Current News
by tim
Peopleâ s United Bank recently made a donation of $2,000 to New England Youth Theatre to support their â Rock Your Boat’School Tour about bullying.
Stephen Stearns, founder of the New England Youth Theatre, stressed his passionate belief that young people can run their own theatre with the guidance of theatre professionals.
â We strive to create an atmosphere of harmony and respect where students and adults can work together as equal creative spirits, fostering initiative, positive mental attitude, kindness and teamwork.We explore our creativity through a wide variety of dramatic media, exposing students to every aspect of theatre production. From acting to advertising, choreography to lighting, directing to designing, we cut capers on stage as we cut the platform legs that support it!And always, we have fun.
by tim
by Glen A Wright CPA The Vermont Tax Department has recently been in the press for retroactively assessing tax on software companies located in Vermont.
by tim
Dartmouth College announced today the naming of its medical school, founded in 1797, in honor of Audrey and Theodor Geisel. Their generosity to Dartmouth during their lifetimes and through their estate plan renders the Geisel family the most significant philanthropist to Dartmouth in its history. Theodor â Ted’Geisel, known worldwide as the author and illustrator, â Dr Seuss,’was a Dartmouth graduate of the Class of 1925.
by tim
At a press conference today at the Vermont State House, business and labor groups called upon the Vermont Senate to reject a new tax increase recently passed by the Vermont House on Vermont Yankee.
â This is not the time and this is not the economy in which to increase taxes on businesses, especially solely targeting one Vermont employer,’said William Driscoll, Vice President of Associated Industries of Vermont. â Vermontâ s economy and business reputation are struggling in many ways. This tax sets a bad precedent, one that other businesses will have a very watchful eye on,’said Mr. Driscoll.
by tim
by Anne Galloway vtdigger.orgState Senator Randy Brock (Franklin-Grand Isle), the Republican candidate for governor, wants the Shumlin administration to renegotiate a deal it made with Gaz Metro last week on the $21 million for windfall.
by tim
Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc will issue its first quarter earnings release after the market closes onTuesday, April 24, 2012.
Berkshirewill conduct a conference call/webcast at10:00 am eastern timeonWednesday, April 25, 2012to discuss the results for the quarter and guidance about expected future results. Participants should dial-in to the call a few minutes before it begins. Information about the conference call follows:
Dial-in:
866-843-0890
Elite Entry Number:
3494596
Webcast:
www.berkshirebank.com (investor relations link)
by tim
People's United Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: PBCT) announced today it will host a conference call onThursday, April 19, 2012, at8:00 am Eastern Timeto discuss its first quarter 2012 earnings announcement. People's United Financial will release its first quarter financial results onThursday, April 19, 2012at approximately7:00 am Eastern Time.
The call will be broadcast live through the company's Internet site,peoples.com. It is accessible by selecting "Investor Relations" in the "About People's United" section on the home page, and then selecting "Conference Calls" in the "News and Events" section.
The call will be archived on the site and available for retrieval for approximately 90 days.
by tim
Teachers of the Rutland Southwest Supervisory Union will strike today (Wednesday, April 4) after the union and the local school boards failed to reach agreement on a new contract.
The NEA, which is the largest teachers union, said the boards walked away after teachers agreed to the boards’demands on salary; agreed to the boards’demands on three of a possible four years on health insurance premium co-pays; agreed with the boards to halt step-increases in the event a contract expires without a successor in place; and agreed with the boards to allow distance learning in the system.
For its part, the RSWSU said on its Web site that after over six hours of mediation, the school boards presented the union with a four-year proposal to settle all issues. This settlement proposal, it said, would increase teacher salaries by an average of 10.5 percent (on an average of 2.6 percent per year). The Fact Finder recommended an average of 2.6 percent per year for only two years.
by tim
CoreLogic (NYSE: CLGX), a leading provider of information, analytics and business services, today released its February Home Price Index (HPI)report, the most current and comprehensive source of home prices available today. Vermont is in the top five states with the greatest depreciation, excluding distressed sales, with -4 percent.
Overall, excluding distressed sales, month-over-month prices increased 0.7 percent in February from January. The CoreLogic HPIalso showed that year-over-year prices declined by 0.8 percent inFebruary 2012compared toFebruary 2011. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions.
The report also shows national home prices, including distressed sales, declined on a year-over-year basis by 2.0 percent inFebruary 2012and by 0.8 percent compared toJanuary 2012, the seventh consecutive monthly decline.
by tim
by Alan Panebaker vtdigger.orgIn a filing Tuesday afternoon with the Vermont Public Service Board, Entergy Corp. agreed to comply with the requirements in its existing license while the board considers whether to grant the company a new certificate of public good to operate the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
In a one-paragraph letter to the board, the company said it agreed with the Department of Public Service that Vermont law allows the plant to continue operating while the proceeding continues.
The plantâ s state license expired March 21, but it continues to operate, with all of the power generated being sold out of state.
The Department of Public Service, which represents ratepayers before the Public Service Board, has pushed for the company to continue making payments to the Clean Energy Development Fund, which funds renewable energy projects. In its filing, Entergy agreed to continue making payments to the state in the interim.
by tim
Kilawatt Technologies announced the results for the first six months of the Energy and Environmental Management project with Vermont Public Radio.
The project involved the installation of a series of Energy Management Nodes throughout the building. These nodes provided for full, web based control and data trending for the entire building. Based on the data and control functions, Kilawatt Technologies statistically analyzed energy consumption data and develop sophisticate control strategies.
The results in the first six months of Energy and Environment Management included:
Total Energy Reduction (Million BTU): Reduced by 22.1%
Electrical Energy: Reduced by 14.7%
Natural Gas: Reduced by 38.5%
Propane: Reduced by 27.2%
by tim
From Wednesday, March 21to Friday, March 232012, educators from Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont gathered in Norwood for a three-day conference sponsored by the New England Secondary School Consortium.
The conference was held to bring together members of the League of Innovative Schools and other New England secondary schools to learn about strategies for communicating with the media, examine the critical role of local policy development, create a network between schools throughout the five states and share best practices that are transforming learning for students around New England.