Current News

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for July was 3.6 percent. This represents no change from the revised June rate (3.6 percent). The national average in July was 5.3 percent, which also experienced no change from the previous month’s estimate. Vermont showed only modest gains in the Labor Force and number of Employed from June but greater gains from last July. Vermont’s unemployment rate is tied for third lowest in the nation with Utah, behind only North Dakota (3.0 percent) and Nebraska (2.7 percent). New Hampshire is tied for fifth with Hawaii at 5.7 percent. West Virginia was last at 7.5 percent.

by Julie Pukas TD Bank There's been much discussion surrounding the Payment Networks' Liability Shift associated with Europay, MasterCard, and Visa (EMV) that's due to take effect in the United States this fall. EMV chip-enabled cards add an additional layer of fraud protection for consumers. The cards contain an embedded microchip that turns cardholder information into a unique code every time the card is inserted into a card reader. Overall, the goal of EMV technology is to decrease the potential for counterfeit card transactions, enable secure transactions and prepare for contactless payments.

by Erin Mansfield vtdigger.org The renovation of the Waterbury State Office Complex is almost complete, and state employees are on track to move back at the end of 2015. The facility will house about 850 state employees, most of whom work for the Agency of Human Services, the largest agency of state government, and the Department of Public Safety. The project has been in the works since Tropical Storm Irene in August 2011 damaged the complex. Heavy rainfall led to severe flooding and the evacuation of psychiatric patients at the Vermont State Hospital. About 1,500 state employees worked at the Waterbury complex at the time.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont home sales were again up by double digits year-over-year in July, but median home price was lagging again and actually dropped last month by 7 percent versus July 2014. For New England overall, year-over-year sales increased by 17.8 percent according to The RE/MAX INTEGRA, New England July Monthly Housing Report. Pending sales were up 19.9 percent over July 2014. And average days on market was down 9.7 percent. However, in every measure, Vermont's home sales were below that of every other New England state, except for median price, where Maine was the lowest. For the region, 21,108 home sales were recorded in July, accounting for over 22 percent of this year’s total transactions.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Peter Shumlin announced a number of staff appointments today, incluidng Frank Reed, Christopher Herrick, Tom Cheney, Laura Gray, James Pepper and Jahala Dudley. Frank Reed will become the Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health (DMH), effective August 21. Reed has been the Department’s Deputy Commissioner since 2012. Reed became the Department’s Interim Commissioner when the position was vacated by Paul Dupre who retired in June. Reed brings extensive experience to his role; experience gained from more than 30 years as a clinical social worker and mental health professional. Prior to joining DMH in 1999, Reed spent many years in clinical positions at Rutland Mental Health Services and Rutland Regional Medical Center.

Vermont Business Magazine Dynapower Company, the global leader in advanced energy storage inverters baed in South Burlington, Vermont, is expanding its operations by opening a new sales, service and warehouse facility in the San Francisco Bay Area. The new facility, which opens next month, comes as a result of continuous growth in the company's energy storage inverter sales across the US.

Vermont Business Magazine FairPoint Communications, Inc (Nasdaq: FRP), Vermont's largest communications provider, has reached a settlement agreement with the Vermont Department of Public Service that would resolve the state's service quality investigation of FairPoint pending since last December. The agreement, set forth in a filed Memorandum of Understanding, requires approval by the Vermont Public Service Board. FairPoint also has announced that it has accepted an $8.8 million in Connect America funding to expand broadband service to 28,400 locations in Vermont.

Vermont Fish & Wildlife Bears in Vermont are already thinking about winter, and are currently in search of easy calories to fatten up. Residential trash bins, bird feeders, pet food, and beehives can become bear attractants if not properly secured. Composting in bear country may also be an issue, and many residents wonder how to compost without enticing curious bears. While food scraps left outside in trash cans or composters may attract hungry bears, Vermonters can take a few measures to minimize conflicts, according to Forrest Hammond, bear project leader with Vermont Fish & Wildlife.

Vermont Business Magazine Sierra magazine, the official publication of the Sierra Club, has released its ninth annual "Cool Schools" ranking of America's greenest colleges and universities. The 2015 edition announced that Green Mountain College ranked twelfth in the nation overall. In addition, Sierra gave GMC the second highest rating for academic programs relating to sustainability. This category considers the number of sustainability courses, sustainability learning outcomes, sustainability-related majors, and sustainability literacy assessment.

by John McClaughry What follows is the story of one of the most thoroughly disgraceful special interest schemes ever brought into being in these United States. It is also one of the most fiendishly intricate government programs ever conceived, and its name is Ethanol.

Back in the Nixon years scientists discovered that tetraethyl lead used to improve combustion in gasoline led to serious environmental and health damage. Adding lead to gasoline was banned. That was a good thing.

But gasoline needed an oxygenating additive to turn poisonous carbon monoxide into harmless carbon dioxide. For a while a petroleum-based compound called MBTE filled the bill, but if it escaped into the water supply, it produced seriously negative effects.

Vermont Business Magazine Sterling College has been recognized by two national media outlets for its sustainability efforts. Sierra magazine has awarded a Special Achievement Award in Food, and the College has also been named one of BestColleges.com’s “Greenest Colleges and Universities.” Sierra magazine conferred the Special Achievement Award in Food to Sterling College as part of its annual “Cool Schools” for 2015. This list, released by the Sierra Club’s official publication, ranks universities that lead sustainability initiatives.

Don Rendall, President & CEO of Vermont Gas issued the following statement regarding the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) announcement of draft federal regulations to cut methane emissions from the nation’s oil and natural gas industry:

“The EPA today set forth an ambitious and important goal aimed at cutting methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by 40% to 45% over the next decade from 2012 levels.

“At the natural gas distribution level, our company along with others has implemented a strong program to eliminate and reduce potential leaks, with the result that our system today is among the tightest and most efficient in the nation.

“Similar care must be taken throughout the industry, including in exploration, production, processing and transportation of natural gas. We commend those companies who have adopted strict standards and new technologies, and further see the value of strong rules, standards, and enforcement.