Current News

Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies In the 1960s, craft beer found its way to the United States, and two decades later, craft whiskey followed suit. Today, over two-thousand independent whiskey distilleries exist in the country. Yet, for Lost Lantern co-founders Adam “Apolon” Polonski and Nora Ganley-Roper, something was missing. Drawing inspiration from the centuries-old independent bottling model in Scotland, Lost Lantern purchases barrels from distilleries and sells these spirits under their own label. Unlike independent distilleries, bottlers have broader distributions and the ability to craft uniquely layered whiskeys, blending flavors for added complexity. And few people know whiskey as well as Polonski and Ganley-Roper. 

by Brooke Burns, Community News Service In the aftermath of Vermont’s catastrophic flooding last summer, legislators have been volleying ideas to better protect homeowners and ask for more transparency in the flood history of properties on the market. A House bill seeks to do so by requiring sellers to disclose the flood history and risks of their properties to potential buyers. Lead sponsor Rep. Thomas Stevens, D-Waterbury, introduced bill H.639 to the House Committee on General and Housing on Jan. 12 after constituents told him they did not know their homes had already been impacted by flooding during and after 2011’s Tropical Storm Irene.

by Holly Sullivan, Community News Service As Vermont grapples with rising homelessness rates and a choked housing market, some House lawmakers are training their focus on easing a particularly hard transition for people facing so much uncertainty already: young people without homes or leaving foster care who want to go to college. H.717, introduced on Jan. 17 by Rep. Jubilee McGill, D-Bridport, would require Vermont postsecondary schools to provide students who are homeless or exiting foster care with certain fee waivers, prioritize them for open campus housing and class enrollment and create official liaisons to help those students navigate the college world. 

by Tom Pelham In February 1997, Vermont’s Supreme Court found “the current system for funding public education in Vermont, with its substantial dependence on local property taxes and resultant wide disparities in revenues available to local school districts” is in violation of the Vermont Constitution. In response, in June 1997, the Vermont Legislature and Governor enacted the Equal Educational Opportunity Act—Act 60— a Vermont law intended to achieve a fair balance of educational spending across school districts independent of the degree of prosperity within each district. Act 60 was followed by Acts 68 and 130, which addressed some imbalances caused by Act 60.  Acts 68 and 130, established a system to pool the state's educational budgetary requirements from across jurisdictions and pay for them, in part, with pooled statewide property taxes. 

Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies This week we sat down with Paula Routly, co-founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of the legendary Seven Days. This ex-ballerina, Middlebury College alumna, and beloved Vermonter has done it all. Tune in for Paula’s compelling career advice for young writers, thoughts on succession planning, and invaluable insights on how she has kept local journalism alive and well for nearly 30 years.

by Vermont Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas As Vermont’s Secretary of State and Chief Elections Officer, it’s my job to help sustain and defend democracy – the form of government in which we the people choose our leaders and decide issues by voting. I believe that democracy must not only be defended; our participation in it must be grown, which is why I’m focused on engaging and empowering Vermonters to vote in our upcoming March 5th elections. When polls close on March 5th, we will begin tallying votes on issues as lofty as who Vermont wants to nominate to be our next president and as close to home as who will be our next school director or selectboard member.

Leonine Public Affairs Policy committees in the Vermont House worked to finalize their FY2025 budget recommendations this week. These recommendations will inform the House Appropriations Committee as they craft their FY2025 budget proposal, which needs to pass out of the committee by March 22. Policy committees were significantly more constrained this year than in recent years as they worked through their recommendations. This is because federal dollars from COVID-era programs such as ARPA and CRF have been allocated and are no longer available to support the state budget. The belt-tightening exercise comes at a time when budget pressures continue to grow and lawmakers face increasingly tough decisions on how to fund programs and services. Housing, public safety, health care, workforce and environmental protection are some of the areas legislators are working to fund.

Vermont Business Magazine Starting next Wednesday, dairy producers will be able to enroll for 2024 Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC), an important safety net program offered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides producers with price support to help offset milk and feed price differences. This year’s DMC signup begins Feb. 28, 2024, and ends April 29, 2024. For those who sign up for 2024 DMC coverage, payments may begin as soon as March 4, 2024, for any payments that triggered in January 2024. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) has revised the regulations for DMC to allow eligible dairy operations to make a one-time adjustment to established production history.

Vermont Business Magazine WhistlePig Whiskey has officially opened the WhistlePig Tasting Shack at the base of Stowe Mountain Resort, within Spruce Peak, Vermont’s luxury slopeside community. Building on the wildly successful WhistlePig Pavilion, New England’s premier après ski destination, the WhistlePig Tasting Shack adds a much-anticipated tasting and retail experience to this already popular slopeside destination. The WhistlePig Tasting Shack, a tiny home turned world-class tasting room, residing adjacent to the WhistlePig Pavilion, offers tastes of WhistlePig’s most sought-after whiskeys. With walk-ins welcome, visitors can enjoy a tasting experience and purchase some of the most coveted WhistlePig bottles and limited-edition merchandise. 

Vermont Business Magazine Change Healthcare, which operates Vermont’s Medicaid pharmacy claims system, experienced a significant cyber security issue this week which has impacted pharmacies and providers across Vermont and New England. Optum Solutions, the parent company of Change Healthcare, is working to resolve the current service outages and continues to update the Department of Vermont Health Access. This outage is expected to continue through the weekend, and Optum has not provided a timeline for when full service will be restored. The Department has issued instructions to Medicaid enrolled pharmacies, providers, and members on how to best maintain pharmacy access while this issue is ongoing. 

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont health officials announced the release of the Age Strong VT 10-Year Action Plan, a comprehensive roadmap designed to address the evolving needs of Vermont's aging population. This strategic plan, titled "Age Strong VT: A Vision for the Future," is the result of extensive public input. Vermont's older population is our fastest growing age group. By 2030, one in three of us will be over the age of 60. As the state grapples with changing demographics, the Age Strong VT 10-Year Action Plan emerges as a vital tool, fostering optimism and providing a platform to prepare and build on the state's resiliency and strengths.

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is taking the first step to address chloride pollution in the Sunnyside Brook in Colchester, Vermont by establishing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan. This small brook routinely exceeds critical levels of chloride, due to an influx of road salt and other contaminants. A TMDL will set the target for the highest amount of salt that can enter the stream while staying below critical levels of chloride. This will be the first TMDL established for chloride in Vermont. DEC will hold a public meeting about the TMDL plan for Sunnyside Brook. Members of the public are welcome to attend in person or remotely.