Connect with us

Vermont

Vermont abortion fund reports record donations after Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade

Published

on

Vermont abortion fund reports record donations after Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade


Maddie Corkum listens as audio system handle a number of hundred folks gathered on the Unitarian Universalist Church in Burlington after the U.S. Supreme Court docket overturned the Roe v. Wade abortion determination on Friday, June 24. Picture by Glenn Russell/VTDigger

Vermont Entry to Reproductive Freedom, a fund that gives monetary help to folks searching for abortion, obtained a “fully record-breaking” surge in donations because the U.S. Supreme Court docket overturned Roe v. Wade final Friday, a board member stated. 

For the reason that Supreme Court docket eradicated the nationwide proper to have an abortion, Vermont Entry to Reproductive Freedom has obtained over $100,000 in donations, in line with Vermont Entry board member Catherine Coteus. 

That determine represents an unprecedented sum for the small nonprofit group. 

“(This) has by no means occurred for our group,” Coteus stated in an interview. “Not even shut. I feel probably the most cash we have ever had in our checking account has been like $20k.”

The Supreme Court docket’s determination in Dobbs v. Jackson Ladies’s Well being Group, wherein the vast majority of justices voted to overturn Roe v. Wade’s almost 50-year-old precedent, was met with an outpouring of rage and condemnation throughout Vermont. 

Advertisement

For Vermont Entry to Reproductive Freedom, which is the state’s solely abortion fund, in line with Coteus, that anger translated to direct donations. 

Abortion funds throughout the nation have reported a surge in donations, as many People search to help abortion rights within the wake of the Supreme Court docket’s ruling. The Nationwide Community of Abortion Funds raised over $3 million on Friday alone, in line with The New York Occasions.

Abortion in Vermont is protected by state legislation, and legislators are working to enshrine entry to reproductive care within the state structure. 

An abortion in Vermont prices roughly $600, Coteus stated, and Vermont Entry’ aim is to make that sum reasonably priced for any Vermonter who needs the process. In 2020, the final 12 months for which information was obtainable, the fund paid out grants to 48 folks, with a mean grant of $412. 

The group has no paid workers and is run by a board of about 10 volunteers. 

Advertisement

“Principally, what occurs is we make some cash, we increase some cash, after which folks name us, and we give all of it away,” Coteus stated. “After which we’re out of cash.”

It’s not clear what Vermont Entry will do with its windfall of donations. Often the group receives between 40 and 60 calls a 12 months from folks searching for abortions, though volunteers anticipate these numbers to rise as folks from different states — the place abortion rights are restricted — search abortions in Vermont. 

The fund is at the moment meant for use by Vermont residents, but it surely doesn’t have strict eligibility guidelines, Coteus stated. It’s not clear if the group will develop its companies to anybody who involves the state, however she famous that the definition of a resident can already be blurry. 

“What if possibly you went to school in Vermont, otherwise you’re coming right here as a result of your aunt lives in Vermont, otherwise you’ve in any other case linked to the place?” she stated. “I do not know the reply to that but. And I additionally do not know what which means for us legally.”

Do not miss a factor. Enroll right here to get VTDigger’s weekly electronic mail on Vermont hospitals, well being care traits, insurance coverage and state well being care coverage.

Advertisement

Do you know VTDigger is a nonprofit?

Our journalism is made attainable by member donations. For those who worth what we do, please contribute and assist preserve this important useful resource accessible to all.





Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Vermont

Scott’s plan to cut school spending worries some educators

Published

on

Scott’s plan to cut school spending worries some educators


MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – Vermont educators are leery of plans from Gov. Phil Scott to control costs in Vermont’s education system. In Thursday’s inaugural address, Scott pitched sweeping plans to rein in spending which has led to skyrocketing property tax rates.

Last year, one-third of Vemont’s school budgets failed and voters sent more Republicans to Montpelier in years in what some dubbed a tax revolt.

Democrats say everything should be on the table to fix the tax troubles, but some in the education community remain wary.

In his address, the governor outlined a multiyear plan to overhaul how we fund public schools and rein in the cost of spending which has skyrocketed to $2.3 billion.

Advertisement

“In too many districts, teachers aren’t paid enough, administrators are tied up in bureaucracy, schools have too much empty space and many are in disrepair,” said Scott, R-Vermont.

He proposes consolidating dozens of school districts and supervisory unions, putting guardrails on local school spending and completely rewriting the school funding formula with the aim of cutting back on staff and the 80% of school costs that go to wages and benefits.

But some in Vermont’s education community see it another way.

“We have to be clear what is the problem we’re trying to solve. We’re not spending too much money in public education; we’re having a difficult time funding it,” said Don Tinney the executive director of the Vermont NEA.

The Vermont teachers union contends the state has enough taxing capacity to fund schools and students’ complex needs. But they say the state should instead fund schools through state and income tax instead of a property tax.

Advertisement

“We believe the income tax is the fairest way of doing that because people are paying what they can afford to pay,” Tinney said.

As for the funding formula, Scott argues more affluent towns that can afford higher property taxes spend more and approve their local budgets, which drives up costs in the statewide education fund.

“Those higher spenders can actually increase the rates of those districts whose kids and teachers are getting less,” Scott said.

The governor is expected to introduce a formula where districts are paid a flat rate and any additional spending would have to be raised locally.

But some worry that will lead to inequitable opportunities for kids.

