By Morgan True, VTDigger.org For the second consecutive year, Vermont ranks as the second-healthiest state in the U.S., according to America’s Health Rankings 2014 report. The report was is based on an evaluation of four categories of health determinants including behaviors, community and environment, clinical care and policy as well as the health outcomes those…

Smart Approaches to Marijuana chapter takes root in Vermont By Julia Purdy At the start of 2012, both Colorado and Washington State voters legalized recreational marijuana. However, the votes amounted to nothing like a landslide, as many expected, with about half the counties in each state voting against it — a push-back has been building since.…

By Polly Lynn MENDON — On Sunday afternoon Seth Bridge, Jesse Bridge, Nick Paquette, Kelly Paquette and a few other friends and family admired the larger-than-life snowman they had constructed on the east side of Bridge’s Country Store in Mendon. “Inside are race-car tires to give it support,” Kelly Paquette explained. “They all race, so they…

Dec. 21 is not only the longest night but also the darkest as there there will be a new moon By Carolyn Lorié Every year, I eagerly await the winter solstice, which this year falls on Dec. 21. My anticipation is driven not from an affection for winter, but a hunger for sunlight. I want…

Vermont was awarded $7.3 million in what is expected to be a $33.4 million, four-year federal grant for pre-kindergarten programs at public schools and Head Start agencies throughout the state. The latest award is in addition to $37 million Vermont received last year to lay the foundation for its pre-K program. The earlier federal grant…

By John Herrick, VTDigger.org A company seeking to build a high-voltage power line beneath Lake Champlain applied for a state permit Tuesday. TDI New England is asking the Public Service Board for a certificate of public good to build a 154-mile underground and underwater power line that would carry hydroelectric and wind power generated in…

By Anne Galloway, VTDigger.org A report released on Friday proposes three changes to Vermont’s property tax system. The changes include: a “renovation” plan that would lead to reductions in school spending; a “variable income tax” proposal that would replace a portion of the property tax revenues with income taxes; and a regional block grant plan…

The Vermont State Police wants to remind the motoring public to clear all snow and ice from the roofs and windshields of their vehicles. Snow dislodging from a moving vehicle creates an extreme driving hazard for all motorists. In addition, snow and ice covering the windows of the vehicle create blind spots. Motorists can be…

America’s surging trade deficit with China has cost more than 3.2 million U.S. jobs, 8,200 alone in Vermont, or 2.51percent of Vermont jobs. This ranks Vermont as ninth in the nation. The overwhelming majority of jobs lost are in manufacturing, according to a study released today by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Every congressional district…

By Anne Galloway, VTDigger.org The Shumlin administration has recommended a 2 cent increase in the statewide property tax rates for residential and commercial property for fiscal year 2016. Last year, property tax rates increased by 4.5 cents for homestead and 7 cents for nonresidential real estate for every $100 of assessed value. The previous year’s…

By Hilary Niles, VTDigger.org Vermont’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.4 percent in October, according to a report released Friday by the Department of Labor. The leveling follows four consecutive months of increases in the seasonally adjusted jobless rate. Nationwide, Vermont tied with Kansas for ninth place among states with the lowest unemployment rates. The…

By Hilary Niles, VTDigger.org On Wednesday, Nov. 26, state agencies were directed to find another $17 million in cuts for the current budget year. That news comes on top of $31.3 million in summer rescissions after the state’s revenue forecast was downgraded. Now, four months into fiscal year 2015, revenues are another $12 million short,…

By Laura Krantz, VTDigger.org The Department for Children and Families failed to follow its own policies and moved too quickly to reunify two children with their families when it was not safe, an outside report released Friday, Nov. 21, found. That push to reunify, along with other system failures, contributed to those children’s deaths this…

By Tom Brown, VTDigger.org State Auditor Doug Hoffer is questioning why the state is in the business of selling liquor, a substance that it also regulates. Hoffer’s office issued a report Monday that examines the impact of privatizing the state’s liquor distribution system. The auditor’s report also suggested ways the Department of Liquor Control could…

By Morgan True, VTDigger.org The Affordable Care Act’s so-called “Cadillac tax” on high-value health insurance plans will cost some Vermonters an estimated $9 million when it’s implemented in 2018, according to a draft report released Monday by the Legislative Joint Fiscal Office (JFO). That tax bill is expected to grow to $40 million by 2023.…