By Angelo Lynn This year on Town Meeting Day, 23 towns voted on whether to allow the retail sale of cannabis. They were: Barton, Bennington, Berlin, Brandon, Brattleboro, Brownington, Burlington, Danby, Danville, Duxbury, Lyndon, Middlebury, Montpelier, Newport City, Pawlet, Pownal, Randolph, Richmond, Salisbury, Strafford, Waitsfield, Waterbury and Winooski. (Voting finished after publication deadline, visit mountaintimes.info…

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 Julia Purdy If anyone doubts the existence of domestic terrorism, stoked by murderous, insane hatred and abetted by weekend wargames and pseudomilitary fantasies, it was on full display at the nation’s Capitol Jan. 6. The irony is that these insurrectionists claimed to be defending democracy while they in fact were bent on demolishing it,…

By Bill Bender, president of Solaflect Energy It is time for the Scott administration and Vermont electric utility regulators — the Public Service Department (PSD), the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR)) to watch the Super Bowl, or more specifically, the ads. The world is changing, but Vermont’s regulators and…

By Shawn Shouldice Small business challenges have persisted for years due to wage mandates, health insurance premium increases, paid family leave requirements, climate change policies that raise energy costs, and higher taxes or trouble hiring due to the state’s aging demographics. But when Governor Scott declared a state of emergency on March 13, 2020, a…

By John Casella, president, and Lyle P. Jepson, executive director of CEDRR The following is a letter to the Vermont State Colleges (VSC) board of trustees dated Feb. 2, from the Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region (CEDRR) representing its membership of approximately 400 Rutland County businesses, as well as many municipalities. This…

By Cathy Davis Vermont understands sustainability in a way few other places do. Whether it be our agrarian roots, living closer to natural resources, or something else, it is hard to find a Vermonter who does not intrinsically understand that the environment or natural systems have a carrying capacity, that resources are finite, and that…

By Angelo Lynn Last Tuesday, Jan. 26, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott proposed a dream $6.83 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2022: It proposed no increase in proposed taxes or fees, it avoided cutting any essential services, and it added $210 million in new investments to bolster the state’s economy. In recent times, that’s unheard of…

Editor's note: this commentary, signed by more than 50 Vermonters, was sent Monday, Jan. 25, to news organizations throughout the state. Vermont is the only state in the nation which has never elected a woman to Congress. Only one woman has served as governor. We have never elected a woman of color to any legislative…

By Matt Krauss With the exit of President Donald Trump isn’t this a perfect time for Vermont media to build a working, mutually beneficial relationship with Vermont conservatives? Covid-19 has permanently transformed our institutions and practices. Aren’t Vermont media’s websites, publications, and programs now routinely and unashamedly asking for survival money? We're told it’s temporary,…

By Kesha Ram Editor’s note: This commentary is by Sen. Kesha Ram, D-Chittenden, who is the first woman of color to serve in the Vermont state Senate. She is the co-chair of the Vermont Social Equity Caucus. Jan. 6 began with historic election results in Georgia and my own swearing-in to the Vermont state Senate. By…

By Marguerite Jill Dye I never knew I craved normalcy To such an extent, to such a degree. But suddenly, I’m finding myself Heaving sigh after sigh of needed relief.   Your calm, steady voice, and healing words, Spoken directly from your heart, Soothe my soul, calm my nerves, Alleviate headaches and regulate my heart…

By Bob Allen, former president of Green Mountain College, Poultney The Select Committee and the Vermont Legislature have a difficult task ahead. Covid-19 exacerbated and accelerated a problem that has existed in higher education for at least a decade or more. I will argue the business model for most public and private colleges and universities…

By John Steen Editor’s note: John Steen is a retired scholar and teacher of philosophy, followed by a 20-year career in health care planning, health regulation and public health, ending as a professor of health policy and a private consultant. He is immediate past president of the American Health Planning Association. He lives in South Burlington. Public…

By Paul Costello As we come out of the crucible of the pandemic and look to a new year, we need more than recovery, we need to work together to advance renewal and resilience for our communities and economy. The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) has been asking Vermonters what recovery will look like.…