Current News

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest announced today that the District of Vermont collected $3,106,754.45 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2023. Of this amount, $2,072,930.23 was collected in criminal actions and $1,033,824.22 was collected in civil actions. Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $76,859,362.34 in cases pursued jointly by these offices. Of this amount $22,239.05 was collected in criminal actions and $76,837,123.29 was collected in civil actions.

Vermont Business Magazine Phil Scott, governor of the State of Vermont, today issued the following statement from his personal email. Scott has hailed former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in the past as a candidate he would support. In the last presidential election, the Republican Scott said he voted for Democrat Joe Biden. “America has a decision to make, and our friends and neighbors in New Hampshire have an opportunity to showcase their deep-rooted independent streak. After years of controversy, violent rhetoric and growing polarization, the very last thing we need is four more years of Donald Trump."

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Senate took action today to help individuals and towns impacted by July flooding. S.160 will authorize the Commissioner of Taxes to reimburse municipalities for property tax abatements granted due to disruption to tax collections resulting from this summer’s flooding in Vermont’s federally declared disaster areas.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced the appointment of Ed McNamara as chair of the Public Utility Commission (PUC). McNamara most recently served as general counsel for the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR), where he worked on a range of legal issues reflecting the significant regulatory diversity covered by the Agency. McNamara replaces Anthony Roisman, who was appointed by Scott in 2017.

by Joan Goldstein, Commissioner, Department of Economic Development Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you all were able to take a break during the holidays and unwind with family and friends. At the Vermont Department of Economic Development (DED) we kicked off the year announcing the final round of Community Recovery and Revitalization Program (CRRP) grants. This was the latest installment of $50 million allocated by the legislature in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money for CRRP and the Capital Investment Program (CIP) to help with projects around the state. Read on for more details about the 4th Round of CRRP at as well as an update on a hotel project in Randolph that was awarded a CIP grant. I recently spoke at an event in Burlington celebrating Vermont’s creative economy. 

by Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First, Vermont Business Magazine The directors of the Woodstock Foundation, who are facing a major civil lawsuit over claims of mismanagement and malfeasance at the Woodstock Inn & Resort and the Billings Farm & Museum, have petitioned a state judge to delay the upcoming trial for another 6 months to allow them to seek a second independent investigation into the allegations. Foundation Directors James S. Sligar, David M. Simmons, Michael D. Nolan, John T. Hallowell, Douglas R. Horne, William S. Moody, Gail Waddell and Angela K. Ardolic say they want an “independent special litigation committee to review the derivative claims” and determine how to proceed, according to a new court filing. Two former top Woodstock Foundation leaders, Ellen R. C. Pomeroy and Salvatore Iannuzzi, filed their lawsuit a year ago maintaining they were privately dismissed from the board during a secret, unauthorized board meeting after they began to look into the employee complaints.

Vermont Business Magazine A new study has found the states in America that are struggling to fill online job postings, with Wyoming being named the worst state for employment. Vermont ranked 10th best in the report. A study by small business consulting organization Venture Smarter analyzed data from Indeed to determine which states have difficulties with recruitment, based on the number of current job postings listed in each area, and the proportion which remain active for an extended period. The data revealed that it was Wyoming that struggles to fill job positions the most, as almost two-fifths (39.7%) of all postings were active for more than three months. In fact, the findings also show that 54.7% of job listings in the state were over a month old. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Catholic Community Foundation distributed $30,000 in a recent round of grants to organizations that help people in need throughout the state. The mission of the Vermont Catholic Community Foundation is to support and serve apostolic activities of the Roman Catholic Church and make grants to nonprofit organizations in the statewide Diocese of Burlington that reflect the compassion of Christ in service to the community.

Vermont Business Magazine Comcast has announced it is awarding a total of $30,000 to two nonprofit organizations in the Greater Burlington area to help advance digital literacy skills. These grants are part of Project UP, Comcast’s $1 billion commitment to advance digital equity through programs and community partnerships that connect people to the Internet, advance economic mobility and open doors for the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, storytellers and creators.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine State economists still remain somewhat bullish on the Vermont tax revenue outlook despite what they anticipate to be a slowing of the US and state economies in the next few years and a quieting of the personal income tax, which has been robust the previous few years. Reflecting the economy’s durability, total revenues for the three major funds forecast herein closed the first half of FY24 slightly above July projections (+1.7% and +$25.2M). That generally positive revenue for the first half of fiscal year 2024 was a reflection of generally upbeat receipts in the Personal Income Tax (at +$18.6 million or +3.6% on cumulative consensus first half expectations of $523.9 million) and strong receipts in Net Interest revenues.

Vermont Business Magazine The Working Lands Enterprise Initiative announces 14 awards totaling $652,211 to maintain and grow the agricultural and forestry sectors in Vermont. Another $2.3 million in Working Lands Enterprise Initiative grants to directly to businesses will be announced in the spring. The Working Lands Enterprise Board (WLEB) strategically invests in working lands businesses that can influence their value chain, create jobs, boost sales, increase production or efficiencies, adapt to climate change, improve management of working lands acreage, and contribute to community equity. The WLEB also invests in service providers who work directly with working lands businesses to support them as they grow, pivot, and adapt to an ever-changing marketplace. In 2022, responding to the need to support producer association groups that represent and promote Vermont products, the WLEB introduced a grant opportunity specifically for Vermont’s producer associations. 

Vermont Business Magazine The VT Flood Response & Recovery Fund at the Vermont Community Foundation has committed $12.3 million in grants and awards to help Vermont build back from catastrophic flooding that swept through the state last summer. The funds have helped farmers who lost crops and equipment, communities that saw their downtowns swamped, renters and homeowners who experienced extensive property damage, and businesses that faced costly renovations to reopen. Thanks to the generosity of people all over Vermont and beyond, the Flood Fund has raised $12.7 million as of today to advance Vermont’s recovery from one of the worst weather disasters in state history and develop strategies to mitigate flood damage in the future. Of the $12.3 million allocated from the fund, $7 million has been distributed and another $5.3 million has been committed.