Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Williston-based iSun, Inc (NASDAQ: ISUN), a leading solar energy and clean mobility infrastructure company with 50-years of experience accelerating the adoption of innovative electrical technologies, today announced that it was awarded a $3.1 million contract to implement solar energy solutions in Middlebury, Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Expansion of Fidium Fiber’s multi-gig speeds will continue across northern New England in 2023. Residents in St. Albans, as well as in the communities of Lewiston, Scarborough, Ellsworth, and Blue Hill, Maine, can pre-order Fidium Fiber, Consolidated Communications’ residential fiber internet service. Fidium Fiber delivers multi-gig, symmetrical, fiber internet without contracts, data caps or hassles. All Fidium plans offer symmetrical speeds from 50 Mbps to 2 Gigs. Customers can also get phone service through VoIP plans and streaming TV service.

by David Fleming When I heard that David Hill of the Energy Futures Group was scheduled to present its model to Vermont’s Climate Council two months ago, I was skeptical. The Climate Council’s plan, released in December 2021, seemed to rely heavily on a “Social Cost of Carbon” to justify future climate proposals. While Hill’s presentation justified a few of my priors, it also unearthed an even larger concern. Even with a Social Cost of Carbon estimate triple the rate set by the Biden Administration ($146/ton vs. $51/ton), many of the proposals were still so expensive that they could not be justified in terms of a ‘invest money now, see benefits later’ mentality. They will always be net losers, regardless of time frame or geographic scope.

Northeastern Vermont Development Association Have you signed up for the December 13 VECAN webinar on Vermont’s new Municipal Energy Resilience Program? Representative Sibilia, Commissioner Fitch of VT Buildings and General Services (BGS), and Peter Gregory from TRORC will provide a program overview. A recording will be available. The Municipal Energy Resilience Program (MERP) is designed to provide staffing support, technical assistance, & funding to help energy burdened communities across the state become more resilient, reduce their energy use, & curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Vermont Business Magazine The Shires of Southwestern Vermont Destination Marketing Organization, in coordination with the Manchester Business Association, presented The Shires Holiday Inn Tours once again this holiday season. Continuing a three decade's long tradition, The Shires' Holiday Inn Tours organized sixteen local lodging properties, including historic hotels, quaint inns and charming B & B’s, and encouraged them to open their doors to visitors from near and far during the holiday season. On Saturday, December 3rd and Saturday, December 10th over 330 visitors experienced the true meaning of hospitality as lodging properties throughout Bennington County showcased their unique properties in a festive holiday atmosphere.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) Tuesday evening held a telephone town meeting to hear directly from older Vermonters about the issues that matter most to them and how the federal government can address the needs of seniors and working families. Throughout the year, Sanders has led meetings and public events, in-person and virtually, with over 50,000 Vermonters from across the state. These have included a virtual statewide town meeting, in-person town meetings with the Finnish Ambassador to the U.S., a roundtable discussion with the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and a round table discussion with Vermont affordable housing providers; as well as town meetings focused on issues facing first responders, students, medical professionals, and more.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) today announced that three more segments of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail (LVRT) – Danville to Hardwick, Wolcott Village to Morrisville, and Cambridge to Sheldon — will be open for public use on December 15th. The final remaining segment, Hardwick to Wolcott Village, is expected to be completed February 1st, 2023.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud and Residential Abuse Unit (MFRAU) has entered a settlement agreement with Upper Valley Services, a designated agency that provides services and supports for people with developmental disabilities in Orange County and Moretown, Vermont. The settlement resolves MFRAU’s investigations into three incidents involving Upper Valley Services. These separate incidents included allegations of neglect that resulted in the death of a vulnerable adult, the confinement of a vulnerable adult in a basement, and the use of Medicaid funds to pay an Upper Valley Services employee who was on Vermont’s Adult Abuse Registry.

Vermont Business Magazine On December 8th, Vermont Lieutenant Governor Molly Gray and House Speaker Jill Krowinski hosted a summit of policymakers and advocates focused on working families, the caregiving economy, and universal access to paid family leave as well as child care in Vermont. The Summit was held at the Vermont State House and consisted of two panels, one dedicated to understanding universal paid family and medical leave, and the other dedicated to understanding universal, affordable child care access. Lieutenant Governor Gray, House Speaker Krowinski, advocates, business leaders, and early childhood educators, all spoke about the need for Vermonters to have access to universal paid family and medical leave and universal, affordable child care.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont State Police is investigating a suspicious death in St. Johnsbury. The investigation began after the St. Johnsbury Police Department received a call at about 9:45 a.m. Wednesday requesting a welfare check at 78 Hastings St. for a report that an individual may have been shot. Responding officers arrived on scene and confirmed that an individual was deceased inside the residence. St. Johnsbury police requested the Vermont State Police respond and lead the investigation.