The Vermont state police is investigating the deaths of two people whose bodies were found inside a vehicle this weekend in the driveway of a private residence in Vershire. Based on preliminary information received Monday, April 5, from the Vermont Chief Medical Examiner’s Office, the deaths do not appear suspicious. Police received an emergency call…

By Xander Landen and Kit Norton/VTDigger When Congress established the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) last year, the aim was to provide tax-free, forgivable loans to businesses to help them make payroll and stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic. But now, the Vermont Legislature is looking to tax some of those emergency payouts. The state House and Senate came…

A new federally funded Vermont Emergency Rental Assistance Program (VERAP) will provide aid to eligible residents of Vermont who cannot pay their rent due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  VERAP will be administered by the  state-authorized  Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA) with an online application provided by ReFrame Solutions, call center, and case management services from BPO…

On March 29, the Public Utility Commission issued an order extending the temporary moratorium for natural gas, electric, and traditional landline telephone service through May 31, 2021. (Water service is presently covered by an involuntary disconnection moratorium that was enacted last year.) “We recognize that many Vermonters are still suffering from the public health and…

By Sen. Alison Clarkson The Vermont Constitution is a living document and, as such, is allowed to be amended. However, the authors of our Constitution in 1777 did not make it an easy document to amend. It is a multi-year process, requiring review and approval in two consecutive legislative biennia (in this case 2019-20 and…

By Rep. Jim Harrison Last week there were unmistakable signs of spring around us. Warmer temperatures, area golf courses reopening, crocuses and daffodils blossoming and more. Another sign of spring happens in the Legislature this time of year as well. It is evidenced by the beginning of passage of bills in either the House or…

The U.S. Small Business Administration officially open the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) application portal on April 8 for operators of live venues, live performing arts organizations, museums and movie theaters, as well as live venue promoters, theatrical producers and talent representatives to apply for critical economic relief, as those eligible entities are some of the first that had…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger The public costs of domestic and sexual violence total an estimated $111 million a year in Vermont, with more than half that money spent not on direct services to survivors, but on incarceration and law enforcement. That’s according to a new report released Monday, April 5, by the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence,…

Funding from the American Rescue Plan is in addition to the state’s annual award of $3.4 million  Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Representative Peter Welch (D-Vt.) announced Monday, April 12, that Vermont has received more than $11 million in additional funding for affordable housing construction under the American Rescue Plan Act, through…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger At the start of the pandemic, state and education officials worried that Covid-19 would be a financial catastrophe for the pre-K-12 system. Instead, the opposite happened. With three major federal relief packages approved by Congress since the start of the pandemic, schools in Vermont and the Agency of Education have been allocated a combined $566…

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger and Polly Mikula Around the state, slots for vaccines have filled up quickly at several clinics organized specifically for Vermonters who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and those in their households. Megan Herrington, public health services director for the Bennington district, said around 3,000 Vermonters who qualified registered for the…

National Healthcare Decisions Day, a day devoted to educating the public about the importance of advance care planning, is Friday, April 16. Though we at the Vermont Ethics Network spend all year stressing the importance of planning ahead for future health care decisions, we take this annual opportunity to make a public statement encouraging Vermonters…

Governor Phil Scott, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, Vermont Afterschool and the Agency of Education outlined a plan to enhance and expand summertime enrichment opportunities for Vermont students grades K-12, April 9. In response to the impact of the pandemic on children, youth and families, Governor Scott, Senator Sanders and other partners worked to ensure that…

It’s a question of social fairness that has grown increasingly pertinent for public health officials as more and more Americans receive their initial dose of the Covid-19 vaccine: Should vaccinated people, or those with antibodies, have more freedom than those without or who have not been vaccinated? As some public spaces begin to open up,…

  By Polly Mikula Governor Phil Scott issued the “Vermont Forward, Roadmap to Reopening” on April 6, which outlined a three step approach to reopening the Vermont economy based on projected vaccination milestones reached. “We now have three safe and effective vaccines in our toolbox, which gives us a level of predictability we didn’t have…