Feeding Champlain Valley is working to maintain its presence in Burlington despite its primary location being under construction. In addition to opening a location at the O'Brien Community Center in Winooski, the organization is also operating a weekly free food truck with a rotating menu.
President Donald Trump's administration has moved to reshape federal government spending, including rescinding money that had been promised to groups in Vermont. Vermont Public is tracking these cuts and their impacts in the table below based on reporting from our journalists. Decisions have been coming rapidly, and the status of funds can change through administrative actions or court challenges. To account for this fluctuation, each line of the table includes the date of the latest information.
A diverse, statewide group of 119 Vermont businesses, nonprofits, and faith communities published an open letter to Governor Scott and state lawmakers today, urging them to use the power of elected office to support and protect Vermonters from harmful and unconstitutional federal actions. The letter comes in response to unprecedented attacks on constitutional rights, state and local government autonomy, and the nation’s civic infrastructure.
A Hinesburg mobile home park went without running water for a week earlier this month while its management company tried to fix a leak in one of the park’s water pipes. Sunset Lake, off Richmond Road, is a resident-owned cooperative with 55 individual homes. Residents there collectively own the park and govern themselves through a co-op board. The board also contracts with Majestic Property Management to run day-to-day operations. While Sunset Lake is connected to the town water supply, the co-op owns and is responsible for the pipes on their own property.
The Trump administration's slash-and-burn campaign against "wokeness" and government spending is coming for the few services that work to curtail discrimination in Vermont's housing market. Late last month, the first swing of the ax struck a grant that funds a program at the CVOEO, which supports renters, homebuyers and landlords on issues related to state and federal fair housing laws.
Vermont's only statewide program dedicated to non-discriminatory and affordable housing is losing 80% of its federal funding. The Champlain Valley Office for Economic Opportunity's Fair Housing Project is granted annual funding from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. According to the cancellation letter sent to CVOEO, “HUD is terminating this award because it no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities.”
The Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity will lose significant federal funding for a project that helps thousands of Vermonters statewide facing housing discrimination cases. “This really important housing justice work that we do will continue in some way, but the funding cut is going to limit our ability to serve people at a time when the need is just increasing,” said Jess Hyman, The Associate Director of Statewide Housing Advocacy Programs at CVOEO.
As the Trump Administration continues to slash federal funding, the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity’s Fair Housing Project has also taken a hit. CVOEO says an annual grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development typically funds 80% of their fair housing work. Still, the department recently ended its financial support of efforts to fight housing discrimination and enforce fair housing laws.
The Vermont Fair Housing Project is one of the most recent organizations to feel the impact of the ongoing series of federal funding cuts. The Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO) runs the project to support fair housing practices, educate people about housing rights, and provide training to community leaders.
As February came to a close, so did the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD)support for anti-discrimination and fair housing education and enforcement efforts around the country, including Vermont’s own CVOEO Fair Housing Project. HUD’s annual grant funded 80% of the Fair Housing Project, which is Vermont’s only statewide program solely dedicated to Fair Housing outreach and education.