Current News

The Vermont Chamber of Commerce and VermontBiz have announced the recipient of the 2022 Outstanding Business of the Year Award is Hickok & Boardman Insurance Group. Hickok & Boardman will accept the award at the upcoming Vermont Economic Conference, which will take place on January 30, 2023, at the University of Vermont Dudley H Davis Center. The Outstanding Business of the Year Award is presented annually to the Vermont business that demonstrates a commitment to community, workforce well-being, environmental stewardship, and growth in sales or employment. Award recipients have been based in Vermont for at least 10 years.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s Killington Resort, the largest ski and snowboard resort in Eastern North America and part of POWDR, has received a positive snow control announcement from FIS (International Ski and Snowboard Federation), the governing body of the Audi FIS Ski World Cup. With this announcement, Killington Resort can assure international race teams and ski racing fans traveling to central Vermont for Thanksgiving weekend that both the Giant Slalom and Slalom races will take place as scheduled on November 26 and 27.

Vermont Business Magazine Pursuant to the Vermont Uniform Commercial Code, 9A V.S.A § 9-610, the security interests of the Secured Creditor will be enforced and all assets of Edge Pharma, LLC., a compounding pharmacy in Colchester, VT, will be sold via online auction on Orbitbid.com, the auctioneer announced today. A federal court had permanently enjoined the Colchester, Vermont, compounding pharmacy from distributing drugs unless they are manufactured in compliance with the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), the Justice Department announced on June 13, 2022.

Vermont Business Magazine The Attorney General’s Office announced that David Green, 23, of South Burlington, Vermont, was arraigned today on three felony counts of Promoting a Recording of Sexual Conduct. The charges brought against Mr. Green are the result of a criminal investigation – including the execution of residential and online data search warrants – conducted by the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (VT-ICAC), including personnel from the Attorney General’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and South Burlington Police Department.

Vermont Business Magazine As residents and visitors pull off Route 100 and onto Route 4 accessing all that Killington has to offer, it’s hard to pinpoint “the heart of town.” In an effort to create a “Welcome to Killington” marker at a place where residents and visitors have all-in-one access to town offices and a welcome center, the Town of Killington is in process of purchasing a five-unit, 11,000+ square foot property at 2046 US-4, Killington, VT. This action is the first step to creating an entrance for the community resort and town businesses. It also frees up the current town office to become a recreation and gathering space for youth and senior residents.

VermontBiz Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement: “I am saddened to learn of the passing of Representative John Palasik this morning. Rep. Palasik was a committed public servant, devoting his career to helping others, whether it was in the U.S. Army, Vermont National Guard, Milton Police Department, Milton Rescue, as a State Representative, or the many other local roles he performed.

VermontBiz The Vermont Department of Labor has announced an increase to the State’s minimum wage. Beginning January 1, 2023, the State’s minimum wage will become $13.18 per hour. This is an increase of $0.63 from the current minimum wage of $12.55.

This annual adjustment also impacts the minimum wage for tipped employees. The Basic Tipped Wage Rate for service, or “tipped employees,” equals 50% of the full minimum wage. On January 1, 2023, the tipped minimum wage will increase from $6.28 to $6.59 per hour.

Vermont Business Magazine March of Dimes, the nation's leader in mom and baby health, released its 2022 Report Card today, revealing that the US preterm birth rate increased to 10.5% in 2021 – a significant 4% increase in just one year and the highest recorded rate since 2007. Despite reporting a slight decline last year, the preterm birth rate has steadily increased since 2014, earning the country a D+ grade in the Report Card. Vermont, with an A-, was the only state to get better than a B+ grade (New Hampshire). The data also shows persistent racial disparities across maternal and infant health measures that were compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, making the US among the most dangerous developed nations for childbirth.

Vermont Business Magazine On November 15, 2022 Vermont Electric Cooperative (VEC) filed a request for an 8.19 percent rate increase to apply to VEC member bills in the new year. The primary driver for the increase request is the significant upward pressure on the cost of wholesale power, primarily driven by the worldwide shortage of natural gas. Since sixty percent of VEC’s operating budget is spent on power supply and the transmission system to deliver it, and because we are a small part of a regional grid and worldwide market, it is challenging to mitigate these increases. VEC’s 2023 power supply cost is projected to increase by $4.8 million over 2022.

Vermont Business Magazine Commemorate a loved one by participating in the 2022 VNA & Hospice of the Southwest Region’s Annual Tree of Remembrance Ceremony. Held virtually again this year, the tree will be illuminated, and the names of loved ones read during a Facebook broadcast. The broadcast will be held on Thursday, December 15, 2022, at 7pm on the VNA & Hospice of the Southwest Region’s Facebook page. Dr. Allan Eisemann, Hospice Medical Director and Medical Director of the Foley Cancer Center, will be featured along with Jesse Bradley, Hospice Chaplain of the VNA & Hospice of the Southwest Region.

Vermont Business Magazine Richard L. Page, M.D., dean of The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, has announced the appointment of J. Kathleen (Kate) Tracy, Ph.D., as senior associate dean for research. Tracy will also serve as professor of medicine at the Larner College of Medicine and director of research at the UVM Health Network. She will begin her new role in February 2023. Tracy comes to Vermont from the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMB-SOM), where she is a professor of epidemiology and public health, vice chair for research services, epidemiology and public health, and head of the Division of Preventive Medicine.