Podcasts by The Deeper Dig

A plan for what’s left of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant from 2023-11-20T16:52:40

For decades, Vermont Yankee, a nuclear power plant in Vernon, was the largest producer of electricity for the state.

The plant has been shut down since 2014, and the company that no...

Edi Abeneto of Feeding Chittenden on fighting hunger and breaking down cultural barriers from 2023-11-09T11:57:53

Edi Abeneto is food shelf supervisor at Feeding Chittenden, a Burlington-based nonprofit that focuses on hunger relief and serves more than 12,000 people every year. 

Abeneto has wo...

How to raise emotionally intelligent kids from 2023-10-25T11:30

Managing big emotions is hard for adults, so what must it be like if you’re 3 feet tall and still in diapers? Anyone who’s been around kids knows how they can get overwhelmed by big emotional re...

The star-studded history of a small island in Lake Bomoseen from 2023-10-09T12:40

Neshobe Island is a small island located on the Castleton side of Lake Bomoseen. It has two houses, a barn and some surrounding woods, and that’s about it.

In the 1920s and ‘30s, th...

Who is the University of Vermont for? from 2023-09-25T16:39

At the University of Vermont, the share of in-state students is dwindling, and it’s raising questions about the role and mission of the state’s flagship public university.

VTDigger ...

Synagogue sold — what happens when a historic house of worship becomes something else from 2023-09-13T06:00

Vermont’s oldest synagogue has been sold — and its new owner plans to turn it into a food hall and apartments. 

The nearly 140-year-old brick synagogue in Burlington’s Old North End...

‘It dominates anxiety’ — unpacking the process and impact of health insurance premium hikes from 2023-08-29T20:48:10

Earlier this month, the Green Mountain Care Board made a decision that would affect most people and companies that get their health care through the state’s health insurance marketplace.

<...

How flooding affects Vermont’s wildlife and ecosystems from 2023-08-11T17:24:16

Vermonters are still coming to terms with the devastating toll of this summer’s flooding, which inundated downtowns, destroyed homes and businesses, and caused two confirmed deaths. Considered f...

‘I was in shock.’ — Reporters on the impact of Vermont’s catastrophic flooding from 2023-07-24T06:00

Early this month, heavy rains led to historic flooding in many parts of Vermont, causing massive — as yet uncounted — damage to homes, businesses and infrastructure. At the time of this recordin...

The fraught politics of Vermont’s motel housing program from 2023-07-10T06:00

For months, Democratic lawmakers and Republican Gov. Phil Scott insisted that extending the Covid-19-era program providing people with vouchers to live in motels past this summer was a no-go. Fe...

A spate of deaths focuses attention on Vermont prisons and the Department of Corrections from 2023-06-26T06:00

It’s not unusual for Vermont’s Department of Corrections to be at the center of debate. The department manages six prisons across Vermont, with more than 1,000 incarcerated people in the system....

A VTDigger reporter’s guide to the Statehouse from 2023-06-12T06:00

If you follow this podcast, you’ve probably read a lot of the work of reporter Sarah Mearhoff. She covers politics for VTDigger, and, especially when the legislature is in session, is a close wa...

Deep in the forest, a patch of common ground from 2023-03-01T19:48:15

There’s a story about forests that you’ve probably heard. Some environmentalists want to protect old trees, and leave the forests alone to sequester carbon. Others say there are good reasons for...

What’s happened at Vermont sheriffs’ departments from 2023-02-13T13:02:30

Several Vermont sheriff departments have come under scrutiny in the past year following drastic turnover, allegations of misconduct or unusual financial activity. Two sheriffs — one former, one ...

To go big, or go bigger, on child care from 2023-01-27T20:17

Despite Vermont parents’ overwhelming demand for spots in child care and preschools, the supply remains limited. Parents all over the state sit on waitlists for months or even years. If they do ...

Noah Kahan on ‘existing in a place that you've just written about’ from 2023-01-20T19:18:45

Noah Kahan remembers getting excited when a song he put on SoundCloud hit a thousand plays. 

Now, his songs have been streamed more than one billion times. 

Kahan’s met...

Leveling the funding field for small towns from 2023-01-13T20:09:55

As Vermont’s Legislature opened its 2023 session and Republican Gov. Phil Scott was inaugurated to his fourth term, one theme got an early spotlight in the Statehouse: Vermont’s urban-rural divi...

