Vermont news

• Advisory Council on Child Poverty and Strengthening Families to hold a public forum

  12-11-2019 16:02 via vtdigger.org
  The Advisory Council on Child Poverty and Strengthening Families holding a public forum on 11/21/2019 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Rutland Middle School, hosted by BROC .Rutland, Vermont. The Advisory Council on Child Poverty and Strengthening Families will hold a public forum in Rutland on Thursday, November 21, 2019 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. to gather public input regarding what are the biggest challenges facing Vermonters in poverty today and what will help Vermonters move o
  
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• Suzanna Jones: The hidden costs of ‘climate progress’

  19-04-2024 13:07 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Suzanna Jones of Walden.
  In a recent VTDigger commentary, Sen. Becca White and Rep. Gabrielle Stebbins touted the “progress on climate” accomplished by the state Legislature. They claim, for example, that bill H.289 — requiring all Vermont utilities to provide 100% renewable electricity to their customers by 2035 — will “dramatically cut climate pollution.”Vermont’s grid currently contributes such a small fraction of total U.S. gre
  
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• David Blittersdorf: H.289 has good intentions, but one big flaw

  19-04-2024 12:02 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by David Blittersdorf, founder and CEO of All Earth Renewables.
  The Vermont General Assembly, in an attempt to move the state to 100% renewable energy, is making changes to how its utilities buy energy. The Senate Natural Resources Committee will soon consider H.289, a bill to require the state’s utilities to buy 100% renewable energy. This is known as the Renewable Energy Standard law. States near Vermont have been updating their own laws in this area, and Vermont
  
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• After a flood and a pandemic, Montpelier businesses continue to struggle

  19-04-2024 04:27 via vtdigger.org
  
  City Center in Montpelier on Monday, April 1. The Vermont League of Cities and Towns has sublet some of its space in City Center as more organizations move to the remote working model. Photo by Juan Vega de Soto/VTDigger
  This story by Phil Dodd was first published by The Montpelier Bridge on April 16.Downtown Montpelier businesses that survived the pandemic and the flood have been facing a continuing aftershock from both catastrophes: a decline in foot traffic that is being attributed to r
  
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• James Parker granted parole for his role in Dartmouth professors’ stabbing deaths

  19-04-2024 04:09 via vtdigger.org
  
  A student walks by the Zantop Garden, a memorial for the late Dartmouth professors Half and Susanne Zantop who were murdered in their home in 2001, next to Rollins Chapel at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H., on Thursday. Photo by Alex Driehaus/Valley NewsThis story by John Lippman was first published by the Valley News on April 18. HANOVER — One of Susanne and Half Zantop’s two daughters said Thursday that she tries to “compartmentalize” her personal gri
  
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• Final Countdown: All gifts matched up to $500

  19-04-2024 03:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear reader,If you’ve been waiting to join our spring member drive, today is the day! End the week on a high note by helping us close the gap and reach our goal. We urgently need your support this election year. And today all gifts are being matched by three generous donors. Saturday, April 20 is the last day to make your 2x contribution and send a children’s book to a Vermont child at the same time.
  Double your gift & send a book
  When you give to VTDigger today, you will:
  
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• Final Reading: Service providers are wary of looming changes to Vermont’s case management structure

  19-04-2024 00:48 via vtdigger.org
  
  Rep Ann-Donahue, R-Northfield, third from left, speaks during a meeting at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Thursday, January 25. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  For years, the state of Vermont has been out of compliance with federal rules around home and community-based services.The state’s system for caring for older Vermonters, Vermonters with physical and developmental disabilities, and Vermonters with traumatic brain injuries is operating in violation of federal regulations governing
  
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• Suspect in arson at Sen. Bernie Sanders’ office indicted, ordered held pending trial 

