Dear reader,
Downtowns are bustling with holiday shoppers and here at VTDigger we’re busy getting ready for a new legislative session to begin on January 8. Why are we excited about this?
For four months of the year, the workings of state government that usually take place behind closed doors or on private video calls are drawn into the open. Representatives of the executive branch are put on the hot seat in legislative committees and questioned in Statehouse hallways.
If you want to keep VTDigger asking questions on behalf of Vermonters, please join our year-end member drive with a gift today. When you do, you’ll also help send firewood to families in need of heat this winter via our partnership with Wood4Good.
With Vermont losing 75% of its newspaper jobs over the past quarter-century, VTDigger’s coverage of the Legislature is critical.
Among the many issues we plan to shine a light on this session are education funding and rising property taxes; whether new initiatives will help or hurt hospitals’ ability to affordably deliver the services Vermonters need; the role the state plays in addressing our housing and homelessness crises; and how Vermont can respond to and prepare for major flooding and other climate catastrophes.
We’re going to be covering developments on key legislation, explaining the impact on people, businesses and municipalities, keeping an eye on conflicts of interest and sharing hard-to-access testimony. We’re also taking note of what isn’t being discussed and asking why.
Today we’re asking you to help VTDigger keep telling the stories that no one else is and families stay warm this season.
There less than a week left to send 15 cords of firewood to Vermont families in need. Every 80 donations sends one cord — or four weeks of warmth — to a family.
Thank you for your readership and support as we look toward the holidays and a new year of public service journalism.
Sincerely,
Kristen Fountain
Senior Editor, VTDigger
If you can, please consider becoming a sustaining member at a level that works for you. Sustaining members make it possible for us to dig deeper. Become a sustaining member at $15/month and we’ll send you a free VTDigger t-shirt.
P.S. Wood4Good is always looking for volunteers of all abilities. Sign up to volunteer here.