What 97 acres means to Williston from 2022-12-16T19:30:36

A 97-acre parcel of undeveloped land off Mountainview Road in Williston is home to a wetland, views of Camel’s Hump and Mount Mansfield, and most days, some horses out to pasture from a neighbor...

What’s next for Montpelier’s water system? from 2022-12-02T17:40:54

Montpelier residents put up with an Listen

What keeps Vermonters together across a widening income divide? from 2022-11-18T19:24

Data from 21 billion Facebook friendships shows that when you know more high-income people, your income is more likely to rise over time, according to an analysis from Opportunity Insights, a no...

Vermont wasn’t always a safe haven for reproductive rights from 2022-11-04T19:40:59

Next week, Vermont voters could write abortion protections into the state constitution. But 50 years ago, Vermont was a state where most people went elsewhere to end a pregnancy. 

T...

Competition in the Kingdom from 2022-10-19T20:12

For the past two years, Reps. Katherine Sims, D-Craftsbury, and Vicki Strong, R-Albany, have served alongside each other in the Vermont House, jointly representing seven towns in the Northeast K...

Exiting education from 2022-10-07T19:38

Over the summer, and into the first few months of the school year, school districts across the state scrambled to fill not just teaching positions, but also support staff roles, such as custodia...

Building a Vermont haven for Ukrainian families from 2022-09-02T20:03:31

At first, the Shapovalov family thought they’d be able to avoid the worst of the fighting. Their village, Skelky, along the Dnipro River in Ukraine, was close to a large nuclear power plant. The...

How to get a truck unstuck from Smugglers Notch from 2022-08-19T09:05:17

The Vermont Agency of Transportation has an internal word for when a tractor trailer wedges itself on the windy mountain road between Stowe and Jeffersonville: a “stuckage.” 

And wh...

Buzz’s quest for a hardy Vermont persimmon from 2022-07-29T17:20:38

Buzz Ferver is on a mission. The proprietor of Perfect Circle Farm in Berlin wants to find a persimmon that will grow well in central Vermont. So far, he’s planted more than 15,000 seeds. Last w...

Can Covid be tracked without widespread testing? from 2022-07-11T10:15:27

Last week, Vermont shut down its Covid-19 testing sites. These sites operated for more than two years and accounted for most of the Listen

Why Vermont’s 150-year old school tuition system might have to change from 2022-07-01T14:41:47

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling struck down state-level rules that barred public money from going to schools that teach religious beliefs. According to some legal scholars, that decision has ...

A new wave of inflation from 2022-03-18T15:56:41

After two years of pandemic-related supply chain issues, Vermont businesses are facing a new wave of price increases on everything ranging from seitan deliveries to two-by-fours. Now, they're cu...

Sandy and Marie-Pierre from 2022-02-27T05:55

Sandy Sumner became a reluctant advocate for efforts to hold an international plastics company accountable for PFOA contamination in Bennington. Now, months after his death from an aggressive ca...

The pain of long Covid from 2022-02-22T06:08

For some, the long-term effects of a coronavirus infection can be debilitating. And while clinical understanding of the disease evolves, many worry that Vermont's rural health system is ill-equi...

The lessons of nursing home lockdowns from 2022-02-13T06:27

Nursing homes reopened their doors to visitors last November, but advocates still worry that another Covid-19 spike could once again lock family members out from seeing and caring for their rela...

After Omicron from 2022-01-30T06:39

Recent trends in Vermont’s Covid-19 case counts have officials and experts feeling optimistic about the course of the pandemic — but all warn it would be premature to brush off the Omicron threa...

Students and the Omicron surge from 2022-01-18T17:50:54

Students are back in school for their third week of the new year. Or at least, some of them are. The Omicron variant has caused a massive spike in Covid-19 cases and a massive spike in absences ...

How Vermont hospitals are handling the Covid-19 surge from 2021-12-30T15:53:53

Vermont hospitals are feeling the strain from the recent surge of Covid-19 cases — and so are patients. Doctors and nurses are caring for an overwhelming number of people. Many are sick with sev...

Could activists end hound hunting? from 2021-12-21T15:23:29

Opponents of hound hunting in Vermont have spent this fall ramping up their calls for the state to restrict the practice. And while it’s too soon to tell if they’ll be successful, their tactics ...

