Vermont
Vote now for Vermont Varsity Insider Athletes of the Week: Ballots for June 3-9
![Vote now for Vermont Varsity Insider Athletes of the Week: Ballots for June 3-9](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/05/08/PBUR/73608048007-baseball-cvu-at-south-burlington-07-may-249001.jpg?auto=webp&crop=2123,1195,x0,y109&format=pjpg&width=1200)
Welcome to the eighth and final installment of the 2024 spring season for the Vermont Varsity Insider Athletes of the Week voting by high school sports fans.
This week, and every week during the sports seasons, members of the public may vote for a top girls athlete and a top boys athlete.
Varsity Insider Athletes of the week: Winners for the 2023-24 school year
How do I cast my vote?
All voting is through the two ballots at burlingtonfreepress.com. We will not accept votes through email or through social media.
Voting began June 10, and continues through 11:59 p.m. Thursday.
How do we learn who wins?
The two winners will be announced in a story published at burlingtonfreepress.com on Friday.
Athlete of the week feature to return in the fall
This is the final athlete of the week ballot for the 2023-24 school year. The long-running feature will return in the fall for the 2024-25 school year. We accept nominations via email: sports@burlingtonfreepress.com (Subject Line: Athletes of the Week nomination).
Girls Athlete of the Week nominees
More on this week’s candidates:
Trinity Anaya, Essex softball: The junior tossed a pair of complete games to lead Essex into the D-I semifinals. She hurled a two-hitter while going 2-for-3 at the plate in a 14-0 win over South Burlington. Then in the quarterfinals, Anaya yielded six hits and one earned run over seven innings to eliminate host Colchester 5-1.
Iris Cloutier, Stowe lacrosse: After a six-goal splurge in Stowe’s 17-7 playdown win over Lamoille, Cloutier struck for a hat trick in a 5-4 road triumph over Mount Abraham/Vergennes in the quarterfinals of the D-II playoffs.
Ava Kingsbury, Blue Mountain softball: Kingsbury hit for the cycle with two home runs and seven RBIs in a 5-for-5 performance at the plate during Blue Mountain’s 22-2 D-IV quarterfinal win over Twinfield/Danville/Cabot.
Hayley Raiche, West Rutland softball: Raiche’s 4-for-4 day at the plate included a double, triple and a trio of RBIs as West Rutland dispatched Leland & Gray 18-0 in the D-IV quarterfinals.
Finley Strong, Rice softball: The junior smacked the game-winning homer in the top of the seventh inning as Rice ousted Middlebury on the road 3-2 in the D-II quarterfinals. In the playdowns, Strong also doubled twice and drove in a run.
Boys Athlete of the Week nominees
More on this week’s candidates:
Nick Casey, Harwood baseball: Casey tossed a three-hitter with two earned runs and eight strikeouts over five innings in Harwood’s 7-5 D-II playdown win over Lake Region. He also doubled in the first-round playoff game and then went 2-for-4 with another double with three RBIs in Harwood’s 10-0 shutout of Milton in the quarterfinals.
Ezra Mock, Hartford lacrosse: The multi-sport standout registered a team-best four goals as Hartford dropped Mount Anthony 12-7 in the D-II quarterfinals.
Griffin Piconi, Woodstock lacrosse: Piconi’s three-goal, three-assist performance included the game-winning goal in overtime as Woodstock outlasted South Burlington on the road in the D-I quarterfinals.
Wyatt Smith, Montpelier Ultimate: After tallying six goals and two assists in a 15-7 playdown victory over Rice, Smith had three goals, two assists and two blocks on defense in Montpelier’s 11-9 triumph over South Burlington in the quarterfinal round.
Travis Stroh, Champlain Valley baseball: Stroh went 1-for-3 with a triple and RBI in a 6-0 win over Rice in the D-I playdowns. Then in the quarterfinals, Stroh doubled twice with two RBIs in a 3-for-3 effort as the Redhawks blanked Brattleboro 10-0.
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Vermont
Vermont takes on 'Big Oil' with groundbreaking bill: 'The stakes are too high'
![Vermont takes on 'Big Oil' with groundbreaking bill: 'The stakes are too high'](https://www.thecooldown.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Vermont-climate-change-accountabilityimage.jpg)
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Vermont will be the first state in the US to hold “Big Oil” accountable with a law requiring payment for damages from the effects of climate change, per a report by CBS News.
Taking on Big Oil
The state’s Republican governor, Phil Scott, sent a letter to Vermont’s General Assembly clearing the way for the Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program law (S.259) to pass without his signature.
While he says he believes in the cause, Gov. Scott shared his reservations in the letter. He indicated that Vermont could have benefited from collaborating with other major players like New York and California instead of risking a stand on its own.
“Having said that,” Gov. Scott continued, “I understand the desire to seek funding to mitigate the effects of climate change that has hurt our state in so many ways.”
