “another example of legislators focusing more on partisan political maneuvering than the hard work to help schools, kids and taxpayers.”

“And make no mistake, it’s no coincidence this was announced the same week the legislature imposed a 14% property tax increase,” Wheeler said, referencing the “yield bill” Scott has consistently lambasted for being economically irresponsible. “They’d like nothing more than to change the subject and distract Vermonters and the press.”

Vyhovsky denied any ulterior motives for the lawsuit, calling accusations that she and McCormack are trying to divert attention from their legislative actions “not just incorrect but wildly off-base.” She also rejected claims that they filed the lawsuit because of “political parties or divides.”

“Sen. McCormack and I are doing this because it’s the right thing to do, not because of the letters after our names, and because we both took an oath of office to protect and uphold the Vermont Constitution,” Vyhovsky wrote on Facebook, adding that she believes “the overreach of executive power leads us away from democracy to authoritarianism unless it’s challenged at every point.”

What led to the lawsuit?

Scott announced on March 22 that he had selected Saunders – a former education administrator from Florida – to serve as secretary of education from a pool of candidates recommended by the state Board of Education. When Saunders took office on April 15, her position had been vacant for roughly a year, with Deputy Secretary Heather Bouchey serving as interim in the meantime.  

Scott’s pick immediately came under fire from critics – both constituents and lawmakers – who expressed concern about Saunders’ work experience. For instance, Saunders had only spent three months in public school leadership prior to accepting the secretary of education role in Vermont. She also had never served as a teacher, principal, school district administrator or superintendent like past secretaries of education had.

Additionally, some Vermonters questioned Saunders’ charter school experience, especially her connection to Charter Schools USA, whose founder emerged from the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation.

Scott defended Saunders in a March 28 statement, accusing critics of “spreading or believing misinformation, making assumptions and levying attacks on her character” before even getting to know his nominee.

Despite Scott’s admonishment, the Senate voted 19-9 to reject Saunders as secretary of education.

“Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, the Senate heartily endorses the appointee, but in this case a majority of the Senate found Zoie Saunders’ resume a mismatch with the current moment,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth, D-Chittenden, in a statement.

Immediately following the Senate vote, Scott named Saunders the state’s interim secretary of education – the reason for Vyhovsky and McCormack’s lawsuit.

“Zoie’s professionalism, grace, and class throughout this process, despite the unfair, ill-informed treatment, has been truly remarkable and honorable,” Scott said in a statement. “I’m very proud of her and how she has handled these hurtful, false attacks, which makes me and my entire team more confident than ever that she is the right person for the job.”

Vyhovsky reiterated on Facebook that the Senate’s feelings about Saunders is not why she and McCormack filed the lawsuit.

“This is not about the person Gov. Scott submitted for appointment nor is it about the work that she’s done,” Vyhovsky wrote. “It’s about the governor’s decision to overrule the senate and make that appointment without our legally required consent. It’s about making case law that tells any governor who comes after Scott that Vermont enforces the separation of powers.”

What are the plaintiffs’ goals?

In the lawsuit – which also lists Saunders as a defendant – Vyhovsky and McCormack are asking the Vermont Superior Court to rule that Scott cannot circumvent the Senate’s authority by appointing a candidate they rejected to an interim version of that cabinet position. (The statue referred to in the lawsuit does not explicitly state interim appointments must be approved by the Senate, just secretary of state agencies appointments in general.)

The plaintiffs are also asking the court to declare that the Senate’s rejection of Saunders is the chamber’s “final act” on the matter for the 2024 session, since Scott did not resubmit his nominee’s name for consideration on or before the day the Legislature graveled out.

Vyhovsky and McCormack are asking the court to rule that Saunders has not “validly functioned” in her role as secretary of education – due to the reasons above – thereby nullifying any actions she’s taken since she assumed the position at the end of April.

Who is paying for the lawsuit?

Vyhovsky told the Free Press in an email that Vermonters “across the political spectrum” have stepped up to donate over $11,000 toward the plaintiffs’ attorney fees. She and McCormack plan to fund the rest, assuming the donations don’t already cover everything, Vyhovsky said.

“It’s unfortunate that two Senators needed to use private resources to sue to enforce the separation of powers as defined in both the VT constitution and state law,” Vyhovsky wrote, but added that “retaining private counsel was the only viable option” as she and McCormack needed to take immediate legal action.

All donations will be paid directly to a IOLTA trust account belonging to one of the plaintiffs’ lawyers.

Megan Stewart is a government accountability reporter for the Burlington Free Press. Contact her at mstewartyounger@gannett.com.