Turning climate goals into action from 2021-12-10T16:53:24

A new 300-page report represents Vermont’s first comprehensive strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for the effects of climate change. The Climate Action Plan outlines more th...

A surge in Barre schools from 2021-12-05T06:07

Elementary and middle schools in the Granite City have had more total Covid-19 cases than in any other community. Parents and administrators alike are concerned about the long-term impacts.

The case for mask mandates from 2021-11-19T11:26:37

If the Legislature passes a law to allow municipal mask mandates during a special session next week, town and city officials will find themselves at the center of a policy debate that’s escalate...

Why do kids need a Covid vaccine? from 2021-11-12T17:36:58

In the first 10 days of eligibility, about 15,500 Vermont children ages 5-11 had either been signed up for appointments or received their first dose of the Pfizer Covid vaccine. That's about 35%...

Diving in headfirst from 2021-10-26T16:07:03

Recorded at a live storytelling event in Burlington, VTDigger’s Fred Thys and Audi Guha talk about reporting in uncertain situations.

The future of Vermont’s congressional representation from 2021-10-10T09:00

Vermont’s three members of Congress have served a combined 93 years in the U.S. House and Senate. They’ve accrued an unusual amount of power and influence for one small-state delegation. But the...

The outlook for emergency housing from 2021-10-04T05:29

A state program to house Vermonters who would otherwise be homeless in vacant motel rooms during the pandemic is in limbo — again. More than 500 families who would have been kicked out in late S...

Life and learning inside the Burlington Macy’s from 2021-09-24T09:00

What’s it like attending high school in a converted department store? Five years of Burlington High School students are finding out.

Paul Costello reflects on two decades of community building from 2021-09-17T09:00

The longtime leader of the Vermont Council on Rural Development is stepping down September 30. For 21 years, Paul Costello has helped towns and cities across Vermont envision how to build strong...

Starting school amid a Covid surge from 2021-08-23T16:52:06

Students in some districts are returning to school buildings as soon as this week. Meanwhile, Covid-19 cases across the state are still surging due to the highly contagious Delta varia...

A new model for mental health crisis response from 2021-08-14T06:39:38

While an ongoing conversation about police reform plays out both nationally and locally, Covid-19 has led to its own pandemic of mental health issues. In response, some central Vermont police de...

How concerning is the Delta variant in Vermont? from 2021-08-01T09:00

The Delta variant of the coronavirus is driving a new surge in Covid-19 cases across the country — and a much smaller increase in cases throughout Vermont. Health authorities say the D...

The housing crunch hits renters from 2021-07-27T18:08:04

Since last year, realtors have described unprecedented home-buying, driving up prices and competition. What’s less clear is how the pandemic has affected the state’s rental mar...

How to spend a broadband windfall from 2021-07-20T17:57

Connecting Vermont’s most rural homes to high-speed internet has been a challenge for decades. Christine Hallquist, the incoming executive director of the state’s new community...

Can Vermont regulate religious schools? from 2021-07-05T07:00

A series of court rulings over the past year has chipped away at Vermont’s long-standing ban on sending public tuition dollars to religious schools. Now, the state has to resolve major questions...

Are Vermont's pandemic transplants here to stay? from 2021-06-21T18:54:22

It’s still too soon to know what the long-term effects of Covid-related migration might be. But many families who found their way to Vermont last year say they’re not going any...

Ending the Covid emergency from 2021-06-16T17:17:32

The Covid-19 state of emergency gave the Scott administration the authority to maintain a vast social safety net during the pandemic. Landlords were barred from evicting renter...

Hidden in plain sight from 2021-06-07T19:13:09

In Vermont’s idyllic small towns, injustice can lurk below the surface.

At a ...

How a Middlebury student became a Vermont Covid-19 expert from 2021-05-31T07:00

Benjy Renton, who just completed his undergraduate studies, has spent a year and a half earning accolades for his work tracking the pandemic. “It’s been quite nuts,” he said.

What’s changed in Vermont since George Floyd’s murder? from 2021-05-25T13:17:28

It’s been one year since George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis, sparking rallies for racial justice across the country. In Vermont, these events were mostly led by young, Bl...

Covid and the overdose crisis from 2021-05-16T06:13:51

While the pandemic demanded the attention of the public last year, preliminary data shows that at least 157 Vermonters died in 2020 due to opioid-related overdoses — an average of about three pe...

