Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Miss Vermont Scholarship Organization (MVSO) has announced that two new state titleholders were selected last weekend at the annual Miss Vermont Scholarship Competition held in Stowe at the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center. Meara Seery is Miss Vermont 2024 and Charlee Royer is Miss Vermont’s Teen 2024. Seery, is a 24-year-old native of Brattleboro and a 2022 graduate of The George Washington University. She holds a BFA in Photojournalism and currently works as a digital producer for a member of Vermont’s US Congressional Delegation. Royer is a 15-year-old native of Newport, Vermont, who plans to obtain a doctorate in Psychiatry. In addition to receiving a $2,500 scholarship, she is also the recipient of a full academic scholarship to the University of Alabama through the Miss America Opportunity valued at over $100,000. 

Vermont Business Magazine Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, one of the nation’s most accomplished diplomats and the Representative of the United States to the United Nations, has been named as the University of Vermont’s 2024 commencement speaker. In addition to speaking to this year’s graduating students, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield will receive an honorary degree during the UVM’s Commencement Ceremony on Sunday, May 19. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield grew up in Baker, Louisiana, a small town located near Baton Rouge. As a teenager, she developed an interest in international affairs when the Peace Corps opened a training center in her town. She was the first in her family to graduate from high school and earned her B.A. at Louisiana State University. She later obtained a master of public administration degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health, in partnership with the Governor's Office, Department of Public Safety, Office of Racial Equity, and Council for Equitable Youth Justice, has awarded grants totaling $4.75 million to 12 organizations in nine counties to support violence prevention in their communities. The grants are offered through the Community Violence Prevention Program, created last year by the Legislature as part of Act 23. The awards are designed to fund programs that address the causes of youth and community violence, and increase community capacity to implement programs and policies that address topics such as illegal drug activity, human trafficking, gangs, gender-based violence, guns and gun safety, bullying, hazing, and harassment.

Vermont Business Magazine The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont announced that on April 19, 2024, Paul Bateman, 47, a citizen of the United Kingdom who previously resided in Laos, was sentenced in the United States District Court following his guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, including the opiates Tapentadol and Tramadol, as well as other drugs that required a prescription. Bateman had been extradited from the United Kingdom to face charges. Chief Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford sentenced Bateman, who has spent approximately 20 months in custody, to a sentence of time-served, with no supervision to follow, as the defendant is expected to be deported to the United Kingdom upon the completion of his sentence. Previously sentenced in connection with this case were Bateman’s co-conspirators, Samir Doshi and Rebecca Buckley

Vermont Business Magazine Recognizing this urgent moment for American higher education and our democracy, Bennington College is joining sixty other college presidents of diverse institutions from across the country to advance higher education’s pivotal role in preparing students to be engaged citizens and to uphold free expression on campus. Through College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, a unique consortium designed by the presidents and convened by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, participating presidents are dedicated to preparing the next generation of well-informed, productively engaged, and committed citizens; defending free expression, civil discourse, and critical inquiry as essential civic norms; and increasing thoughtful engagement and better understanding by students for the effective functioning of our democracy. The consortium, first announced with 15 members in August 2023, has grown significantly, demonstrating momentum for this movement.  

by Jack Hoffman, Public Assets Institute A projected jump in school taxes next year has everyone’s hair on fire in Montpelier. But before taking drastic action, legislators and the administration ought to take the time to assess all of the reforms of recent years to understand what’s really going on. Nobody is saying that the double-digit increases in education spending and likely tax bills this year are sustainable, including many voters. In a normal year, a handful of school budgets get voted down while 90-95 percent of them pass. This year, a third went down, some more than once. The voters spoke and rejected increases that felt too high. But does that mean Vermont needs more funding reform? It’s too soon to tell. Let’s look at how we got here. 

Vermont Business Magazine Yesterday, US Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) introduced a resolution to recognize the significant ecological and cultural role of lake sturgeon in Vermont and around the country. The resolution emphasizes the need for increased conservation efforts for lake sturgeon sustainability, as a keystone species and indicator of freshwater ecosystem health. Lake sturgeon is one of the largest North American freshwater fish, often considered living fossils with lifespans sometimes surpassing 150 years. Found across the Northeast, the Great Lakes, and Canada, slow reproduction coupled with historical overfishing, invasive species, and habitat degradation have caused declines in local lake sturgeon populations. As a result, many states—including Vermont—have listed the species as an endangered, threatened, or otherwise protected species. 

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor reported that the seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for March was 2.2 percent. This reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The civilian labor force participation rate was 65.4 percent in March, an increase of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. All three major metrics showed improvement. The Vermont civilian labor force increased by 795 from the prior month’s revised estimate (see Table 1). The number of employed persons increased by 1,104 and the number of unemployed persons decreased by 309. Vermont has the third lowest rate in the nation, just below North (2.0) and South (2.1) Dakota. California has the highest rate at 5.3 percent. The comparable United States rate in March was 3.8 percent, a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised February estimate. 

by Norah White, Community News Service The Senate Committee on Judiciary is hashing out whether a drug dealer who sold illegal, laced drugs that killed another person can plead ignorance in their defense. On top of the policy related to laced drugs, S.58 would require anyone found guilty of selling an illegal drug that killed someone to serve at least two years in prison without the possibility of parole or probation, unless a court decides an alternative sentence will serve equal justice. The bill doesn’t say how judges should reach that finding. But most testimony on the bill has centered on a loosely related provision: The legislation would again delay the rollout of a 2018 bill that moves 19-year-olds charged with crimes from criminal to family court.

by State Treasurer Mike Pieciak, Department of Financial Regulation Commissioner Kevin Gaffney, and Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council Executive Director Kirsten Murphy As the nation reaches the middle of Financial Capability Month celebrations and events, we at the Office of the State Treasurer, Department of Financial Regulation and Developmental Disabilities Council would like to take this opportunity to introduce a program that has helped Vermonters with disabilities achieve their financial goals while gaining smart money-management skills. Administered through the Office of the State Treasurer, ABLE accounts provide a tax-advantaged savings option for individuals with disabilities and their families. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Roxbury Selectboard filed legal action against the Montpelier Roxbury Public School District Wednesday on behalf of its citizens, alleging that as the March 5, 2024, district school budget informational meeting was held after voting began that day and was only available online, voters were prevented from having access to the required information before the polls opened, ultimately resulting in a failed budget vote that day.

Vermont Business Magazine The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated that a federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging Shant Soghomonian (also known as Michael Soghomonian), 35, previously of Northridge, California, with using fire to damage the building at One Church Street – a building used in interstate commerce. He will be arraigned on the indictment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle next week, likely on Tuesday April 23, 2024. Soghomonian also appeared before Judge Doyle today for a continuation of a detention hearing, and Judge Doyle ordered that Soghomonian be detained pending further proceedings.