Dear Editor, Tom Vilsack’s nomination as secretary of agriculture does not belong within Joe Biden’s progressive agenda. Vilsack has served as governor of Iowa, secretary of agriculture under President Obama, and chief lobbyist for the dairy industry. His candidacy is opposed by a vast coalition of small and minority farmers, as well as consumer, labor,…

Dear Editor, I, “Champlain” Mike-Michel Messier have been a taxpayer/ratepayer and an active participant in Rutland Real Estate and Community for 40 years. I attended Rutland Elementary, MSJ, UVM (BS), St. Michael’s (MSA); CCV and Castleton. I have the intellect, skills, ability, desire, temperament, and work experience to be the next Rutland City Assessor. I…

Dear Editor, Since late January, there have been 22 avalanche deaths in America across 16 incidents in nine states, including a death in New Hampshire. It’s been one of the most deadly periods in recorded history. It is absolutely heartbreaking to see people get killed doing something they love. It makes these deaths very hard…

By Jenn Swain Burton Snowboards was born in a barn in southern Vermont over 40 years ago, and we proudly remain a Vermont-based business. The climate crisis is a direct threat to the sport we love, the mountain lifestyle that we and our community lead, and our long-term business success. In today’s world we are…

By William J. Mathis It is particularly noteworthy (and problematic) that Vermont, with a low gross state product, allocates a high proportion of its wealth to education.  Yet, regardless of how and who is doing the measuring, we can take pride in consistently scoring in the top 10 in educational quality. Realizing the need for…

By Sen. Alison Clarkson Our Town Meetings will be unusual this year. Yet another example of Vermont’s ability to respond flexibly to the continuing challenges the Covid-19 pandemic presents. Some towns are holding Informational Meetings in advance of the vote by Australian ballot on Tuesday, March 2. Some are holding off until May in hopes…

BY Rep. Jim Harrison The House Appropriations Committee was ground zero for what has been dubbed, a “mini Covid relief bill.” Utilizing some unspent federal coronavirus relief funds from last year along with one-time money from the current better than expected revenue forecasts, the committee assembled a bill appropriating more than $55 million in very…

Feb. 17, the Coalition for Tobacco Free Vermont, along with health experts, members of the House and Senate Social Equity Caucuses, the Center for Black Health and Equity, and Vermont youth urged the Vermont Legislature to pass S.24, legislation to eliminate the sale of all flavored tobacco products. “It’s vital that Vermont lawmakers stand up to…

By Julia Purdy Six of the seven mayoral candidates for Rutland city went before the public Feb. 10 in a virtual forum led by the Rutland Young Professionals and livestreamed on Facebook. Kimberly Rupe, president of the RYP board, explained that signups for Zoom had exceeded the permissible number so the forum was moved to…

Vermont Lieutenant Governor Molly Gray launched Lt. Governor for a Day— a virtual series to engage Vermont students and classrooms in state government. The bi-weekly series, hosted every other Wednesday starting, 12-2 p.m. on Feb. 24, will allow students to engage directly with the lieutenant governor. Each Lt. Governor for a Day will begin with…

Governor Phil Scott has issued an executive order creating the Governor’s Commission on the Future of Vermont Agriculture to study and strategize how best to grow agriculture in the Green Mountain State. The commission’s charge will focus on ensuring the viability and adaptability of this sector, including recommendations for more cross-sector collaboration, increasing production and promotion, reducing…

Joseph James Peterson was a man of many names.  Whether you knew him as Jamie, Joe, BBY, Robert, or Bobby, you knew him as a friend.  A friend you could count on in good times and bad.  A friend to go to for advice, to share a secret, or to shed a tear.  Bobby was…

Castleton University to combine with NVU and VTC, CCV to remain separate, all campuses to stay open Staff report On Monday, Feb. 22, the Vermont State College System board of trustees voted unanimously to move forward with the proposal outlined by the state’s Select Committee on the Future of Public Higher Education in Vermont. The…

Taking the entrepreneurial passion route to the ski life By Karen D. Lorentz Growing up in a family of seven boys and one girl, Pico’s Director of Operations and Killington’s Director of Summer Operations Rich McCoy will tell you it was natural to play sports and love waterskiing and boating on nearby lakes. That background…

By Erin Petenko/VTDigger A new analysis of police budget proposals up for a vote on Town Meeting Day found that, on average, they’re flat — police budgets headed for voters next month have dropped very slightly — on average, by 0.45%. But an average is just an average, and police budgets vary widely from community to community.…