How to confront vaccine hesitancy from 2021-05-04T16:41:47

The front line for difficult conversations about vaccines is often the exam table at your local health clinic. We asked doctors around the state how they’re talking to patients...

A year without work from 2021-04-27T16:47:44

Local business leaders have said expanded unemployment benefits are making recipients less interested in rejoining the workforce. But talk to Vermonters who have been out of work for a year, and...

The road ahead for Vermont schools from 2021-04-16T18:30:38

Conversations around the impacts of Covid in schools tend to revolve around the risk of an education gap, framing the pandemic as “lost year” for students. But some experts are pushing back on t...

Is Vermont ready to reopen? from 2021-04-09T18:51

The state has unveiled a plan to lift most Covid-19 restrictions by July 4th. And while public health experts say there’s value in giving people an incentive to get vaccinated,...

Getting vaccines to 'the end of the line’ from 2021-04-02T20:12:35

Essex County has the lowest Covid vaccination rate in Vermont, revealing the challenge of reaching the state’s most isolated residents. And while skepticism about the vaccine might play a role, ...

Kids and the Covid vaccine from 2021-03-26T19:37:33

The state’s effort to vaccinate the remaining adult population is underway, with new age groups becoming eligible every week. Gov. Phil Scott has echoed President Joe Biden in saying l...

Three days at the Travel Inn from 2021-03-21T08:04

The state is currently housing about 2,700 people who would otherwise be homeless in 75 motels around Vermont. VTDigger reporter Katie Jickling booked a stay in one.

Virus in Vermont, Part 2: The survivors from 2021-03-10T16:21

The Covid-19 vaccine gives hope that some kind of normal life will start again soon. But it won’t bring back everything we’ve lost over the past year.

In Part 2 of a two-part series, fou...

Virus in Vermont, Part 1: The responders from 2021-03-02T15:39:16

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, Vermont saw a massive outpouring of community support. Those who helped respond to the crisis now say they never expected we would still be facing the same challe...

Bringing students back from 2021-02-19T17:21

While most of Vermont's schools have maintained in-person or hybrid models since the fall, a recent push to fully reopen classrooms this spring has renewed the debate over how much in-person edu...

Xusana Davis on race, belonging and 'Vermontiness' from 2021-02-12T18:43

In a new report, Vermont's director of racial equity discusses how people of color in Vermont, like in the rest of the country, face disproportionate health impacts from the Co...

How CityPlace stalled from 2021-02-07T14:02

After years of delays, how will one of Burlington’s most ambitious development projects move forward? And why did things go so wrong? It depends on who you ask.

A guide to the governor's budget from 2021-01-29T17:01:04

Federal Covid relief funding has helped the state avoid a major budget crunch. In fact, it’s allowed Gov. Phil Scott to propose a spending plan that puts about $210 million dollars towards one-t...

'Brave Little State' looks for lessons from Fletcher from 2021-01-22T10:35

Back in May 2020, we traveled to Fletcher, a Franklin County town that dodged the 19...

Can ski towns stay Covid-safe? from 2021-01-15T17:24:15

Martin Luther King Day marks one of the biggest ski weekends in Vermont in a typical year. But this is not a typical year. Travelers to Vermont are subject to universal quarantine requirements —...

Making sense of the chaos at the Capitol from 2021-01-08T16:45:38

Vermont officials were unanimous in holding President Trump responsible for the violence in Washington this week. What should the storming of the U.S. Capitol mean for Vermonte...

Vermont Conversation: Steve Goodman on the Year of the Pandemic from 2020-12-31T07:28:47

The Deeper Dig will be back next week. This week: a guest post from The Vermont Conve...

Inside a Covid vaccination clinic from 2020-12-18T15:40

The Covid-19 vaccine is here: 5,850 doses of the Pfizer vaccine arrived in Vermont this week, and frontline health care workers have already begun receiving the shots. And while there are still ...

What humanities cuts could mean for UVM from 2020-12-11T19:31:43

Proposed cuts to the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Vermont have sparked a backlash from thousands of faculty members and students. But with the university facing a budget sho...

Burlington’s mayoral race takes shape from 2020-12-04T20:39

While Burlington Progressives this week voted to put a member of their younger, more activist wing on the ballot, the party’s caucus revealed a split that could have ramifications for next year’...

