Vermont news

• Public advocates take aim at Blue Cross rate hike request

  21-07-2017 00:58 via vtdigger.org
  
  Peter Horman, from Horman Mathematical and Actuarial Solutions, speaks as an expert witness for Vermont Legal Aid’s Office of the Health Care Advocate during a hearing Thursday. Photo by Erin Mansfield/VTDigger
  A public advocate told regulators Thursday that the state’s largest health insurance company does not need to increase premiums 12.7 percent on Vermont Health Connect in 2018.
  The advocate from Vermont Legal Aid’s Office of the Health Care Advocate brought in an actuary
  
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• Vermont Supreme Court sides with school board on principal firing

  12-10-2026 23:37 via vtdigger.org
  
  Brattleboro Union High School. File photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDiggerThis story by Chris Mays was first published in the Brattleboro Reformer on Oct. 8. 2026.BRATTLEBORO — The Vermont Supreme Court upheld the school board’s firing of a high school principal.The court said that after an internal investigation into complaints that former BUHS principal Steve Perrin “mistreated a female student on multiple occasions and attempted to prevent a mandatory report of child abuse,
  
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• UVM Medical Center unions approve contracts and avert a strike

  12-10-2026 23:22 via vtdigger.org
  
  Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals President Nicole DiVita, right, and Jacob Berkowitz, president of UVMMC Support Staff United, pictured on Oct. 2. Photo by Olivia Gieger/VTDiggerThe two unions representing University of Vermont Medical Center’s support staff and technical professionals have both voted to ratify their contracts, narrowly averting a strike. More than 2,000 of the 3,300 employees in the unions voted, representatives for the unions said, with more than 89
  
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• Our schools are being crushed by state mandates

  12-10-2026 23:12 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Caty Sutton, the superintendent of the Hartford School District; the Hartford School Board; the Hartford School District leadership and the Hartford Education Association leadership.It is with great disappointment, discouragement and disillusionment that we write to express our profound concerns about what transpired throughout the last legislative session. As we anticipate what will come this year, those decisions will significantly affect and shape our fate as a district
  
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• Let’s have a substantive debate on energy affordability

  12-10-2026 21:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,I am looking forward to Wednesday, Oct. 21, when the two candidates for governor will debate. Affordability is bound to be the general topic. And that discussion will likely fan out in different directions, such as healthcare affordability and the cost of education. I am especially interested in energy affordability. I want to know what the candidates can tell us about addressing the needs of Vermonters locked into a dependency on gas and diesel for transport and fuel oil and p
  
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• A new tree pest could be catching a ride on your car

  12-10-2026 21:16 via vtdigger.org
  
  A spotted lanternfly in Brooklyn in an undated photograph. Photo by Rhododendrites (CC BY-SA 4.0)If you’re not keeping an eye on smears of dried mud on your car, forest pest educators like Ginger Nickerson say now’s a good time to pick up the habit. Nickerson and other experts warn that spotted lanternflies could be hitching a ride into Vermont, where they pose a threat to trees and other plants.“They could lay their eggs on anything that you have outdoors, like your car,
  
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• VTDigger named Distinguished News Site, earns top investigative reporting honors

  12-10-2026 20:25 via vtdigger.org
  
  VTDigger earned Distinguished News Site honors and two top investigative journalism awards at the 2026 New England Newspaper & Press Association Leadership Summit. Photos by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerVTDigger was recognized as a Distinguished News Site for online publications in the region by the New England Newspaper & Press Association at its 2026 Leadership Summit held in Sturbridge, Mass., on Friday. In addition, VTDigger reporters received two of the three top A-Mark prizes, &ldqu
  
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• A Vermont degree should come with a green card

  11-10-2026 17:36 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Justin Neuman, who is a professor of literary studies at Eugene Lang College, The New School and a developer of philosophical software. I’m in the export business. I teach literary studies to college students.That’s not how professors usually describe themselves, but it should be. American colleges and universities sell one of the world’s most desirable goods or services: an American education.Education is an unusual export because when someone buys
  