  18-04-2024 23:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  The damaged door at Sen. Bernie Sanders’ office in Burlington. Photo via police affidavit
  BURLINGTON — A former California man accused of setting a fire at the Burlington office of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders was indicted Thursday on a federal charge and ordered held in custody while the case against him remains pending. A federal grand jury returned the indictment against 35-year-old Shant Michael Soghomonian roughly five minutes prior to a scheduled hearing to determine if he wo
  
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• Suspect in arson at Sen. Bernie Sanders’ office indicted, ordered detained pending trial 

  18-04-2024 23:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  The damaged door at Sen. Bernie Sanders’ office in Burlington. Photo via police affidavit
  BURLINGTON — A former California man accused of setting a fire at the Burlington office of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders was indicted Thursday on a federal charge and ordered held in custody while the case against him remains pending. A federal grand jury returned the indictment against 35-year-old Shant Michael Soghomonian roughly five minutes prior to a scheduled hearing to determine if he wo
  
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• Senate panel advances Act 250 reform bill, while Phil Scott signals potential veto

  18-04-2024 20:45 via vtdigger.org
  
  Gov. Phil Scott speaks during his weekly press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  This story, by Report for America corps member Carly Berlin, was produced through a partnership between VTDigger and Vermont Public.A key Senate committee has advanced a major bill that includes updates to Act 250 and a range of policies intended to encourage more housing development in Vermont. But hours before the vote, Gov. Phil Scott argued
  
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• Torn apart by chaos in Afghanistan, a refugee family is reunited in Bennington

  18-04-2024 15:15 via vtdigger.org
  
  Afghan refugee Musa Muslim Yar, second from right, recounts how he and his wife were separated for two years from their two older sons, Mustafa, second from left, and Nawedullah, right , at their home in in Bennington on Friday, April 12. Younger brother Shahidullah is at the far left. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerTo many in Vermont, Feb. 26 was just another Monday, the first day of another week at school or at work. To Musa Muslim Yar and his wife, Zakia, it was a day they’d been dream
  
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• Rep. Monique Priestley: ‘Every breath you take, every move you make…’

  18-04-2024 14:57 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Rep. Monique Priestley, D-Bradford. She serves on the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development.
  Of the 20 largest economies in the world, the U.S. is the only country that lacks a comprehensive framework establishing rights and protections for the collection, use and sharing of data. In a time when everyone owns a computer, carries a smartphone, drives a connected car, and owns a variety of smart devices, every beat of your heart, movement you make and conversa
  
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• Dr. Marvin Malek: We need to act to rein in ‘prior authorization’

  18-04-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Marvin Malek, MD MPH. He is an internist from Berlin. He is an active member of the Vermont Medical Society and Vermont Physicians for a National Health Program.
  The Legislature should pass H.766, the bill now being considered by the Vermont Senate that takes some first steps reining in the insurance company practice of “prior authorization.” Here’s how prior authorization works: Let’s say that you’ve been dutifully paying your health ins
  
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• 3 days left! All gifts matched today

  18-04-2024 03:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear reader,There are only 3 days left in our critical spring member drive and right now, all gifts will be matched by three generous donors. Your gift in any amount will have double the impact and you’ll also send a brand-new book to a Vermont child. Now is the time to show your support and make it go twice as far! Will you join us?
  Double your impact & send a book
  As a digital-first organization dedicated to original reporting, VTDigger doesn’t have high printing costs or
  
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• Vermont Conversation: Father Michael Lapsley on becoming a healer after assassination attempt

  18-04-2024 02:48 via vtdigger.org
  
  
  The Vermont Conversation with David Goodman is a VTDigger podcast that features in-depth interviews on local and national issues with politicians, activists, artists, changemakers and citizens who are making a difference. Listen below, and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or Spotify to hear more.In 1990, when Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years in prison, hopes were high that apartheid was in its dying days. Father Michael Lapsley, an Anglican pr
  
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• Final Reading: Bill in Senate proposes removing barriers to professional licensing for new immigrants