FAQ LIVE: When will Vermonters see a Covid-19 vaccine? from 2020-11-25T20:24:16

"We will get vaccine," says Chris Finley, the immunization program director at the Vermont Department of Health. "When it will be here is the million dollar question." The state is making prep...

How the pandemic turned partisan from 2020-11-20T20:20

As Covid-19 cases surge in Vermont, officials have been reminding well-intentioned Vermonters to take the state’s health guidelines seriously. But they’ve also begun addressing...

Vermont's Covid long-haulers look for answers from 2020-11-13T19:31:56

A growing number of Vermonters are experiencing Covid-19 symptoms for months after contracting the disease, a phenomenon that’s being observed across the globe. Researchers are calling these pat...

Slate Ridge and the prospect of political violence from 2020-11-06T16:57:39

A militia training site in West Pawlet is terrifying its neighbors. Men from the site have harassed locals online and in person. They also appear to be stockpiling weapons and ammunition, and th...

Creative solutions to the housing crunch from 2020-10-30T19:45:50

As the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbates Vermont’s affordable housing crisis, new research on flexible housing models suggests that the state could benefit from rethinking how to build homes. But ad...

Counting ballots in a crisis from 2020-10-23T22:12:43

Nearly 200,000 Vermonters have already voted in the general election after the state mailed ballots to every registered active voter for the first time ever. The shift to mail-in voting has some...

Why antigen tests aren't changing Vermont's Covid strategy from 2020-10-16T20:22:52

Antigen tests, which give Covid-19 results in a matter of hours, are increasingly becoming available in Vermont. But the state has hesitated to make these rapid tests a major part of its health ...

For families of dementia patients, Covid’s damage is already done from 2020-10-09T20:26:57

As nursing home visitation rules begin to relax, some residents’ family members worry that they still won't be involved in caring for their loved ones as long as Covid-19 remains a risk. And for...

Two candidates, two economic visions from 2020-10-02T17:01:09

In their first in-person debate of the 2020 election season, Vermont’s candidates for governor laid out divergent views of how the state should raise and spend its money — and ...

Behind the ‘kudos’ for Vermont’s Covid success from 2020-09-18T20:37:53

Vermont has maintained the lowest Covid-19 infection rate of any U.S. state for most of this summer. And while some have speculated that’s because of the state’s small populati...

Schools are in session. What happens now? from 2020-09-11T17:45:11

Students across Vermont returned to school on Tuesday for the first time since the onset of the coronavirus in March. It took months of preparation for schools to be able to op...

Who gets hazard pay? from 2020-09-04T20:02:53

Many essential workers who stayed in high-risk jobs during the early months of the pandemic were cut out of an earlier plan by the state to provide hazard pay. Now, it’s unclear whether lawmaker...

The pandemic budget plan from 2020-08-28T20:46

State economists warned earlier this month that because of the pandemic, Vermont's revenue projections were "off the charts bad." So how are leaders advancing a budget that largely maintains the...

Preparing for Covid on campus from 2020-08-21T17:50

The University of Vermont is undertaking what it calls the most extensive college reopening plan in the country. But with schools across the state and the nation reopening within weeks, the Depa...

Can Covid ease the demographic crisis? from 2020-08-14T17:04:46

New research shows that remote workers have been flocking to Vermont during the Covid-19 pandemic, potentially easing the struggle to reverse the state's population decline. What’s less clear is...

Vermont Conversation: David Goodman&Stuart Stevens from 2020-08-10T16:18:01

The Vermont Conversation with David Goodman is now a VTDigger podcast. Goodman's show, which has aired on WDEV Radio since 2013, feat...

What to watch for in the 2020 primary from 2020-07-31T20:51:08

Tens of thousands of Vermonters have already cast their ballots for the August 11 primary. Here’s what VTDigger’s politics team will be watching when the results come in.

Vermont's rental relief program, explained from 2020-07-24T20:58:29

Advocates say the state’s stabilization effort should temporarily stave off mass evictions, but it won’t solve the affordable housing crisis Vermont faced before the pandemic.<...

The science behind reopening schools from 2020-07-20T13:17:46

As schools in Vermont and across the country prepare to reopen, it’s clear that children who do get the coronavirus are far less likely than adults to get severely ill. Now,...

