Vermont news

• Towns develop forest action plans

  06-07-2017 17:20 via vtdigger.org
  
  News Release — University of VermontJune 30, 2017
  Media Contact:Kate Forrer(802) 476-2003, ext. 210,(866) 860-1382 (Vermont calls only)E-mail: [email protected]
  TEN TOWNS TO GET HELP TO DEVELOP FOREST ACTION PLANS
  Burlington–The Vermont Town Forest Recreation Planning Community Assistance Program has selected 10 communities to receive help with developing town forest recreation and stewardship action plans.
  The recipients are Bradford, Hartford, Hardwick, Huntington, Marshfiel
  
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• Young Writers Project: ‘Longhand’

  08-02-2026 13:03 via vtdigger.org
  “Bridges,” by Ursa Goldenrose, 16, HardwickYoung Writers Project is a creative, online community of teen writers and visual artists that started in Burlington in 2006. Each week, VTDigger publishes the writing and art of young Vermonters who post their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for youth, ages 13-19. To find out more, please go to youngwritersproject.org or contact Executive Director Susan Reid at sreid@youngwrite
  
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• Vermonter Bob Yates Jr. was one of the first Patriots. His football legacy lives on still.

  08-02-2026 13:00 via vtdigger.org
  As Vermonters sit down with their beers and wings to watch the Super Bowl on Sunday, they will not see one of their own on the field. There are no native sons representing the state during Sunday’s big game. In fact, no Vermont-born players are on a single NFL roster at all. Period.Still, there is a home-state connection: A Vermonter, born and bred in Montpelier, was on the very first Patriots team. Two generations later, his family members are still devoted fans.The New England Patriots,
  
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• To debate or not to debate? On world issues, that is Vermont’s Town Meeting question.

  08-02-2026 12:55 via vtdigger.org
  Vermonters who called for a nuclear arms freeze at 1982 Town Meetings carry a banner in New York City that June. Photo by Toby Talbot/Associated Press
  Most Vermonters tap March Town Meetings to chew over proposed local spending and, on occasion, a potluck lunch. But residents in Newfane, population 1,645, have bit into a smorgasbord of larger issues, be it calls to ban genetically modified foods in 2002, impeach President George W. Bush in 2006, oppose the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza in 2024 or pl
  
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• In Morristown, an industrial park proposal gets a rocky reception

  08-02-2026 12:53 via vtdigger.org
  Morrisville business owner Hank Glowiak talks during a Morristown Selectboard meeting on Monday, Feb. 2 that drew scores of residents concerned about Manufacturing Solutions, Inc.’s proposed industrial park on Route 100, across from the Morrisville-Stowe airport. Photo by Gordon Miller/News & CitizenThis story by Patrick Bilow was first published in News & Citizen on Feb. 5, 2026.A Morristown Selectboard meeting last Monday saw the highest attendance in years, board chair Don McDo
  
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• When schools are too small for kids to thrive

  08-02-2026 12:00 via vtdigger.org
  Katherine Quimby Johnson is a freelance writer and editor, and writes the local news column for the News & Citizen in Morrisville.I’ve been following the debate over small schools for what feels like decades. For all the talk about the merits and costs of small schools, there are two points I have yet to see raised. Both concern the student experience in small elementary schools.The first is teacher and student compatibility. Teachers may all use the same methods and be equally profes
  
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• Lake Champlain ice is all it’s cracked up to be

  07-02-2026 12:55 via vtdigger.org
  Rescue personnel bring a boat onto the ice of Lake Champlain to rescue skaters who were trapped by a widening gap on Tuesday, Feb. 3. Photo via City of Vergennes Fire DepartmentJohn Rosenthal finds skating across the deep-blue ice of Lake Champlain at bike-level speeds to be “dramatic and exciting.” But the 75-year-old Charlotte resident has long known that ice skating on such a large, natural surface is not without risks. “We never say ice is safe, only skateable, b
  
