Vermont news

• Don Keelan: Requiem for democracy

  25-06-2018 00:50 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Don Keelan, a retired certified public accountant and resident of Arlington. The piece first appeared in the Bennington Banner.
  Voter apathy was surely present on June 5, as evidenced by the recent turnout for the town of Bennington vote on changes to the town’s charter.
  According to an article in the Bennington Banner, 608 voters came out to cast their vote either in favor of (440) or against (148) amending the town’s charter. To place the
  
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• Vermont to give local news priority for state advertising dollars

  24-07-2026 01:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  Gov. Phil Scott signs an executive order to prioritize spending state ad dollars on local news on July 23, 2026. Photo by Charlotte Oliver/VTDiggerMONTPELIER— Gov. Phil Scott signed an executive order Thursday that directs the state to prioritize local news platforms when deciding where to run its ads. “Vermonters breathe and trust their community news,” Scott said after signing the order, a statement rare for him to make to a room of reporters. The intent of the pol
  
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• Gerald “Jed” Kenneth Hornung II

  24-07-2026 00:16 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born: 07/31/1929Oklahoma City, OklahomaDied: 07/20/2026Burlington, VermontDetails of service:The family will hold a private burial. There will be a Memorial Service, at a later date. Arrangements are through Day Funeral Home, Randolph, Vermont and Vermont Forest Cemetery in Roxbury.Gerald Kenneth (Jed) Hornung II, age 96, passed away on July 20, 2026, surrounded by his loving family after a brief illness. Gerald was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on July 31, 1929, the son of Gerald Kennet
  
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• Ex-Rutland City officer faces allegations of violating anti-bias policy, falsifying report

  23-07-2026 23:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Rutland City Police Department in Dec. 2021.File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerA now-former Rutland City police officer is facing allegations from law enforcement authorities that he violated the state-mandated Fair and Impartial Policing Policy and in a separate incident falsified a police report.In one instance, a state panel overseeing law enforcement in Vermont is set to hold a hearing regarding allegations that Nicholas Fontana improperly asked people in a vehicle for identification a
  
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• Don’t blame incomers for Vermont’s housing woes

  23-07-2026 23:28 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,We know Vermont has a housing problem; affordability and availability are both major issues here. I moved here during Covid-19 not to get away from a city but because my family lived here. I wanted to be a part of my grandchildren’s lives, so here I am. I want to rebut something a previous letter to VTDigger raised, saying newcomers to Vermont paid “obscene prices” for housing and ruined it for everyone else in the state. May I ask who set the prices for the h
  
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• Statehouse know-how or outsider’s perspective? The 2 Democrats who want to be Vermont’s next governor

  23-07-2026 21:53 via vtdigger.org
  
  Aly Richards, left, and Amanda Janoo, democratic candidates for governor, speak during a housing forum in South Burlington on Wednesday, July 15, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe two Democrats vying to take on Vermont’s Republican Gov. Phil Scott this year have never run for office before. But they’ve also raked in far more money at this stage in the race than either of the Democrats who challenged Scott in 2024 and 2022.Ask Amanda Janoo and Aly Richards why that might be th
  
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• VTDigger expands statewide news partnership with four southern Vermont newspapers

  23-07-2026 21:14 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Bennington Battle Monument. Photo via Adobe StockVTDigger CEO Brendan Kinney announced Thursday that the online statewide news organization has recently partnered with four newspapers covering southern Vermont. The latest partnerships with the Bennington Banner, Manchester Journal, Brattleboro Reformer and Mountain Times (Killington) build on VTDigger’s existing partnership with The Commons in Brattleboro, bringing the total number of community news sharing partners to 21.“
  
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• Vermont schools should invest in student journalism

  23-07-2026 20:56 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Katerine Lacourciere, a rising senior at Essex High School, where she is a staff writer for the Hive.Journalism is essential to inform communities, hold those in power accountable and give voice to perspectives that might otherwise go unheard. So why isn’t there more of a push to train the next generation of journalists?A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to work in a newsroom alongside 13 other dedicated high school journalists through the New England High School
  
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• Vermont-born Broadway musical ‘Hadestown’ returns home — as a movie

  23-07-2026 20:38 via vtdigger.org
  
  The cast of “Hadestown” performs at the 73rd annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 9, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)Vermont singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell’s musical “Hadestown” began two decades ago as what she calls a “do-it-yourself community theater project” before begetting a concept album, a touring concert, theater workshops and a Tony Award-winning Broadway show.Now the modern take on ancient
  
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• Killing trees to save the forest: The deadly experiment to rescue the American elm

  23-07-2026 19:28 via vtdigger.org
  
  A research specialist with the University of Vermont records information about young elm trees that have been inoculated with Dutch elm disease on May 19, 2026. Jessica Rinaldi / The Boston Globe via Getty Images via GristThis story was produced by Grist and co-published with VTDigger.After more than a decade of nurturing, it had come time to infect this 28-acre grove of American elms with a disease that would almost certainly kill them. Dressed in hunter-green muck boots, gray pants and a brow
  
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• Is it safe to eat lettuce? Upper Valley experts answer key questions on cyclosporiasis outbreak

  23-07-2026 00:26 via vtdigger.org
  
  Danielle Pappo chooses bags of spinach from Killdeer Farm and lettuce from Crossroad Farm while shopping at the Co-Op Food Store in White River Junction, Vt., on Friday, July 17, 2026. “It’s more fun to shop up here honestly because they have so much local stuff,” said Pappo, of Palmer, Mass., who is staying in the Upper Valley while working as a baker at King Arthur Flour. Dawn Archambeault, director of marketing and consumer relations for the Co-op Food Stores said the groce
  
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• Enough with the excuses. Help Vermont’s loggers.