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• Political mailer sparks Vermont disclosure complaint

  11-10-2026 15:34 via vtdigger.org
  
  Attorney General Charity Clark discusses the work of the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in Waterbury in December 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThis story by Ryan Pacheco was first published in the Manchester Journal on Oct. 8, 2026.BENNINGTON COUNTY — A second round of politically critical postcards have been mailed to Bennington County residents by “Common Sense PAC”, the Independent Expenditure Political Action Committee (IEPAC) that was resp
  
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• Fight trafficking by decriminalizing consensual adult sex work

  11-10-2026 14:55 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Henri Binx, a co-founder and co-director of the Ishtar Collective and a member of Safe Sex Work Vermont.Vermont has an opportunity to strengthen its response to human trafficking by reforming our state’s archaic anti-prostitution laws.Vermont’s prostitution laws criminalize “sexual intercourse for hire” and “indiscriminate sexual intercourse without hire,” any sex outside marriage. They contribute to the stigma around sex work and reinfo
  
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• Political polls historically underestimate Phil Scott. Will 2026 be different?

  11-10-2026 14:11 via vtdigger.org
  
  Gov. Phil Scott leaves the House of Representatives chamber after delivering his state of the state address at the Statehouse in Montpelier in January 2026. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerIn Vermont politics, late-summer polling has a habit of making Gov. Phil Scott look vulnerable — right up until election night proves he isn’t.Two new September surveys appear to tell different stories about this year’s governor’s race. One, published by the University of New Hamps
  
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• At odds over the “Aud,” Vermont Coyotes announce departure from Barre

  11-10-2026 13:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  A practice session with the Vermont Coyotes basketball team. Photo courtesy of Vermont CoyotesBARRE — A fist bump from a Vermont Frost Heaves player turned Anthony Marques into a fan who attended 102 of the team’s consecutive games. Years later, he brought a team of his own, the Vermont Coyotes, to Barre.When he started the state’s only minor-league basketball team in 2024, it felt natural to bring them to Barre, said Brandy Marie, the team’s staff performance analyst.&n
  
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• Vermont high schools feel the pinch with fewer international students enrolling

  11-10-2026 12:53 via vtdigger.org
  
  St. Johnsbury Academy viewed from the north. Photo by Ascended Dreamer – CC BY 4.0.International student enrollment at some Vermont high schools is down by about half after Trump administration policy changes, including a requirement that foreign students allow vetting of their social media accounts.The decline in international students impacts the culture and bottom line at these schools, a number of them historic private academies that serve as de facto public high schools for the surro
  
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• For Vermont cell users, breaking up is easy to do

  10-10-2026 14:42 via vtdigger.org
  
  Jewett Brook Road in the Roy Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Barnet on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThis story by Liberty Darr was first published in the News & Citizen on Oct. 1, 2026.It’s a familiar reality for many people in Lamoille County: The phone call dropped. The texts won’t send.Even in the height of this digital age, there are people without cell phone service.Most recent driving test data from the state show that large swaths of th
  
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• Godnicks celebrates 100 years of furnishing Rutland

  09-10-2026 23:42 via vtdigger.org
  
  Owners Brent, left, and Brian Godnick stand in the showroom of Godnicks Grand Furniture recently. Photo by Gabby Blanchard/Community News ServiceFor Community News Service, a VTSU-Castleton internship, for Rutland HeraldIn 1926, Irving Godnick opened the first furniture store of a now 100-year-old family business.“The business was started by Godnicks and is still run by Godnicks,” Brian Godnick said in a recent interview.In a small space upstairs in the Tuttle Block on Center Street
  
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• Man taken into custody in Vermont faces murder charge in his mother’s death in Massachusetts

