By Anne Galloway, VTDigger.org Gov. Peter Shumlin says the fiscal year 2016 budget is the toughest he’s ever had to deliver to the Vermont Legislature. The governor’s budget fills a $94 million gap between state spending and tax revenues by spreading cuts across state gov- ernment and raising $20 million in new revenues by eliminating…

By Tom Brown, VTDigger.org Vermonters illegally consume between 33,000 and 55,000 pounds of marijuana annually, according to a study by the Rand Drug Policy Research Center. Legalizing, taxing and regulating that volume could generate $20 million to $75 million a year, the report said. Factor in marijuana tourism, and the revenue estimate soars into the…

Vermont’s tax system fairer than most, but still regressive overall Vermont taxes are higher, as a percentage of income, on the poor and those in the middle than they are on the 1 percent at the top, according to the new study “Who Pays?” released Wednesday, Jan. 14, by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). Vermont is not alone;…

Sanders: Statement in Response to the President's State of the Union Address WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement tonight after President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address: “As President Obama indicated, our economy today is much stronger than it was six years…

By Laura Krantz, VTDigger.org Gov. Peter Shumlin was re-elected to a third term Thursday morning, Jan. 8, in a secret ballot by a joint assembly of the Vermont Legislature. Shumlin defeated Republican Scott Milne in a 110-69 vote. In the Nov. 4 general election, Shumlin beat Milne by 2,434 votes. He won 46.4 percent of…

By Tom Brown, www.VTDigger.org Groups that support the legalization of marijuana joined forces Tuesday, saying that decades of prohibiting recreational use of the drug has failed. “No matter how you slice it, marijuana prohibition has not been an effective policy for the state of Vermont,” Matt Simon, New England political director of the Marijuana Policy…

Governor Peter Shumlin, who was sworn in for a third term as governor of Vermont on Thursday, Jan. 8, used his inaugural address to outline Part I of his Agenda For Progress, focusing on initiatives critical to working families, economic growth, energy and the environment, and citing Vermont’s special quality of life. The Governor’s multifaceted…

Demonstrators demand legislators move forward with nation’s first universal healthcare law Dozens of universal healthcare supporters held a sit-in at the Vermont statehouse on the evening of Jan. 8, following a colorful rally drawing hundreds. Numerous times members of the demonstrating group interrupted Governor Shumlin as he delivered his annual State of the State address.…

By Amy Ash Nixon, VTDigger.org Rebecca Holcombe, the secretary of the Agency of Education, presented two scenarios to lawmakers on Friday. School A has 300 students and a long list of science classes and several science teachers, including a few Advanced Placement classes, while School B has 80 students with teacher offering a few classes…

On Wednesday, Jan. 7, Senator Bernie Sanders welcomed President Barack Obama’s announcement that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will cut mortgage-insurance premiums as part of an effort to expand opportunities for first-time homebuyers. Annual fees the agency charges to guarantee mortgages will be cut by 0.5 percentage points from the current rate of 1.35 percent.…

By Laura Krantz, VTDigger.org Gov. Peter Shumlin was re-elected to a third term Thursday morning in a secret ballot by a joint assembly of the Vermont Legislature. Shumlin defeated Republican Scott Milne in a 110-69 vote. In the Nov. 4 general election, Shumlin beat Milne by 2,434 votes. He won 46.4 percent of the vote,…

By Anne Galloway, VTDigger.org On Thursday, Jan. 8, lawmakers will cast secret ballots to elect the new governor. Neither Scott Milne, the Republican candidate, nor incumbent governor Shumlin received more than 50 percent of the vote on Election Day, and under the Vermont constitution, the Legislature must now decide. Legislators have traditionally supported the top…

By Anne Galloway, VTDigger.org The minimum wage in Vermont went up by 42 cents from $8.73 per hour to $9.15 per hour on Jan. 1. The rate is set to increase again in 2016 to $9.60 an hour, to $10 an hour in 2017 and  to $10.50 an hour in 2018. In subsequent years, the…

On Monday, Jan. 5, Secretary of State Jim Condos announced the successful launch of the new Vermont Lobbying Information System. The new system allows lobbyists, lobbyist firms, and lobbyist employers to register, manage their information, and make payments online. Secretary Condos explained “the new system not only makes lobbyist registration and disclosure simple and intuitive…

Governor says progress is good news but also highlights need for further health care reform  On Monday, Jan. 5, Gov. Peter Shumlin welcomed news that the Vermont Household Health Insurance Survey shows the number of Vermonters without health insurance has dropped significantly and reiterated the need for aggressive health care reform efforts to increase access…