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• John Steen: Deliver us from privatization

  07-02-2026 02:09 via vtdigger.org
  Dear Editor,In c. 500 B.C., Herodotus wrote, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” The iconic phrase often called the Postal Service’s motto — adapted from Herodotus and famously inscribed on New York City’s main post office — has long symbolized the reliability of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). It pains me to see that proud institution now being reduced and distorte
  
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• Vermont’s US senators celebrate more than $58 million in earmarks for local projects 

  07-02-2026 01:18 via vtdigger.org
  U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, left, and U.S. Senator Peter Welch, D-Vermont, speak during a press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, February 6, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerMONTPELIER — Vermont’s congressional delegation plans to funnel more than $58 million in federal funds to projects around the state including housing and infrastructure projects, technical school programs and construction for Vermont Air National Guard facilities. U.S. S
  
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• Cold snap expected to hit Vermont, exacerbating risks of heating fuel shortages 

  07-02-2026 01:08 via vtdigger.org
  Marie Devaney clears snow from a car on Wallace Street in Waterbury on Jan. 26, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerAs Vermonters prepare for another frigid weekend, a season of multiple cold snaps has led to heating fuel and firewood shortages. Beginning Saturday, a blast of arctic air will drop temperatures across Vermont, with windchills causing lows down to feel like minus 20 to minus 35 degrees, according to Matthew Clay, a meteorologist at the Burlington office of the National Weath
  
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• Vermont pursues junk food ban for 3SquaresVT recipients

  07-02-2026 01:00 via vtdigger.org
  Photo via PexelsTheo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.Vermont officials are pursuing a ban on some “non-nutritious items” for recipients of the state’s largest food assistance program. Recipients would no longer be able to use funds from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, called 3SquaresVT in Vermont, to purchase certain goods. Elsewhere, such restrictions have ranged from only “soft drinks” in Color
  
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• Vermont hospitals say collaboration is saving them money. Now, they’re joining forces. 

  07-02-2026 00:49 via vtdigger.org
  Michael Costa, CEO of Gifford Health Care in Randolph, speaks during a press conference at the Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin on Oct. 31, 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerWhen Michael Costa came aboard as CEO of Randolph’s Gifford Hospital in 2024, he couldn’t help but notice that the hospital’s inpatient beds were relatively empty. Meanwhile, Dartmouth Hitchcock’s and UVM Medical Center’s beds seemed to be overflowing. “So, we started
  
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• Neighbor to Mountain Top in the crosshairs of cross-country trail dispute  

  06-02-2026 23:05 via vtdigger.org
  The Vermont Supreme Court ruled Friday in favor of Mountain Top Resort — a well-known cross-country skiing spot in Chittenden — in the latest development of over a yearlong legal fight with an adjoining neighbor, who altered the route of two of the resort’s ski trails.  The clash with Mountain Top began in the summer of 2024 when the neighbors in the dispute, John and Deborah Gerlach, relocated two trails without consulting the resort, according to the original lawsu
  
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• As Act 250 overhaul takes shape, some question whether it strikes the right balance

  06-02-2026 22:45 via vtdigger.org
  This story, by Report for America corps member Carly Berlin, was produced through a partnership between VTDigger and Vermont Public.Two years ago, lawmakers set in motion a transformation of Act 250, the half-century-old development-review law that many credit with keeping Vermont looking like Vermont: compact towns and cities surrounded by fields and forests. Now, those reforms are beginning to come into focus.We’re taking a look at how the changes enacted in 2024’s Act 181 are mat
  
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• Vermont jails publish immigrant detainee data

  06-02-2026 22:27 via vtdigger.org
  The Immigration Detainee Dashboard provides information on people detained in Vermont jails on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Screenshot via Vermont Department of Corrections
  Vermont correctional facilities have held more than 900 detainees apprehended by federal immigration authorities since January 2025, according to new data released by the Vermont Department of Corrections Friday. The numbers, compiled in a dashboard on the de
  
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• Investing close to home: how Vermonters are putting their money to work locally

  06-02-2026 15:44 via vtdigger.org
  What if your investment portfolio included the childcare center down the street, the new affordable housing development in your county, or the local restaurant opening downtown?For a growing number of Vermonters, that’s exactly what investing looks like. Instead of sending their money to distant corporations and abstract funds, they’re choosing to invest close to home by supporting projects that strengthen their communities while still earning a financial return.This approach is kno
  
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• Obsolete IT systems have cost Vermont child services funding — but no one knows how much

  06-02-2026 12:55 via vtdigger.org
  Theo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.Vermont is missing out on huge opportunities for federal money for child welfare services — perhaps millions of dollars, lawmakers fear — because of a 43-year-old IT system. And due to flaws in that very system, officials say it’s also impossible to know how much funding Vermont has lost out on.“The total monetary impact remains unknown,” said Family Services Division head Aryka
  
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• Vermont’s school enrollment is declining. Students needing special education are on the rise. 

  06-02-2026 00:30 via vtdigger.org
  Education Secretary Zoie Saunders at the Statehouse in Montpelier on April 23, 2024. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerVermont’s special educators have a unique problem. Students with individualized education programs, or IEPs, are spending more time in regular classroom settings than the national average — a positive for the state’s public education system.But concurrently, Vermont sends those students to out-of-district schools at a rate more than double the national avera
  
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• House lawmaker’s proposed school consolidation map would combine 119 districts into 27

  05-02-2026 23:46 via vtdigger.org
  Rep. Peter Conlon, D-Cornwall, chair of the House Education Committee, speaks during a press conference at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Tuesday, January 6, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerRep. Peter Conlon, D-Cornwall, the House Education Committee chair, on Thursday introduced the first concrete proposal presented this legislative session to consolidate Vermont’s dozens of school districts.The proposal would merge the state’s 119 districts — and the 52 entities that g
  
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• Prosecution and defense push for delay in slain border agent case 

  05-02-2026 23:24 via vtdigger.org
  The I-91 highway southbound lane in Coventry on Jan. 29, 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerProsecutors and defense attorneys are jointly seeking to delay proceedings in the case of a murder suspect accused of fatally shooting a U.S. Border Patrol agent in northern Vermont, a crime that could carry the death penalty.Federal Judge Christina Reiss had set a Thursday deadline for lawyers to file motions in the case against Theresa Youngblut. However, Youngblut’s legal team and federal
  
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• Prosecution and defense push for delay in murdred border agent case 

  05-02-2026 23:24 via vtdigger.org
  The I-91 highway southbound lane in Coventry on Wednesday on Jan. 29, 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerProsecutors and defense attorneys are jointly seeking to delay proceedings in the case of a murder suspect accused of fatally shooting a U.S. Border Patrol agent in northern Vermont, a crime that could carry the death penalty.Federal Judge Christina Reiss had set a Thursday deadline for lawyers to file motions in the case against Theresa Youngblut. However, Youngblut’s legal tea
  
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• Prosecution and defense push for delay in murdered border agent case 

  05-02-2026 23:24 via vtdigger.org
  The I-91 highway southbound lane in Coventry on Jan. 29, 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerProsecutors and defense attorneys are jointly seeking to delay proceedings in the case of a murder suspect accused of fatally shooting a U.S. Border Patrol agent in northern Vermont, a crime that could carry the death penalty.Federal Judge Christina Reiss had set a Thursday deadline for lawyers to file motions in the case against Theresa Youngblut. However, Youngblut’s legal team and federal
  
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• Vermont is overhauling Act 250. Here’s what the development maps look like so far 

