Valley News from West Lebanon, New Hampshire • 13

Valley News Sunday: April 1 1 2004 1 Local Regional Page B3 Environmental Groups Criticize Circ Highway Process A GRANITE NEWS SERVICE FEATURE A) AL-BIRtH ABORTION BILL DEFEATED (March 17): HB1120 would have banned so-called partial-birth' abortions by fining doctors who perform them and opening them up to lawsuit Supporters said this was a gruesome procedure that amounted to murdering' a baby Opppnents said this bill would outlaw a procedure usl In all stages of pregnancy even when the fetus is not viable arid there was no' exception to protect the life of the mother both of which made the bill an unconstitutional violation of the Hght to choose The House KILLED the bill 189-1 29 A YES vote OPPOSED banning partial-biilh abortions B) JUDGES ARE STILL IN FOR LIFE (Jan 22): CACR9 Is a constitutional amendment to limit the terms of state judges who ale nojw appointed for life tp seven years Supporters said limited terms would Keep judges honesl Opponents said it would jeopardize the political Independence of the judiciary The House KILLED the constitutional amendment212-140 A YES vote OPPOSED limited judge's terms C) DON'T MAKE IT HARDER TO INTERVENE IN CHILD ABUSE CASES (Janl5): HB755 would raise the standard of intervention hi child abuse and neglect proceedings from "preponderance of the evidence" to "dear and convincing evidence" Supporters say the state needs convincing evidence before interfering with: a family Opponents said the definition of "dear and convincing" is hot always dear and 'could prevent the state to from intervening when needed with possible-tragic consequences The House KILLED foe bill 268-74 A YES vote OPPOSED raising the standard for the state to intervene in child abuse cases D) NO MORE WAITING LIST FUNDING (Jan 15): HB421 would appropriate over two years to provide services for people with developmental disabilities on the waiting list Supporters said the state has an obli- Satioo to help these peopfo' and -should fully-fund the program Opponents said funding for the waiting list tcreased already and the state just doesn't have the money The House KILLED foe bill 189-149 A YES vote OPPOSED more funding for foe waiting list The state rebuffs the charges in court diicumcnLs for a case to he heard by a federal judge April 30 The conflicts stem fruni the decision to rely (in an envi- pmmental impact statement fnmi -1986 instead of making a new repent An environmental assessment by the state concluded 'changes' no( resulted jn any environ- mental impact changes that sub-V-stantially differ from those impacts identified 'in the reprilft according to court docu- ments the agency filed The study released said tixs stale should have allowd more pnblicopinidn when making -that decision TT By David Gram Associated Press Writer MoNTPKUKk The Senate Friday passed a $359 million transpiirtation budget for the coming fiscal year amid growing worries that revenues are not keeping puce with demand The package which includes an estimated $I3V mil lion in federal funding-wnuki devote about $325 millkm to repaving some of the state's rutted and jfofholed roads The money' would pay for repaving about 106 miles of Vermont's 331)0 miles of state highways said Sen Richard Miiza D-Chiltendcn-Grand Isle and chairman of the Senate Traasportatiori Committee The bill also contains $65 million -for completion of the western leg -of the Bennington Bypass which is expected later this -year" Mazza said he questioned the use-' -fulness of the vwslern leg now that the northern leg has been held up by the recent revelation that jtx estimat- ed $44 million enst had grown to $99 million That shock to the transportation budget came as lawmakers were already worried about how they would pay for all the road and bridge main- tenance needed while at the same time proceeding with big new projects like the bypass the Chittch- den County Circumferential Highway and'thc Missisquni Bay Bridge Passage of the traasportation bud get on a 27-0 vote came after an -amendment offeredhy Sens Richard -Sears D-Bcnnington and Mark Shepard R-Bennington calling for a new type of borrowing to pay for Toad -building failed The Bennington sehatiore asked W1 111 Ingbratsoo Paul rv Graf 13 Robert Barker Robert Graf 14 J4' Solomon Peter Graf Berm Bernard Nordgran Sharon -Graf Bteyler Ruth Graf 'Jm Akny Susan Graf Dudley Terri Graf AW McCormick Tom Men- 18 32 TT JSL JLL West Lebanon New London New London Jones Constance A Sull 19 Grantham flQoRlon Ju 2QlJNewport Montpkijku (ap) Jwi) Wash-! ington-basetl- envircwmental groups say public inykut is being for the sake of in consiructkm of the Cir- cumferential