If you or someone you know would like to go hunting this fall but have never taken a hunter education course, this is the time to act. Vermont’s volunteer hunter education instructors are now holding a limited number of courses throughout the state. A person must pass the basic hunter education course before they can…

The Vermont Lakes and Ponds Program is seeking volunteers to help monitor and collect information about lakes and ponds in the state. With over 800 lakes and ponds, volunteers are key to the success of the program’s lake monitoring efforts. Volunteers can be found statewide greeting lake visitors, inspecting boats, collecting water samples, tracking algal…

By Curt Peterson Scams targeting seniors is big business, according to AARP Fraud Watch Network volunteer Bill April. “An identity is stolen every two seconds,” April told an audience at the Thompson Senior Center last Thursday July 21. “Each year 21 million people lose $19 billion through scams or fraud.” Several in the audience reported…

Cliffs clear to hike and climb again Aug. 1 Hikers and rock climbers can return to Vermont cliffs starting August 1, now that peregrine falcon nesting season has ended. The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department has confirmed that all the young falcons have learned to fly and should not be disturbed by human presence on…

By Erin Petenko/VTDigger It’s been roughly a year since the Delta variant arrived in Vermont, reversing what had been a nearly Covid-free summer. Delta caused a surge in cases and hospitalizations, propelling what Health Commissioner Mark Levine deemed a new phase in the pandemic — only for Omicron to arrive in December, leading cases to…

Fred Thys/VTDigger CNBC has ranked Vermont as the top state to live in, same as last year. The cable business news channel cited how easy it is to vote in Vermont as one reason, mentioning that residents can opt to vote by mail or in person, and can start voting 45 days before election day.…

By Emma Cotton/ VTDigger When Julia Pupko pulled a little red bug out of her sweep net in late June, she doubted it was the two-spotted lady beetle. No one had seen the species in Vermont since 1996, and biologists feared it was extinct in the state. Upon closer inspection, she saw that she had,…

Vermont launched the 9-8-8 suicide and crisis lifeline on July 16. Callers will be immediately connected to compassionate, caring counselors who are trained to provide support for individuals experiencing everything from emotional distress to a mental health crisis. While they are trained to treat and address suicidality, it is not only for those individuals in…

By Rep. Jim Harrison Although the Vermont legislative session concluded on May 12, just like with a book or movie, I find it interesting to learn what happened afterwards. And because the legislative leaders decided to adjourn sine die, the outcome of various bills sent to the governor during the month after the session concluded…

Three new hunting or trapping related laws passed by the Vermont Legislature during the 2022 session are now in effect, as of July 1. Under the new laws: hunting coyotes with dogs and training dogs to hunt coyotes will be temporarily banned in Vermont; the retrieval and use of game and fur-bearing animals by hunters…

The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department says many people continue to have problems with bears looking for food near their homes. Part of the problem could arise from the food scrap ban that recently has gone into effect. “We have been receiving lots of reports of bears on decks, tearing down bird feeders, wrecking beehives,…

The Vermont State Police on Friday, July 1, marked the 75th anniversary of the agency’s creation, a watershed moment that arose from tragedy and laid the groundwork for a proud legacy of dedicated service across generations. State leaders established the Vermont State Police on July 1, 1947, in the aftermath of the disappearance of Paula…

The Vermont Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced Friday, July 1, the approval of a settlement in Vermont’s first-ever joint state/federal employment discrimination lawsuit. The settlement requires Coughlin, Inc, a McDonald’s restaurant franchisee, to pay $1.6 million in damages and state penalties and substantially reform its business practices under a…

By Sam Lipin/ Addison County Independent Someone who visited the Short Stop gas station on Middlebury’s Court Street last week just became a millionaire — a hundred-millionaire, in fact. For the first time in Vermont history, the winning Powerball jackpot ticket was sold at a Vermont retailer, Vermont Lottery officials said. And the winning ticket…

Following a formal announcement by the state of Vermont, beverages categorized as Ready-to-Drink (RTD) cocktails are now part of Vermont’s private sector as of July 1, 2022. This marks a significant legal change from previous policy, whereby RTDs could only be distributed and sold by the 80 802-agency liquor outlets throughout the state. Starting July…