  23-07-2026 00:14 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by William Sargent, a lifelong Vermont woodsman and the author of the memoir “50 Years a Dirt Forester: Always Outside and Never Behind a Desk.”Since the announcement of the closure of the Finch Paper mill in Glens Falls, New York, on July 17, I’ve received multiple emails, texts and phone calls asking for my take on the situation.Without a doubt, it is one of the most impactful events in my 50-plus-year career as a forester in Vermont. The economic impact o
  
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• The new Route 7 project is a waste of money

  22-07-2026 23:57 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,Vermont’s federal legislators have secured $19.7 million in federal funding for reconstruction of Route 7 between Brandon and Pittsford. The goal is to add truck climbing lanes and wider shoulders for cyclists. The work will take two years and will inevitably lead to huge traffic backups during that period. In my opinion, this short stretch of road is already quite safe, and most people drive sensibly on it.
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  Furthermore, even after the wider shoulders are built, it w
  
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• Vermont Conversation: ‘I’m sorry that this isn’t what we promised.’ Immigration attorney Jill Martin Diaz on fear and hope in Vermont’s immigrant community

  22-07-2026 23:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Conversation with David Goodman is a VTDigger podcast that features in-depth interviews on local and national issues. Listen and subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get podcasts.Jill Martin Diaz, executive director of the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project in Burlington in Aug. 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerPresident Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown is intensifying. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents
  
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• ‘A step forward’: Deep in the new federal housing law, changes to disaster recovery funding are brewing

  22-07-2026 22:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  A sign on a flood-damaged home on Lower Main Street in Johnson pleading for a buyout from the state. Photo by Gordon MillerThree years after the July 2023 floods, communities across Vermont are still working on long-term recovery, with much of the effort focused on housing. Changes tucked into a new federal housing law could make aid for those efforts more predictable in the future. The new policy, part of an enormous federal housing bill that became law July 11, could smooth some of the p
  
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• Brattleboro weighs a municipal tax hike to aid the local hospital’s endangered birthing center

  22-07-2026 19:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  A crowd of about 100 people rally July 14 in support of the birthing center at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. Photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDiggerBRATTLEBORO — As medical groups call for higher state reimbursements to help Brattleboro Memorial Hospital’s birthing center stay open, local leaders are debating whether to ask residents to assist by raising municipal taxes for an unspecified donation.“The choice belongs to the taxpayer, and it’s one that deserves an open, t
  
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• Until Saturday: Your VTDigger gift goes twice as far

  22-07-2026 17:17 via vtdigger.org
  
  VTDigger reporter Charlotte Oliver questions U.S. Senator Peter Welch, D-Vermont, during a press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, February 6, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerDear Reader,Today, your gift can go twice as far.Thanks to two generous donors from Burlington and Addison County, every contribution up to $500 made during our July Member Drive will be matched. Better yet, every new monthly sustaining gift will be matched for the first 12 months.If you’ve b
  
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• How VTDigger prepares for the stories that make a difference

  22-07-2026 17:17 via vtdigger.org
  
  VTDigger reporter Charlotte Oliver questions U.S. Senator Peter Welch, D-Vermont, during a press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, February 6, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerDear Reader,Today, your gift can go twice as far.Thanks to two generous donors from Burlington and Addison County, every contribution up to $500 made during our July Member Drive will be matched. Better yet, every new monthly sustaining gift will be matched for the first 12 months.If you’ve b
  
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• Vermont is not educating students with disabilities up to federal standards

  22-07-2026 17:14 via vtdigger.org
  
  Education Secretary Linda McMahon arrives for a House Committee on Education and Workforce hearing, Wednesday, June 4, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Photo by Jacquelyn Martin/Associated PressVermont is not complying with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, according to a U.S. Department of Education assessment, and is at risk of losing millions in federal funding if it doesn’t correct course.The Education Department in its assessment said Vermont “needs i
  
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• Vermont officials concerned as White House announces 50% tariffs on some Canadian products

  22-07-2026 00:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  People rally in support of the Canadian Freedom Convoy at the I-89 overpass between Burlington and South Burlington in Feb. 2022. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerTheo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.The White House announced 50% tariffs on a slew of Canadian products Monday evening. The new fees will apply to a range of goods, from motor vehicles to dairy products and alcohol, and will take effect Aug. 19.The tariffs are the latest twist in more
  
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• Judge denies bid by suspect’s lawyers in border patrol agent killing to change records screening process

  21-07-2026 23:49 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Federal Building in Burlington on Friday, September 5, 2025. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe defense team for a suspect charged in the fatal shooting of a border patrol agent in Vermont more than a year ago has lost its bid to change how certain records are screened before determining whether they can be released to the government.Lawyers for Teresa Youngblut in a new court filing Monday in federal court in Burlington called on Judge Christina Reiss to change the system set up last fall
  
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• Vermont is not in trouble. Vermonters are.