Highway The reptirt released Thursday by Environmental Defense and the Natural--Resources- Defense -Council echoes those of kol envi-' nximental groups that have court cases pending over coas(ruciion of the 16-rfnilc $180 million ring rood from -Williston thnnigh Essex to Cojehester A four-mile section of thcCiit in Essex jn l993The rest of the highway has been mired in delays studies' controversy and court fights their colleagues to support so-called bondsr short for in anticipation of revenue vehicle" worth $50 millkm to help hail out the Bennington project The Senate -opted against That instead calling for study on whether such borrowing in anticipation of uturs federal highway aid was a good idea 4 Mazzq said if the Senate had gone along with the Garvec bonds there was no guarantee -they would been used for the Bennington project expect people from Rutland and Chittenden and Franklin counties to be too excited about he said Other items in the traasportation budget included a new infusion of Windsor The new employees would work with inmates and help monitor the Department of $5 million contract for mental health services with a private contractor Illuzzi said that the positions would not be filled until a joint legislative committee approves the Department of plan for a complete overhaul of the way mental health services are provided to inmates Auditor Elizabeth Ready is examin- ing about $50 million worth of the department's contracts for out-of-state prisoner housing as well as for medical mental health substance abuse sex offender and domestic abuse treatment Aa A Aitae Newport t' a i piiimT fiO Sunapee CdarerrwnL Claremont DR TxXT1: Trit Ai DR Claremont DR Acworth Meredith temptter Franklin Peter JE ARodeeohin Beverly Leone Richard Sull Donovan Thomas Sull Harris Sandra Sul 22 Phinizy James' Sull 23 A GRANITE NEWS SERVICE FEATURE Panel: Add Mental Health Jobs in Prisons A) RIGHT TO WORK IS TOO HOT TO HANDLE (March 17): SB528 the to Work" bill- would allow nonunion employees to be part of union contracts without paying union dues Supporters said noone should be forced to participate hi unions in order to work Opponents said that if a majority of the workers vote for a union they are entitled to negotiate a contract for everyone and those who benefit should pay their fair share The vote however was whether to send the bin to interim study and the most vocal supporters of Right to Work wanted an up and down vote on theissueThe Senate voted 18-5 to send foe bill to interim STUDY AYES vote OPPOSED the right to work bill at this time- paving money to allow both for repaving Interstate southbound between Watcrbury and Montpelier -and the right-hand lane of the north-' hound side between Montpelier and Bolton' Maza said it was decided that half the northbound side could be paved this year without taking mone as had been fearied earlier from pairing oh Route 7 in Rutland and Bennington counties' -The transportation bill also includes money' for six- new stafT members at The Department of Motor Vehicles who would be brought on' with the aim of shortening lines Vermonters frequently see at department offices services Two lawyers who investigated the prison system after seven people died in state custody concluded last month that the mental health treat-' ment program contains areas (hat need improvement' the report partially blained the department fdf some of the deaths which included two suicides Montpelier lawyer Michael Marks and former New Hampshire Attorney General Philip McLaughlin told lawmakers Wednesday that the top officials of the Department of Corrections must play a stronger role in changing practices at the prisons helped lead police to the body of a man who had committed suicide in a cornfield in the Midwest has provided father Fred with a description of the person she believes picked up the woman as well as the type of vehicle Fred Murray-said Baron also -told him there is another woman's body near his daughter's a victim of the same peison And Baron told him there have been others Meanwhile Vermont and New Hampshire state police say there is no connection between the disappearances of Murray and Brianna Maitland 17 of Sheldon Vl who has -been missing since she left work in Montgomery Vt the hightof March Missing Family Gets Bad News From Psychic came a day after Sen Jim Jeffords I-Vt said he would exercise his prerogative as ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works to block the npmi-nations of top EPA officials from mowng to (he Senate floor Jeffords accused the administration of having Congress in its efforts to get documents about the interpretations of the Clean Air