Governor Shumlin address Springfield Rotary Club

Members of the Springfield Rotary Club and the public gathered at the Nolin Murray Center in Springfield on Monday, March 9 to hear Governor Peter Shumlin speak.
http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/governor-shumlin-address-springfield-rotary-club

Governor Shumlin Address Springfield Rotary Club Submitted by VT Journal on Tue, 03/17/2015 - 12:30pm By LAUREN DRASLER The Shopper SPRINGFIELD, VT -Members of the Springfield Rotary Club and the public gathered at the Nolin Murray Center in Springfield on Monday, March 9 to hear Governor Peter Shumlin speak. The meeting was previously scheduled for February 2, but had to be postponed due to weather conditions. During the meeting, Shumlin spoke about a variety of issues affecting Vermont, including decreasing school enrollment, property taxes, healthcare and the opiate problem in the state. At the end of his speech, Shumlin opened up the floor for questions from those in attendance. Prior to the governor’s speech, Rotary Club member Carol Cole addressed the crowd and introduced Shumlin to those in attendance. Cole also pointed out that members of the School Board, Select Board and local government officials including Alice Emmons and Dick McCormick also attended the meeting. After Cole’s introduction, Governor Shumlin then took the podium. Shumlin thanked Cole for the introduction, and also thanked everyone for attending the meeting. Though Shumlin currently resides in Montpelier, he grew up in Putney and said that he was glad to be home in Southern Vermont. Next, Shumlin began his speech, and started off by saying that it was the job of those in government to find ways to make the economy work for all Vermonters. He added that low-income Vermonters were hurting more now, than they were during the recession. “We need to lift the boats of everybody,” he said. “It’s my job to ensure that we build an economy that lifts all Vermonters’ boats. Tough decisions must be made to take on these tough challenges. A lot of people are trying to put food on the table, and we can help these people get back to a good standard of living. Vermont can be a state that can return the middle class to stability.” Shumlin then outlined a few ways to help increase Vermont’s economy. The first way he discussed was cutting school spending. The governor said that school spending costs are rising faster than can be sustained, and that Vermont has a school-spending problem. Though some may say that the funds for schools need to be increased, Shumlin said that he disagreed with this, and instead suggested that Vermont could come up with a way to deliver better education for less money. Some may wonder why school-spending is an issue that affects Vermont, and Shumlin said the over spending in schools is a result of school enrollment decreasing. He said that 20% of the elementary schools in Vermont had between one and nine students per class, and the over-spending is “hurting opportunities for kids because of the way we [Vermont] deliver education.” Shumlin added that one reason the school population might be decreasing is because families no longer wish to reside in rural communities. “Populations with kids are moving to the big cities and leaving the rural areas, which leads to declining school rates,” he said. Shumlin said that a way to fix the school spending issues is to work with local communities to make changes to ensure “a quality education at an affordable price.” The governor also mentioned that increasing property taxes are not a way to fund the area schools, and said that if change is not made to school spending, property taxes will only continue to increase. To conclude on this issue, Shumlin said that each school in Vermont would need to be analyzed in regard to the students, as well as financially, and said that there would be better outcomes with changes, instead of being “wedded to the past.” “When you give Vermonters data, people come together and make tough choices,” he said. “Doing nothing is not acceptable, and it will lead to more treacherous choices.” The next issue Shumlin spoke about was healthcare. He said that healthcare costs are rising faster than the people can make money, and that efforts needed to be made to move the system towards the quality of care, rather than the quantity. Shumlin also said that he hopes that by 2017, the whole healthcare system can be moved toward the quality of care, and said that “if you want to see scary numbers, look at what happens if healthcare is not changed.” Shumlin also mentioned cutting services, structural changes in the efficiency of government and taxing the wealthiest Vermonters to help deal with the budget gap issues Vermont is currently facing. “This is tough stuff, you bet,” he said. Shumlin concluded his speech by mentioning Project ACTION, a group that was modeled after Project VISION in Rutland, and was created to help deal with Springfield’s addiction issues. Shumlin said that Project ACTION is critically important, because it’s helping people to see addiction as a disease, rather than a crime. He said that by changing people’s perceptions, those that are addicted to drugs or alcohol might be able to get treatment, instead of being prosecuted and then having a criminal record. “There is a lot more to do, but there is nothing more important than community partnership,” he said. “I think that Vermont can find a smarter way to deal with addiction than the other 49 states.” The governor then opened up the floor for a question and answer segment. Mike Johnson, Executive Director of Turning Point in Springfield, asked Shumlin about his organization being on the table at the appropriations committee. Shumlin said that in “tough times, you have to make tough choices, but I’ve increased appropriations for addiction.” The governor also said that more steps need to be taken to deal with the addiction problems in Vermont, and said that addiction could be the one thing to “destroy the quality of life in Vermont.” Shumlin also spoke about the fact that the reason heroin is such an issue throughout the US is because of the legal, FDA approved drug Oxycontin, which led to people becoming addicted to the cheaper heroin. The next person to ask a question was Bridget Sullivan of Ludlow. Sullivan said that she felt teens and young adults were accessing cigarettes and alcohol, which could in turn, lead to more serious drug usage. One way to help prevent teens from getting cigarettes and alcohol is to tax these two items, Sullivan said. Sullivan then said that the governor had not taken measures to tax the above mentioned things. Shumlin, however, disagreed and said that he had implemented a cigarette tax last year. He also disagreed about cigarettes and alcohol leading to drug usage and addiction, and said that he thought the opiate crisis was a direct result of FDA approved painkillers. Other questions that were asked included marijuana legalization, which the governor is in favor of, but not this year. The governor stated that he wanted marijuana to be legalized in Vermont for a smarter approach to drugs rather than simply legalizing the drug for revenue purposes. Another issue that was addressed during the question and answer session was that of welfare in Vermont. Shumlin said that since he has taken office, he implemented a rule where welfare recipients were only allowed to receive benefits for six months. He also said that there is now more of a focus on employment training for those that receive welfare so that these individuals are able to find employment once they no longer receive benefits. The issue of school funding was also addressed when the Springfield Superintendent of Schools, Zach McLaughlin asked the governor about Act 68, which was an educational funding bill passed in the early 2000s. Shumlin said that he still believed in the fundamentals of Act 68, and that he would work with schools to create a plan. Shumlin concluded the meeting by thanking everyone for attending, participating and asking questions. He said that it was a tough time to be an elected official, but that he appreciated the willingness of Vermonters to have an open conversation with him about the issues the state is facing. “Healthcare and education are tough things, but if we do nothing, it will be worse. This is the time for change,” he said “We need to make the tough choices now so we don’t come back here in a year facing the same choices. We need to keep the pressure on.” - See more at: http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/governor-shumlin-address-springfield-rotary-club#sthash.6MJyL9tR.dpuf