Current News

Registration is now open for Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility’s (VBSR) Annual Spring Conference: 25 Years of Changemaking in Action. VBSR’s largest event of the year, and Vermont’s largest gathering of socially responsible business professionals, will be held Wednesday, May 13 from 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM at the University of Vermont’s LEED Certified Davis Center in Burlington. Event features include a keynote from Ben & Jerry’s Homemade CEO Jostein Solheim, plus 15 workshops, 40 exhibitors, 300+ attendees, several networking sessions, a localvore menu underwritten by Black River Produce, a Vermont-themed cocktail party, closing remarks from the Honorable Governor Peter Shumlin, and “Creating a Thriving Vermont Business,” a plenary session comprised of local leaders from The Alchemist, Cx Associates, Vermont Woodworking School, and Green Mountain Power.

The Vermont Natural Resources Council is accepting nominations for the 2015 Arthur Gibb Award for Individual Leadership. "Every year, VNRC honors the legacy of Art Gibb – his commitment to safeguarding Vermont’s values and unique landscape, along with his leadership, vision and dedication to building consensus,” said Kate McCarthy, VNRC’s Sustainable Communities Program Director. She said this year VNRC seeks to honor an individual whose leadership at the state level has brought about positive and lasting change in the way communities across Vermont integrate growth and conservation. Individuals who have demonstrated similar leadership at the local level will be honored in alternating years, she said.

Castleton State College has announced that former Vermont State Colleges chancellor Tim Donovan will give the address at the college’s 2015 commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 9 at 11 am in the Castleton Pavilion. Donovan recently retired from a career in higher education that spanned four decades, culminating in five years as the Chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges. His entire career was in service to Vermont’s five public comprehensive, technical and community colleges.

Marking Earth Day, Governor Peter Shumlin announced the expansion of the Heat Saver Loan program. He said it will help Vermonters increase the efficiency of their homes and save money on their energy bills while creating jobs and reducing greenhouse emissions.

Mortgage data from February indicate that Vermont, like the rest of the nation, continues to see a drop in home foreclosures and delinquent mortgage loans. Vermont fell to 6.9 percent of all mortgages (third lowest in the East among states) while the national rate also fell to 6.9 percent. Vermont's "bad mortgage" rate has fallen 15.4 percent from a year ago. As "short sales" and bank-owned properties continue to lessen, home prices should continue to rise, with the caveat that the economy continues to grow and interest rates continue to stay low.

by Governor Peter Shumlin The millions of Americans who gathered in communities across the nation for the first Earth Day in 1970 succeeded in making progress on the major environmental challenges of that time. That sense of common purpose in protecting our air, water, wildlife, and lands spurred action that led to the creation of the EPA and strong bi-partisan support for new landmark clean air, clean water, and environmental protection laws.

As Vermonters celebrate Earth Day 2015 (April 22), we do so knowing that we face our own environmental challenges that present enormous risks for our state, nation, and world. But we also know that if we play a leadership role in addressing those challenges there are enormous opportunities to create good jobs that will keep young Vermonters in this state and save money on our energy bills all while doing the right thing for our planet and future generations.

by Public Assets Institute More than 1,200 Vermonters left the unemployment lines so far this year, but they didn’t all go back to work. In the first three months of 2015, employment — including self-employment — rose by 687, to 335,006. Meanwhile, the labor force — people working or seeking work—shrank by 577. During the same period, Vermont employers reported adding 1,900 non-farm payroll jobs.

The legacy of two recessions

In the first decade of this century, two recessions wiped out many more jobs than Vermont’s private sector could create. For the last few years, Vermont has seen more gains than losses. But despite state and federal tax breaks intended to stimulate employment, private employers are still not matching the job growth of the 1990s.

New Hampshire Thrift Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: NHTB), the holding company for Lake Sunapee Bank, fsb, today announced results for the quarter ended March 31, 2015. Consolidated net income for the first quarter of 2015 was $2.3 million, or $0.28 per diluted common share, compared to $2.1 million, or $0.25 per diluted common share, for the same period in 2014 and $2.9 million, or $0.34 per diluted common share, for the fourth quarter of 2014. Lake Sunapee Bank has branches in New Hampshire and Vermont.

by Maureen Cregan Connolly, Home Builders and Remodelers Association The Small Business Administration (SBA) regulations indicate that 96.3% of businesses in Vermont are classified as small businesses. According to the SBA more than 75% of Vermont businesses have no employees, and the majority of the remaining employers have fewer than 20 employees. The practice of contracting services as needed is the framework that allows these businesses to shrink and grow in response to economic conditions. Contracting with other small businesses allows for flexibility and keeps them nimble to client need and accommodates economic fluctuations. It’s just the way the Vermont economy has worked—and until recently Vermont has been relatively small-business friendly.

In order to help people with criminal convictions find employment and build successful lives, Governor Peter Shumlin today signed an Executive Order to implement a ‘ban the box’ state hiring policy and highlighted progress of a bill to expand Vermont’s expungement law. The ‘ban the box’ Executive Order removes questions about criminal records from the very first part of job applications for state employment.

Agencies will continue to conduct background checks, but only after an applicant has otherwise been found qualified for the position. The policy will prevent applicants from being immediately screened out of state jobs because of a criminal conviction. The policy will not apply to law enforcement, corrections, or other sensitive positions. A number of states, including Virginia, Georgia, and Nebraska, as well as the District of Columbia, have taken similar actions to combat hiring discrimination against workers with criminal records.

The Princeton Review has released its sixth annual guide to the most environmentally responsible colleges — a listing of the schools with "the most exceptional commitments to sustainability based on their academic offerings and career preparation for students, campus policies, initiatives, and activities." The University of Vermont is ranked 10th.

UVM scores highly for its percent of LEED-certified campus buildings constructed or renovated in the past three years — 93 percent — and for the percent of school energy that comes from renewable resources — 88 percent. Also of note in the guide is UVM's support for alternative transportation, from free transit passes and a free campus shuttle to a bike share program, secure bike storage, and showers and lockers for bicycle commuters.

Coldwell Banker Hickok & Boardman Realty has released its "Northwest Vermont Market Report: Spring 2015." Overall, despite the tough winter weather, sales of residential properties rose in Chittenden, Franklin, and Addison County. Grand Isle County saw a decline in activity - however the county typically has the least amount of activity and one sale can have a relatively large impact on trends.

The report finds that while employers are hiring and the unemployment rate continues to drop - wage growth continues to lag putting pressure on consumer spending. During the past two years, home price appreciation has outpaced wage growth in the majority of US housing markets, creating affordability challenges for some buyers.