Pat Bradley

The Vermont State Employees Credit Union says unencrypted computer tapes containing personal data and transaction records of about 85,000 members were inadvertently thrown into a landfill.

Credit union CEO Steven Post says there's no evidence any of the information has fallen into the wrong hands.

Post says it appears data tapes were buried in a landfill and cannot be retrieved.

The credit union is working with regulators and law enforcement.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and along with that comes the ubiquitous pink ribbon. Numerous entities slap the symbol on products and claim charitable donations will go to breast cancer research.  But how can you be sure such so-called “cause marketing” is legitimate? New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman talks about his effort to make these types of marketing campaigns more transparent.

A group of health care advocates is urging the Legislature to create a special state subsidy when Vermont's subsidized health care program is shut down in 2014.

That's when the roughly 10,000 residents enrolled in Catamount Health will need to buy their coverage through a newly created market place exchange.

Peter Sterling of the Vermont Campaign for Health Care Security tells Vermont Public Radio he's concerned. He said the federal subsidies that will be available through the exchange are not as good as the existing Catamount coverage.

The Select Board in Bennington has approved an agreement with the Vermont National Guard that will allow the town to acquire the Bennington armory if and when a new one is constructed for the local unit.

The town broached the idea of exchanging the properties in June 2011 as a potential spot for a new readiness center to replace the local Vermont National Guard headquarters. The Guard had been looking at multiple sites in Bennington County.

Demand for heating assistance is rising in Vermont, and Governor Peter Shumlin is asking the Legislature to approve additional heating assistance funds for this winter.

Vermont’s Governor was joined by key lawmakers and advocates Tuesday as he called for 8.8 million dollars in additional state funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance program, known as LIHEAP.

The Governor plans to meet with the Legislature’s Emergency Board next week to get approval for the additional funds. 

A collaboration of hospitals and health care systems is implementing a state-of-the-art, high-speed telemedicine network across New York State’s northern tier.

The Adirondack Champlain Telemedicine Information Network, known as ACTION, has been in the works for several years. It will link hospitals and health centers in New York and Vermont.  Plattsburgh’s CVPH Medical Center is the lead health care provider for the system, which President Stephens Mundy explained includes 8 hospitals and 40 primary care facilities across 8 counties.

The owner of a commercial wind project in Vermont has been issued a special permit allowing for possible fatalities of bats, some of which are endangered species in the state.

The permit was sought by First Wind, which has a 16-turbine wind development project in Sheffield.

The Caledonian-Record reports the permit issued by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources allows for fatalities for a maximum of four little brown bats, one Northern Long-Eared Bat, one Tri-Colored Bat and on Eastern Small-Footed Bat.

A new TV ad opposing Maine's same-sex marriage referendum features a Vermont couple who were sued for not hosting a lesbian couple's wedding reception at their inn.

In the ad, Jim O'Reilly of the Wildflower Inn in Lyndonville says he and his wife paid $30,000 and can no longer host any weddings because they didn't support the gay wedding due to their religious beliefs.

Vermont State Police are holding forums to get public feedback as they do a review of their facilities.

The state police and Vermont Building and General Services have started a comprehensive review of facilities statewide as part of a legislative mandate.

Each study will look at the program needs, deficiencies, potential land sites and estimated program costs.

The goal is to come up with a long-term plan to determine the best way for the state to support the Vermont State Police in providing services to Vermonters.