Current News

Innovative program providing restaurant meals to local eaters continues

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Everyone Eats (VEE), the unique COVID-19 recovery program that provides Vermonters impacted by COVID with prepared meals made by Vermont restaurants using locally grown and produced ingredients, will continue through July 1, 2022. The program had previously been set to end on March 31st but will now continue due to FEMA’s 100% cost share being extended for existing COVID-19 relief programs.

Leonine Public Affairs The House Appropriations Committee worked long hours throughout the week to try and finalize their version of the FY2023 budget bill. Their work on the budget was slowed by an unusually long queue of spending-laden policy bills that required budget approval. While it is normal for a handful of policy bills to include appropriations – often related to economic development, healthcare or other big-ticket items – the number of non-budget bills that include appropriations is definitely elevated this year. This is in part due to the surplus of funding available as a result of a strong General Fund and hundreds of millions in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars.

Vermont Business Magazine As spring temperatures arrive, the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is inviting Vermonters to report when lakes and ponds lose their ice cover, known as the “ice-out date.” The spring date when a lake becomes completely ice free from shore to shore lets DEC staff scientists know the best time to begin their seasonal water quality sampling efforts.

Vermont Business Magazine After many years of delay, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rolled out Entry Level Driver Training Regulations on February 7, 2022. While not retroactive, these regulations require that any new, entry-level commercial drivers complete an FMCSA-approved driver training program, ending the ability of drivers to learn more informally through colleagues, relatives, or unapproved training programs. While the benefits to public safety are clear, this change has the potential to increase logistical challenges resulting from a shortage of CDL drivers in Vermont and nationwide.

Vermont Business Magazine Woodchuck Hard Cider, the brand that started the American cider revolution in 1991, is pleased to announce the arrival of its Brunch Box. The Brunch Box variety pack features four innovative ciders: existing core Woodchuck styles Pearsecco, Mimosa, along with the addition of two new innovations, Paloma and Bellini. All ciders are 12oz cans, 3 cans of each style per 12-pack, 5.5% alc.vol., apart from Pearsecco, a bubbly dry cider, at 6.1% alc./vol. The Brunch Box will be available year-round, with a a PTC range of $17.99 – 18.99.

Vermont Business Magazine The Board of Directors of Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) announced today the appointment of Christopher J Dougherty as the organization’s new president and chief executive officer, effective May 9, 2022. He succeeds outgoing CEO Steven R Gordon, who will retire in April, and who has been at the forefront of BMH’s innovative progress, financial strength, and hospital expansion since 2011. Dougherty comes to BMH from Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, CA, where he has served as Administrator since 2018.

The Vermont State Police has collected more than 100 body-armor vests donated by law-enforcement agencies and members of the public since announcing the initiative last week. More vests are expected to arrive before the donation deadline of next Wednesday, March 23. The used and expired vests rated level III or higher still offer protection from gunfire. The Vermont State Police will coordinate sending the donated body armor to military units in Ukraine.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health today is reporting 141 cases of COVID-19 for Thursday, down from 161 on Wednesday. There were no additional deaths, which stand at 611 statewide. There have been four fatalities since March 5. Vermont is averaging 119 cases over the last 7 days. Cases are down 94% since the Omicron peak. UVM will end its mask mandate tomorrow. It has achieved a 100% vaccination rate for students and staff.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General TJ Donovan today filed a federal lawsuit against a California-based company, Telecom Carrier Access doing business as TCA VOIP, and its owner, Dominic Bohnett, for knowingly bringing thousands of robocalls into Vermont. The Attorney General’s Office began its investigation after receiving reports of a robocall displaying an 802-area code, impersonating the Social Security Administration. A traceback investigation, conducted with assistance from the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, revealed TCA VOIP to be the source of the call.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, The University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington and Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin filed to request mid-year adjustments from the Green Mountain Care Board to their FY22 budgets, which went into effect on October 1, 2021. The hospitals said inflation since that approval would require a 20 percent rate hike. They are requesting a 10 percent increase.

Vermont Business Magazine The 27th Annual Burlington & Cool Schools Penguin Plunge was held on Saturday, March 12th at the Burlington Waterfront. Over 800 people braved the snowstorm and plunged into the frigid waters of Lake Champlain to show their support for Special Olympics athletes in Vermont. The Penguin Plunge is the largest fundraising event for Special Olympics Vermont, and this year, over $500,000 was raised to support sports training and competition opportunities across local and school programs, health screenings, and leadership opportunities for children and adults with intellectual disabilities in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine A growing team of co-creators join EmpowR to build anti-racist culture centered in humanity, equity, and belonging for collective liberation. Rae Carter, EmpowR founder, announces the following Vermont change makers to the EmpowR co-creator team who each bring dynamic lived experiences and backgrounds to the arc of personal, organizational, and cultural transformation: