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Kingsley Fitzgerald, 5, looks under the voting booths her while her mother Caitlin Rutherford marks her ballot in South Burlington on Town Meeting Day on March 7, 2023. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger In Vermont, March 5 is going to be a busy day. Not only are most municipalities scheduled to host Town Meeting Day, but…

Photo courtesy of Rep. Mary-Katherine Stone. I hate to break it to you, dear Final Reader, but if you think you had a romantic Valentine’s Day, Rep. Mary-Katherine Stone, D/P-Burlington, probably had you beat. Minutes after Wednesday afternoon’s House floor session came to a close, dozens of lawmakers giddily gathered in the Statehouse lobby to…

Rep. Martin Lalonde, D-South Burlington, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, speaks during a committee meeting at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Jan. 25, 2023. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Gov. Phil Scott’s 2025 budget proposal would force the Vermont Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs to cut as many as nine prosecutor positions, department…

Lamoille County Mental Health Services (LCMHS) has been providing peer support for many years now. This is groundbreaking work in the emerging climate of the mental health landscape. Peer support is first and foremost about the two R’s: Relationship and Recovery. As such, peer support is about two individuals, both with lived experience, coming together…

This commentary is by Jared Duval of Montpelier. He serves on the board of directors of the Public Assets Institute. Today in Vermont, the top 1% of income earners — Vermonters who make more than half a million dollars a year — pay a lower share of their income in state and local taxes than…

This commentary is by Rep. Jessica Brumsted of Shelburne. She is vice chair of the Human Services Committee and co-chaired the Summer Government Accountability Committee. The committee’s final report was delivered to the Legislature on Dec. 13, 2023, and is posted at legislature.vermont.gov.  Every year, the Legislature convenes for five months at the Statehouse in…

This commentary is by Dr. Dorothy Brodmann of Burlington. She is an optometrist who practices in Burlington and Stowe. It’s safe to say most Vermonters have a relationship with their optometrist. They see us for primary eye care: exams, glasses and contacts — but some may not understand the full breadth of our capability and…

A worker makes snow at Brattleboro’s Harris Hill Ski Jump the week of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in preparation for the slope’s annual Presidents Day weekend competition. Photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDigger BRATTLEBORO — When this town’s Harris Hill Ski Jump hosted its first national championship in 1924, the biggest obstacle faced by what the…

This commentary is by Dana Kaplan, executive director of Outright Vermont. In a world increasingly marred by division and violence, the steadfast support of Vermont’s elected officials for the LGBTQ+ community emerges as a beacon of hope and courage, especially for LGBTQ+ youth who are in the crosshairs of hate on a daily basis.  Last…

As a strong supporter of the original Act 48 for universal health care in Vermont, I agree with the letter signed by all of the leading advocates of health care reform which was addressed about not supporting S. 211. The Green Mountain Care Board has been a way for the public to address the needs…

I was very happy to see that this issue has been brought to the attention of the public. It is not a new phenomenon, but has worsened over the 25 years I spent as an RN in Emergency Medicine. Patients awaiting long-term placement are only part of the problem. The other issue is the ongoing,…

Sen. Dick Mazza, D-Grand Isle, in the Senate Transportation Committee room at the Statehouse on Tuesday, February 6, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger MONTPELIER — As word got out last week that Sen. Dick Mazza, D-Grand Isle, had returned to the Vermont Statehouse, a steady stream of friends and colleagues ducked into the first-floor committee…

This 2017 file photo shows Rutland’s water reservoir, located beside the city’s water treatment facility. Photo courtesy of Rutland Water Treatment Facility In addition to elections and the municipal budget, Rutland voters will weigh in next month on whether to keep fluoride in the city’s water supply. The question is back again on the Town…

Two large pulp milling stones, salvaged from the Connecticut River, are now part of the park’s displays. Photo by Robert F. Smith/The Commons This story by Robert F. Smith was first published by the Commons on Feb. 7.  What was the bustling industrial center of Bellows Falls a hundred years ago has slowly been converted…

This commentary is by Bob Stannard of Manchester, an author, musician, and former state legislator and lobbyist. What separates a good Vermont town from a great Vermont town? One could argue that it’s a town that offers wonderful recreation, excellent schools and outstanding libraries. According to the Vermont Library Association, Vermont has 185 public libraries,…

A neighborhood in South Burlington on Oct. 25, 2021. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Gov. Phil Scott took direct aim on Wednesday at two bills being discussed by the Legislature’s environment committees, calling one an “economic disaster” and saying the other would “put Vermonters in jeopardy of violating laws they don’t even know exist.”  The…

This commentary is by Don Keelan of Arlington, a retired certified public accountant. In the field of auditing companies, nonprofits and government entities, auditors determine whether an entity can continue to operate. Auditor concerns are if an entity has lost a significant customer, cannot secure financing, or lost a major supplier or key personnel. Vermont…

A family celebrates their catch with a picture on Lake Elmore. Photo by Sophie Acker/Community News Service Leah Golding is a reporter with Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program. Over 700 people ventured to Elmore State Park on a recent Saturday for license-free fishing, educational presentations and…

Bos-Lun has a passion for foraging, cultivating and photographing wild mushrooms. Photos via Michelle Bos-Lun and Pixabay. Photo illustration by Natalie Williams and Kristen Fountain/VTDigger The House is starting to get its due in the latest Power Lunch, a semi-regular edition of Final Reading where I go deep with Statehouse regulars about anything but politics.…

Thomas H. Velde enters Rutland criminal court on July 26, 2018, to receive a sentence of 19 years in prison for a fatal hit-and-run. Pool photo by Robert Layman/Rutland Herald The criminal case surrounding a high-profile hit-and-run that killed a well-known Rutland County dairy farmer in 2016 was back in court this week after a…

The Vermont Law School in South Royalton on Dec. 29, 2020. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger This story by Darren Marcy was first published by the White River Valley Herald on Feb. 8.  A professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School in South Royalton is being remembered for his dedication to his work in the…

This commentary is by Joe Moore of Montpelier, a labor organizer and member of Central Vermont Democratic Socialists of America. This Town Meeting Day, Montpelier residents will have the opportunity to vote on a just cause eviction charter change measure (Article 14). I am one of the people who collected the more than 300 signatures…