Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Liquor and Lottery has extended the annual license renewals for over 750 flood-impacted Vermont businesses by two months. Seven hundred sixty-one (761) individual businesses with a total of 2,476 licenses in 74 towns will receive the benefit of the license extension. These businesses were selected because they are in towns most affected by the flooding based on data gathered by the Agency of Digital Services and the Department’s flood-impact survey of licensees. By extending the license renewal date from April 30, 2024, to June 30, 2024, the Department provides these businesses an additional 61 days on their 2023 licenses, with an economic value of $122,332. 

Vermont Business Magazine Trappers must ensure they are compliant with Vermont’s new trapping regulations that come into effect on January 1, 2024. The new regulations include a requirement that live trapped animals be killed humanely and establish standards for trap types and use of baits to reduce the risk of catching pets and non-target wildlife.  Trappers must also follow new guidelines for where traps can be placed, such as maintaining a 50 ft. setback distance from a legal trail, public trail or public highway unless set in the water or under ice.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department reports that Ryan Goodrich, 38, of Athens, Vermont was sentenced to five years in federal prison to be followed by a three-year term of supervised release by the United States District Court in Rutland on December 20, 2023 after pleading guilty to being a prohibited person in possession of firearms. On December 15, 2023, he was convicted in Windham Superior Court on State charges for taking deer in closed season, possession of heroin, possession of a narcotic, and driving on a suspended driver’s license.  He was sentenced to serve 59-60 days, pay $835 in fines and to pay $2,000 in Fish and Wildlife restitution. 

by Annette Smith Legislators dictating Vermont’s energy future – or is that energy swamp? – would have done well to remember the engineering mantra “Keep It Simple, Stupid (KISS)". Instead, they ignored it, choosing their own approach, which can be aptly described as “Make As Darn Complicated As Possible”, or MADCAP. That is exactly what the last two legislative sessions have been: MADCAP. The Democratic supermajority began with the tortuously complicated “Clean Heat Standard,” later rechristened the “Affordable Heat Act,” when the PR optics deteriorated as more people learned about the bill.  

Northeastern Vermont Development Association (NVDA) is in the process of updating its Regional Plan, a guiding document that outlines a vision for the area and goals to help achieve that vision for the community. The Plan will cover a range of topics, including transportation, housing, energy, recreation, and zoning. Please visit NVDA.net to take our survey and help identify priorities for the NEK and inform the recommendations of the new Regional Plan. 

Vermont Business Magazine An innovative initiative is underway in Vermont, spearheaded by the nonprofit organization Operation Recovery together with the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets; U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants; the dairy farm families of Agri-Mark; Cabot Creamery Cooperative; and Liberty Hill Farm. The Grow America Farm Corps initiative addresses Vermont’s farm labor shortages by fostering dynamic collaboration among local farmers, new Americans, and supporting partners. Farmers with employment opportunities can sign up to match with new Americans seeking agricultural training and mentorship. Grow America Farm Corps partners assist in placing and transitioning participants who gain housing through on-farm living spaces, professional skills development, and community.

by John McClaughry With this column, I am concluding my biweekly commentaries for the Ethan Allen Institute, that stretch back to 1993. Years ago, I learned that I had some marketable abilities in understanding issues, analyzing implications, and explaining things clearly and I hoped persuasively. Accordingly, I embarked on a career that I half-jokingly referred to as “brain rental.” In 1988, after a tour in the Reagan campaign and White House, I was elected to the Vermont Senate, and reelected with 82% of the vote. But after those often frustrating four years, I concluded that maybe I could make a more valuable contribution by launching a nonpartisan think tank to promote “Ideas for Vermont’s Future” built upon the liberal principles of Vermont’s brilliant 1777 Constitution.

Vermont Business Magazine The Southern Vermont Communications Union District (SoVT CUD) has become one of the first CUD’s in the state to reach universal service coverage. Through a partnership with Fidium, SoVT CUD will reach universal service coverage just 13 months after receiving a grant from the Vermont Community Broadband Board in October 2022. Multi-gigabit service is now available to every home and business in its 14-town service area: Arlington, Bennington, Dorset, Landgrove, Londonderry, Manchester, Peru, Pownal, Rupert, Sandgate, Shaftsbury, Sunderland, Winhall and Woodford. In total, more than 33,000 residents, including 2,400 previously unserved, now have access to multi-gig fiber service. 

by Aly Richards, CEO of Let’s Grow Kids “In this second session of what has already been a historic legislative biennium for Vermont’s families, children and our workforce, the Child Care Campaign is laser-focused on supporting policy-leaders in making Act 76 work for all Vermonters. As Speaker Krowinski expressed today, through Act 76, Vermont has established itself as a national leader in child care, and that’s something we can all be proud of. More work is needed to ensure successful implementation of this new child care law, as well as to make the continued investments necessary to fully fund this groundbreaking new legislation and the system overall."

Vermont Business Magazine As the Vermont Legislature convenes today, the Vermont Ophthalmological Society (VOS) is raising the alarm about an expected push from the optometry lobby to allow optometrists to perform sensitive and complicated eye surgeries, such as laser surgery. All ophthalmologists are physicians (medical doctors) and surgeons. They attend four years of medical school and complete a four-year supervised, hands-on surgical residency program. Optometrists complete a four-year optometry program with no required further training and are not medical doctors or surgeons.   

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and Treasurer Mike Pieciak today announced a joint effort to develop a comprehensive Resilience Implementation Strategy by July 1, 2025. This timing will coincide with an update to Vermont’s Climate Action Plan, enabling a more coordinated and balanced approach to addressing both the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate efforts to adapt to the consequences of climate change.

Vermont Republican Party It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of yet another longtime Republican activist and 2022 State Senate Candidate Lloyd Dike of Bristol. Chair Paul Dame said: "I personally had the pleasure to know Lloyd and work with him over the past few years. He was a man filled with the energy and hope that is lacking in many men half his age. His persistent optimism and earnest desire to make his community better is something he will always be fondly remembered for and for which he will be dearly missed.