DOVER- Campaign season is off and running across Vermont, and with Windham and Bennington counties featuring open seats in the Senate and House, candidates are beginning to get the message out, and listen to the voters. The local race for a state representative seat, currently held by John Moran, features two challengers, both running as independents. Both residents of Dover, Philip Gilpin Jr. and Laura Sibilia have thrown their hats in the ring and begun their campaigns with lightly-advertised and -attended question and answer sessions. Sibilia held one such session Wednesday evening at Dover Town hall, where she listened to the concerns of voters.

Sibilia focused on the subjects she has been most involved with, education and economic development, and listened to concerns on health care and energy, subjects about which she said she is continuing to garner knowledge and opinion

Charles LaFiura said that he is concerned about Medicare recipients and those content with their current health care plans being forced to contribute to a single-payer system in the future. LaFiura coupled his concerns about health care with the state’s need to attract more retirees with a change to the inheritance tax. “The inheritance tax in Vermont has actually made me consider moving out of state,” said LaFiura. “What you might consider is carving out a rule that if you haven’t lived in Vermont for a certain period of time or you’ve earned your assets out of state and they are managed out of state, you are not subject to the tax. Otherwise you may see these people shying away.”