One Vermont state Representative, Martin LaLonde, released a reassuring statement of his own, clarifying that legal scholars vetted the bill and that they have a solid legal case.
“The stakes are too high — and the costs too steep for Vermonters — to release corporations that caused the mess from their obligation to help clean it up,” he said, per CBS News.
Major polluters should pay
The bill would require entities found to have spewed more than 2.2 trillion pounds of planet-warming gases between 1995 and 2024 to pay up, according to CBS News. Vermont would use that money to deal with the disastrous effects of an overheating planet.
And the industry certainly has the money to pay. In 2022, the U.S. oil and gas industry’s total revenue was $332.9 billion, as Statista reported. While that’s staggering enough, it’s a massive uptick from the $211.2 billion it earned the previous year.
The damage
The rise in global temperatures has led to various severe climate impacts, including more flooding, fires, droughts, and increasingly powerful storm systems.
Big Oil is to blame for much of the damage, with the United Nations stating that the use of dirty fuels accounts for more than 75% of polluting gases. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has estimated that in 2023 alone, climate-related disasters caused $92.9 billion in damage across the U.S., and Vermont was not immune to this damage.
Looking forward
While federal efforts like the Inflation Reduction Act have created green incentives to help address the changing climate, the states must do their part.
The Vermont Natural Resources Council expressed support for the Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program, stating, “[It] represents a major step forward in ensuring that responsible parties, like Big Oil — companies like ExxonMobil and Shell that have known for decades that their products are disrupting the climate — be required to also pay a fair share of the cleanup costs.”
Lawsuits are also underway, seeking to hold the dirty energy industry accountable for its actions. More are likely to follow.
Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
Vermont
MAP: Where Vermont school districts struggled to pass a budget
![MAP: Where Vermont school districts struggled to pass a budget](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6a13ea7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3056x1604+0+68/resize/1200x630!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fcc%2Fdd%2F4eee15974188b28f55fe30842569%2Fcd-budgetvotes-cropped.png)
Vermont school districts struggled more than usual to convince voters to approve budgets this spring as they faced double-digit property tax increases.
The increase was estimated to be 18.5%, ultimately whittled down to 13.8%.
It all came to a head three months ago when Vermonters in nearly a third of the state’s school districts voted down their school budgets.
Two districts — Enosburgh Richford and Barre Unified Unified Union School District — still haven’t passed their budgets.
Because Vermont’s education funding is statewide, individual budget cuts don’t translate into comparable savings for taxpayers, putting school districts in a bind.
“For every dollar we cut from the school budget, St. Johnsbury saves about 20 cents. The state keeps the rest and uses it to lower taxes in other towns,” said St. Johnsbury School Board Vice Chair Peter VanStraten in a letter to voters before a third (successful) budget vote. “This is not a vote on what is happening in Montpelier. Please keep that for November.”
Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message. Or contact the reporter directly at corey.dockser@vermontpublic.org.
Vermont
Vermont man arrested in Bristol for stolen car and firearms possession
![Vermont man arrested in Bristol for stolen car and firearms possession](https://gray-wfsb-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/BMRJAG7OYJENHMD4OQPYCF2Z4Y.png?auth=93f31f51fe3019b23e3cdddce16d921af563880a4679de331cb4a1e676b9d5e9&width=1200&height=600&smart=true)
BRISTOL, CT (WFSB) – Connecticut State Police arrested a Vermont man for allegedly stealing a vehicle and possessing firearms on Thursday.
Connecticut State Police Troop H Dispatch received a report of a stolen vehicle from Vermont.
The vehicle was described as a white Ford F-550 truck with a car-carrier towing a GMC SUV.
Massachusetts State Police assisted in the investigation and informed Troop H that the stolen vehicle was last seen on I-91 near Windsor Locks.
Troopers later spotted the described vehicle on I-91 around Exit 34 in Hartford.
The driver, identified as Shawn Carpenter, 47, of Hartford, Vermont, was taken into custody.
During the arrest, troopers discovered two handguns with ammunition and drug paraphernalia in Carpenter’s possession.
Carpenter underwent a Standardized Field Sobriety Test, which he failed.
He refused to provide any information regarding the firearms found.
Upon contacting the registered owner of the stolen vehicle, they denied possessing the firearms and drug paraphernalia.
Carpenter faces multiple charges, including operating under the influence of drugs or alcohol, operating without a license, failure to maintain proper lane, two counts of illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle, two counts of carrying a dangerous weapon, two counts of illegal carrying of a firearm while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, three counts of first-degree larceny, use of drug paraphernalia, and two counts of carrying a pistol without a permit.
He is currently held on a $150,000 bond and has been transferred to the Connecticut Department of Correction pending his scheduled arraignment at New Britain Superior Court.
Copyright 2024 WFSB. All rights reserved.
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