  21-07-2026 22:58 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Bob Stannard, a former member of the Vermont House of Representatives who lives in Manchester.In a recent commentary in VTDigger, the authors advocate that perhaps the only solution to Vermont’s problems is more growth, more development. They point out the obvious: Our population is decreasing, we have fewer kids in school, and we are now suffering from regulations that deter further growth. What they fail to address is the root cause of the problems that they believ
  
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• Double the limit: Vermont bets bigger cannabis buys will beat the black market

  21-07-2026 21:58 via vtdigger.org
  
  A sign for a cannabis dispensary on Church Street in Burlington on Thursday, July 9,2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerFor years, Shannon Morrill, co-owner of Something Wicked Cannabis Dispensary in Bethel, has reluctantly turned customers away. Their requests to buy cannabis for themselves and loved ones would tend to push them past the state’s daily purchase limit. Now, under a new state law that took effect this month, Morrill no longer has to disappoint customers at her and her
  
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• Immigration policy must balance dignity with the rule of law

  21-07-2026 19:41 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,I respectfully disagree with Pope Leo’s recent criticism of the U.S. immigration policy. While I agree that compassion and care for migrants are important, I believe every nation has a fundamental responsibility to enforce its laws, maintain secure borders, preserve national security and protect its citizens.In considering this issue, I find the insights of St. Thomas Aquinas particularly relevant. He noted that some nations only deemed citizenship after two or three generatio
  
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• Federal appeals court overturns Vermont judge’s ruling that released Mohsen Mahdawi

  21-07-2026 18:52 via vtdigger.org
  
  Mohsen Mahdawi speaks after being released in Burlington in April 2025. File photo by Caleb Kenna/VTDiggerA U.S. appeals court on Tuesday ruled that a federal judge in Vermont should not have ordered the release of Mohsen Mahdawi, a Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian activist, from immigration custody last year. Mahdawi, a green card holder who lives in the Upper Valley, was arrested in Colchester in April 2025 while attending a U.S. citizenship interview. He was held in a Ver
  
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• Why I came to VTDigger

  21-07-2026 12:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  VTDigger reporters Shaun Robinson and Ethan Weinstein work in the cafeteria at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, January 16, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerDear Reader,When I accepted the opportunity to become VTDigger’s CEO, I did it because I believe Vermont deserves ambitious, independent journalism.And I am asking you to help make that possible.This week, we’re inviting 500 readers to support VTDigger. If you’ve been thinking about making a contribution, please
  
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• A New York paper mill is closing part of its operation. Vermont loggers are sounding the alarm.

  21-07-2026 00:25 via vtdigger.org
  A logging operation in Tunbridge in Feb. 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerLoggers and foresters around Vermont say they’re anticipating the industry will suffer after a New York paper company announced Friday that it will close part of its operation. Finch Paper’s decision to close its pulp mill in Glens Falls, New York, will continue to stress Vermont’s already burdened logging industry, warned Vermont logger Sam Lincoln. “It’s going to have an
  
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• After penalty kicks in Seattle, Vermont Green FC women end first season as runners-up

  20-07-2026 23:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Green FC women’s team competed in the USL W championship on July 18, 2026, in Seattle. Photo courtesy Kevin Ng/Vermont Green FCTheo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.When Waterbury-born Louisa Thomsen equalized for Vermont Green FC in the United Soccer League women’s national championship Saturday, pandemonium ensued. The substitutes’ bench erupted, dashing to embrace the Vermonter as the clock wound down in normal ti
  
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• Why do animal rights groups hate Vermont?

  20-07-2026 23:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,Recent letters and commentaries in VTDigger show disdain and contempt for hunters, trappers and anglers, as well as the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. They use what I believe is innuendo and misinformation to make a case that the department doesn’t serve their wishes and that those of us who hunt, fish and trap are responsible for the divisions in our communities. In a survey conducted by Responsive Manage
  
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• Vermont’s Catholic Church aims to protect Rice Memorial High by selling the parochial school to supporters

  20-07-2026 22:39 via vtdigger.org
  
  The grade 9-12 Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington. Provided photoVermont’s Roman Catholic Diocese, aiming to reorganize its depleting finances in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, wants to sell its parochial Rice Memorial High School to supporters to protect the 400-student, grade 9-12 South Burlington campus from potential liquidation.The state’s largest religious denomination has asked a judge for permission to sign a contract with a new nonprofit entity, RMHS Inc., which has offe
  
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