Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives announced Friday that its organization will once again be offering a variety of health insurance plans to its 29 chambers and many members throughout the state for the first time since 2013. The statewide chamber organization will partner with BlueCross BlueShield of Vermont to provide three separate plans to businesses, ranging in size from 1 to 100 employees: the VACE Advantage 100 percent Health Savings Account, the VACE Advantage Copay and the VACE Advantage Copay HSA.

Vermont Business Magazine US foreclosure activity in Q3 2018 was 36 percent below the pre-recession average of 278,912 properties with foreclosure filings per quarter between Q1 2006 and Q3 2007 — the eighth consecutive quarter where US foreclosure activity has registered below the pre-recession average. Vermont ranked 46th and New Jersey had the highest rate, ten times the Vermont rate. New Hampshire was also low at 41st, while most other states in the region were relatively high.

Vermont Business Magazine The Windham County Economic Development Program (WCEDP) is helping Whetstone Station Brewery proceed with an expansion in Brattleboro. A WCEDP loan will provide a portion of the funding to purchase real estate at 39-45 Frost Street in Brattleboro. This acquisition will allow the owners of Whetstone Station Brewery to expand their production capacity.

Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment claims increased last week, but remain low. For the week of October 6, 2018, there were 330 claims, 66 more than than they were the previous week, but 6 fewer than they were a year ago. Altogether 2,433 new and continuing claims were filed, an increase of 62 from a week ago, and 110 fewer than a year ago. For most weeks of 2017 and 2018 claims have been below the year before. Vermont, like the nation as a whole, currently is locked into a historically low period of unemployment.

Vermont Business Magazine BRS has announced that it will offer new Association Health Plans (AHPs) through BlueCross and BlueShield of Vermont (BCBSVT). Association health plans had been dismantled under the original Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), which was signed into law by President Obama in 2010. As rules for the ACA have changed over the years, association plans are now allowed by the federal government. Vermont earlier this year instituted conditions under which association plans could once again be offered in Vermont. Those rules mimic ACA rules for pre-existing conditions and other key components of the ACA.

The approval of BRS’ license application by the Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) now paves the way for AHPs in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Innovations for Outcomes: Access 2018 is a healthcare conference specifically designed to educate attendees on the innovative ways to support substance use care in hard to access communities. The conference is on Tuesday, October 16 from 11:30 am to 6 pm at the Waterfront Hilton in Burlington. Substance use professionals will engage and learn from industry leaders and have the opportunity to connect at a collaboration session following the conference at 4:30 pm.

Plenary speaker Dr John Brooklyn of UVM, Howard Center and BAART will share new approaches to managing and monitoring treatment in opioid use disorders.

Vermont Business Magazine In collaboration with the Vermont Community Foundation, the High Meadows Fund is committing up to $200,000 in grants towards improving forest health and integrity in Vermont. The goal of these grants is to foster collaborative approaches to creating resilient, adaptable and healthy forests that pay dividends for wildlife and contribute to the quality of life of all Vermonters, including, but not limited to, those who depend on the forests for their livelihoods.

Vermont Business Magazine The Small Business Administration supported $44,780,792 in loans to Vermont small businesses from October 1, 2017, to September 30, 2018, the US federal government’s fiscal year. Vermont increased its loan amount by 11 percent compared to fiscal year 2017 when it guaranteed $40,341,365 million in loans. Of that 16 percent supported Vermont beer, spirits and cider.

“An upward trend is always a good sign. Increasing our loans by a few million dollars may not seem like a lot, but when there are scores of Vermont entrepreneurs needing $10,000 or $25,000 in capital, an additional $4 million in lending can have a significant impact,” said Darcy Carter, SBA Vermont District Director.

Barrels of Stonecutter stand ready for action. Courtesy photo.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Taxes is reminding Vermonters that the last date to file a Property Tax Adjustment or Renter Rebate Claim is October 15, 2018. Personal Income Tax Returns filed on extension, as well as several corporate tax types are also due. The Vermont Property Tax Adjustment and Renter Rebate programs assist in making housing more affordable for thousands of Vermonters. These programs provide over $180 million in assistance to Vermonters annually.

All Vermont homestead owners must file a Homestead Declaration using Vermont Form HS-122 every year even if they are not seeking an income-based property tax adjustment. If you file a Homestead Declaration after Oct. 15, your property will be classified as non-homestead or nonresidental. You will be charged the higher of the two rates, assessed a penalty, and must pay any additional property tax and interest due.

Vermont Business Magazine US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) Thursday afternoon issued the following statements after their legislation to support small businesses with National Guard and military reservists unanimously passed the Senate Small Business Committee. The National Guard and Reserve Entrepreneurship Act will assist small businesses when essential employees, including small business owners, are called up as part of National Guard or Reservist duties by improving existing loan and deferral programs of the Small Business Administration (SBA) and making them more accessible.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) introduced legislation on Thursday to provide much-needed emergency relief to dairy farmers in Vermont and throughout the United States. Vermont’s dairy farmers are struggling to survive. The price they get for their milk has been below the cost of production for four years in a row. Since 2014, dairy prices have fallen from $25 per hundredweight to less than $16. That’s less than farmers received in 1989.

Not surprisingly, Vermont has already lost more than 65 dairy farms this year alone and about one-third of its dairy farms in the last decade. Today, there are just 709 active dairy farms left in Vermont.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Tuberculosis is still a global problem. Another problem is that it can visually mimic lung cancer leading to problems of diagnosis and treatment. Leaders at the University of Vermont and Larner College of Medicine today announced $12.3 million in funding for a new Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) called the “Translational Global Infectious Disease Research Center” (TGIR). This endeavor will help in the fight against TB and other diseases. Lower income countries are especially vulnerable.