Editor’s note: This is a transcript of closing remarks Gov. Phil Scott delivered to the Senate on May 12.   When I addressed you at the start of the session, I said – thanks to billions in federal aid, and the fiscal discipline we’d practiced for three years leading up to the pandemic –…

  By Gov. Phil Scott Editor’s note: On May 4, Gov. Phil Scott returned without signature and vetoed S.5 and sent the following letter to the General Assembly. As governor, I believe we must make Vermont more affordable by helping Vermonters keep more of what they earn, while we simultaneously make transformative, strategic investments in…

  Dear Editor, The Supreme Court has a serious ethics problem, and the latest revelations about Clarence Thomas should be alarming to every American. For 20 years, Thomas has accepted high-end, luxury, all-expense-paid vacations around the world from Republican megadonor Harlan Crow. And he never disclosed any of it to the public. What’s more, he…

  Dear Editor, The  Vermont legisl ative session for 2023 has come to an end. There is no good news for those few Vermonters that might expect their elected representatives to respect our hard earned tax dollars. The Democrat supermajority has passed an $8.5 billion dollar budget, the largest in the history of the state.…

  Dear Editor,  Only three years after red-tagging above ground heating oil tanks for replacement to the tune of $1,800-$2,400, S.5, called the Clean Heat Act or the Affordable Heat Act, is adding another heating-related headache to Vermont households and buildings that requires the removal of heating oil tanks altogether. S.5 states right up front…

  By Rep. Gabrielle Stebbins & Sen. Rebecca White Despite overwhelming Senate and House support and the addition of a “check-back” mechanism per his request, Governor Scott vetoed S.5, the Affordable Heat Act.  Recently, in just over a year, the price of fuel oil rose by $2 per gallon, and for the first time in…

The Vermont Habitat Stamp raised $221,337 in 2022 and leveraged a $228,567 federal match, totaling just under $450,000 for the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department’s land conservation and habitat improvement efforts, according to a news release from the Agency of Natural Resources May 2. “This is our second strongest year for the Habitat Stamp since the program…

  By Sarah Mearhoff/VTDigger With their approval of an $8.5 billion budget and the fall of the gavel Friday, May 12, at 8:23 p.m. and 11:31 p.m. respectively, the Vermont Senate and House adjourned for the final day of the 2023 legislative session. In January, state lawmakers kicked off their first fully in-person legislative session since…

  On my way home from Montpelier after the close of the regular session of the 2023 Vermont Legislature I listened to some Simon & Garfunkel music. As they sang “Bridge over Troubled Water” I couldn’t help but think the title could also sum up some of my thoughts about the session. Don’t get me…

Senate overrides governor’s veto of affordable heat bill The Senate adjourned our 2023 Legislative session at 8:23 p.m. Friday evening May 12, three hours earlier than the House, which needed to act on the last bills the Senate had messaged. With an impressive number of new legislators re-energizing the Legislature, we accomplished a great deal…

The Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) and the Vermont Economic Progress Council (VEPC) announced May 8 John Russell would be the new chair of the Vermont Economic Progress Council.  John Russell was first appointed to the VEPC Board by Governor Phil Scott in April 2019. Russell represents Rutland County on the board and…

By Curt Peterson Eighty-year old Hartland businessman David Cowdry represented himself May 4 at the Windsor County Courthouse in Woodstock, facing two attorneys and a couple of environmental enforcement professionals from the state. At issue is Cowdry’s property on Route 12 in Hartland that the state says must be cleared of inoperable vehicles or “junk…

By Curt Peterson Actual work on the controversial reconfiguration of the Three Corners intersection in Hartland should begin in early June, according to Rita Seto, senior planner and manager of the Transportation Planning Program at Two Rivers Ottauquechee River Commission (TRORC). Seto presented a project progress report to the selectboard on May 15. In the…

Killington Resort received the 2023 NSAA Award for Best Collision Avoidance Program. The awards were distributed as part of NSAA’s 2023 National Convention & Tradeshow on May 10 in Savannah, Georgia. “We are thrilled to receive this award, as guest safety is paramount to our success at Killington and Pico,” President Mike Solimano said. “We have had…

James Joseph Fiore of Killington born Nov. 1, 1950 in Everett, Massachussetts passed away peacefully with his family by his side on May 6, 2023.  He was predeceased by his parents Janette and Gerald Fiore of Everett, Massachussets  and his brother Gerald Fiore of Reading. He is survived by his brother Michael and his wife…