By Guy Page
U.S. Rep. Becca Balint has postponed a planned ceremonial check presentation in Granville after her office announced Tuesday morning that the congresswoman was dealing with an unexpected but minor medical issue.
Communications Director Catherine White emailed VDC, and presumably other Vermont media, about an hour before the scheduled 10:30 AM event, saying Balint required medical attention and would not be able to attend. “Congresswoman Balint is dealing with an unexpected, minor medical issue that requires her attention today, so today’s events are being postponed,” White wrote. “Thank you for your understanding, and I’ll be in touch with updated scheduling information for the check presentation in Granville as soon as possible.”
The event was intended to highlight $488,000 in federal Community Project Funding for improvements to the Granville Fire Department. According to Balint’s office, the funding will pay for potable water and septic systems, repairs to the existing building, upgraded electrical and insulation systems, and an addition containing restrooms, showers, laundry facilities, and meeting space for firefighter training and emergency response coordination.
The postponed event also drew attention because Balint’s office planned to present a large ceremonial check prominently displaying the congresswoman’s name in the upper left-hand corner, giving – to some – the appearance that the funding was coming directly from her. In reality, the funding is appropriated by Congress and signed into law as part of the federal budget process, with individual lawmakers able to request funding for projects in their districts but not personally providing the money.
Balint’s office had described the event as a celebration of funding “she secured” for the town and planned to make the congresswoman available for questions from reporters following the presentation. The event was closed to the public and open only to credentialed media.
White has not yet responded to VDC inquiries about why Balint’s name, and not the U.S. Treasury or John & Joan Q. Taxpayer, is printed in the upper left-hand corner.
The Granville Fire Department, originally constructed in 1975 as an equipment bay, currently lacks basic infrastructure needed to support modern emergency response operations. According to Balint’s office, firefighters must move emergency vehicles outside the building in order to conduct meetings because the station’s single room serves as equipment storage, office space, medical supply storage, and meeting space.
No new date for the postponed check presentation has been announced. Balint, a Democrat first elected to Congress in 2022, in November will face the winner of next week’s Republican primary race between Gerald Malloy and Mark Coester.