Assorted News Notes

File this under “There’s a Shocker.” The Burlington School District and the Burlington teachers union cannot agree on contract negotiations. Read the Free Press coverage here.

Burlington teachers and the district's School Board were unable to agree on terms for a new teacher contract Wednesday night, making it more likely that both sides will have to resort to a fact-finding process scheduled for this month.

Teachers and the board met for more than three hours at the district's Taft building to hash out terms, but they were not able to reach an agreement.

The groups reached an impasse in March after several months of negotiations but had agreed to meet Wednesday as "a good-faith effort," said Burlington School Superintendent Jeanne Collins.

"We went back to the table thinking we'd have some movement, but we did not come to agreeable terms," Collins said.
...

Neither side will divulge salary-related offers, but there is a significant disparity on the benefits side, according to school administrators. Collins said the board is looking to increase health benefit co-pays to 20 percent, while teachers want co-pays to stay at 10 percent.

Where have I heard this story before?

In other news…The Free Press had a story today about the widow of former Republican Governor and US Senator George Aiken - often championed as a moderate - and a certain Republican Senate hopeful. Lola Aiken came out yesterday in support of Rich Tarrant. For some reason the Free Press does not have the story on-line.

Update: Here is a link to a story about this on Politics VT.

Speaking of politics…The two Democratic candidates for Lt. Governor, Rep. John Tracy from Burlington and Sen. Matt Dunne from Windsor, will be making the rounds. There is a lasagna dinner at 5:30PM Sunday at the St. John’s Club on Lakeside Ave in Burlington, where you can meet the two. The cost is $25. Reservations can be made by contacting BurlingtonDems@yahoo.com or calling 598-8139.

If you don’t feel like financially supporting the Dems, you can go to the Visitor Center of the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station in Grand Isle on June 19th at 7:00PM for a debate between the two candidates.

The two men will face off on the Democratic Party ballot in the September Primary, which is of no consequence to me, since I plan to take the Republican ballot. The winner will face Lt. Governor Brian Dubie in November.

That’s about it for now. If I don’t have a chance to post again, have a great weekend!