Current News

Vermont Business MagazineLast week, the Vermont Department of Taxes and the IRS began accepting tax returns for the 2016 tax year and there are a few changes the department would like taxpayers to know about. The department continues to experience a rise in attempted tax refund fraud, an alarming trend that mirrors what is happening in other states and at the federal level. State revenue departments and the IRS are implementing procedures to help protect the taxpayer’s money. Vermont taxpayers will be asked to provide a Vermont driver’s license or state-issued identification card number when filing. If the information is not provided and the department cannot verify your identity, this may delay the processing of a refund.

Vermont Business MagazineVermont business associations representing small, medium and large, businesses and their employees across Vermont find the recent Executive Order signed by President Trump to be contrary to the economic and humanitarian values that have defined our state and our country since its inception. The statement was issued jointly by the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce (LCRCC), the Vermont Business Roundtable (VBR), the Vermont Chamber of Commerce (VCC) and Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR).

As a state whose history is steeped in the legacy of those fleeing religious and political oppression, and as a state whose history is woven throughout the American Revolution's fight for personal liberty and freedom, our Associations reject the underlying assumption that one's race, religion or culture should create an automatic bar to entry into our country.

Senator Bernie Sanders The Supreme Court plays an enormously important role in American life. Unfortunately, in recent years, that role has been largely negative. I look forward to questioning Judge Gorsuch about his positions on the most important issues that impact Vermonters and all Americans and his views on recent Supreme Court decisions. In recent years, the disastrous Citizens United ruling opened the floodgates on campaign cash and let corporations and millionaires buy elections. The court tore up the Voting Rights Act and cleared the way for Republican governors and state legislatures to suppress the vote and make it harder for poor people, people of color, young people and senior citizens to vote. This is the court that in a long string of cases was far friendlier to big business than to the needs of workers. This is a court that let Exxon off the hook for $5 billion in fines for a disastrous oil spill in Alaska and stymied efforts to combat global warming. This is a court that has chipped away at a woman's right to control her own body.

Senator Patrick Leahy In light of the unconstitutional actions of our new president in just his first week, the Senate owes the American people a thorough and unsparing examination of this nomination. I had hoped that President Trump would work in a bipartisan way to pick a mainstream nominee like Merrick Garland and bring the country together. Instead, he outsourced this process to far-right interest groups. This is no way to treat a co-equal branch of government, or to protect the independence of our Federal judiciary.

by Leigh Cole Dinse Knapp McAndrew You may be getting questions about the Executive Order (EO) "Protecting the Nation from Terrorist Attacks by Foreign Nationals” affecting citizens of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. With the caveat that events are changing rapidly, here are my immediate recommendations with respect to individuals from these countries:

Vermont Business Magazine During the 2016 holiday season, Burlington Telecom partnered with Burlington-based charities to highlight the amazing work being done in the community to support those in need. Each new customer subscribing to BT services could direct a donation of $100 to a local non-profit. Customers had the choice to direct BT’s donation to one of five organizations: Committee on Temporary Shelter, Community Health Centers of Burlington, Howard Center, Spectrum Youth & Family Services, and Steps to End Domestic Violence.

“This type of promotion was a first for Burlington Telecom and we received a great deal of positive feedback from the community. BT’s operational values aim to reflect the people we serve. The results of this campaign clearly demonstrate that our customers value the health, well-being and safety of all Burlington residents.” - Abbie Tykocki, Burlington Telecom Director of Marketing

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Lisa Ventriss, President of Vermont Business Roundtable (VBR) and Jeffrey Carr, President, Economic & Policy Resources (EPR), announced the Q1 2017 outlook results of their joint initiative, the VBR-EPR Business Conditions Survey and Index.

Overall Finding
The latest survey, which was conducted during the first two weeks of January 2017, achieved a response rate of 71 percent overall and included a 50 percent or greater response rate from 13 of 14 represented sectors within the membership. Survey results show that:

Vermont Business Magazine The Burlington Electric Department and Vermont Gas Systems today launched a new residential energy efficiency program that challenges and encourages homeowners and renters in Vermont’s largest city to take power over their energy use. The new residential program is the next step in the unique Vermont Gas-Burlington Electric energyChamp partnership, first announced in June 2015, to offer incentives to owners of multi-unit residential rentals who committed to improving the energy efficiency of their buildings.

Vermont Business MagazineVermonters who were deceived into sending payments to scammers using Western Union’s wire transfer service may be entitled to compensation in a multi-statesettlementreached by Attorney General TJDonovan, 48 other states, the District of Columbia, and Western Union. The State of Vermont will receive a significant payment of $400,000 from Western Union in recognition of its role in leading the multi-state investigation. Western Union will pay a total of $5 million to the participating states and the District of Columbia to resolve these claims.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) said Tuesday he will soon introduce legislation to lower prescription drug prices and hoped that President Donald Trump would support the effort. Sanders and Representative Elijah E Cummings (D-MD) are drafting legislation to significantly bring down drug prices in the United States. While five major drug manufacturers made more than $50 billion in profits in 2015, nearly 1 in 5 Americans could not afford the medicine they were prescribed at a time when Americans pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription medicine.

“It is beyond comprehension that while Americans are dying because they cannot afford the medications they need, the 10 highest-paid CEOs in the pharmaceutical industry collectively made $327 million in 2015,” Sanders said.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont Medical Center has opened a Genomic Medicine laboratory to expand its use of advanced genetic testing that doctors can use to develop treatments tailored to individual patients. By pinpointing genetic variations related to a patient’s disease or disease risk, genomic testing leads to a more accurate diagnosis which may allow providers to choose a therapy targeted at the underlying cause of a specific patient’s illness.

Since early 2016, patients of the UVM Health Network with solid cancers - such as lung, colon and melanoma - have benefitted from genomic testing, which is only available at a limited number of academic medical centers in the U.S. The new lab will allow testing of blood cancers, cardiovascular disease and neurological conditions, among other illnesses.

Highlights:

Vermont Business Magazine A bipartisan coalition of 71 members of the House of Representatives, including Congressman Peter Welch (D-Vermont) sent a letter to President Donald Trump today urging him to include investments in rural broadband connectivity in his forthcoming infrastructure proposal. The lawmakers highlighted the importance of broadband connectivity in attracting and retaining businesses, communication between family and friends, timely responses to an emergency response, agricultural efficiency, and access to educational materials.

The letter was led by Welch, Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Dave Loebsack (D-IA), and Bob Latta (R-OH). The bipartisan Senate Broadband Caucus sent a similar letter today led by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Angus King (I-ME), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), and John Boozman (R-AR).