Episodes
Chronicling how Vermonters feel about the state’s all too short gardening season as it comes to a close. Plus, Grand Isle County’s top prosecutor drops a pending simple assault charge against the Franklin County sheriff, a shooting in Waterbury leaves one man dead and another injured, the South Burlington City Council wants federal action to remove F-35 jets from Vermont, high tourist traffic complicates efforts to rescue some hikers in the White Mountains, and Rutland postpones a housing...
Published 10/15/24
Cannabis sales have far exceeded expectations in the two years since Vermont’s retail marketplace opened, but the industry is still facing growing pains. Plus, Indigenous Peoples’ Day events are happening throughout this week, attendees of a public forum in Newport are worried about potential major changes to North Country Hospital, Vermont is pulling the plug on a popular electric vehicle incentive program, the minimum wage is set to rise in Vermont in the new year, local officials are...
Published 10/14/24
Examining differing views on the meaning and presence of a cannon situated outside the Town Hall in West Windsor. Plus, more child care centers opened than closed in Vermont this year for the first time in six years, the owner of a former paramilitary camp in West Pawlet returns to court in Rutland, a Chittenden County man died last month after contracting EEE from a mosquito bite, a class-action lawsuit accuses the nonprofit College Board and some private universities of conspiring to...
Published 10/11/24
Why Vermont is one of just nine states that taxes some social security benefits. Plus, after two mistrials the prosecutor who charged a Franklin County sheriff with assault is considering whether to call for a third trial, the state is suing social media company TikTok alleging it purposefully uses addictive algorithms, Vermont’s candidates for lieutenant governor spar over who would better represent the working class, a new report details how human-caused climate change is disrupting life in...
Published 10/10/24
Our Citizen’s Agenda election reporting initiative takes us to Rutland to hear what residents are doing about the state’s housing crisis. Plus, more than 2,000 Vermonters file for individual flood-related FEMA assistance, the deadline to file for individual help has been extended, a Vermont-based company announces layoffs of more than 100 workers, Vermonters planning to vote by mail are advised to send their ballots by the middle of the month, another mistrial is declared in the case of a...
Published 10/09/24
Checking in with former residents of the Heartbreak Hotel, a Plainfield apartment building that was washed away in last July’s floods. Plus, Montpelier at long last has a new post office following last year’s flooding, Vermont median household incomes spiked far beyond the national average last year, Goddard College’s campus has a(nother) new buyer, Rutland is taking steps to boost its housing stock amid a statewide shortage, and a young lynx has been spotted meandering north through Vermont.
Published 10/08/24
Vermont Department of Corrections officials are working on improving visitation policies for the children of incarcerated fathers, saying strong family bonds can improve outcomes for families. Plus, UVM Medical Center is halting plans for a new outpatient surgery center, immigrant dairy farmworkers are picketing outside Hannaford stores to secure better working conditions, a renowned Abenaki artist has a new retrospective exhibition on display in Montreal, and Springfield residents will weigh...
Published 10/07/24
Why a central Vermont school board decided not to ask voters whether to close two of the district’s elementary schools in November. Plus, the young NFL season has brought a huge upswing in Vermont online sports betting, Northeast Kingdom residents whose jobs were affected by the late-July floods may now be eligible for federal unemployment aid, West Windsor adopts short-term rental fees, why Burlington’s former racial equity director is demanding a multimillion dollar payment from the city,...
Published 10/04/24
With the November election just weeks away, we hear the chief issues of concern from voters who attended our Citizens Agenda ice cream social in Rutland. Plus, legislation introduced by Sen. Peter Welch would require an audit of FEMA’s administrative costs, Vermont lawmakers sign a letter calling on Gov. Scott to stand up emergency shelters for families exiting the motel voucher program, concerns about oversaturation in some of the state’s retail cannabis markets, Vermont swiftwater teams...
Published 10/03/24
The state is scaling back the emergency motel voucher program, despite hundreds of families with children having few other options for shelter.. Plus, Vermont’s Catholic Diocese files for bankruptcy protection, pressure ramps up on the U.S. Postal Service to set a date for reopening Montpelier’s post office, public flood insurance claims are paying out much more on average than FEMA aid, the state wants public feedback on plans for improving water quality in the Connecticut River, and Vermont...
Published 10/02/24
A documentary tells the painful story of efforts to wipe out the heritage of Indigenous children at boarding schools in the US and Canada. Plus, a plan to sell the now-closed Goddard College campus to a group of former alumni and faculty has fallen through, the director of a Lakota spiritual learning center recounts trauma suffered by Indigenous children sent to government-funded residential schools in the US and Canada, a horse in Addison County has died after being infected with EEE,...
Published 10/01/24
Trying to get a look at ocean birds that visit Vermont each year as they migrate over Lake Champlain. Plus, a superior court judge tosses a lawsuit aimed at ending the interim appointment of Vermont’s education secretary, federal disaster aid is declared for Northeast Kingdom communities affected by late July floods, thousands of older Vermonters will be dropped from their Medicare Advantage health care plans next year, and Sen. Peter Welch urges approval of a proposal to provide longer range...
