News & Updates

More than 4 out of 5 also want it updated to cover more containers. Vermont’s Bottle Bill is not only one of the state’s most successful environmental programs, having recycling more than 10 billion containers since 1972, it also may be the most popular.  The Vermont Public Interest Research Group released brand new statewide polling data ...

On Wednesday, March 10th, the Senate Government Operations Committee advanced legislation (S.51) that would effectively ban corporate campaign contributions directly to candidates. If enacted, S.51 would be a meaningful step towards getting big money out of politics. Currently, Vermont’s campaign finance law allows corporations to contribute the same amount as individuals. The idea here is simple: corporations are not people and they shouldn’t have the same ...

Ever wish you could get paid to have a meaningful impact on local and state politics? To hopefully (*more on that later*) travel Vermont, bike around some of the most scenic parts of the state, and make a positive impact on the most important public interest issues of our time? If you answered yes, we ...

On Town Meeting Day, Burlington voted resoundingly in favor of a better ballot. Ballot Question 4, a charter change to adopt ranked choice voting for city council elections passed decisively with 64 percent of the vote, and with nearly 4,000 more ‘yes’ votes than ‘no’ votes. Once approved by the legislature, the measure will take effect in 2022.   The Better Ballot Burlington campaign and Honorary Co-Chairs Councilor Zoraya Hightower ...

We’re nearly halfway through the 2021 legislative session, and even though our work continues to look totally different than it would were we not in the midst of a global pandemic, we’ve already made amazing progress on a wide range of key public interest initiatives this year. From advancing a long-stalled zero waste priority to addressing ...

The House Energy and Technology Committee advanced legislation (H.360) Wednesday aimed at accelerating the development of community broadband in Vermont. If enacted, this VPIRG-supported legislation will make significant resources available to the state’s Communications Union Districts (CUDs) – public, municipal entities formed to provide universal, affordable, world-class broadband to their regions. Notably, the legislation would 1.) fund ...

According to a new poll released Tuesday, Vermont voters are overwhelmingly in favor of keeping the practice of mailing a ballot to every voter, a policy that was put in place by state leaders on a temporary basis last year. The poll, conducted by the independent firm Lincoln Park Strategies on behalf of the nonprofit organizations ...

This past week, VPIRG’s own Kate Lapp joined former Gov. Howard Dean, Councilor Zoraya Hightower, Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s, Rob Richie of FairVote, and Anna Kellar of the Maine League of Women Voters for a fun, informative virtual event on ranked choice voting. Catch this replay of the event! Featured are remarks from expert ...