Act This attempt by the Bush administration to prevent Congress from fulfilling 1 its oversight duties Is unprecedented shameful and flies in the face of our constitutional Jeffords said APR 0 i Montpkijk (ap) A Senate committee has proposed adding five mental health jobs to the state's prison system to strengthen mental health treatment for inmates Senate Iustitutions Committee Chairman Vincent Illuzzi R-Essex-- Orleans said the jobs were included in the capital bill The new positions would cost $352180 he said The Senate could consider the measure as early as this week The jobs include a director of mental health services mental health coordinates at the prisons in Newport Rut-landandSt Albans and a shared po6i-tion for the prisons at St Johnsbury and In other matters Douglas said he was looking for ways to solve a growing financial crisis in traasportation budget Pressures for maintenance of existing roads and bridges and for progress on new ones mounted significantly last week when estimates for thecostof the next leg of the Bennington Bypass grew from $44 million million Douglas said he might recommend this creation of a special estimating division within the Agency of Trans- portation which he said several other states have but Vermont does not He added that thehypass might have to be redesigned to reduce casts Douglas declined to answer directly when asked whether the nits and potholes marring Interstate 89 had rendered the road unsafe But hie offered two words of advice to anyone who thinks the case: down" The EPA rules in several different contexts are not good for Vermont Vermont Gov Jim Douglas The family of a Massachusetts woman1 missing in northern New Hampshire for two months turned tp a psydiic to try to get some answers and they didn't get good news i'' The psychic said she believes the young woman is dead the victim of a serial killer University of Massachusetts nursing student Maura Murray has not been seen since she was involved in a one-car accident in Haverhill on Feb 9 Police have said there are no signs of foul play but her family and now nationally known psychic Carla Baton say they believe someone picked Murray up after the accident and harmed her Baron a psychic profiler who Douglas said he was not worried that his allegiance to the Bush administration might hurt him among Vermont voters jump all over the ballot" to vote for candidates of different parties Douglas said He' added will look at the record of the entire national administration and find that be prepared to support it In his letter to Leavitt Douglas said recent studies have found tint more thain 40 percent of lakes in New Hampshire and Vermont contain levels of mercury excess of even the least stringent EPA The governor's announcement ai Johnson Carl 02 OM Bob 06 By David Guam Associated Press Writer Montpeuer Gov James Douglas joined foe call last week for the Environmental Protection Agency to scrap proposed rules on mercury emissions from mkl western power plants and start over Douglas told his weekly news conference on Thunday that he had ten to EPA Administrator Michael Leavitt and urged him withdraw the entire proposal at this time and repropose an integrated rulemaking package based on sound technical data and That and similar disagreements with the administration appeared likely to put the Republican governor in an awkward position as he prepares to become more active in hs role as chairman of the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign jn Vermont this year' Asked whether he could think of any areas in which he agreed with the administration on environmental policy Douglas said he could not 1 like me to pile on the administration There are different view around the country on environmental policy the governor said president is the president of the entire nation" But he added EPA rules in several different contexts are not good for Vermont Douglas noted that the Attorney General's Office is suing the EPA oyer its regulation of power plant emissions which travel on prevailing westerly winds and drop pollutants on VermonL Let our low auto loan rate Spring you into a new Summer cad ear or- tnekT Now ia foe time to turn those thoughts into reality Spring is a lima for naw beginnings What better time to put yourself behM the wheel of a new car7 fCtl wmmtB fo kafp Our auto rates have been significantly towered io 2MAHF for a RmNad time only so you can get a jump on Summer perhaps in that convertible you've bean eyeing Quick SCU makes it simple to apply for your new car Visit (is online at wwwservicecuorg can the Member Service Center at 80D938-7730 or 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