Editor’s note: Leo Pond is a 14 year old political columnist from Chittenden, Vermont.  Leo Pond: What made you decide to run for governor? David Zuckerman: As I was contemplating whether to run or not I was really reflecting on the public service person I’ve been for the last 22 years and that I’ve always…

By Rep. Jim Harrison The Vermont Legislature officially returns for a continuation of its remote sessions on Aug. 25. The No. 1 task will be to adopt a nine-month state budget for the balance of the fiscal year which began on July 1. With so many unknowns this year in terms of needs and expected…

Governor Phil Scott has signed onto a bipartisan letter calling on the U.S. Dept. of Commerce and the U.S. Census Bureau to restore the deadline for the 2020 U.S. Census, which has been moved from Oct. 31 to Sept. 30. In addition to Gov. Scott, the letter was signed by the governors of Oregon, Colorado,…

By Ellie French/VTDigger A $150 gift card could soon be sent to every household in Vermont, Gov. Phil Scott announced Friday, Aug. 21, as part of an economic recovery package to spend the remainder of the $1.25 billion allotted to Vermont under the federal CARES Act. At his twice-weekly press conference this past Friday, Scott said…

73 new facilities coupled with deregulation of in-home providers will add 10,000 openings By Erin Petenko and Lola Duffort/VTDigger Gov. Phil Scott plans to spend about $12 million in federal relief funds to dramatically expand child care capacity for school-aged children, including establishing regional child care hubs for students on remote learning days. The state estimates 10,300 students…

Racial disparities remain The Vermont State Police  has released traffic-stop data from 2019, marking the fifth consecutive year the agency has published its raw numbers to continue the public discussion on how to address racial disparities in discretionary car stops. Among the key takeaways: The number of searches decreased for motorists in discretionary traffic stops…

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Friday, Aug. 21, announced $42.4 million in direct assistance grants to 221 fire departments nationwide through the agency’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program. Included among them are Middletown Springs in Rutland County that will get $114,857 and South Strafford in Orange County that will get $79,524, both to purchase…

On Wednesday, Aug. 26, Woman’s Equality Day and the Centennial Anniversary of 19th Amendment, members of the Vermont Suffrage Centennial Alliance (VSCA) will join with local citizens throughout the state to commemorate the historic passage of the 19th Amendment guaranteeing women the vote. One hundred years ago, in the final push for suffrage, women picketed in…

Montpelier, South Burlington, and Rutland offices will re-open for visits by appointment only Governor Phil Scott and the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) announced the reopening of the Montpelier, South Burlington, and Rutland offices to the public by appointment only using a new online scheduling system on Aug. 25. “Throughout the COVID-19 State of…

The Conservation Law Foundation, the Connecticut River Conservancy, the Lake Champlain Committee, Vermont Conservation Voters, and the Vermont Natural Resources Council called on the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) today to issue the Three-Acre General Permit, ending its two-year delay on a key piece of the state’s Clean Water Act and Lake Champlain cleanup…

The Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) has announced the launch of the Restart Vermont Marketing and Stimulus Grant Program.  The program will provide $500,000 of Federal Coronavirus Relief Funds as grants to organizations for efforts and activities related to economic recovery, consumer stimulus, marketing or tourism projects to support businesses that have suffered economic harm due to the Covid-19 pandemic. “Nobody knows their community…

  Rep. Peter Welch on Saturday voted to pass emergency legislation to protect the U.S. Postal Service from political interference ahead of the November election. The bill provides the $25 billion that the bipartisan Postal Service’s Board of Governors requested to address budget shortfalls caused by the coronavirus pandemic and reverses the damaging operational changes…

Attorney General T.J. Donovan today joined a multi-state coalition in filing a federal lawsuit challenging planned operational changes at the U.S. Postal Service. The Postal Service’s sudden and unilateral changes deprived states of their procedural right to comment on such changes before implementation. The coalition argues that cuts at the Postal Service that impact mail…

USCIS is currently scheduled to furlough 67% of its employees on Aug. 30. On Aug. 21, Immigration and Citizenship Subcommittee Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19), House Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-10), Immigration and Citizenship Subcommittee Ranking Member Ken Buck (R-CO-4), Representative Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE-1), Representative Emanuel Cleaver II (D-MO-5), Representative Peter Welch (D-VT-At…

By Erin Petenko and Lola Duffort Gov. Phil Scott plans to spend about $12 million in federal relief funds to dramatically expand child care capacity for school-aged children, including establishing regional child care hubs for students on remote learning days. The state estimates 10,300 students K-6 will need care while their parents work on days…