As is the tradition of many towns in rural New England, the municipal government enjoys a degree of autonomy from the county and employs only a few essential service-providers.

The democratically elected selectboard and town clerk decide on an annual budget for road crews, educators, and law enforcers.

These forty citizens help to determine the direction of town planning, in particular the areas of road maintenance, public safety, and local taxation.

The amount of crime in Benson is negligible when compared with the nearby communities of Orwell and Shoreham who respectively ranked second and tenth in recidivism and repeat offenders as of 2012.

[4] Even so, Benson has faced the growing drug epidemic in rural New England, and the use of illegal substances is on the rise across all ages and demographics.

Similarly, Benson's volunteer firefighters occasionally respond to large blazes and calls for water rescue in other local towns when the opportunity presents itself.

Williamson store, a local greengrocery and gas station began the town's economic development and differentiation from the greater Fair Haven area.

[citation needed] The Williamson store opened in 1912, shortly after the proprietor survived a bear attack while hiking in the Green Mountains.

The Williamson store was soon joined by a tavern known as the Wheel Inn, which provides American fare and serves as the center of local intrigue.

The Benson Sycamore Tree is a local institution, located on Stage Road at the former estate of Lieutenant Colonel John Trutor.

Durfee continued to reside on that farm until the spring of 1835 when he moved to West Chazy, New York, where he died in the summer of 1843, aged over 90 years.

[11] While nobody seems to be quite sure as to the precise origin of the town's name, most historians over the years have speculated that it was named for Egbert Benson, a respected lawyer and Revolutionary War officer, who was instrumental in negotiating the land claim which New York had made to Vermont—a congressionally mandated prerequisite for Vermont joining the Union as a state of its own, rather than being divided between New York and New Hampshire.

[16] Mrs. Trutor was an active feminist agitator during her own time, arguing for women to be engaged in front-line combat during World War II.

[citation needed] A small but well-maintained museum is housed in the town's municipal building, on the site of the former Benson Grade School.

The State of Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife maintains Benson Landing, a boat launch on Lake Champlain.