By Emma Cotton/VTDigger A state-funded collaborative designed to fuel recreation projects distributed $300,000 to towns around the state since its inception three years ago. This year, the collaborative has more than $5 million to spend. The Vermont Outdoor Recreation Economic Collaborative, part of the Dept. of Forests, Parks & Recreation, was formed in 2018 when Gov.…

By Erin Petenko and Emma Cotton/VTDigger Washington, Oregon, California and British Columbia are in the midst of a brutal heatwave that has broken records with 115° temperatures and widespread highs above 100 °. It seems unthinkable to imagine Vermont, land of snow and frigid winters, experiencing such a once-in-a-lifetime event. But data and interviews with…

Vermont Fish & Wildlife is offering shooting range improvement grants to encourage upgrades of shooting ranges for enhanced safety and operation. The Shooting Range Improvement Grant Program seeks grant applications from clubs and government agencies involved in the operation of shooting ranges, including archery ranges. Grant applications must be received by 4:30 p.m. on October…

By Kevin O’Connor/VTDigger Unusually heavy rain has washed away the railroad bed of a stretch of track in this southern Vermont town, spurring a construction crew to scramble to rebuild the area before the scheduled return of Amtrak service to the state on Monday. A worker for the New England Central Railroad first noticed a burst…

By Riley Robinson/VTDigger On July 15, most Vermont parents will begin to receive a new monthly payment from the federal government, as part of the Covid-19 relief signed into law in March. This new monthly payment system is a revision to the existing child tax credit, which was first enacted in 1997. Usually, parents have received…

By Kit Norton/VTDigger Gov. Phil Scott called Ford Motor Co.’s production of an electric F-150 pickup truck a “game changer” for Vermont as the state aims to drastically reduce carbon emissions in the coming years. Scott said during his Tuesday press conference, July 6, that the Ford F-150 Lightning, the name of the new pickup, could…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger A group of lawmakers tasked with proposing an overhaul to Vermont’s K-12 education finance system began their work on Tuesday, electing Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison, and Rep. Emilie Kornheiser, D-Brattleboro, to be its co-chairs. The charge of the Task Force on the Imple- mentation of the Pupil Weighting Factors Report, as the eight-member special…

Housing bill included statewide inspection system for short- and long-term rentals By Xander Landen/VTDigger Gov. Phil Scott on Friday, July 2, vetoed legislation that would have set up a rental registry and statewide system to enforce property safety standards. The governor said that the bill, S.79, would “reduce the number of housing options for Vermonters at…

By Erin Petenko/VTDigger As vaccinations rise throughout the state — hitting 81.9% of eligible Vermonters on June 29 — readers have written to VTDigger to ask: Just how many vaccinated Vermonters have ended up with Covid-19 anyway? The Vermont Dept. of Health has the answer: 239 Vermonters since Jan. 1. But the small sample of data, plus…

By Alan J. Keays/VTDigger Some housing units will be closed at the Marble Valley Regional Correctional Facility in Rutland so workers there can be shifted to the Springfield prison to cover staffing shortages there.  “I wouldn’t say it’s dire but I would say it’s concerning,” Al Cormier, chief of operations for the Vermont Department of…

By Ethan Weinstein  Lt. Gov. Molly Gray kicked off her Recover Stronger tour in Rutland on Wednesday, June 16. Her goal: learn what Vermonters learned from the pandemic, and what the state should do as it eases back to pre-pandemic life. Stopping at Rutland Intermediate School, RRMC, and the Village Snack Bar, Gray chatted with…

State provides update on Delta variant, emergency housing program and veto session By Hannah Laga Abram It’s been a week since Vermont lifted all Covid-19 restrictions — and the skies didn’t fall. On the contrary, as Gov. Phil Scott emphasized in Tuesday’s press conference, new case numbers continue to decrease throughout the state, Vermonters continue…

By Xander Landen/VTDigger Though they adjourned last month, Vermont lawmakers are preparing to log back on to Zoom once again next week.  Legislators will return June 23 for a remote veto session, during which Democratic leaders will attempt to revive the three bills that Gov. Phil Scott killed this year. They also plan to pass a housing reform…

By Lola Duffort/VTDigger Vermont ranks fourth in the nation for overall child wellbeing, according to Kids Count, an annual 50-state report produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, an influential national child welfare nonprofit. The foundation used 16 indicators across four domains — economic wellbeing, education, health, and family and community context — to come up with…

By Kit Norton/VTDigger The administrative costs of running OneCare Vermont, the company that enacts statewide health care reforms, are greater than the Medicaid savings that are credited to its efforts, according to a report issued Monday by State Auditor Doug Hoffer. The 38-page document, which looks at the operating expenses associated with the state’s all-payer health…