Current News

A record 83,342 or 1 in 8 Vermonters currently rely on 3SquaresVT (formerly Food Stamps) to buy their monthly food and participation continues to rise. 3SquaresVT is designed to be a nutrition supplement for limited-income Vermonters; yet as the economic recession lingers and jobs remain scarce, more Vermonters count the benefits as their only source of support. 4,706 Vermonters, 1 in 16 getting 3SquaresVT, have no other source of income, according to a recent New York Times article, “Living on Food Stamps and Nothing Else.” That’s a 66% increase in two years.

A $4.8 million economic stimulus grant awarded today to the Central Vermont Community Action Council will train about 2,400 Vermonters under a green jobs program authored by US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The Vermont grant – one of 25 announced by the U.S. Department of Labor – was among the largest awarded under the $100 million Energy Training Partnership program. The awards ranged from $1.4 million to $5 million.
“One way to move our country toward energy independence, slow global warming and create good-paying jobs is to use energy in a smarter way,” said Sanders, the chairman of the Senate Green Jobs and New Economy Subcommittee. “As a nation we have to cut consumption by making our homes and businesses more energy efficient and move to renewable energies. Trouble is, today you would have a hard time finding workers qualified to do those jobs. This funding helps address the problem by training thousands of Vermonters for good-paying green jobs.”

Reconstruction of an historic hydro-electric facility that has produced renewable energy for 81 years has been completed. Central Vermont Public Service has finished extensive improvements to the company s Arnold Falls hydroelectric project, located on Mill Street along the Passumpsic River in St Johnsbury. The upgraded concrete structures replace wooden rock-filled, timber-crib dams similar to those originally constructed during the 19th Century for nearby mills. The deteriorating timber dams remain in place, with the new concrete dams just downstream of them to ensure the facility s long-term future.
The federally licensed generating station, which was built in 1928, includes two dams separated by an island. The 180-foot north dam and 60-foot south dam consisted of interlocked logs, which had a limited lifespan due to the riverine exposure and the inevitable decay of wood.

Governor Jim Douglas and Lt. Governor Brian Dubie today joined House Speaker Shap Smith and Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin to announce a proposal to save $37.8 million in the fiscal year 2011 general fund budget and an estimated $72 million in fiscal year 2012. This proposal will relieve $36 million in property tax pressure in the next two fiscal years. Importantly, it will also enable state government to better deliver services to Vermonters.
This proposal is the culmination of the work of Representatives Mike Obuchowski and Donna Sweaney, Senator Diane Snelling, Administration Secretary Neale Lunderville, Finance Commissioner Jim Reardon and the Public Strategies Group consultants throughout the fall.

The University of Vermont Center for Rural Studies (CRS) is happy to announce that it will be engaging in multiple projects benefiting communities, entrepreneurs and local decision-makers in Vermont with funds secured by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). Project work by CRS staff and partner organizations will address program goals in the study of local and regional food system issues, community problem-solving, entrepreneurship assistance, and community-level information resources for Vermonters. Senator Leahy requested the $ 228,410 in funds for these projects as part of the 2009 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) budget.

The Ticonderoga Ferry finally had to close last Sunday not because of the weather or desire, but because the owners could no longer get insurance to keep the vital link going. But thanks to Dock Doctors of Ferrisburgh, the small, cable-guided barge and the tug that provides its motive power kept going well beyond the mid-December date once given as an estimate of how long that route between Vermont and New York could be maintained.
Dock Doctors first came into the spotlight at an October hearing in Addison on what to do following the Champlain Bridge’s closure. Jeff Provost, the company owner and manager, said he was capable of putting up within days a dock that vehicles could use to reach a ferry; and as for heavy trucks, there were plenty of barges that could accommodate them, and were doing so right now, on the Hudson River.

In its December 15, 2009 press release, The Vermont Economy Newsletter reported a slight increase in Vermont median family income. We have discovered an error in the formula used to calculate the median income. The corrected data show a decline of $1,900 in inflation-adjusted median income, from $68,314 in 2007 to $66,444 in 2008, a decline of 2.7%.
The corrected graph is shown below.

Source: Northern Economic Consulting. 1.5.2010

Kinney Pike Insurance, Inc. is proud to announce that effective December 31, 2009 Senior Officers Peter Werner, Justin Barwood and Doug Corman successfully purchased the agency from Kevin Tibbits, who has served as President and owner since September, 2000.
“These gentlemen have proven themselves to be effective leaders during their lengthy tenure with Kinney Pike,” Tibbits stated. “They have helped guide the agency and have been substantial contributors in every respect of our operation.”
According to Werner speaking on behalf of the new ownership team, “We will be continuing the traditions of the company in a seamless fashion and look forward to ushering the agency into a new era.”

A Montpelier resident with experience in international finance has been hired to lead the state’s efforts in promoting trade between Vermont firms and other countries. Ali Sarafzade was named Director of the Vermont Global Trade Partnership (VGTP), the public-private partnership that serves as the state’s center for international business assistance, on Monday.
“We are very pleased to welcome Ali to our team,” said Commerce and Community Development Secretary Kevin Dorn, whose agency includes the Department of Economic, Housing and Community Development, where the Global Trade Partnership is located. “His experience in international trade, and fluency in French and Spanish, will make him a valuable resource for Vermont companies.”

National and regional economists will explore the 2010 economic environment in the coming year with a special focus on what the economic recovery will look like in 2010 and beyond.
The 19th annual Vermont Economic Conference will be held on Friday, January 8, 2010 at the Sheraton Burlington Hotel and Conference Center and is hosted by The Vermont Economy Newsletter and sponsored by TD Banknorth, KPMG, and Entergy Vermont. The times and topics for the speakers follow:
9:10 a.m. Gus Faucher, Director of Macroeconomics for the national economic consulting and forecasting firm Moody’s Economy.com will speak on The Economic Outlook for the U.S. and Vermont. Dr. Faucher has appeared on CNBC, Fox Business Network, The CBS Evening News, All Things Considered, and Marketplace.
10:10 a.m. Dick Heaps, publisher of The Vermont Economy Newsletter, now in its 20th year of publication, will speak on What Kind of Recovery? Vermont’s Economy in 2010.

US Rep. Peter Welch on Monday unveiled legislation to help Vermont businesses, workers and taxpayers confront the growing fiscal crisis caused by the depletion of the state’s Unemployment Insurance (UI) trust fund.
Alongside business, labor and state government leaders at a Montpelier press conference, Welch introduced a new bill, H.R. 4282, which would extend for two years an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provision allowing states to avoid paying interest on loans to cover shortfalls in their UI trust funds.
“This common sense legislation provides critical federal support to Vermont and other states struggling to assist unemployed workers,” Welch said. “By extending the delay in interest accrual, Vermont businesses, workers and taxpayers will be spared an additional burden during tough economic times.”

Green Mountain Power today announced results of a customer survey indicating strong support for wind power among Vermont business leaders.
The telephone survey took place this fall among GMP's largest commercial customers. Fifty-four of 85 customers contacted completed the survey.
The survey sought customers' feedback on a variety of issues including Vermont's current energy picture, energy challenges facing the state in the next few years, the business and economic climate, Vermont Yankee and wind and solar power. It also gave customers an opportunity to rate GMP on its performance, its vision and its ability to successfully manage the state's energy challenges.
Most significant among the findings was respondents' support for wind energy in Vermont, and specifically for GMP's plans to build, own and operate a wind plant in northern Vermont.