The Frequency

State lawmakers are facing potential federal spending cuts from the Trump administration that may create challenges for Vermont’s budget, just as newly announced tariffs risk shrinking the state’s economy.

Speaking with the high school junior who won Sen. Bernie Sanders’ annual State of the Union Essay Contest for Vermont students. Plus, Vermont’s treasurer says newly imposed tariffs by the Trump administration could hurt state consumers and local businesses that rely on world exports, the head lawyer for the Vermont Legislature criticizes Gov. Scott for what he calls an unconstitutional power grab, U.S. Sen. Welch reintroduces a bill to permanently expand telehealth services covered by Medicare, the state champion of Vermont’s Poetry Out Loud competition prepares to compete for the national title, we review the start to the new MLB season in our weekly sports report, and bid a reluctant farewell to a Vermont Public teammate. 

In an excerpt from Brave Little State, we dig into the origins of the widespread, stylized Stowe logo. Plus, the final state budget approved by House lawmakers could be jeopardized by potential federal funding cuts it relies on, the state’s emergency motel voucher program has begun imposing its off-winter limits on length of stays for some homeless Vermonters, Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools may join a national lawsuit against a software provider following a data breach that compromised personal information of students and school faculty, and the Vermont senate gives the green light to let freestanding birth centers offer their services. 

Highlighting streaming video services designed specifically to help people suffering from dementia and those who care for them. Plus, House lawmakers approve legislation shielding personal Internet information for some state and public officials, the head of the Green Mountain Care Board says the state’s health care system is near a breaking point, a probe by the Agency of Education concludes a private school in southern Vermont that serves autistic students has failed to properly educate them, the author of a UVM study says large dead trees along stream banks should be protected for the significant amounts of carbon they store, and a home in Vergennes for older Vermonters welcomes its first residents since expanding its living space.

Vermont’s new tax commissioner explains his approach to the job and how federal action could impact the Green Mountain State. Plus, Vermont’s attorney general says  the president’s voter registration plan would limit access to the polls, New England-based lawyers feel the heat from the U.S. Department of Justice as they challenge the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies, drivers are urged to watch out for amphibians crossing roads during their annual spring migration, Waking Windows announces this year’s lineup, and today is the last day for a ban on winter manure spreading.

What’s behind the big enrollment numbers for Vermont’s career and technical centers. Plus, Gov. Scott extends through June emergency motel housing for certain vulnerable households, some state lawmakers are open to increasing state income taxes to offset potential cuts in federal funding, Vermont’s health department will lose up to $7 million in canceled federal grants, contentions linger as the support staff union at Central Vermont Medical Center negotiates its first contract with the hospital, and House lawmakers float a plan to use a portion of Vermont’s opioid settlement to help people struggling with stimulant addiction.

Visiting a Shelburne farm where people can snuggle with goats to help release stress. Plus, after exceeding its budget last year the University of Vermont Medical Center proposes a deal to avoid potential penalties, the former president and CEO of Rutland Regional Medical Center has died, there’s a plan to extend shelters for unhoused families in Williston and Waterbury that were set to close down next week, and Sen. Peter Welch calls on the secretary of defense to resign after sensitive military information was inadvertently shared with a journalist.

How President Trump’s tariffs and aggressive rhetoric toward Canada are putting a serious political and social strain on the relationship between Vermont and Quebec. Plus, a rally in Montpelier calls for state-level protections of LGBTQ youth, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board considers a statewide ban on some commercial panfish, a journalism professor at Norwich University files a lawsuit alleging administrators pressured students to scrap stories putting the university in a bad light, customers of a genetic analysis firm are urged to protect their data after the company files for bankruptcy, and we move our weekly sports report up to Opening Day today for a preview of the 2025 MLB season. 

New University of Vermont research explores the surprising link between whale pee and healthy ocean ecosystems. Plus, the Vermont House advances legislation that could limit the number of new retail cannabis shops, lawmakers also advance a midyear budget adjustment bill opposed by Gov. Scott, new Social Security rules could make it more difficult to access benefits, and Vermont libraries may see major impacts from federal funding cuts.