Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The annual Rabies Bait Drop is scheduled to begin on August 5, 2022. The week-long bait drop is part of a nationally coordinated effort between the State of Vermont and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services to prevent the spread of rabies – a fatal disease. Rabies vaccine — in the form of a sweet-smelling oral bait that is attractive to raccoons and skunks — will be dropped in rural areas of Vermont from low-flying aircraft and placed by hand in residential centers. Pilots are able to control the release of bait in order to avoid residential areas. When an animal bites into the bait, it takes in the oral vaccine and will develop immunity to rabies. Approximately 450,000 quarter-sized blister packs containing rabies vaccine will be distributed in nearly 100 Vermont communities across 8 counties.

​Vermont Business Magazine Jennifer Davis, MD, is a critical care pediatrician, a lifestyle medicine physician, and the next guest on Medical Matters Weekly at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, August 3. Known as Dr. Jenn, Davis completed her undergraduate studies at Wellesley College where she majored in Philosophy. She earned her medical doctorate at New York Medical College and completed one year of General Surgery at Indiana University Medical Center before discovering a love of pediatrics. She completed a Pediatric Residency at Westchester Medical Center and fellowship training in Pediatric Critical Care at Montefiore Medical Center, both in New York.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont General Fund tax revenues, as expected, continued to exceed expectations for the month of June and for fiscal year 2022, which ended June 30. The vital personal income tax once again led the way, exceeding targets for the month by more than $25 million. With the General Fund and Education Fund revenues comfortably above targets for the year, state revenues will be well above the projected fiscal year total, despite the Transportation Fund missing its target. The T-Fund has struggled to maintain consistency, but the increase in fuel costs could bolster revenues in the near term. Meanwhile, the Ed Fund in June fell back as sales tax receipts under-performed, despite an otherwise strong year.

​Vermont Business Magazine The Public Service Department (PSD) today announced an extension in the deadline to respond to the Request for Input (“RFI”) on the review Vermont’s Renewable Electricity Policy and Programs. On July 5, the PSD issued an RFI to solicit feedback on the process for this review as well as gather initial input about what is important to Vermonters regarding the State’s supply of electricity. Responses to the RFI were initially due on August 5, however the PSD is extending the deadline to August 15 to allow the RFI to continue to be circulated to a broad array of stakeholders and offer additional time for them to submit comments.

Vermont Business Magazine The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that Blakely H Jenkins, Sr, 61, of St Johnsbury, Vermont, was sentenced today to one year and one day of imprisonment for evading taxes and committing identity theft while running his St. Johnsbury-based painting business, Blake Jenkins Painting, Inc. United States District Judge William K Sessions III also ordered Jenkins to serve a two-year term of supervised release. In February 2022, Jenkins pleaded guilty to two counts of evasion of employment taxes and one count of identity theft.

Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, on Monday announced that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded $395,201 to the Vermont Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) to support Farm to School initiatives across the state, including those getting local foods to childcare centers and preschools. Leahy authored the Farm to School program as part of the 2010 Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act, and has introduced legislation to reauthorize the program.

Vermont Business Magazine On Wednesday, August 3, 2022, join members of the Department of Environmental Conservation’s Clean Water Initiative Program (CWIP) to learn about funding resources that support clean water in Vermont, including upcoming opportunities and eligibility. Vermont’s rivers, lakes, and ponds are one of the joys of summertime and are an important environmental and economic resource for residents and visitors. Protecting and restoring the water quality in Vermont is a priority. The State of Vermont funds clean water projects to prevent pollution from washing into these waters from the landscape.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Monday announced that more than $212 million in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) for 38 projects across Vermont were included in the Senate Appropriations bills that he released at the end of last week. The 12 annual Appropriations Bills fund the federal government. Leahy was also able to secure formula funding increases and programmatic changes to support longtime Vermont priorities. The bills must now go through conference negotiations before being passed by the House and Senate and signed into law by the president.

​Vermont Business Magazine Planning For Vibrant Communities, an upcoming Housing Summit workshop hosted by Lamoille Housing Partnership (LHP) and the Working Communities Challenge (WCC,) invites community members to collaboratively develop housing-related action plans in an effort to solve some of Hardwick and Lamoille County’s pressing housing challenges.

The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) is inviting Vermonters of all backgrounds who are working with a goal of improving life in their community to attend the2022 Community Leadership Summit on Wednesday, August 10, at Vermont Technical College. The Summit agenda will include skills workshops, networking opportunities, community project panels, and forum discussions.

Vermont Agency of Agriculture Food & Markets The first round of Working Lands Enterprise Initiative applications for fiscal year (FY) 2023 is launching! The Working Lands Enterprise Board (WLEB) is releasing two requests for applications (RFAs) that allow Vermont working lands service provider organizations and producer associations to invest in projects focused on governance, leadership, building workforce development, and executive business skills. To allow time for organizations to prepare, the application portal will be open from August 12th through September 23rd.

Vermont Business Magazine Last Friday, NorthCountry Federal Credit Union CEO Bob Morgan announced the financial institution’s contact center ranked first nationwide for its interactions with members during the second quarter of 2022. “I am extremely proud of this result and of the outstanding service our staff deliver to members every day. I am appreciative and grateful for their efforts, and for having each of them as co-workers,” said Morgan. The first-place ranking was reported by Qualtrics, an independent firm that measures customer loyalty using a metric called Net Promoter Score (NPS).