Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General TJ Donovan announced today a $6.5 million settlement with Volkswagen and related entities Porsche and Audi. The settlement resolves alleged violations of Vermont’s consumer protection laws involving VW’s false advertising claims about so-called “Clean Diesel” cars and the diesel engine emissions scandal. Under the settlement, VW has agreed to pay Vermont consumers up to $1,000 for every qualifying vehicle. Vermont is one of two states in which consumers will receive restitution payments as a result of a state enforcement action. Vermonters will receive a total of $2.9 million in direct consumer restitution. Vermonters are eligible to receive payments regardless of whether they have received money from other VW-related settlements. VW will also pay $3.6 million into the State's general fund.

Vermont Business Magazine University of Vermont Medical Center nurses voted to authorize a strike at the region's largest hospital, with 94 percent voting “yes" in polls held over the past three days. The results were revealed Wednesday morning. Seventy-two percent of nurses in the bargaining unit participated in the vote, which enables the union to call a strike when the contract expires on July 9 if negotiations fail to make progress.

At issue, the union said in a statement, is the chronic understaffing of the hospital and clinics.

The nurses, represented by Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals (VFNHP), have proposed updated staffing grids and compensation policies - including immediate outpatient equity and at least $15/hr for all UVM Medical Center employees - that will incentivize the recruitment and retention of nurses and support staff.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Code’s drive to make Burlington the tech center of Vermont and New England just received renewed support from the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET) to keep up the meetups. Volunteer-run Burlington Code, which brings together the tech community of software professionals and hobbyists through regular, free meetups to share knowledge, foster collaboration, and keep careers and companies competitive, has produced more than 104 meetup events in the past 26 months, and welcomed an average of 30 people at each event.

Burlington Code was formed in 2015 by Jon Hoguet, a software engineer who sought skills and knowledge through meetups early in his career.

Vermont Business Magazine A team of physicists at the University of Vermont have discovered a fundamentally new way surfaces can get wet. Their study may allow scientists to create the thinnest films of liquid ever made—and engineer a new class of surface coatings and lubricants just a few atoms thick.

Vermont Business Magazine The Women’s Community Club (WCC) of Grafton, celebrating its centennial this year, is pleased to announce the seven winners of its annual scholarships to benefit Grafton students. The scholarship awards are based on scholastic achievement, financial need, community involvement and extra curricular activities/work commitments at school. The WCC will award a total of $20,000.

Vermont Business Magazine Bluehouse Group was recently awarded seven prestigious Horizon Interactive Awards for their outstanding website design and development work. With over 1,200 agency submissions in 2017, Bluehouse was able to push their way to the top of the competition, scoring a spot on the Horizon Interactive Distinguished Agencies list.

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine Colchester-based Hazelett Corporation confirmed Monday that the Hazelett Twin-belt Continuous Casting Process will be utilized for the JW Aluminum expansion. The state-of-the-art Hazelett product is a centerpiece of the new 220,000-square-foot JW building, ultimately resulting in 175 million pounds of new capacity. Online trade publication alcircle.com said JW is investing $255 million in the South Carolina plant.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today attended the Turrell Fund Day for Children in Shelburne, addressing a crowd of policy makers, advocates and funders focused on supporting children’s well-being in Vermont. He reiterated his vision for public education in Vermont as a potential shut down of state government looms over the state. The administration and the Legislature are at a stalemate primarily over funding for pubic education.

by Jack Hoffman Public Assets Institute Public education—pre-k through 12—has become a coveted source of revenue in recent years. People look at the $1.7 billion Education Fund and imagine how some efficiencies here, a little school consolidation there, could free up hundreds of millions of dollars. Now Governor Phil Scott has proposed his “Five-Year Education Revitalization, Tax Stabilization, and Investment Act.” It dangles the prospect of improving education, but the real aim appears to be a raid on the Education Fund.

Vermont Business Magazine WPTZ, the Hearst-owned NBC affiliate in Plattsburgh, New York/Burlington, Vermont, announced plans in a press release Tuesday to relocate from its current space in Colchester to a new location in South Burlington, as well as open a new bureau in Lebanon, New Hampshire. As part of this plan, WPTZ/WNNE will maintain its longstanding presence in Plattsburgh. WPTZ had also considered Williston for the new location.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets has issued a revised Medium Farm Operation (MFO) General Permit (GP), following a lengthy information gathering and revision process. The MFO GP sets standards for MFOs in the State of Vermont generating animal waste to ensure they do not have a discharge of waste to the waters of the State and operate in accordance with their Nutrient Management Plan. Unless otherwise given notice by the Agency, all farms meeting the definition of a MFO in the State of Vermont are required to operate under the coverage of this GP.

Vermont Business Magazine Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (d-Vermont) on the Trump-Kim summit meeting: "I commend President Trump for beginning direct negotiations. But it is troubling that the President has agreed to unilaterally halt military exercises with South Korea without verifiable commitments from North Korea to denuclearize, while giving Kim the recognition he has long craved..."