Current News

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The state’s tax revenues continue to exceed expectations, as they have for more than a year. The General Fund, Transportation Fund and Education Fund in August all finished the month with revenue above target, continuing a show of strength early in the fiscal year. The monthly revenue report was released by Secretary of Administration Kristin Clouser today. The state’s three funds were a combined $240.1 million, or 13.8%, above monthly consensus expectations. For the first two months of the fiscal year, combined revenues across all three funds were 8.2% above target. General Fund revenues collected for the month totaled $154.4 million, $26.7 million above the monthly consensus cash flow revenue target. The August numbers reflect a continuation of the above-forecast trend in personal income taxes and corporate income taxes, which handily offset slight misses in meals & rooms tax and estate tax receipts.

Vermont Business Magazine NorthCountry Federal Credit Union has partnered with nuLogic, a division of nuwave Equity Corporation, to measure and improve its DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) efforts. By collecting and analyzing a comprehensive range of DEI data, nuLogic will provide the credit union with unique insights into how it performs when viewed through a DEI lens, as well as insights into HR processes such as payroll, turnover, recruitment, and advancement. The organizations will then work together to identify and ultimately resolve current inequities.

by Jack Hoffman, Public Assets Institute Vermonters who qualify for a reduction in their student loan debt will get another break from the state: The loan forgiveness won’t be taxed. Debt forgiveness is typically counted as income and taxed by both federal and state governments. People who negotiate debt reduction with credit card companies are sometimes surprised to learn they owe income taxes on the amount written off.

Vermont Business Magazine Examiner-In-Charge Jim DeVoe-Talluto has been promoted to Assistant Director of Captive Insurance at the Department of Financial Regulation. DeVoe-Talluto will fill the role that Christine Brown held, who was recently promoted to Director of Captive Insurance of the Captive Insurance Division.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) today in St Albans announced over $4 million in funding supporting a record number of rehabilitation and revitalization projects throughout Vermont’s designated downtown and village centers. These 49 project awards will help generate over $95 million in building improvements and public infrastructure around the state.

Vermont Business Magazine GE a world leader in providing aircraft engines, systems and avionics, with a location in Rutland, Vermont, announces that its GE Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship Programs graduated 41 apprentices in toolmaking, electrical maintenance, and mechanical maintenance on August 26, 2022. The graduation took place at the Killington Grand Resort Hotel. Patricia Moulton, executive director of Vermont State Colleges System’s workforce development division, was the keynote speaker.

Vermont Business Magazine Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) Tuesday announced that $1 billion in new funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) was included in the Continuing Resolution. Leahy was the leading advocate for securing new funding for the popular program in the continuing resolution, which is estimated to deliver $5.7 million in support for Vermonters.

Vermont Business Magazine Suicides in Vermont are at a 25-year high, and state health officials have issued a call to action for Vermonters to be partners in bending this curve. To help make this happen, the Vermont Department of Health and Department of Mental Health have launched “Facing Suicide VT,” a statewide prevention effort funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Facing Suicide VT provides access to suicide prevention education, support, and advocacy resources. This initiative features a comprehensive website, FacingSuicideVT.com. The site provides information and resources about how to get help for people struggling or in crisis.

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power (GMP) is adding grid-connected energy storage in six communities, to further accelerate its work to cut carbon and costs for customers, while strengthening the greater grid. GMP is working with battery companies and local developers to build cost-competitive energy storage projects in Vermont and purchase battery power to put back on the grid to save customers money. The storage projects selected will nearly double the current peak energy savings for GMP customers, and batteries will be in Georgia, Springfield, Bethel, Middlebury, Bristol, and Barre. The new projects are adding 25 MW of energy storage and will be online in the next two years, joining GMP’s existing fleet of more than 30 MW of residential and large-scale storage throughout Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State Treasurer Beth Pearce signed a letter with 12 state treasurers and the New York City Comptroller, in response to recent legislation aiming to curb consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in investing. Several states in our country have started blacklisting financial firms that don’t agree with their political views. West Virginia, Idaho, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida have created new policies and laws that restrict who they will do business with, reducing competition and restricting access to many high-quality managers. This strategy has real costs that ultimately impact their taxpayers.

Vermont Business Magazine The sixth annual Vermont Legal Community Fighting Hunger Food Drive raised $13,854 for the Vermont Foodbank and collected over 650 items that were donated to local food shelves or meal sites. This two-week fundraiser, held each year in September during Hunger Action Month, is organized by the Attorney General’s Office, the Vermont Bar Association, and the Vermont Paralegal Organization in partnership with the Vermont Foodbank. In the six-year history of the food drive, Vermont’s legal community has raised more than $63,000 and collected over 11,000 food items.