By Angelo Lynn/Addison County Independent In a surprise outcome, the Otter Valley Unified Union School District budget was defeated, 522-462, by voters in the Brandon-area district on Town Meeting Day, March 1. The district’s proposed budget presented a 7.8% jump in spending with per pupil spending increasing by 9.72%. Taxes throughout district towns, however, were…

The Sherburne Trails, located on Route 100 in Killington, which were first opened for the winter season in 2020-2021thanks to a new agreement with the Green Mountain National Forest (GMNF), will now be groomed for fat bikes. The Sherburne Trails are open for non-motorized use. While fat biking has always been permitted, until now the…

By Rebecca Dragon, Rebekah Henson, Mary Anna King and Ellie Lane Editor's note: Dragon of Pownal, Henson of Hartford, King of Quechee, and Lane of Braintree together make up the Vermont Adoptee Rights Working Group, a core partner of the New England Adoptee Rights Coalition. Accessing your birth certificate is a basic civil right. It…

By Lindsay Kurrle, secretary of the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development It’s no secret: Vermont needs more Vermonters. The shortage of residents currently calling Vermont home impacts everything from tax rates and school funding to community infrastructure and business retention. Just look at the state’s labor force participation rate, which dropped 5% in…

By Rep. David Durfee, D-Shaftsbury, member of the Ways & Means committee Recently the House passed and sent to the Senate groundbreaking, bipartisan legislation to support parents and families. As part of H.510, the new Vermont Child Tax Credit would pay families the equivalent of $100 a month for every child in the household age…

Gov. Phil Scott kicked off the 2022 Vermont Maple Season by tapping the unofficial “first” maple tree at the University of Vermont Proctor Maple Research Center (PMRC) in Underhill March 7. While Vermont’s maple industry is celebrated for its world-renowned quality, taste and leading prodcution annually nationwide, the event also celebrated the important contributions of…

Covid-19 safety rules and equity initiatives remained broadly popular statewide By Peter D’Auria/VTDigger In the weeks before Town Meeting Day, a surge of anti-mask mandate, anti-“critical race theory” candidates from across Vermont made bids for seats on school boards. But according to results, many of those candidates failed to beat their opponents at the polls…

Vermont drops guidance for masking indoors, at school By Polly Mikula Starting Monday, March 14, it’s ok for everyone to unmask in public, including indoors and in K-12 schools, the state announced Thursday, March 3. “As our statewide hospitalization rate is low, and hospitals are no longer facing the Covid-related strains of the recent surge,…

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger Environmentalists and politicians in Vermont are urging New York officials to close a lock in the Champlain Canal to prevent the round goby, an aggressive invasive fish, from entering Lake Champlain. If the small green fish, which is native to the Caspian and Black Sea regions, makes its way into the lake,…

By Fred Thys/VTDigger In Town Meeting Day votes on Tuesday, March 1, Vermonters greatly expanded the number of towns where retail sales of cannabis will be permitted to anyone 21 and older. “It’s a very important moment for Vermont,” said James Pepper, chair of the Vermont Cannabis Control Board. “We want Vermonters to be able…

By Sen. Alison Clarkson Town Meeting 2022 reminded me how resourceful and nimble Vermonters are. This was our second Town Meeting season conducted during the Covid pandemic. Most of us are now comfortable operating in the virtual universe and have grown quite adept at managing meetings on Zoom or Microsoft Teams. So, this year, there…

By Victoria Gaither The start of the sugaring season in Central Vermont never gets old for locals. In fact, for Rutland residents Art and Cindy Trevino, warmer temperatures and the end of February is the time to pull out the buckets, lids, drill, hammer, hooks, and spile. “I love sugaring because it gives us something…

Dear Editor, Editor’s note: Gregory Thayer is a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor. He lives in Rutland. Have you seen the price of gasoline at your local gas station pumps? I paid $3.69 per gallon two days ago. This is happening all across the Green Mountain state to working Vermonters already struggling with inflation at…

By Angelo Lynn To adjust from last Tuesday’s Town Meeting concerns to the dizzyingly complex world stage is mind-numbing. Putin’s increasingly brutal invasion of Ukraine has shocked our collective senses. The personal stories of survival and death, of fear yet determination, of heroic acts and national resilience among the Ukrainian people have reawakened the hearts…

Dear Editor, There is an extraordinary exhibit at the Vermont Historical Museum, one that I encourage you to visit. It will be there from now until July 30. It tells the disturbing story of St. Joseph’s Orphanage in Burlington and the children who were abused there. When the documented torture and abuse of children was…