  18-04-2024 01:50 via vtdigger.org
  
  Members of the Senate Government Operations Committee listen to testimony at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Wednesday. From left to right are Sen. Tanya Vyhofsky, P/D-Chittenden Central; Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison; Sen. Becca White, D-Windsor; Sen. Alison Clark, D-Windsor. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Ian Hefele wants the services people receive in his Brattleboro-area community to be culturally appropriate to the backgrounds from which they come. Case in point, he told lawmakers earli
  
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• With looming vote to close Roxbury’s school, town sues Montpelier Roxbury school district

  18-04-2024 00:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  Roxbury Village School.
  The town of Roxbury has sued the Montpelier Roxbury Public School District alleging the district violated election law and needs to revote on its original budget, which failed on Town Meeting Day.The legal action comes as the school district is scheduled to vote at the end of April on a revised budget that would close Roxbury Village School, which currently serves about 40 students. That plan would mean bussing Roxbury’s students to Montpelier starting next school
  
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• Disagreement and lobbying threaten passage of Vermont’s landmark data privacy bill

  17-04-2024 23:56 via vtdigger.org
  
  Kesha Ram Hinsdale and Michael Marcotte. Photo by Mike Dougherty/Courtesy photo
  As Vermont legislators filtered back into the Statehouse early this year for the 2024 legislative session, several set their sights on a new target for regulation: Big Tech.With the federal government unable or unwilling to set parameters around the collection, sharing or sale of Americans’ data, state lawmakers said they would step up to the plate to establish state-level digital rules by which corporations w
  
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• Chelsea Green to be sold to international publishing behemoth

  17-04-2024 23:13 via vtdigger.org
  
  Chelsea Green. Photo by Andrew Nemethy
  One of Vermont’s best-known independent publishers is expected to be sold to an international publishing consortium. Rizzoli International, a New York City subsidiary of the Italian publishing giant Mondadori Group, announced Monday that it had agreed on a deal worth $5 million for Chelsea Green Publishing. Chelsea Green, based in White River Junction, has carved out a reputation for publishing titles on progressive politics, sustainability
  
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• James Moffatt

  17-04-2024 22:53 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born July 14, 1937Craftsbury, VermontDied April 13, 2024
  Craftsbury, VermontDetails of servicesThe family is planning to publicly remember Jim with an informal gathering in the summer months, details still to be determined. We will post information on the Moffatt’s Tree Farm Facebook page (which can be accessed without having an account), on our website moffattstreefarm.com, and on Front Porch Forum locally. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Jim’s name to the T
  
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• Aubuchon to boost its Vermont hardware stronghold by acquiring Bibens stores

  17-04-2024 21:35 via vtdigger.org
  
  Bibens Ace Hardware opened its original store in Springfield in 1949. Photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDigger
  SPRINGFIELD — Vermont’s biggest locally owned group of hardware stores is set to be purchased by what bills itself as the country’s oldest and largest family-held chain in the field.Bibens Ace Hardware has agreed to sell its seven locations in Brattleboro, Burlington, Colchester, Essex, South Burlington, Springfield and Woodstock to the Massachusetts-based Aubuchon Comp
  
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• Hannah Heinchon of Lowell helps young people thrive in stable housing

  17-04-2024 18:18 via vtdigger.org
  
  As a graduate student pursuing her master’s in social work, Hannah Heinchon thought she wanted to become a child counselor. But an internship in family counseling uncovered a far greater need, that turned into a passion and a calling. “I remember I was working with a family who was homeless and living in a shelter at the time. We met weekly, but the kids continued to be dysregulated, and they couldn’t make progress. Although the dad attended all the meetings, he seemed ex
  
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• Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky: I’m opposed to Phil Scott’s education secretary pick, and not for the reasons he claims

