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Democratic lawmakers have mixed interest in advancing Republican Gov. Phil Scott’s wide-ranging housing plan, and haven’t offered many of their own proposals to address Vermont’s long-standing unit shortage.

Neurodivergent Vermonters are organizing a mutual aid effort to provide each other with medicine, groceries and other support amid potential cuts to Medicaid and other federal funding. Plus, the state is finalizing plans to open its own cannabis testing lab, Vermont officials are closely monitoring for bird flu, Vermont Fish and Wildlife is proposing allowing hunters to take antlerless deer during the regular fall hunting season for the first time in years, and several blighted South Burlington buildings are being razed to make way for commercial space and housing.

Vermont poultry farmers take steps to guard their animals against bird flu, which has been spreading around the country. Plus, rank-and-file lawmakers are pushing Democratic leadership to exempt military pensions for state income tax, U.S. Rep. Balint denounces a budget plan that passed the House this week, several towns will mull whether to allow ATVs on town roads, and the Stowe Foliage Arts Festival won’t return this fall.

The mountain town of Ripton has been trying to keep its small elementary school open for years, and now risks losing one of its classes unless the community can recruit a handful of extra students for the coming school year. Plus, Gov. Scott and Democratic lawmakers are at odds over budgeting for Vermont’s motel housing program, Green Mountain Transit is seeing better-than-expected ridership numbers after reinstating fares, Vermont has a shortage of child psychiatrists, and some overlooks and cliff tops are now closed to protect nesting raptors.

Vermont needs more basic municipal infrastructure in order to build more homes amid a massive shortage, but putting water and sewer systems in the ground can get political. Plus, Essex Westford School District is proposing steep cuts, a strong winter season may be benefiting Vermont’s betting industry, Vermont Senate Minority Leader Scott Beck speaks out against a proposed tariff on Canadian goods, and Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to visit Vermont for a ski trip.

A new study out of Dartmouth College examines how current research practices can improve the governance of Indigenous data. Plus, the University of Vermont Health Network will continue to run three dialysis clinics around the state, a Shelburne cop who hit and killed a cyclist is now facing criminal charges related to the incident, a new poll finds the majority of Vermonters don’t approve of President Donald Trump’s job performance, why Abenaki leaders from Odanak First Nation were at the Statehouse last week and how you can help prevent avalanches.