Aging bridges ignored at our peril

Rep. Sue Minter, who represents Waterbury, Duxbury, Huntington & Buels Gore, is a member of Vermont's House Transportation Committee. Her Op Ed in the Sunday Times Argus calls attention to reality that, "In the face of state budget shortfalls, the Douglas administration has chosen to delay transportation repair projects all around the state":

I wish I could say that I was surprised by the deadly bridge collapse in Minnesota last week. But with what I know about Vermont's infrastructure woes, I knew a major failure like this was only a matter of time. I only hope that this terrible tragedy will serve as a wake-up call here in Vermont and around the country. As a state and as a nation we are not adequately addressing our infrastructure needs. We ignore this problem at our peril.

When I was appointed to serve on the House Transportation Committee three years ago as a new legislator, I was shocked by what I learned about the under-funded and aging transportation system that I had become responsible for overseeing.

Read more...

Jim = McJobs

From VT Democratic Party newsletter

Last week, the governor grabbed a pair of giant scissors and snipped the ribbon at the McDonald's in Barre. Though we realize it's just one unfortunate ribbon in a long line that have met the same fate, and that we all like to indulge in a little fast food every once in a while, this particular ribbon cutting exposed a few inconvenient truths about Jim Douglas and his record as governor.

1. When the governor told Vermonters "Jim = Jobs," is this what he had in mind? Yesterday, the governor said McDonald's "provides dozens of jobs." True. But when he promised jobs to Vermonters, we suspect most assumed he meant better, higher paying jobs. As it turns out, however, since June 2003, shortly after "Jim = Jobs" took the helm of state government, the state has lost 1,750 high paying manufacturing jobs, according to the Vermont Department of Labor. It's true that we've added jobs, but unfortunately they pay so poorly that Vermonters have to hold two or three of them to make a living.

2. While the governor promotes McJobs as the way to move Vermont forward, he is also promoting a food source that all Vermonters know is unhealthy. The McDonald's "Mighty Kids Meal" contains 800 calories and more than half the daily recommended amount of saturated fat for adults. According to a report by George Washington University, to burn those calories, an average 7-year-old girl would have to either walk for over 9 hours, play volleyball for over 8 hours, baseball for almost 7 hours, swim or play paddleball for about 5.5 hours or engage in aerobics for 5 hours. Is this what the governor had in mind when he promoted his "Fit and Healthy Kids" initiative?

Wasting Economic Development Resources

To the Burlington Free Press editor:

Sunday's article about Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility ("Business group pushes for change", August 5, 2007) quoted the Secretary of Commerce on Vermont's tax credit program: "It's a critical program that returns money to the state."

The only way this misguided program can return money to the state is if the businesses would not have invested money or hired workers without the tax credits (the infamous "but for"). This is a fantasy.

Businesses expand when it makes sense financially, and tax credits (or cash rebates as is the case today) are not sufficient to overcome the business cycle. The evidence is clear: 1) few businesses apply during economic downturns; 2) dozens of companies awarded credits never met their job creation requirements; and 3) some companies that got credits cut jobs later on.

However, it's not surprising that businesses apply. If the state chooses to give away taxpayer money, why shouldn't they?

In the end, corporate taxes are not much of a burden (see the recent Tax Study by the Joint Fiscal Office). More importantly, tax credits are not long-term investments. I commend Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility for calling for a more responsible approach. We need it. The current one isn't working.

Doug Hoffer