  09-10-2026 23:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  Ryan Hanafin appears on a video conference from Northeast Regional Correctional Facility in St. Johnsbury on Friday, October 9, 2026. Screenshot by Alan J. Keays/VTDiggerA Massachusetts man wanted in connection with the death of his mother in the Bay State appeared in a Vermont court Friday after he was taken into custody a day earlier in Warren.Ryan Hanafin, 22, agreed during a brief hearing Friday afternoon in Washington County criminal court in Barre to be extradited to Massachusetts. MassLi
  
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• PAC money is rolling in as Vermont’s election nears

  09-10-2026 22:45 via vtdigger.org
  
  “I Voted” stickers await voters who cast their ballots in Cambridge in March 2024. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerWith less than a month until Vermont’s general election, campaign cash is rolling in from political action committees and a group backing a proposal to enshrine the right to union organizing in the state Constitution.Of the roughly 70 PACs set up in Vermont ahead of the November election, the top five largest spenders have so far put a combined $233,265 into r
  
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• School budgets run on diesel

  09-10-2026 21:43 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,For most Vermonters, the price of gas is something they notice at the pump.But for our school leaders, fuel prices are something that’s everywhere, especially diesel. It is in the yellow buses rolling before sunrise, taking students to school and career and technical education programs and then carrying athletes to games and children home. When diesel prices rise, the money has to come from somewhere.Yes, rising fuel prices are now an education issue. Our school budgets run on
  
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• Police identify officer and victim involved in Williston shooting

  09-10-2026 19:35 via vtdigger.org
  
  Police tape showing a blurred scene with vehicles and lights in the distance. Photo via Adobe StockVermont State Police have identified the people involved in Thursday’s police shooting in Williston. Officer Ethan Favreau joined the Williston Police Department in Sept. 2019, after having previously served with the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Office. Photo provided by Vermont State PoliceOfficer Ethan Favreau of the Williston Police Department shot and injured Michael McGovern,
  
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• John Rodgers sought to tie Molly Gray to ‘mistreatment of migrant workers.’ Here’s what records show.

  09-10-2026 18:15 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Occupational Safety and Health Administration, within the Department of Labor, issued two citations to Four Corners Farm that were settled in 2025. Photo by Liam Elder-Connors / Vermont PublicCarly Berlin covers housing and infrastructure for Vermont Public, in partnership with VTDigger.Republican Lt. Gov. John Rodgers launched a new line of attack against Democratic challenger Molly Gray at Vermont Public’s debate on Tuesday, accusing the farm operated by Gray’s family
  
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• John Rodgers sought to tie Molly Gray to ‘mistreatment of migrant workers.’ Here’s what records show

  09-10-2026 18:15 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Occupational Safety and Health Administration, within the Department of Labor, issued two citations to Four Corners Farm that were settled in 2025. Photo by Liam Elder-Connors / Vermont PublicCarly Berlin covers housing and infrastructure for Vermont Public, in partnership with VTDigger.Republican Lt. Gov. John Rodgers launched a new line of attack against Democratic challenger Molly Gray at Vermont Public’s debate on Tuesday, accusing the farm operated by Gray’s family
  
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• Michael DeForge

  09-10-2026 18:06 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born: 12/7/1949Montpelier, VermontDied: 10/01/2026Northfield, VermontDetails of service:There will be no public services for Michael. He will be interred at the Graves Cemetery in Duxbury next to his mother and father.Michael Charles DeForge, 76, of Morrisville passed away on October 1, 2026 at Mayo nursing home with his daughter Jasmine, his best friend Pete Jones, and his son-in-law Jonathan by his side.He was born to Marjorie (Bailey) DeForge and Robert DeForge in Montpelier, and was the eld
  
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• Vermont general election ballots mailed later than expected

