The White River Junction Veteran Affairs Medical Center (WRJ VAMC) is collaborating with the Vermont Department of Mental Health, the Center for Health and Learning and the Vermont Suicide Prevention Center to address the rising suicide rate in the State of Vermont. Vermont’s recent suicide rate has climbed from 27th to seventh in the nation…

BURLINGTON—On April 25, Vermont’s U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a signed plea agreement from Sally Hartford Kirby, former finance director of Hunger Free Vermont charged with embezzling $165,000 over a period of many years. The theft was initially discovered at the end of October 2015 by the organization’s executive director, Marissa Parisi, thanks to a call…

Vermont files a similar complaint By Anne Galloway, Mark Johnson and Morgan True Vtdigger.org The Securities and Exchange Commission announced federal fraud charges Thursday, April 14 against two prominent Northeast Kingdom developers, accusing them of running a massive “Ponzi-like” scheme, using money from one set of investors to fund deficits in earlier projects. The developers solicited…

On Monday, Feb. 29, Gov. Peter Shumlin provided an update on the situation in North Bennington after last week when five private wells in North Bennington showed varying levels of a potentially harmful chemical called PFOA. Test results received Thursday, Feb. 25, indicated that while there is no contamination of the public water source. The…

Sen. Bernie Sanders received a perfect score (100 percent) Feb. 24 from the League of Conservation Voters for his environmental voting record in 2015. Sanders has a 95 percent lifetime score. “On climate stuff he’s been the most aggressive voice in the Senate,” environmentalist and co-founder of 350.org Bill McKibben said of Sanders. Among his…

Susan L. Donegan, commissioner of the Department of Financial Regulation (DFR), announced Feb. 26 that Continental Indemnity Co., a subsidiary of Applied Underwriters, Inc., has paid Vermont $335,000 and owes 16 Vermont businesses an additional $352,000. An investigation conducted by the department revealed that between 2007 and 2015, Continental had overcharged a number of small…

By Michael Bielawski, Vermont Watchdog Lawmakers seeking to control education costs in Vermont are discussing how many special education teachers is too many. The House Education Committee on Feb. 11 invited Michael Giangreco, professor of education at the University of Vermont, to offer advice on budget and resources for special education students. Giangreco, whose expertise…

By Tiffany Danitz Pache, VTDigger.org The nonprofit that provides health insurance for education employees and retirees in Vermont is making some significant changes to try to stay relevant amid calls from Legislators to move school employees onto the state health insurance exchange. The federal health care law says small school districts must shift onto Vermont…

On Feb. 18, the Community College of Vermont (CCV) announced a new partnership with the Vermont Department of Libraries (VTLIB) to place CCV student interns in six Vermont libraries as job-hunt helpers for Vermont residents. These libraries include the public libraries in Barre, Brattleboro, Newport, Rutland, St. Johnsbury and Winooski. The interns will work with…

By Mike Faher, VTDigger.org In 2011, after years of work, the Massachusetts Legislature approved a major overhaul of the state’s alimony law. There was not a single dissenting vote, “and it’s very rare that happens,” said Steve Hitner, the man who led the effort. Now, a group led by Brattleboro businessman Rick Fleming is attempting…

By Elizabeth Hewitt, VTDigger.org After hours of wrangling Monday, Feb. 22, a Senate committee narrowly approved a bill to legalize recreational marijuana — paving the way for the legislation to come up before the full Senate this week. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved S.241 by a slim majority of 4 to 3. But some of the committee’s…

At an annual meeting of the nation’s governors, Gov. Peter Shumlin led a successful bipartisan effort to create nationwide prescribing protocols to reduce the availability of Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.) approved opiates in America. The protocols, which are likely to include restrictions on the number of opiates that can be prescribed, will be developed…

On Feb. 10, Berkshire Natural, a healthy snack and beverage company serving New England, announced the expansion of their healthy vending machines to New Hampshire and Vermont. The expansion will further Berkshire Natural’s goal to make healthy snacks available and convenient to the general public. Currently, there is one Berkshire Natural Healthy Vending Machine in…

By Jasper Craven/VTDigger Former Gov. Madeleine Kunin defends Hillary Clinton’s record Thursday in Keene, N.H. By Jasper Craven, VTDigger.org Hillary Clinton placed a secret weapon in the audience for the last Democratic debate before the New Hampshire primary: a former Vermont governor. Thursday evening, Howard Dean sat attentively in the audience at the MSNBC debate.…

Courtesy UVM