Vermont news

• Under Trump, ICE check-ins in Vermont have shifted

  21-06-2026 13:21 via vtdigger.org
  
  More than 200 supporters of Pastor Steven Tendo gather outside Tendo’s check-in meeting with Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security facility in St. Albans on Tuesday, June 16, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerST. ALBANS — Steven Tendo hugged and shook hands with the throng of supporters waiting outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office Tuesday. He was relieved, for now: He’d just walked out of a check-in with ICE, where
  
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• Across Vermont, networks of volunteers push back on Trump’s immigration enforcement

  23-06-2026 00:46 via vtdigger.org
  
  Protesters surround a house as they demonstrate against an attempted stop by ICE agents in South Burlington in March 2026. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerMarita Canedo had just woken up when the phone started ringing. It was early morning on March 11, and Canedo was the on-call team member for the emergency phone line of Migrant Justice, a statewide immigrant rights organization. Several calls came in at once, Canedo said, and each caller said the same thing: U.S. Immigration and
  
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• ‘Vermont that still feels wild’: Three waterways proposed for the ‘National Park System for rivers’

  23-06-2026 00:44 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Nulhegan River is a proposed addition to the federal Wild and Scenic River System. Photo courtesy of Caleb Kenna.Northeast Kingdom conservation organizations and communities are pushing to add three waterways to the federal Wild and Scenic River System, the country’s strongest tool to protect rivers.The program, known as a sort of “National Park System for rivers,” provides funding and support to free-flowing rivers with outstanding natural, cultural or recreational value.
  
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• Gov. Scott vetoed the Legislature’s latest attempt to lower health insurance costs. What’s next?

  23-06-2026 00:00 via vtdigger.org
  
  Gov. Phil Scott speaks at the Statehouse in Montpelier in November 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerWhen Gov. Phil Scott last week vetoed the Legislature’s boldest attempt this year to lower health insurance costs, he said his own package of proposals offered a better alternative.Specifically, in a letter sent to the Senate, Scott highlighted efforts from a bill, H.585, that his administration put forward in January.“These proposals included proven approaches that expanded
  
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• Dartmouth Health reports $63.5 million deficit over 6 months

  22-06-2026 23:33 via vtdigger.org
  
  Evening falls at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., on Wednesday, May 28, 2025. Photo by James M. Patterson\Valley NewsThis story by Clare Shanahan was first published in the Valley News on June 21, 2026.LEBANON, N.H. — After two years operating mostly in the black, Dartmouth Health spent more money than it brought in from October through March, according to a May filing with bondholders.The $63.5 million deficit, equivalent to 2.9% of total system revenue, was driven by
  
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• Karen Ann Warren

  22-06-2026 23:11 via vtdigger.org
  
  Born: 05/31/1951Bethesda, MarylandDied: 06/15/2026IdahoDetails of service: To be determinedThe world became a little quieter with the passing of Karen Ann Warren, 75, formerly of Winooski, Vermont, who died on Monday, June 15, in Idaho. Karen was a woman whose warmth, humor, and steady presence made life gentler for everyone fortunate enough to know her.Karen was born on May 31, 1951, in Bethesda, Maryland, to Kenneth W. and Ann McNeil Warren while her father was serving in the U.S. Navy. The f
  
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• Don’t gamble with our drinking water

  22-06-2026 19:31 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Peggy Stevens, a retired teacher who lives in Charleston.On June 10, a panel of five experts in environmental pollutants, including PFAS, presented evidence of contamination in Lake Memphremagog’s water and fish to a packed crowd of 70 gathered at the North Country Career Center, with a further 95 people joining online. As the scientists laid out their concerns about what that means for the lake’s future, the question driving the meeting was whether landfi
  
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• Extortion and pollution killed the data center bill

  22-06-2026 19:17 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Alison Despathy, the community and environmental health director for Vermonters for a Clean Environment. This past legislative session, Vermonters for a Clean Environment participated in the development of a responsible data center bill, H.727. Despite these efforts, Gov. Phil Scott’s veto of the bill was justified because of the Senate’s massive fumble.Many people believe data centers are wreaking havoc across the country: guzzling power, contaminating wa
  
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• Williston library expansion revote pushed to November

  21-06-2026 15:31 via vtdigger.org
  
  A rendering of a proposed Dorothy Alling Memorial Library redesign. Courtesy of Black River DesignThis story by Jason Starr was first published in the Williston Observer on June 18, 2026.Feeling rushed by an August revote proposed by the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library board of trustees, the Williston Selectboard last week unanimously backed a plan to push a library expansion bond question to the general election ballot in November.It will be the third time this year that Williston voters
  
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• How Vermont’s new pharmacy law could change rural healthcare

  21-06-2026 15:18 via vtdigger.org
  
  This commentary is by Steven Simpson, the northern regional healthcare manager at Kinney Drugs.One of the things I’ve always valued most about community pharmacy is the chance to serve people close to home. In towns across Vermont, the local pharmacy is often one of the most familiar and trusted places in the community, a place where people stop in for prescriptions, ask questions and see someone they know. Sometimes that means offering reassurance, helping someone think through what to d
  
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• Pride in the pews: Franklin County churches celebrate LGBTQ+ community

  21-06-2026 14:05 via vtdigger.org
  
  Parishioners make offerings during a Pride Praise Ecumenical Worship Service at Saint Paul’s United Methodist Church in St. Albans on Sunday, June 7, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerST. ALBANS — An unassuming sign out front of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church told the history of the building with a message that rang true for that day’s service. “As the building has evolved, so has life within the church.” In front of an altar decorated in rai
  
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• Which 50 of the Vermont Historical Society’s 30,000 artifacts best sum up the state?

