Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Average Vermont gasoline prices today were $3.53 a gallon today, or 9.6 cents a gallon higher than one week ago, 18 cents higher than last month and $1.08 higher than a year ago.

Vermont Business Magazine Beginning Friday, February 11, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), part of Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC), updated its visitation policy for hospital visitors and medical practice patients as well as expanded its visiting hours. The change follows a decrease in positive COVID-19 tests and the slow decline in the number of patients hospitalized with COVID. Visiting hours have been expanded to 11 am – 7 pm daily.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today vetoed H.157, passed on January 27, and sent the letter below to the General Assembly. H.157 creates a "light-touch" registry for home contractors. The governor maintains that it will hurt small contractors in favor of larger ones, raise costs to those smaller businesses, perhaps driving some out of business, and ultimately increase costs to consumers. The bill passed 20-10 in the Senate and 97-52 in the House. If it came to overriding the veto, lawmakers would need 100 votes in the House and 20 in the Senate to succeed.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets is now accepting applications from businesses seeking to vend at the Vermont Building at the Eastern States Exposition (Big E). The Vermont Building is one of six New England buildings on the Avenue of the States at the Big E, a 17-day fair and exposition that takes place each September in West Springfield, MA. During this event, which brings in approximately 1.5 million people each year, the Vermont Building hosts a variety of Vermont food and retail businesses which showcase the best of what our state has to offer and is a great opportunity for Vermont businesses to expand their market and increase brand recognition.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) Wednesday delivered remarks on the floor of the US Senate asking for unanimous consent for debate to begin on legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs for millions of Americans. This legislation, introduced Wednesday by Sens. Sanders and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), empowers Medicare to pay lower prices for prescription drugs, like the Veterans Administration.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) Wednesday joined Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and others in introducing the Senate companion to the House-passed Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Reauthorization. This year’s VAWA reauthorizes programs through 2026 and strengthens the law in several ways, including by strengthening rape prevention and education efforts and services, providing support for legal services funding and trauma informed law enforcement responses, and expanding and authorizing programs to ensure access to survivors in rural areas, survivors requiring culturally specific services, and LGBT survivors.

Vermont Business Magazine CoreMap, based in Burlington, announced today it has closed a $3 million Series A Milestone financing concurrently with a $20 million Series B financing. The financing includes a diverse group of strategic, institutional, venture and individual partners. Founded in 2016, CoreMap’s mission is to develop a cure for atrial fibrillation (AF). The financing will be used to accelerate the company’s ongoing product development efforts and initiate clinical outcome studies.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott on Wednesday delivered the following remarks as part of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Coalition (VHCC) Legislative Week Kick-Off: "It is good to be with you to talk about some of the most important issues facing our state, like housing, supporting rural Vermont and protecting our natural resources. And I’m pleased to report, these are areas I’ve emphasized, and invested in, as well."

Vermont Business Magazine The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) recently selected an experienced soil conservationist and agronomist for its top position in Vermont. Travis Thomason, who has been with NRCS since 2005 and most recently served as the agency’s Director for the Pacific Islands Area based in Hawaii, will join NRCS-Vermont as its State Conservationist later this month. In this position he will oversee more than 70 federal soil conservationists, engineers and program administrators in 11 offices throughout the state.

Vermont Farm to Plate The State of Vermont, with the most breweries per capita of any state in the country, has a huge opportunity to increase its production of local hops. Currently 300,000 pounds of hops are being used by Vermont breweries each year, yet less then 20,000 pounds of hops were grown locally as of 2019. Vermont’s short and challenging growing season has historically stunted the growth of the state’s hops industry. Additionally, the high costs involved with growing hops on a commercial scale, and a statewide brewery business model that was built to rely on the importation of hops with unique characteristics and flavor profiles, have also been significant barriers to increasing the production and use of local hops.

​by Annette Smith When it comes to building and owning electric generation facilities, Vermont is different from other New England states. Other states deregulated electricity markets. Utilities were required to sell off their generation assets and become solely “poles & wires” distribution companies; power plants are now built and owned by what are called merchant developers. In Vermont, utilities can still build and operate power generating facilities – for example Green Mountain Power’s Lowell Wind project, and Vermont Electric Co-op’s 5MW solar project in Grand Isle. The utilities’ rate of return on investments is regulated by the Public Utility Commission. Merchant developers can also construct and own electric generating facilities in Vermont. The difference between them and utilities is causing conflict.

Vermont Business Magazine USDA has extended the deadline to enroll in Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) and Supplemental Dairy Margin Coverage (SDMC) for program year 2022.  The deadline to apply for 2022 coverage is now March 25, 2022. As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s ongoing efforts to support dairy farmers and rural communities, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) opened DMC and SDMC signup in December 2021 to help producers manage economic risk brought on by milk price and feed cost disparities.