All members of the executive and legislative branch serve two-year terms including the governor and senators.

An in-depth evaluation of government in 2008 ranked Vermont high compared to other states.

Predating the ratification of the United States Bill of Rights by 14 years, the 1777 Constitution prohibited slavery and indentured servitude and provided for universal male suffrage, with no property ownership requirement for voting rights.

It also set forth broad protections of religious freedom and conscience while erecting a strong separation between church and state by prohibiting establishment or promotion of any faith by the government or compulsion to worship.

[2] With the current estimated population of Vermont from the last U.S. Census, there is approximately one Representative for every 4,059 residents.

[5] This high number is due, in part, to Vermont (and New England's) practice of assuming the functions, and therefore the budgets of the county government which is nearly non-existent.

[7] In 2010, state employees agreed to take a 3% cut in salary and wages so that the government could balance the budget.

There are seven agencies run by appointed secretaries: Administration, Vermont Agency of Agriculture Food and Markets (Agriculture), Commerce and Community Development, Digital Services, Human Services, Natural Resources, and Transportation.

[9] There are 21 commissions run by individual appointed commissioners: Aging and Independent Living, Buildings and General Services, Children and Families, Corrections, Disabilities, Economic Development, Education, Finance, Financial Regulation, Fish and Wildlife, Forests, Health, Human Resources, Information and Innovation, Labor, Liquor Control, Mental Health, Motor Vehicles, Parks and Recreation, Public Safety, Public Service, Taxes, and Tourism.

[9] The bureaucracy is structured as follows: The governor, with approval of the legislature, appoints people to boards.

Six boards govern the following commissions: a) Banking, Insurance, Securities, and Health Care Administration; b) Education - Run by Vermont State Board of Education; c) Labor; d) Liquor Control; e) Public Safety; and f) Public Service (advocacy).

The remaining commissions are under the following agencies along with various departments as indicated: There are more than 100 transportation-related fees in the state including the usual drivers licenses and vehicle registration.

The Vermont Constitution spells out the process of judicial appointment and retention in Chapter 2, Sections 32 through 35, 50 and 51.

Capital punishment was effectively abolished in practice in 1964, with the statutes being completely removed in 1987.

[18][19] In 2007, Moody's Investors Service gave its top rating of AAA to the state.

[22] However, CNNMoney ranked Vermont highest in the nation based on the percentage of per capita income.

Vermont does not assess tax on personal property, though individual towns or cities can opt to do so.

Chittenden ($3,809 median), Windham ($3,412), Addison ($3,352), and Windsor ($3,327) ranked in the top 100, out of 1,817 counties in the nation with populations greater than 20,000.

[31] Money from the Vermont Lottery supplied about 2% of the annual expenditures for education in 2007, contributing $23 million,[32] of the $1.3 billion of school spending.

Unlike other states, Vermont counties are not responsible for a road network, old-age homes, or other infrastructure or services.

All county services are directly funded by the state via property taxes levied within the constituent towns.

[34] Internally, Vermont's 254 municipalities comprise ten cities, 237 towns and five unincorporated gores, governed by guidelines set by the state statutes and constitution.

Villages are included in towns but assume responsibility for some municipal services within their boundaries, usually water, sewage and sometimes local roads.

As is the case in most of New England, nearly every square foot of the state is within the borders of an incorporated municipality; only a few hundred people live in the unincorporated gores.

In 2010, as a result of a Homeland security grant for Operation Stonegarden, various local city police throughout the state were used to help patrol the Canada–US border area for illegal immigrants.