MONDAY Â Â EDITION
ADDISON COUNTY
INDEPENDENT
Vol. 25 No. 3
Middlebury, Vermont
X
Monday, March 11, 2013
X
36 Pages
75¢
Lawmakers  considering  tax  increases Maple sap LV à RZLQJ ‡ $ JURXS RI )HUULVEXUJK FKLOGUHQ DUH OHDUQLQJ DERXW WDSSLQJ PDSOH WUHHV 6HH 3DJH
By  JOHN  FLOWERS VERGENNES  —  When  lawmak- ers  return  to  Montpelier  this  week  after  their  Town  Meeting  break,  they  will  continue  consideration  of  where  to  get  revenues  for  state  programs. Lawmakers  at  the  Legislative  Breakfast  in  Vergennes  last  week  discussed  potential  increases  in  existing  fees  and  taxes,  as  well  as  Gov.  Peter  Shumlin’s  proposed  new  10-Âpercent  surcharge  on  break-Âopen Â
tickets  sold  by  various  civic  groups,  including  the  American  Legion  Halls. INCREASED  FEES  &  TAXES? Dave  Brooks  of  Waltham  noted  plans  to  increase  the  statewide  homestead  education  property  tax  by  5  cents  (to  a  total  of  94  cents)  per  $100  in  property  value  and  consid- eration  of  a  new  8-Âcent  gasoline  tax  to  generate  more  revenues  to  repair  Vermont’s  roads  and  bridges.
Brooks  said  such  taxes  cannot  be  HDVLO\ DEVRUEHG E\ UHWLUHHV RQ D Âż[HG income,  such  as  he  and  his  wife. “I  don’t  have  the  luxury  of  taxing  people,  so  I  have  to  think  about  cut- ting,â€?  Brooks  said.  “I  wonder  if  the  state  is  talking  about  cutting.â€? Lawmakers  responded  that  while  some  new  tax  proposals  have  been  making  headlines,  state  government  has  been  making  some  cuts.  Sen.  Claire  Ayer,  D-ÂAddison,  said  the Â
state’s  developmental  services  bud- get  for  citizens  with  disabilities  is  being  sized  up  for  “big  cuts.�  Also  in  store  for  substantial  cuts  according  to  Ayer:  The  Reach  Up  program  that  provides  job  training  and  other  aid  primarily  to  single  moms  with  kids. “In  human  services  —  which  is  a  bloated  budget  —  we  have  been  cutting  steadily  in  the  amount  of  ser- vices  we  have,�  Ayer  said. (See  Lawmakers,  Page  23)
Shakespeare is in local schools ‡ /LQFROQ SXSLOV ZLOO VWDJH ´0XFK $GR ¾ VHH 3DJH DQG NLGV IURP RWKHU VFKRROV ZLOO SHUIRUP ´/HDU ¾ VHH 3DJH
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The  big  time SAM  COFFEY  FROM  the  University  of  New  Hampshire  took  third  place  in  the  NCAA  national  skiing  championships  slalom  race  at  the  Middlebury  College  Snow  Bowl  last  Friday  morning.  For  results  and  more  photos,  see  the  sports  section  starting  on  Page  18. Independent  photo/Trent  Campbell
Mount Abe artists exhibit talent ‡ 7KH (PHUJLQJ $UWLVWV VKRZ DW $UW RQ 0DLQ LQ %ULVWRO IHDWXUHV 0W $EH VWXGHQWV 6HH 3DJH
Citizen  seeking  to  open  up ANeSU  teacher  negotiations By  XIAN  CHIANG-ÂWAREN BRISTOL  —  A  Starksboro  man  would  like  Bristol-Âarea  school  boards  to  be  a  little  more  transparent  when  negotiating  teacher  con- WUDFWV DQG KH KDV ÂżOHG D ODZVXLW WKDW FRXOG EH precedent-Âsetting. -RKQ -HIIHULHV VDLG LQ D FRPSODLQW ÂżOHG LQ court  last  week  that  the  Addison  Northeast  Su- pervisory  Union  and  Mount  Abraham  Union Â
High  School  districts  and  their  boards  and  committees  have  gone  into  executive  session  without  cause  during  face-Âto-Âface  and  mediat- ed  meetings  with  representatives  of  the  teach- ers’  union  during  contract  negotiations.  “This  is  not  an  angry  piece  of  litigation,â€?  Jef- feries,  a  former  Robinson  Elementary  School  and  ANeSU  board  member  himself,  said  in  an  (See  ANeSU,  Page  35)
Should  Middlebury  require  homeowners  to  shovel  sidewalks? By  JOHN  FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY  —  Middlebury  residents  are  be- ing  asked  to  weigh  in  on  the  idea  of  instituting  a  new  town  ordinance  that  would  require  property  owners  to  clear  snow  from  their  own  sidewalks. A  few  local  residents  —  noting  the  selectboard’s  (See  Middlebury,  Page  27)