  17-04-2024 13:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky, P/D-Chittenden Central. In addition to representing the Chittenden Central Senate District, she is a clinical social worker and former school services clinician working within Vermont’s public schools.
  Ordinarily in Vermont, we in the Senate give the governor great deference when it comes to whom he appoints to serve in his cabinet. While we may have policy differences with an appointee, the governor was elected by the people, and he deserves the
  
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• Meet Stoph Scheer, the puppeteer behind Lost Nation Theater’s new one-person play

  17-04-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  Stoph Scheer. Photo via Community News Service
  Jordan Barbour is a reporter with Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.Stoph Scheer gazes into the mirror and speaks: “I have to ignore you now.” She goes silent, searching for poise as she preps to go onstage. She will play 35 characters, by herself, for nearly two hours. Scheer sets her lashes in the glow of a makeup station, pulls every wayward ha
  
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• Laura R. Walker: Goddard College is closing. Why should we care?

  17-04-2024 12:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Laura R. Walker, president of Bennington College.
  Last week, Goddard College in Plainfield announced it is shutting its doors at the end of this semester. It is the fifth liberal arts college to close in Vermont in as many years. As the president of Bennington College in southern Vermont, I am alarmed and sad. I mourn not just for Goddard’s students, who have lost their academic home, as well as its talented faculty, staff and alumni, but also for Vermont and fo
  
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• Final Reading: Scott administration’s 11th-hour property tax idea shot down by Vermont’s treasurer

  17-04-2024 00:42 via vtdigger.org
  
  Mike Pieciak, left, and Craig Bolio. Photos by Mike Dougherty/VTDigger
  Last Friday Craig Bolio, Vermont’s tax commissioner, arrived in the House Committee on Ways and Means with a big idea. What if, he mused, we paid for next year’s looming increase in public school spending over time? What if we, the state of Vermont, loaned some money to ourselves, and paid off the loan with property taxes?The idea, which Bolio called a “deferred payable,” was the product of a rec
  
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• In most Vermont counties, prosecutors are managing well over 300 cases. Officials say that has to change, and soon.

  17-04-2024 00:22 via vtdigger.org
  
  John Campbell, executive director of the Vermont Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs, speaks at a press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on May 2, 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger
  Many Vermont prosecutors are handling more cases at a time than their bosses think is reasonable, data from the state’s judiciary shows. And without more state resources, those officials said, prosecutors could resign — or could have to turn cases away.Ian Sullivan is the
  
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• Vermont car crash fatalities begin to tick down after 10-year peak

  16-04-2024 22:26 via vtdigger.org
  
  Vermont had fewer car crash fatalities in 2023 than in the previous two years, according to data from the Vermont Agency of Transportation, but the numbers are still comparatively high. The two previous years — 2021 and 2022 — were both record 10-year highs in the state, accounting for 74 and 76 deaths, respectively. With 69 car crash fatalities recorded in 2023, it’s tied with 2018 and 2013 for the third largest number of crash fatalities since 2013. One key metric
  
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• Only a few days left! Keep VTDigger digging in pursuit of truth

  16-04-2024 22:03 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear reader,One of the first things we do every morning is sort through your tips. They arrive in the newsroom through voicemails, letters, emails, encrypted apps and, critically, the “submit a tip” function at the bottom of every story. That tip drop form alone received more than 1,680 story ideas last year.We follow these tips because we know readers rely on us as a first and last line of defense to help shine a light on important issues for Vermont. Now we are asking for your hel
  
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• Vermont’s chapter of Girls on the Run celebrates 25 years 

  16-04-2024 20:49 via vtdigger.org
  
  Some of the 1,700 girls entered in the annual Girls on the Run 5K Run/Walk pass the starting line in 2012. File photo by Alexandra Ossola/The CommonsThis story by Victoria Chertok was first published by The Commons on April 10.BRATTLEBORO — In 1999, when her daughters were young, Nancy Heydinger said she “wanted to find a way to ensure that they would grow up loving themselves, feeling complete.”“I wanted them to celebrate and embrace their natural gifts, to know that wh
  
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