By Emerson Lynn Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison, has introduced a bill to create a Community College Scholarship Program that would provide tuition-free scholarships for Vermont residents attending CCV. It would, from the outset, require a $6 million appropriation. That’s a small amount of money that would yield profound benefits at a variety of levels, and…

By Amy Spear Tourism is a significant economic driver for many of Vermont’s rural communities. Visitors spend more than $2.5 billion in Vermont each year, and the tourism industry employs more than 32,000 Vermonters. The tax revenue generated by the tourism industry each year equates to a $1,450 tax savings for every Vermont household. Yet,…

  By Rob Roper The Vermont Legislature returns in January with a long list of daunting challenges, all with potentially astronomical price tags for Vermonters, who are already some of the most highly taxed people in the United States. Among this list includes a projected 6% increase in property taxes to fund an education system…

By Angelo Lynn Contrary to Trump’s juvenile tweet in the wake of Iran’s missile attack on two U.S. military bases in Iraq that “all is well… so far,” any realistic assessment of America’s position in the Middle East over the past couple of years would outline how much weaker we are today because of this…

By Lee H. Hamilton Here’s a basic truth about people who make decisions on public policy: they rarely have all the facts they want. Over the years, I’ve sat in countless meetings in which, after we’d reached a sticking point, someone said in exasperation, “Well, what are the facts?” We’d all look around the room…

By Sen. Jeff Flake Editor’s note: As this country enters a new decade and tries to put the first two tumultuous decades of this new century behind us, Americans face a peril unknown in the country’s 220 year history: a president who would willingly trade our democratic form of government for that of an autocracy,…

By David Van Deusen As president of the 10,000 member Vermont AFL-CIO (and as a former organizer with the Sierra Club), it was with keen interest that I read the recommendations of the Transportation and Climate Initiative.  This group, representing 12 Northeast states, is seeking to take steps to increase the price of fuel over…

By Angelo Lynn In recent impeachment hearings, during which House Democrats called on three judicial scholars for their constitutional interpretation of what acts would be grounds for impeachment, the evidence was overwhelming that President Trump’s attempted bribery of Ukraine’s president met the standard of “high crimes and misdemeanors.” According to numerous reporters present, the testimony…

By Angelo Lynn In a little noticed Department of Public Service review of the state’s current net-metering structure, the DPS recommends to the Public Utility Commission that the net-metering rate be reduced from the current 17 cents per kWh to 9.2 cents per kWh — cutting the rate almost in half, and effectively knocking the…

By Rob Roper Gov. Phil Scott recently took some heat from the media over a statement he made following the announcement by Energizer that they would be closing their Bennington plant and moving its operations to Wisconsin. The governor said: “This decision [by Energizer] is an unfortunate example of why those of us in Montpelier…

By Angelo Lynn As advocates of small schools and those supporting school consolidation come to terms with declining enrollments and rising costs, here’s the conundrum both face: consolidation is the right short-term answer to cost-cutting to contain higher and higher taxes, but it’s the wrong answer to building a stronger, more diverse statewide economy. It’s…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Lili Platt and Evelyn Seidner, Vermont Youth Lobby organizers and students at Harwood Union High School, Montpelier High School and Burr & Burton Academy respectively. Despite our state’s green reputation, Vermont has not made the necessary action to achieve its climate goals. Since 1990, Vermont’s carbon emissions have risen…

By Dan Smith Nationwide, approximately 50% of all students pursuing higher education attend community colleges. But only about 1.5% of total private donations for higher education directly support the mission of community colleges. This occurs despite many compelling factors at play which philanthropy usually relies on to inform its decision-making. For instance, operational costs for…

By Jay Diaz “The liberties of a people never were, nor ever will be, secure when the transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them,” said Patrick Henry. The Vermont Supreme Court recently affirmed that government officials cannot require Vermonters to pay fees to inspect public records, a common practice that has hindered government…

National standardized test scores drop By William J. Mathis The latest round of flagellation of dead horse flesh has been provoked by the release of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores. After 20 years of overall progress, many of the scores went down. While all groups improved over the long haul, the gaps…