Published 09/30/24
In an excerpt from Rumble Strip, a mother speaks with Erica Heilman about the experience of ultimate loss. Plus, the Scott Administration considers creating a rainy day fund for farmers who suffer weather-related damages, Woodstock reaches a deal to buy the privately-run water system serving the town, three Vermont school districts may not be able to provide the special education services they’re legally required to, state regulators take steps to create a temporary moratorium on new retail...
Published 09/27/24
The latest on a horse breeding facility in Townshend whose owner has been charged with animal cruelty. Plus, pressure mounts on Gov. Scott to intervene amid fresh waves of evictions from the state’s motel housing voucher program, business owners who suffered financial losses from summer floods begin applying for state aid, Vermonters affected by early July floods have a 30-day window to apply for FEMA assistance, Burlington will set up a centrally located hub to address public safety...
Published 09/26/24
Vermont Public education reporter Lola Duffort speaks to a Vermont native who researched the effects of a controversial state law mandating consolidation of smaller school districts. Plus, a conservation nonprofit is suing the state over potentially missing greenhouse gas emission targets, the Chester Selectboard punts on considering pro-development zoning regulations after hearing concerns from residents, Vermont’s archery deer season starts next week, and interim Education Secretary Zoie...
Published 09/25/24
Sitting in on a restorative justice class taught by individuals incarcerated in Vermont’s only women’s prison. Plus, Vermont’s congressional delegation calls for long-term and structural reforms to FEMA, a bill is introduced to expand the boundary of Vermont’s only national park, early voting gets underway for November’s general election, the suspect in a Pawlet triple homicide makes his first courtroom appearance, and a local restaurateur takes part in a New York-based business program aimed...
Published 09/24/24
Why public federal disaster assistance isn’t getting to the towns and cities that need it the most. Plus, Vermont hospitals react to a new report calling for a dramatic overhaul of the way they operate, an arrest is made in connection with the killings of three people in Pawlet, state officials want consumers to have additional protections from untrustworthy home contractors, Vermont’s unemployment rate rose slightly in August but is still near historic lows, and a New England researcher...
Published 09/23/24
A new report finds Vermont’s hospitals are in deep financial trouble. Plus, Vermonters will see more contested statewide races this year than they have in decades, the federal disaster relief fund is drained so Sen. Peter Welch is urging passage of a bill to provide money for towns that have filed disaster claims with FEMA, reversing an earlier decision the U.S. Postal Service will keep some local mail processing in Burlington instead of sending it outside the state, we find out about an...
Published 09/20/24
Tax bills in Putney have soared and many longtime residents worry they can’t afford to keep living there. Plus, warnings that state government needs to address the homelessness crisis as hundreds of unhoused people lose their emergency motel vouchers, a new report says Vermont needs to address inequities in its current health care system, the home of a Palestinian American injured in a shooting in Burlington is being retrofitted to accommodate his wheelchair, and Barre voters narrowly pass...
Published 09/19/24
A taxidermy collection in southern Vermont – the state’s largest – needs a new home. Plus, the city of Burlington settles an excessive force lawsuit, a Barre clinic is offering gender-affirming care, a state lawmaker plans to introduce legislation to ban phones in schools, and pro basketball is returning to Vermont.
Published 09/18/24
Why health care workers at a handful of Vermont hospitals are unionizing. Plus, the state government is evicting more people living in motels as it scales back the emergency housing program, police are investigating three deaths in Pawlet that are considered suspicious, an EPA representative says Vermont needs to rethink how it regulates water, and the Scott administration is providing funds to clean up two brownfield sites and build housing.
Published 09/17/24
What’s needed over the next five years to resolve Vermont’s severe housing shortage. Plus, Vermont gets another disaster declaration from the federal government to help recover from flood damage in Lamoille County, the only school district in Vermont yet to pass a budget makes a fourth attempt to do so tomorrow, a new report says adhering to the clean heat standard passed by lawmakers last year could cost upwards of $9 billion, New Hampshire’s governor signs a bill requiring proof of U.S....
Published 09/16/24
A bar in Colchester challenges customers to finish a massive bacon cheeseburger and fries in under 30 minutes. Plus, new limits on Vermont’s emergency motel housing program will push out hundreds of households over the next several weeks, Republican Gov. Phil Scott praises Vice President Harris’ debate performance against former President Trump but stops short of endorsing her, Vermont’s congressional delegation welcomes the arrival of more than $50 million to help with repair reimbursement...
Published 09/13/24
An update on the only Vermont school district still without a school budget ahead of its fourth attempt to pass one next week. Plus, Vermont’s Roman Catholic Diocese is facing new child sex abuse lawsuits, one year after catastrophic flood damage Montpelier is still without a fully functioning post office, one of Vermont’s oldest buildings reopens for visitors after undergoing extensive renovations, the owner of a controversial military-style training camp in West Pawlet has been arrested...
Published 09/12/24
A proposed locked juvenile facility in Vergennes is stirring up memories of a former youth detention center with a problematic history. Plus, Vermont veterans are encouraged to become poll workers for the presidential election, state election officials say Vermont’s voting systems are secure, public forums will be held to try and shore up Vermont’s statewide emergency communications system, teachers and administrators at many of the state’s public schools are struggling with increased...
Published 09/11/24