  21-06-2026 12:42 via vtdigger.org
  
  Vermont Historical Society collections manager Katie Grant and executive director Stephen Perkins unbox a globe — made in 1810 by James Wilson of Bradford — for a “50 for 250” U.S. semiquincentennial exhibit in Montpelier. Photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDiggerMONTPELIER — A century-old pair of ash and rawhide snowshoes — embodying subsistence and sport — seemed an obvious choice when the Vermont Historical Society perused its 30,000 artifacts to pick t
  
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• PHOTOS: Burlington commemorates Juneteenth with downtown festival

  21-06-2026 00:51 via vtdigger.org
  
  Cortney Smith dances as the Juneteenth Celebration Choir performs during a holiday commemoration in Burlington on Saturday, June 20, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe City of Burlington commemorated the Juneteenth holiday with a block party in downtown Burlington on Saturday. The theme of the event was “Freedom: Yesterday’s legacy, Today’s promise, Tomorrow’s Hope” and was produced by the city’s Office of Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging. Scroll
  
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• Two central Vermonters invited to Washington event honoring extreme weather survivors

  20-06-2026 13:05 via vtdigger.org
  
  On the heels of its exhibit at the Vermont Statehouse, installed in its permanent home in Barre’s Aldrich Public Library, and reproduced in book form, “Heart of Barre: Building Community After the Floods” is now heading to Washington, D.C. Later this month, a smaller, photographic reproduction of one of the two anchor pieces in the exhibit — the 80-by-80-inch grid of 20 portraits of survivors of the 2023 flood shown here — will represent Vermont at a two-day event
  
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• 2 central Vermonters invited to Washington event honoring extreme weather survivors

  20-06-2026 13:05 via vtdigger.org
  
  On the heels of its exhibit at the Vermont Statehouse, installed in its permanent home in Barre’s Aldrich Public Library, and reproduced in book form, “Heart of Barre: Building Community After the Floods” is now heading to Washington, D.C. Later this month, a smaller, photographic reproduction of one of the two anchor pieces in the exhibit — the 80-by-80-inch grid of 20 portraits of survivors of the 2023 flood shown here — will represent Vermont at a two-day event
  
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• Three years after flooding, Vermont Studio Center receives federal recovery funding, supporting an economic driver in Johnson 

  19-06-2026 23:37 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Studio Center in Johnson sits on the banks of the Gihon River. Seen on Tuesday, June 16, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe river that runs through the Vermont Studio Center has for years been a source of inspiration and solace for the thousands of artists and writers who have filtered through its residency program, one of the largest in the U.S. But three years ago, the Gihon River’s currents were instead the source of damage and destruction when catastrophic floods inu
  
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• 3 years after flooding, Vermont Studio Center receives federal recovery funding, supporting an economic driver in Johnson 

  19-06-2026 23:37 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Vermont Studio Center in Johnson sits on the banks of the Gihon River. Seen on Tuesday, June 16, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe river that runs through the Vermont Studio Center has for years been a source of inspiration and solace for the thousands of artists and writers who have filtered through its residency program, one of the largest in the U.S. But three years ago, the Gihon River’s currents were instead the source of damage and destruction when catastrophic floods inu
  
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• Black Vermonters celebrated in new South Burlington exhibit

  19-06-2026 23:11 via vtdigger.org
  
  From left: René Rentería, Amina Rhoads and Rajnii Eddins. Photo by Emily Rodin.Emily Rodin is an intern for the University of Vermont’s Community News Service through Report for America’s Local News Internship Program.SOUTH BURLINGTON — When Rajnii Eddins and René Rentería met at Burlington’s Fletcher Free Library in 2024, neither knew the encounter would lead to an oral history project documenting the stories of Black Vermonters.Eddins, a poe
  
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• ‘Act 46 all over again’: Gov. Phil Scott signs education reform bill, kick-starting a familiar process for voluntary school mergers

  19-06-2026 22:13 via vtdigger.org
  
  Buses pick up students at the end of the day at the Westford School in Westford in April 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerThe year’s landmark education reform proposal is now law.Gov. Phil Scott on Thursday signed into law H.955, the legislative session’s signature bill that launches a new but familiar round of voluntary school district mergers.The bill’s signing brings some closure to what has been a long year for educators, administrators and legislators. Or looked
  
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• Who’s policing Vermont’s e-moto riders?

