by Morgan True vtdigger.org Gun Owners of Vermont President Ed Cutler thinks there are already too many gun laws in Vermont, and he strongly opposes background check legislation introduced in the Senate last week. The overarching issue for Cutler and many gun rights’ proponents, who gathered at the Statehouse on Tuesday wearing blaze orange clothing, is that they view any new gun law as a step toward criminalizing lawful gun ownership.

Vermont has among the most liberal gun laws in the country, according to the Law Center for Prevention of Gun Violence. The state does not require a permit for carrying a concealed gun, and does not impose a waiting period for purchases, limit the number of guns that can be bought at one time, require the reporting of mental health commitments, or require dealers to obtain a state license.

The City of South Burlington is seeking public input in defining what the next two City Center projects will look and feel like: Garden Street and City Center/Dumont Park. Garden Street will connect from the new Pier 1 store off of Dorset Street to Midas Drive south of Al’s French Frys. The City purchased Dumont Park in 1975 and has long planned to turn it into a natural area park serving City Center and adjoining neighborhoods. The public is asked to provide comments by February 5, 2015.

Actor, director and writer Alan Alda will give a lecture titled Helping the Public Get Beyond a Blind Date with Science at the University of Vermont on Monday, February 2 at 4 pm in the Grand Maple Ballroom in the Davis Center. The lecture, part of the Dan and Carole Burack President’s Distinguished Lecture Series, is free and open to the public. Seating is limited. Doors will open at 3:15. Alda, a longtime science advocate with extensive experience training scientists in communications, won the National Science Board’s Public Service Award in 2006 and a Lifetime Achievement Award from Scientific American in 2013 for helping advance public understanding of science.

Keurig Green Mountain, Inc (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and coffee makers with its innovative Keurig brewing technology, today announced it will webcast the formal proceedings of its 2015 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 10 am ET. The meeting will be webcast live and archived via a link from the events portion of the Investor Relations section of the Company's website: http://investor.keuriggreenmountain.com/events.cfm.

About Keurig Green Mountain, Inc.

by Public Assets Institute The number of jobs declined in December, but Vermont still ended 2014 with more private sector jobs and more non-farm payroll jobs than it had at the start of the year. Private employers reported 255,400 jobs in December, an increase of 1,600 over January. The total number of jobs, both private and public, was up 900 from the beginning of the year, to 310,200.

The Ad Hoc Superintendent Search Committee of the Burlington School Board has identified two finalists for the position of permanent Superintendent for the Burlington School District. Joyce Mundy, currently the Superintendent of the Centennial School District in Warminster, Pennsylvania and Yaw Obeng, a Superintendent in Halton District School Board in Burlington, Ontario have been invited to Burlington for a final series of interviews this Thursday and Friday, January 29-30. We are pleased to announce that both candidates accepted their invitations.

Joyce Mundy

Crystal Rock Holdings, Inc (NYSE MKT: CRVP) announced on Tuesday its financial results for its fiscal year that ended October 31, 2014. Total sales for fiscal 2014 increased 6 percent to $75.2 million compared to $71.0 million in fiscal 2013. The increase was attributable to sales from acquired businesses which totaled $7.1 million. Gross profit decreased for the year ended October 31, 2014 to $35.9 million from $36.7 million for the year earlier. Gross profit as a percentage of sales was 48 percent in 2014 compared to 52% in 2013. It bottles and distributes natural spring water under the Vermont Pure brand and offers office beverage services.

Vermont Smoke and Cure has announced a significant expansion of its manufacturing and office facilities in Hinesburg, Vermont. Demand for the Vermont-based small-batch meats and meat snacks has fueled rapid growth - creating a need for increased facilities to meet market demands. The expansion will benefit Vermont’s economy, community and farmers.

The planned expansion includes a 16,000 square foot increase to Vermont Smoke and Cure’s raw materials coolers, refrigerated processing rooms and smokehouses. An additional approximately 3,000 square feet of office space will be created in the building. The expansion space is adjacent to and under the same roof as the existing operations. This capacity expansion will generate at least 15 new jobs in the coming year as well as increase Vermont Smoke and Cure’s capacity to purchase from local farmers.

Governor Peter Shumlin today announced that Chair of the Natural Resources Board (NRB) Ron Shems has decided to step down after four years on the Board. He will be replaced Jon Groveman, currently the general counsel for the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR).

“I want to thank Ron for his hard work over the past four years,” Governor Shumlin said. “He always sought to ensure that development in Vermont happened in a way consistent with our values. I wish him all the best.”

Vermont Business Magazine With jobs increasing, the number of unemployed decreasing and with modest growth in the labor force, the Vermont employment situation improved in December. The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for December 2014 was 4.2 percent. This represents a decrease of two-tenths of a percent from the revised November rate (4.4 percent). The seasonally adjusted Vermont data for December show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 350 from the prior month estimates. The number of employed increased by 750 and the number of unemployed decreased by 400. None of the over-the-month changes were statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series.

by Jennifer Hollar As too many Vermonters struggle to make ends meet, affordability has rightly taken its place at the center of public debate. Often missing from the discussion, however, has been the cost of housing. If we are to succeed in closing the affordability gap, housing must be central to the conversation.

The shortage of affordable homes in Vermont impacts our lives, communities, economy and demand for state services. It sometimes means growing businesses aren't able to fill key positions because potential recruits can't find housing. It means many working families don't have enough money for food, health care or transportation, never mind saving to buy a home, pay for college or retire. In the worst cases, families fall behind on rent, lose their apartments and become homeless.

Responding to requests for additional opportunity to comment on the proposed rule on the labeling of food produced with genetic engineering, the Attorney General has scheduled a second public hearing on the rule. This hearing will take place on Wednesday, February 4, 2015, from 5 – 6pm in Room 10 at the State House in Montpelier. Additionally, the Attorney General has extended the deadline for submitting written comments on the rule by two weeks to Thursday, February 12, 2015.

“Public comment is a vital part of the rule-making process,” said Attorney General Bill Sorrell, “and when we heard from various folks that they had not understood the original timeline for comment, or were worried they wouldn’t get comments in before the deadline, we decided it best to provide an extended opportunity to make their formal comments. This will move the rule-making process forward with maximum input from industry and consumers.”