Pat Bradley

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin was in Florida Wednesday to get a firsthand opinion about how loud the F-35 fighter jet is compared to an F-16.

The Burlington Free Press reports that the governor flew to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida Wednesday with the mayors of Burlington and Winooski so they could listen to the two types of aircraft.

The Air Force is considering basing F-35s at the Vermont Air National Guard base at the Burlington International Airport. Some area residents are worried about the noise from the planes.

New York environmental groups are ramping up their lobbying to convince Governor Cuomo to sign a new funding bill for the state’s Environmental Protection Fund.

The New York Legislature passed the Environmental Protection Fund Enhancement Act earlier this year, to provide additional money for land, air and water protection and conservation. That bill has only recently moved to the Governor’s desk and New York Public Interest Research Group Senior Environmental Associate Laura Haight is concerned whether it will be signed.

A Vermont labor advocacy group has released its own plan for how the state should finance a universal health care system.
    
The Healthcare is a Human Right Campaign, a project of the Vermont Workers’ Center, released their health care financing plan on Monday. VT Workers Center President Mary Gerisch says the goal is equity in cost sharing and access.

Mary Gerisch explains that their plan uses  income taxes as the primary funding source.

Two southern development organizations are getting $470,000 to boost long-term recovery efforts following last year's Tropical Storm Irene.

The state's congressional delegation says the Windham Regional Commission and the Bennington County Regional Commission will use the funds to work with businesses and encourage public and private approaches to promote job creation.

Senator Patrick Leahy and Senator Bernie Sanders and U.S. Representative Peter Welch say the money will speed the recovery of many southern Vermont communities still recovering from Irene.

The deputy commissioner of Vermont's Department of Environmental Conservation is going to become the deputy secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources.

The appointment of Justin Johnson was announced Tuesday by ANR Secretary Deb Markowitz.

Johnson will replace Chris Recchia, who is leaving ANR to become commissioner of the Department of Public Service.

Johnson has 18-years of experience in local, state and federal government in both the United States and Australia.

For the fourth year in a row, Vermont has been ranked as the healthiest state in the country.

Gov. Peter Shumlin and Health Commissioner Dr. Harry Chen say the state did well in categories including low incidence of low-birth-weight babies, low violent crime rate, and low infectious disease rates as keys to Vermont's success.

Vermont's obesity rate is growing, but not as fast as those in most other states.

Among the state's challenges: a relatively high rate of binge drinking and a higher rate of deaths from cancer than most other states.

Last week, the New England Coalition filed a complaint with the Vermont Supreme Court asking for an injunction to force the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant to cease operations until the Public Service Board rules on a Certificate of Public Good - the state’s operating license.  On Monday, the Vermont Department of Public Service asked the Court to deny that petition.

The new president of the University of Vermont wants to make the school harder to get in to for out-of-state applicants.

President Tom Sullivan, who took office in July, says increased selectivity is a part of his vision for "enhancing quality and affordability" of the school.

By the standard measure of selectivity, UVM was slightly less selective in 2012 than it was a decade ago. In the fall of 2002, UVM agreed to admit 71.5 percent of applicants. This year UVM accepted 76.6 percent of applicants.

Vermont State Police say a search of a stolen car being used by a fugitive helped recover items stolen in Vermont and New Hampshire in recent months.

Police say 28-year-old Michael Hoehl repainted a stolen car four or five times so police wouldn't recognize the vehicle, allegedly stolen from Rivendell High School in Orford, N.H., in October.

He was arrested Tuesday after police spotted the vehicle in Newbury. Troopers allegedly chased Hoehl into the woods and he displayed a handgun, but he was apprehended without injury.

The head of a company targeted by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders for allegedly overcharging for gasoline says his stations are competitive.

Rodolphe "Skip" Vallee — president of the company that owns the Maplefields gas stations and convenience stores — says he wants a meeting with Sanders to explain his point of view.

Sanders devoted part of a Monday news conference to complaining that the three companies that combined own more than half the gas stations in Chittenden, Grand Isle and Franklin counties are overcharging customers.