Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Supreme Court today ruled in favor of the Attorney General in an appeal in the case of State v. Aita Gurung. The Court unanimously agreed with the Attorney General’s position and has ordered a new hearing to consider the Attorney General’s request for a second mental health evaluation of the defendant, Aita Gurung, regarding sanity at the time of the charged offenses. Gurung is accused of Murder in the First Degree for the killing of his wife, Yogeswari Khadka, and Attempted Murder in the First Degree for the near-fatal attack on his mother-in-law, Tulasa Rimal.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported today 130 new cases of COVID-19 with two more deaths for 136 statewide. Commissioner Levine said, "It will take a while for all of us to get the COVID-19 vaccine, but knowing that more than 14,000 Vermonters have been vaccinated so far, we can feel change coming. In the meantime, I hope the New Year gives us all the boost we need right now to keep up everything we’ve been doing to prevent the spread of COVID-19 so that 2021 can fulfill our hopes."

Vermont Business Magazine The Attorney General’s Office announced that the State of Vermont filed a notice yesterday in Franklin County Superior Court for dismissal without prejudice of criminal charges against Allen Pigeon, 57, of Swanton, Vermont, and Zachary Pigeon, 30, of St Albans, Vermont, including charges of Burglary, Kidnapping, Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault, and Obstruction of Justice. The State provided notice that it cannot meet the elements of the charged crimes beyond a reasonable doubt at this time.

COVID Recovery and Renewal – Building a Proposition for the Future of Vermont

by Paul Costello As we come out of the crucible of the pandemic and look to a new year, we need more than recovery, we need to work together to advance renewal and resilience for our communities and economy.

The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) has been asking Vermonters what recovery will look like. Almost universally Vermonters say that we can’t just go ‘back to normal’ in 2021—there’s no way to go backward, and we need to learn from this crisis. We must go forward to answer some of the fundamental challenges we faced before COVID-19 and also to prepare for the challenges from climate change that we are already seeing and that science predicts will intensify.

Vermont Business Magazine The US Small Business Administration has announced that the deadline to apply for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program for the COVID-19 Pandemic disaster declaration is extended to December 31, 2021. The deadline extension comes as a result of the recent bipartisan COVID-19 relief bill passed by Congress and enacted by President Trump on December 27, 2020.

Vermont Business Magazine White River Junction VA Healthcare System began COVID-19 vaccination with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine December 21, 2020, following the US Food and Drug Administration’s Emergency Use Authorization for this vaccine. Today marks White River Junction VA’s transition to the next phase, beginning to offer the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to veterans who are at the greatest risk for infection and severe illness based on the CDC’s guidelines.

Vermont Business Magazine In September of 2020 the United States Mint and the National Park Service officially launched the America the Beautiful Quarters Program coin honoring Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park in Woodstock, Vermont, the only national park dedicated to telling the story of conservation history and the evolving nature of land stewardship in America.

Vermont Business Magazine Start the new year on the right foot with a hike in a Vermont state park. On January 1, 2021, Vermont State Parks is inviting everyone to celebrate the New Year by heading out on the trails at one of Vermont’s 55 state parks. Park entry is free on New Year’s Day (and all winter long), and this is a great opportunity to discover a whole new world outdoors in winter.

Vermont Business Magazine Signed by President Trump on Monday, December 28, the massive piece of legislation will extend the investment tax credit (ITC). The ITC was supposed to step down from 26% to 22% in 2021 and then completely disappear in 2022. Now, under the new bill, the ITC will be 26% for all 2021 and 2022 projects before stepping down to 22% in 2023. In 2024, the ITC will end for residential projects and fall to 10% for commercial projects.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health is reporting four more Vermonters have died of COVID-19. There were a total of 69 new cases, as infections remain stable and under 100. As of today, 11,157 Vermonters have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. You can now go to our new COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard to get information on the number of people who have been vaccinated and the total doses administered.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Maine Governor Janet Mills, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, Vermont Governor Phil Scott, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced an extension of the suspension of interstate youth hockey competitions for public and private schools and youth hockey leagues through at least January 31, 2021.

The prohibition will not impact interstate collegiate, professional or U.S. national team hockey activities, which will remain subject to existing health and safety protocols and/or restrictions.

Vermont Business Magazine On Sunday night, the President signed COVID-19 economic relief legislation which included provisions to extend the unemployment insurance (UI) programs created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) programs have been extended, and the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program has been reinstated, providing an additional $300 weekly benefit until March 14, 2021.

As previously announced and separate from the federal action, Vermont's minimum wage rate will increase to $11.75 per hour from the current rate of $10.96 per hour, effective on January 1, 2021. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour (as it has been since 2009). New Hampshire is the only New England state using the federal minimum wage.