  19-06-2026 18:26 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,Having read a recent article in VTDigger about electric motorcycles — or e-motos — and as the owner of a registered, licensed, street-legal electric motorcycle, I’m perplexed why Vermont police are not enforcing current statutes on unregistered, unlicensed, unhelmeted e-moto riders on public streets and bike paths. Electric motorcycles capable of traveling at speeds greater than 30 mph or having a motor output above 750 watts — such as the Sondors Metacy
  
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• ‘I tried so hard to stop Jack’: Woman denies manslaughter charge in dog attack on her father

  19-06-2026 17:04 via vtdigger.org
  
  The Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington in July 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerIn a case that may test criminal liability for dog owners, a Vermont woman faces charges including manslaughter after police said her pit bull killed her father after injuring two other people in earlier attacks. Janna Campbell, 43, pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington to a felony count of voluntary manslaughter. That charge stems fr
  
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• State and employees’ union butt heads over telework in Vermont’s highest court

  19-06-2026 00:09 via vtdigger.org
  
  Vermont State Employees Association attorney Alfred Gordon O’Connell, right, speaks as the Vermont Supreme Court considers the union’s suit against the Scott Administration’s back-to-office order in Montpelier on Thursday, June 18, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerMONTPELIER — The state of Vermont and the Vermont State Employees’ Association presented oral arguments to the Vermont Supreme Court Thursday over whether the state had the right to change employees&r
  
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• State police seeking ICE raid protester, even as earlier arrests yielded no charges

  18-06-2026 23:55 via vtdigger.org
  
  Vermont State Police cruisers seen in Burlington in January 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerMonths after a chaotic immigration raid at a South Burlington home, state police are asking the public to help identify a man they say smashed a police van window and injured a trooper, even as a Vermont prosecutor declined in April to charge any of the six protesters arrested that day.State police sent out the request this week, alongside body camera footage of the incident and two photos of t
  
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• Vergennes battery project raises red flags

  18-06-2026 23:45 via vtdigger.org
  
  Carrie Hathaway is a senior financial advisor at Howard Center and owns a home in Vergennes.As the nearest, most affected property owner to Lightshift’s proposed battery energy storage system in Vergennes, I would like to point out that the recent article in VTDigger about the project being put on hold left out some important information.The article says that “while the 4.99-megawatt, five-shipping-container-sized facility could reduce electric bills for Vergennes residents and Verm
  
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• Thunderstorms hit Vermont, downing powerlines and causing a flash flood warning in Bennington County

  18-06-2026 23:33 via vtdigger.org
  
  A crew from Green Mountain Power works on a line in Charlotte in Nov. 2019.File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerHeavy thunderstorms hit Vermont on Thursday, triggering a flash flood warning for part of Bennington County and causing power outages across the state. Storms began rolling over the state early Thursday morning, and by the afternoon, the National Weather Service had issued severe thunderstorm warnings for the area around Rutland, Middlebury, Montpelier and much of Windsor County.
  
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• When a state agency loses its way

  18-06-2026 23:24 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,A recent letter to VTDigger regarding the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department’s failure to represent Vermonters pointed to a culture that is not reflective of the state at large. It suggested a hiring practice that ensures Vermont values are not reflected in the makeup of staff. To add to these issues comes the department’s decision to embark upon a greenwashing campaign on Vermont Public. While there are countless sound reasons that businesses and individuals shou
  
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• UVM Health is downsizing. Here’s what those cuts mean for services.

  18-06-2026 23:01 via vtdigger.org
  
  Union members and their supporters attend a press conference in Burlington in July 2024. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerWhen the University of Vermont Health network laid off more than 140 employees last week, it sent shock waves through the state’s largest healthcare provider.As some staff try to make sense of the sudden news, others weigh just how much the estimated $9.5 million in annual savings can help the hospital meet its goal of cutting expenses by $300 million in three years
  
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• Ralph Wright, ‘revered and feared’ longest-serving Vermont House speaker, dies at 91

  18-06-2026 19:33 via vtdigger.org
  
  Rep. Ralph Wright, D-Bennington, waves after his election as Vermont House speaker in 1985. Photo by Ron MacNeil/UPI, courtesy Vermont Historical SocietyWhen Montpelier journalist Chris Graff wrote his 2006 memoir, “Dateline Vermont,” he recounted the rise of such 20th-century politicians as the state’s first woman governor, Madeleine Kunin; its chief executive who died in office, Richard Snelling; and its physician turned presidential candidate, Howard Dean.Then came a second
  
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• Vermont Conversation: ‘Going to where the silence is.’ Journalist Amy Goodman on 30 years of speaking truth to power

  18-06-2026 00:27 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.Amy Goodman is the host, executive producer and co-creator of Democracy Now! Photo by Wolfgang SchmidtFor 30 years, journalist Amy Goodman has been “going to where the silence is” to report stories that the powerful would rather you not know
  
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• Protecting public lands means protecting them from us

  18-06-2026 00:14 via vtdigger.org
  
  Dear Editor,I’d like to respond to the recent letters and commentaries in VTDigger about public land use and remind their authors that the overarching goal of setting aside lands for protection is, well, protecting these natural resources for the future, leaving them as wild as possible. No one can predict all the treasures that nature holds until science advances enough to discover them. 
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  For example, we’re still learning about mycorrhizae — symbiotic fungi tha
  
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