  05-02-2026 21:16 via vtdigger.org
  This story, by Report for America corps member Carly Berlin, was produced through a partnership between VTDigger and Vermont Public.Two years ago, lawmakers set in motion a transformation of Act 250, the half-century-old development-review law that many credit with keeping Vermont looking like Vermont: compact towns and cities surrounded by fields and forests. Now, those reforms are beginning to come into focus.We’re taking a look at how the changes enacted in 2024’s Act 181 are mat
  
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• Mary Alice Bisbee: Health care costs are breaking Vermont schools

  05-02-2026 13:03 via vtdigger.org
  Dear Editor,Those of us who have long pushed for universal, single-payer health care for every Vermonter are well aware that health insurance costs for education staff — including teachers, maintenance workers and other school employees — represent the fastest-growing expense in education funding.There is a simple solution. If health insurance funding were removed from education budgets and instead covered through a statewide universal health care system run by the state, or by a si
  
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• Health care costs are breaking Vermont schools

  05-02-2026 13:03 via vtdigger.org
  Dear Editor,Those of us who have long pushed for universal, single-payer health care for every Vermonter are well aware that health insurance costs for education staff — including teachers, maintenance workers and other school employees — represent the fastest-growing expense in education funding.There is a simple solution. If health insurance funding were removed from education budgets and instead covered through a statewide universal health care system run by the state, or by a si
  
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• Gina Galfetti: Vermont’s conservation math doesn’t add up

  05-02-2026 01:32 via vtdigger.org
  This commentary is by Rep. Gina Galfetti, R-Barre Town, who lives in Barre and serves on the House Committee on Institutions and Corrections.Vermont has committed itself to ambitious conservation goals through Act 59, the Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection Act, often referred to as the state’s “30×30 and 50×50” initiative. These goals aim to conserve 30% of Vermont’s land by 2030 and 50% by 2050. Achieving them, however, will be impossible
  
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• Fast food wage bill would raise minimum pay to $20 an hour in 2027

  05-02-2026 01:30 via vtdigger.org
  The state’s coat of arms inside the Vermont Statehouse. Courtesy photoMona Abou is a reporter with the Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.Vermont lawmakers introduced a bill this month that would increase the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 an hour. If approved, the new pay rate would take effect in Jan. 2027. The bill, H.713, would also create a new state council to study and recommend wor
  
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• Will Vermonters be able to get their cars inspected every other year? 

  05-02-2026 00:30 via vtdigger.org
  Photo by Nati Harnik/APVermonters don’t drive rust buckets for no reason. When people are avoiding a $200 repair on their car, it’s because they don’t have $200 to spare, Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington, said Wednesday in the Senate Transportation Committee. He’s among the lawmakers considering a bill, S.211, that would allow Vermonters to get their vehicles inspected every other year instead of annually. Some senators hope the change could make the inspection
  
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• Vermont Conversation: How Sen. Bernie Sanders went from ‘political loser’ to progressive trailblazer

  05-02-2026 00:13 via vtdigger.org
  
  
  Dan Chaisson’s new book is “Bernie for Burlington: The Rise of the People’s Politician” (Penguin 2026). Cover art by Alison Bechdel. Photo by Lisa AbitbolThe Vermont Conversation with David Goodman is a VTDigger podcast that features in-depth interviews on local and national issues. Listen below and subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get podcasts.Young Bernie Sanders arrived in Vermont in 1964 as part of a counter-cultural w
  
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• Ugandan minister Steven Tendo, who faced brutal torture abroad, detained by ICE

  04-02-2026 19:07 via vtdigger.org
  Steven Tendo, a refugee from Uganda seeking political asylum in the U.S., speaks with supporters after receiving a letter announcing a year-long stay of his deportation in St. Albans on Tuesday, November 15, 2022. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerUpdated 5:51 p.m.Steven Tendo, a Ugandan minister and nursing assistant who moved to Vermont in 2021 while seeking asylum, was detained in Shelburne on Wednesday morning by federal immigration agents, according to the union he’s a part of and the a
  
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