The next phase of the pandemic in Vermont from 2020-07-06T20:30:55

Covid-19 cases are surging in regions across the United States, while Vermont continues to see relatively low rates of infection. But there are still plenty of unknowns about the long-term traje...

Do police make schools safer? from 2020-06-26T20:19:01

More than half of Vermont’s high schools use armed school resource officers, or SROs, to ensure school safety. Skeptics are casting doubt on whether those officers are ...

How a UVM basketball game became a Covid-19 spreading event from 2020-06-19T19:03:20

Twenty people who attended the March 10 UVM basketball game reported that they later tested positive for Covid-19, according to a Listen

Will Burlington slash its police budget? from 2020-06-12T06:49:56

The national protest movement following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis has coalesced around a policy goal: defunding police departments nationwide. Now, constituents of Vermont’s lar...

Outrage and grief as Vermonters rally for George Floyd from 2020-06-05T21:26

A national protest movement touched off by a string of high-profile killings of black Americans has reached Vermont. Advocates say it’s a long overdue conversation about structural racism — but ...

How Fletcher escaped the 1918 flu from 2020-05-29T20:29:41

Fletcher, Vermont, is one of the 116 towns in the state that haven’t registered any Covid-19 cases so far. But public health researchers have singled it out for another reason: it was one of jus...

The hunger problem ahead from 2020-05-22T21:09:34

Long lines at food distribution events have become a powerful symbol of the need faced by tens of thousands of Vermontersduring the Covid-19 pandemic. But those on the frontlines of hunger relie...

Inequality during the downturn from 2020-05-18T19:25:56

As more sectors of the economy reopen for business, the downturn caused by Covid-19 is already having an outsized impact on low-wage workers. And while state and federal lawmak...

Why we tattle from 2020-05-08T20:09:50

With Vermonters living under new guidelines about physical distancing and wearing masks, state agencies — and news outlets like VTDigger — have seen an uptick in reports about people who aren’t ...

One inmate's story of Covid-19 behind bars from 2020-05-01T20:51

Michael Akey discovered he tested positive for Covid-19 one day after he was released from the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans. He says the outbreak ther...

Containing the coronavirus as reopening begins from 2020-04-24T19:31:19

The Scott administration has loosened restrictions on some workplaces for the second week in a row as part of a plan to slowly reopen Vermont’s economy. To prevent another wave of infections, pu...

How Vermont hospitals are preparing for a Covid-19 peak from 2020-04-10T21:27:13

Hospitals across the state are transforming their facilities to get ready for a potential surge of coronavirus patients. But they’re preparing without knowing exactly when that surge might hit —...

Decoding Vermont's COVID-19 projections from 2020-04-03T21:05:58

New models show social distancing measures could help COVID-19 cases in Vermont peak as early as this month. But officials and experts warn that those restrictions will need to stay in place lon...

Vermont's spike in unemployment claims, explained from 2020-03-27T20:24

Skyrocketing unemployment claims show that nearly 15,000 Vermonters have already lost their jobs due to business cutbacks during the coronavirus outbreak. What happens next for those workers — a...

Sen. Leahy on the coronavirus stimulus controversy from 2020-03-20T20:51:50

Vermont’s senior senator has been in Washington for negotiations over the federal response to the coronavirus outbreak. Two bills have passed with broad bipartisan support — but the third, a tri...

Preparing — not panicking — before the outbreak expands from 2020-03-12T18:28

Dr. Joshua White, the chief medical officer at Gifford Medical Center in Randolph, says the COVID-19 outbreak may become even wider than many Vermonters are expecting. But that...

Burlington Progressives take power — and plan their next steps from 2020-03-06T19:45

Tuesday’s election brought victories for newcomers Zoraya Hightower and Jane Stromberg, effectively giving the Progressives a majority on the governing body of Vermont’s larges...

Competing climate bills in the Statehouse from 2020-02-28T19:01

Support for a “Vermont Green New Deal” appears to be waning among lawmakers, while another climate bill — the Global Warming Solutions Act — gains momentum. That could leave the state with a str...

Vermont's deadliest decade for killings by police from 2020-02-21T16:38:12

Fatal police encounters are on the rise in Vermont, according to a new analysis of fifty years of law enforcement data. Now, lawmakers, advocates and police themselves are looking at how to curb...

