Senator Patrick Leahy

Dear Friends, thank you for following my official page over these years. I have enjoyed using new channels of communication to keep in touch with Vermonters. Now that I am leaving the Senate, this account will no longer be active. Best wishes always. –Patrick and Marcelle

Farewell Address Of Senator Patrick Leahy https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/farewell-address-of-senator-patrick-leahy https://youtu.be/L4KXIK4BeGA

Farewell Address Of Senator Patrick Leahy

I was proud to join Senator Sanders and Congressman Welch for our annual ceremony for Vermont’s nominees to the U.S. Service Academies. It will be my last one as a Senator from Vermont. Congratulations to the outstanding young people listed below:

Mr. Gavin Bannister of Bristol

Ms. Karsyn Bellomo of Rutland

Ms. Konnery Buoniconti of Lyndonville

Mr. Ian Longfellow of Barre

Mr. Torleif Majorell of Tinmouth

Mr. William Ryan of St. Johnsbury

Mr. Benjamin Sibold of South Hero

Mr. Kyle Southworth of West Wardsboro

Mr. Michael Thompson of South Burlington

As Senate President Pro Tem I designated signing of the to Senator Tammy Baldwin, who led this effort. Now her signature is on the final bill along w/ Speaker Pelosi and, soon, Pres. Biden.

I want to congratulate the City of Montpelier on a $10 million USDA Rural Development loan and a $3.5 million grant to do maintenance and upgrades at its wastewater facility. Instead of simply replacing aging equipment, the city is making improvements that will allow it to take in more organic waste, such as food waste, process that waste using biogas generated by the facility, and produce an end product that will not need to be trucked to a landfill.

The project will help reduce phosphorous runoff into Lake Champlain and its tributaries by providing treatment for organic waste and reduce greenhouse emissions. The emissions reductions are the equivalent of removing 475 passenger cars from the road or planting 419 acres of trees.

The city is anticipating both significant cost savings and reduced expenditures as a result of the project.

I applaud them for taking an innovative approach to waste management that tackles several problems at once.

This week I slipped out of my office in the Capitol and went out on the balcony so Marcelle and I could watch the Capitol tree going up. Looks a lot more like winter back home in Vermont but it is an historical view with the Washington Monument on the Mall.

Marcelle and I wish a Happy to all!

The Inflation Reduction Act provided extensive funding for the Natural Resource Conservation Service to assist farmers in adopting climate-friendly practices. Now USDA is seeking input on how to target the programs the IRA will fund as well as suggestions for doing outreach and education about the programs.

Comments may be emailed until Dec. 22 to [email protected]

The increased funding will begin next year and continue over the next four years. The total funding breaks down as:

• $8.45 billion – Environmental Quality Incentives Program
• $3.25 billion – Conservation Stewardship Program
• $4.95 billion – Regional Conservation Partnership Program
• $1.4 billion – Agricultural Conservation Easement Program
• $1 billion – Conservation Technical Assistance

I encourage Vermont farmers, scientists and environmentalists to share their experiences and insights with NRCS as this funding provides an important opportunity to both reduce emissions from the agricultural sector and, hopefully, begin sequestering carbon while improving soil quality.

To learn more, visit:

USDA Requests Public Input on Implementation of Inflation Reduction Act Funding | Natural Resources Conservation Service NRCS is asking for public input through a Federal Register request for information on implementation of more than $19 billion provided by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will use the investments provided through IRA-funded conservation progra...

With fuel prices rising, I encourage Vermonters to explore if they may be eligible for fuel assistance through the program.

Assistance is available for households that are within 185 percent of the federal poverty level; for a family of four that’s a monthly income of $4,279 or less. Families experiencing a crisis may qualify for assistance if they earn 200 percent or less of the federal poverty level through the crisis fuel assistance program.

Learn more at:

1. https://dcf.vermont.gov/benefits/fuel
2. https://dcf.vermont.gov/benefits/crisis-fuel

Or call the Benefits Service Center at 1-800-479-6151.

Qualified households are also able to receive free home weatherization services which can lower their fuel bills.

I know many Vermonters are hesitant to ask for assistance if they believe there are others who need it more. Working with Senator Sanders and Senator-elect Welch, I was able to secure $20 million in additional funding for LIHEAP in Vermont, so please apply if you believe you may be qualified.

Crisis Fuel Assistance | Department for Children and Families The .gov means it’s official. State government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a state government site.

Marcelle and I were honored to commemorate Veterans Day with the community today in Burlington, VT. We are incredibly thankful for all veterans who have made tremendous sacrifices to protect our country.

I strongly encourage Vermont’s dairy farmers to sign-up for the Dairy Margin Coverage Protection Program before Dec. 9. The program allows farmers to ensure the margin between feed costs and milk prices at a level that is best for their farm.

For 2022 and 2023, the Vermont legislature has set aside $2.6 million to cover the premiums for insuring up to 5 million pounds of a farm’s production. The Agency of Agriculture Farms and Markets reports that $1.5 million was used to cover Vermont farmers’ premiums in 2022 and $1.1 million remains for 2023.

Farmers may opt for catastrophic coverage, insuring a margin of $4.00 between feed costs and milk prices for an administrative fee of $100.

For additional coverage, each farm can decide a level of coverage up to a margin of $9.50 and coverage of farm production up to 95 percent. The insurance premium varies depending on the margin selected and amount of milk covered.

Staff from the Farm Service Agency can assist farm owners in determining the level of coverage that’s right for them. Visit https://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app?state=vt&agency=fsa to locate the nearest Farm Service Agency.

Learn more about the Dairy Margin Coverage Program at: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/dairy-margin-coverage-program/index

Use the USDA’s Decision Tool for the DMC Program at: https://dmc.dairymarkets.org/ #/

Dairy Markets & Policy DMC Web site

I am deeply honored by the thanks of the people GlobalFoundries today. This facility means a great deal to Vermont, the nation and the world, with its 2000+ workers providing chips for 90% of the world’s handheld devices.