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Editor’s note: This commentary is by Paul Dragon, the executive director of the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced its proposed rule change that would weaken protections for transgender individuals experiencing homelessness. Emergency shelter providers are empowered to deny individuals a safe space based on…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Deb Snell and Linda Olson. Snell is the president of the Vermont chapter of the American Federation of Teachers. Olson is the vice president for higher education of AFT Vermont. As a union of health care and higher education professionals in Vermont, we have witnessed the negative consequences of…

Editor’s note: This commentary was written by David L. Deen. Deen is a former legislator, honorary trustee of the Connecticut River Conservancy, and a board member of the Trout Unlimited Connecticut River Valley chapter. The day after tropic storm Isaias did its thing in Vermont, walking over the stream that crosses our land, I noticed…

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont members should expect an average 4.2% increase in their health insurance premiums in 2021; Vermonters who get insurance from MVP Healthcare will see about a 2.7% increase next year.  The Green Mountain Care Board approved the rate increases in a decision Friday.  The companies had asked for higher increases,…

Editor’s note: Renée Carpenter is a resident of East Montpelier, and a successful party to an Act 250 hearing process that protected Coburn Pond for swimming and year-round recreation. Vermont, like the rest of the country, is experiencing unusual and challenging times as we try to address the parameters of containing Covid-19. People must focus…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Rhianna Kendrick, director of operations for Groundworks Collaborative, a Brattleboro nonprofit that works to address food insecurity and housing issues in Southern Vermont. In a shocking move, during a time of crisis in our country, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), announced a plan beginning July…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Harris Webster, of Montpelier, a retired social studies teacher and a member of the Unitarian Church of Montpelier’s Climate Action Team. One of the many  but understandable frustrations of living during the Covid-19  pandemic is that media discussions and public activism surrounding the global climate crisis have  been limited.…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Don George, the CEO and president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. All of us Vermonters are worried right now. There is a lot going on. Parents and teachers are struggling with the bleak reality of school during a pandemic. Our downtown businesses are battling to survive…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Phil Holland, the author of “A Guide to the Battle of Bennington and the Bennington Monument” (West Mountain Press, 2016). His talk “The Black Presence at the Battle of Bennington” is available through the Vermont Council on the Humanities Speakers Bureau. Battle of Bennington Day in Vermont is Aug.…