Sanders' skeptics and supporters in New Hampshire from 2020-02-14T16:12:05

Bernie Sanders’ victory in the New Hampshire primary gives the Vermont senator a boost in his push to win the Democratic nomination for president. Now, some voters are wondering not only whether...

When Bernie Sanders learned to lead from 2020-02-07T14:04

As Bernie Sanders looks ahead to the first primary elections of 2020, the Vermont senator sees a plausible path to the Democratic nomination and maybe the presidency. How Sande...

What's next for Woodside from 2020-01-31T18:29:25

The Scott administration is formalizing its plan to close the state's only juvenile detention facility. But it’s not up to them whether Woodside will close — and the legislators who will make th...

Is paid leave in peril? from 2020-01-24T17:19:22

A paid family leave plan that’s been in the works for more than two years has finally passed the Legislature. But its path forward largely depends not on the lawmakers who think it’s too expensi...

A Statehouse agenda, disrupted on day one from 2020-01-10T18:17:12

As Vermont lawmakers returned for the 2020 legislative session, election updates overshadowed the policy agenda. But that wasn't the only disruption at the Statehouse this week.

Guests: V...

The fate of the"country doctor" from 2019-12-20T17:45:19

Independent doctors across Vermont are closing their practices, while major hospital systems take over a growing share of the state’s patients. What does that mean for Vermonte...

The high court's hydro decision from 2019-12-13T17:31:19

Water quality advocates are hailing a Vermont Supreme Court decision on dam permits as a new standard for upholding environmental rules. But the case also reveals the tensions behind the state’s...

When Vermonters struggle with social isolation from 2019-12-06T16:47:35

If you’re feeling lonely, you’re not alone: data shows that a wide range of Vermonters report feeling socially isolated, particularly the elderly. Advocates for Vermont seniors are working on lo...

How the DMV sells your data from 2019-11-22T17:46

The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles makes millions of dollars every year selling drivers' personal data to private companies. Officials and others argue that the practice is legal, regulate...

Beyond the zinger: Welch and impeachment from 2019-11-14T17:28:55

We sent our politics reporter Kit Norton to D.C. for the first public impeachment hearing in the House Democrats' case against President Donald Trump. Here's what he saw.

Sweeping opioid litigation lands in Vermont from 2019-11-08T17:13:45

Vermont cities and towns are deciding whether to join broad-ranging national litigation against companies accused of fueling the opioid crisis. But as Vermonters weigh their op...

A.I. is out there. Can the state catch up? from 2019-11-01T18:12

A legislative task force is thinking about how Vermont should regulate the development of artificial intelligence. But no matter what they decide, groups around the state are already integrating...

An Amish enclave in the Northeast Kingdom [10/26/18] from 2019-10-25T13:05:54

While Vermont leaders tie themselves in knots trying to draw new people to the state, a group of Amish families has quietly left Pennsylvania and Ohio to build a new community in the Northeast K...

How the trade war with China is costing Vermont businesses from 2019-10-18T16:04

The Trump administration has announced a tentative deal with China that would delay new tariffs on imported goods. But one Vermont customs broker estimates that by the end of this year, business...

Peter Galbraith on the 'catastrophe' in Syria from 2019-10-11T16:14:43

The former U.S. diplomat and Vermont politician, who's worked with Kurdish populations for decades, says he’s perplexed by President Trump’s motivation to greenlight Turkish st...

Where migrating Vermonters are going — and why from 2019-10-04T15:09:34

We’ve known for a while that the state’s population is stagnating. But new data compiled by VTDigger shows us exactly where Vermonters are going — whether they’re leaving the s...

BONUS: David Sanger talks cyber warfare and national security in Manchester from 2019-10-01T11:36:22

Cyber weaponry has dramatically changed the national security landscape, New York Times correspondent David Sanger said last week during a live interview in Manchester with VTDigger editor Anne ...

Vermont officials and the Trump impeachment inquiry from 2019-09-27T15:37:03

As news of the dealings between President Trump and the Ukraine developed this week, Vermont's members of Congress — and its Republican governor — all spoke out in favor of an impeachment inquir...

Why Bill McKibben keeps fighting after 30 years from 2019-09-18T17:35:48

The Ripton-based author and activist, whose organization is helping to plan this week's Global Climate Strike, says much has changed since his landmark debut,The End of Natu...