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Senator Leahy: “The Atomic Energy Commission’s decision in 1954 to revoke J. Robert Oppenheimer’s security clearance was based on a manifestly unjust and unethical hearing that would be resoundingly condemned today. Robert Oppenheimer was a brilliant scientist whose indispensable role in leading the Manhattan Project is beyond dispute. He served this country in a time of great peril as no other person could have, and he remained steadfastly loyal to this country until his death. I commend Secretary Granholm for taking this important step in the interest of justice and fairness.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Animation Festival has announced Oscar-nominated animation directors Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata will be the keynote speakers for the Eighth Annual Vermont Animation Festival. Hosted by Northern Vermont University in partnership with Catamount Arts, the festival will be held March 24 and 25 on the NVU-Lyndon campus. Porter and Kuwahata specialize in mixed-media narratives and the pair have been working together as Tiny Inventions (tinyinventions.com) since 2008. Their work often combines handcrafted art, CG animation, drawn animation, stop-motion, and photographic effects and they have directed and produced TV commercials, music videos, PSAs, and independent films. Negative Space, their 90th Oscar-nominated film, has won 128 awards at 320 film festivals worldwide.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Corrections (DOC) announced this week the Good Spirits Café has officially opened its doors to incarcerated individuals and staff at Southern State Correctional Facility (SSCF). The café is an innovative small business venture created by incarcerated individuals of the SSCF honor unit—a special residential housing unit with increased independence and behavior contracts—with assistance from DOC staff.

Vermont Business Magazine Evernorth and RuralEdge were joined by community members, funders and local elected officials on Friday afternoon to celebrate newly renovated buildings and significant progress to a newly constructed building on Burkeland Lane. Burkeland Lane (formerly known as West Burke Housing and Pilgrim Manor) is a mixed-generation affordable housing property located in the heart of West Burke. West Burke village is a small, but thriving community fueled by tourism. The local rental market, like much of Vermont, has been affected by significant rent increases and the conversion of rental units into short-term rentals. These market realities make Burkeland Lane, which will remain permanently affordable, a critical community resource.

Vermont Business Magazine The Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center (NE-DBIC), hosted by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets announces the Organic On-Farm Milk Storage & Handling Grant. This grant opportunity opened December 13, 2022 and closes on February 9, 2023. In a continuing response to the ongoing organic dairy crisis brought to the forefront when dozens of farmers across the Northeast lost milk contracts in 2021, and in response to the high demand for milk storage and handling upgrades in previous funding rounds, the NE-DBIC is opening a special grant round for organic dairy producers.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) is celebrating CVFiber, one of Vermont’s 10 Communications Union Districts (CUDs), on its launch of construction set for Wednesday, December 21. CVFiber leadership will welcome state and local officials to the Calais Town Hall, 1662 Kent Hill Road, at 11 am to mark the start of construction of its 1,200-mile fiber network that will serve nearly 6,000 underserved locations throughout central Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The bipartisan Promoting Peace, Education, and Cultural Exchange (PEACE) Through Music Diplomacy Act, introduced in the Senate by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee, passed the Senate Thursday night as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment authorizes the State Department to facilitate music-related exchange programs with other countries, including those focused on cross-cultural understanding and conflict resolution.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets (VAAFM) is now accepting applications for Trade Show Assistance Grants. Funded by the Working Lands Enterprise Initiative (WLEI), these grants provide Vermont agricultural and forestry businesses with funds to identify, plan, exhibit, and sell their Vermont products at out-of-state and international trade shows or virtual shows targeting out-of-state buyers. WLEI has set aside $50,000 to support Vermont businesses with their tradeshow marketing between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024. Trade Show Assistance Grants provide 50% reimbursement on eligible expenses to help mitigate the financial risks associated with exhibiting at trade shows.

Vermont Business Magazine State Director for US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development (RD) in Vermont and New Hampshire, Sarah Waring, today announced $2,136,062 in grant funding to improve housing and economic opportunity for socially vulnerable rural residents in the Twin States. USDA is making the investments through its Rural Community Development Initiative (RCDI) program, Housing Preservation Grants (HPG), Community Facilities Disaster Relief Grants (CF) and a partnership with the Northern Border Regional Commission. The investments are part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to ensure that people living in rural America have equitable access to the infrastructure and economic opportunities they deserve.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor reported that the seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for November was 2.5 percent. This reflects an increase of two-tenths of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The Labor Force improved but both the number of employed (down 209) and the number of unemployed (up 547) contributed to the rate increase. October's rate also saw an increase of two-tenths as the major indices revealed mediocre results, but they have shown vast improvement from the same time last year. The rate during the summer fell to 2.1 percent, which is the state's historic low. The civilian labor force participation rate was 61.7 percent in November, unchanged from the prior month. Vermont has the fifth lowest unemployment rate. Minnesota is lowest 2.2 percent, while Nevada is highest as 4.9 percent. The US rate of 3.7 percent is unchanged.

Vermont Business Magazine Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston (FHLBank Boston) awarded nearly $19.6 million in grants, loans, and interest-rate subsidies to support 32 affordable housing initiatives in New England and beyond. These projects, funded in part through FHLBank Boston’s Affordable Housing Program (AHP), will create or preserve 929 rental and homeownership units for individuals and families earning up to 80% of the area median income. As part of this funding round, Vermont received $900,000 for 78 affordable units of rental and homeownership housing in Hinesburg, Randolph, and Vergennes.