  09-10-2026 15:38 via vtdigger.org
  
  Official ballots sent out by mail to voters for the 2026 general election in Vermont. Photo by Noel Clark/VTDiggerSome Vermonters can expect their general election ballots a week late this year due to manufacturing problems, according to Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas. “We’ve never had a scenario like this,” she said.Election ballots were mailed to all registered Vermont voters on Wednesday, a week after the deadline mandated by Vermont’s universal mail-in
  
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• Police face barrage of questions but provide few answers about shooting by Williston officer

  09-10-2026 00:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  Photo via Adobe StockWILLISTON — Questions linger after authorities say a Williston police officer shot and injured a man early Thursday. A press conference by police Thursday afternoon revealed little about what led the officer to shoot the man. Police say the matter remains under investigation. The man was treated at the University of Vermont Medical Center for a gunshot wound to his hip, Maj. Ashley Barnes, commander of the state police criminal division, told reporters at th
  
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• A decade of remembering: Good grows from grief

  08-10-2026 23:59 via vtdigger.org
  
  Top from left: Janie Chase Cozzi, Eli Brookens; bottom from left: Cyrus Zschau, Mary Harris, Liam Hale.
  This story by Lee Kahrs was first published in the Waterbury Roundabout on Oct. 7, 2026.You can see them at night, white stars shining on the side of barns, bridges, businesses and homes in the Mad River Valley all the way to Waterbury. Not just during the holidays, but all year round, lit up in remembrance of five lives cut short.On Oct. 8, five families, multiple schools, communities spanni
  
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• Universal primary care is at the center of the race for governor. How would it work?

  08-10-2026 23:36 via vtdigger.org
  
  Hospital staff tend to a patient on a gurney. Photo via Adobe StockProposals for universal primary care have become a central platform point in the race for Vermont’s top state office. The Democratic candidates for governor and lieutenant governor, Amanda Janoo and Molly Gray, tout free publicly funded primary care as their chief healthcare policy proposal leading into the Nov. 3 general election. Proponents of the policy say it can reduce costs by keeping people healthier in th
  
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• Vermont school districts scramble to cover the increased cost of diesel

  08-10-2026 23:20 via vtdigger.org
  
  School buses line up to drop off students at the Allen Brook School in Williston in September 2020. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerWith diesel prices hitting record highs, Vermont school districts are taking on unexpected costs to bus students to school. The spike is forcing districts to consider cutting other spending or tapping their reserves.Champlain Valley School District expects to spend $200,000 over its budget on diesel fuel if prices remain at current levels, according to Meghan M
  
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• A salute to the Northeast Kingdom’s sharpest wit

  08-10-2026 19:59 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,As I sit here on the south shore of Lake Memphremagog in Newport on this gorgeous autumn day, gazing east into rural Vermont farmland, north into rural Quebec and west into rural Vermont, and having researched Jay Stroud, the headmaster extraordinaire of Tabor Academy (now several years retired), I see with profound clarity the large ironic bulge out of the left side of his cheek in his recent commentary for VTDigger.
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  I hunted long and hard for words to describe the best t
  
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• The fall foliage is the best it’s been in years

  08-10-2026 19:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  This year, VTDigger is teaming up with Henry’s Weather Channel to help answer the annual question of when and where peak foliage will make its appearance across the state.Each week, we’ll bring you an updated look at how foliage is unfolding statewide, paired with a weekend forecast, so you can plan your drive, hike or porch-sitting accordingly. Henry brings meteorological experience and on-the-ground reporting with photos and videos from across the region.
  We’re seeing a shows
  
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• State police investigate shooting by Williston officer that wounded a man early Thursday

  08-10-2026 17:55 via vtdigger.org
  
  Blue lights on top of a police cruiser. Stock photo via PixabayA Williston police officer shot and injured a man early Thursday, according to officials.The man who was shot was reported to be in stable condition at the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington, the Williston Police Department said in a press release around 9:30 a.m. Thursday.The officer involved in the shooting was also taken to the medical center, where he was treated for injuries and released, the press release said.
  
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