As a Vermont resident and a senior citizen, I am very concerned with the direction in which Gov. Shumlin is taking Vermont. After reading an article in the Addison Independent detailing his RESET (a complicated far-reaching energy program) objectives, I was appalled to learn that the House passed this legislation.
As a result of this bill, ratepayers will now be paying for weatherization and other energy improvements for other ratepayers. Will we also be paying the substantial rebates for solar and heat pumps for others? This program will also impose renewable electricity requirements on utilities. Will this exacerbate the already contentious issue of where and how many solar arrays are placed with little or no regard to aesthetics or the impact on property values?
Then there is the “carbon pollution tax” now under consideration in Montpelier. This is a tax on gasoline, fuel oil, natural gas and propane. Yes, another tax to help you live better without depending on fossil fuels.
How much have we as taxpayers paid into the failed Vermont Health Connect? And now another $20 million to “fix” it. We should have learned from the unintended consequences of this program that Gov. Shumlin is not to be trusted with his grandiose statements about how much money we will save by endorsing his unattainable goals. It’s time he shelved his lofty schemes and focused on the economic issues of Vermonters and their ever-increasing tax burden.
Helen Dillon
Granville