Advertisement

“There are states that use foundation formulas to keep poor people poor and drive down public education costs and allow for more opportunities for private schools and school choice schemes. I can’t see Vermont allowing that to happen,” said Jay Nichols of the Vermont Principals’ Association.

Vermonters are still staring down a 6% property tax increase if school budgets as drafted pass on Town Meeting Day.

Scott says in the weeks ahead, he will unveil ideas to hold taxpayers harmless and keep taxes flat.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Vermont

Vermont expected to get light snow Saturday. Here’s the forecast

Published

on

Vermont expected to get light snow Saturday. Here’s the forecast


Wintry weather spreads across the South

Significant snow and icy precipitation are moving from Texas to the Carolinas.

Following a week of cold temperatures and harsh winds, this weekend will see light snow across New England, including Vermont.

While the snow is expected to cover the entire state of Vermont, this weekend’s snowfall will be calm, with no strong winds to create a storm and only a small amount of accumulation.

Advertisement

Here’s what to know about the timing, location and effects of Saturday’s snowfall in Vermont.

Where in VT will it snow Saturday?

According to the National Weather Service (NWS) of Burlington, light snow is expected throughout the day on Saturday, with the greatest chances of snow in the morning. Most areas of the state will see one inch of snowfall, with two inches possible in the middle region of the state.

While Vermont has seen extremely strong winds over this past week, the wind is expected to die down Friday night and stay mild throughout the snow Saturday. As of right now, the NWS has not issued any hazards or warning for Saturday, as the snowfall is expected to be calm.

Advertisement

VT weather next week

Temperatures will stay in the 20s throughout the weekend, with slightly warmer temperatures coming in next week. Snow showers are expected overnight from Monday to Tuesday.



Source link

Continue Reading

Vermont

Committee leadership in the Vermont Senate sees major overhaul – VTDigger

Published

on

Committee leadership in the Vermont Senate sees major overhaul – VTDigger


Sen. Chris Mattos, R-Chittenden North, center, speaks with Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington, at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Thursday, Jan. 9. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger

Nine of the Vermont Senate’s 11 standing committees will have new leaders this biennium and three will be helmed by Republicans, Lt. Gov. John Rodgers announced from the Senate floor Thursday afternoon.

The committee overhaul follows the retirement, death or defeat of a considerable number of veteran chairs last year — and after Republicans picked up six seats in the 30-member body in November’s election. Democrats and Progressives now hold 17 seats, while Republicans control 13.

Unlike the Vermont House, where committee positions are chosen unilaterally by the speaker, Senate assignments are doled out by a three-member panel, the Committee on Committees, which this year includes two new participants: Rodgers, a Republican, and Sen. Ginny Lyons, D-Chittenden Southeast. Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth, D/P-Chittenden Central, returned to the committee. 

The trio had few experienced senators from which to choose, given that — as Baruth noted in his opening remarks to the chamber Wednesday — nearly two-thirds of the Senate’s members joined the body over the past two years. Illustrating the point, newly sworn-in Sen. Seth Bongartz, D-Bennington, was tapped to chair the Senate Education Committee. (Bongartz had previously served in the House since 2021 — and had tours of duty in both the House and Senate in the 1980s.)

Advertisement

Perhaps the most significant appointment went to Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington, who will chair the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. He succeeds Sen. Jane Kitchel, D-Caledonia, who retired after leading the budget-writing panel for 14 years.  

Sen. Nader Hashim, D-Windham, will helm the Senate Judiciary Committee, following the death last June of veteran Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington. 

The Senate Natural Resources & Energy Committee will be led by Sen. Anne Watson, D/P-Washington. Its former chair, Sen. Chris Bray, D-Addison, was defeated in November. 

Republicans flip six seats in the Vermont Senate, shattering Democratic supermajority


Advertisement

Sen. Alison Clarkson, D-Windsor, takes over the Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs Committee from Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden Southeast. Ram Hinsdale defeated Clarkson for the role of Senate majority leader in November, requiring the former to step down from her committee leadership position and allowing the latter to step up. 

The three Republicans chairing panels are Sen. Richard Westman, R-Lamoille, who will run the Senate Transportation Committee; Sen. Russ Ingalls, R-Essex, who will head the Senate Agriculture Committee; and Sen. Brian Collamore, R-Rutland, who will lead the Senate Government Operations Committee. (Republicans similarly made gains in House leadership positions this year.)

Sen. Wendy Harrison, D-Windham, takes over the Senate Institutions Committee from Ingalls, who chaired it last biennium. 

The sole returning chairs are Lyons, who will continue to lead the Senate Health & Welfare Committee, and Sen. Ann Cummings, D-Washington, who will retain control of the Senate Finance Committee. 

Advertisement

Speaking to reporters Thursday afternoon, Baruth said the Committee on Committees had intentionally sought partisan equilibrium on certain panels. The Senate Education Committee, for example, which is expected to engage in heavy lifting as lawmakers reconsider the state’s education funding scheme, includes three Democrats and three Republicans. For a bill to clear that panel, four members would have to approve.

“What I intended for that committee… to do is to put out bipartisan bills,” Baruth said of Senate Ed. 

Similarly, Baruth called the composition of the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee “very centrist,” with four Democrats and three Republicans. 

“They’re going to have a lot of work to do, hard work, but the one thing I want them to think — to think long and hard about — is any kind of raising taxes or fees,” Baruth said. “The only time I’m looking to do that, if it’s necessary, is if it brings down the property tax.”

Ethan Weinstein contributed reporting.

Advertisement





Source link

Continue Reading

Trending