Current News

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health today reported 2,188 cases of COVID-19 for Wednesday, which is another record and the first time over 2,000 daily cases. The record of 1,727 cases of COVID-19 was set on Monday. On December 30, it reported a then-record 1,471 cases. The record for cases was broken three times last week and twice this week. Hospitalizations increased to one short of their record daily high.

AccuWeather Global Weather Center AccuWeather expert meteorologists provide updates to media working on stories related to the winter weather heading toward the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast beginning Thursday night. Snow is expected to cover all of Vermont, with southern regions getting the brunt.

Vermont Business Magazine The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending more than $1 million to the State of Vermont to reimburse the state for administrative costs incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development will receive a total of $1,049,791 in federal funding through FEMA’s Public Assistance grant program to cover the costs of administering grants FEMA provided to the state to reimburse the costs of implementing food distribution programs providing meals to those in need and who were affected by the pandemic.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced that beginning next week the State of Vermont will use a program developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to deliver 500,000 recently acquired rapid COVID-19 tests to households across the state. The program will surge rapid tests into communities and serve as a pilot to help state officials assess a broader delivery model where residents order tests online and have them delivered to their home. This is similar to a system President Biden has said the federal government will use to make rapid tests more readily available later in the month of January, but this program is in addition to that federal effort.

Senator Patrick Leahy These are among the most somber and sorrowful remarks that I have had to make as President Pro Tempore and in my several decades of service in this body. What an unthinkable event it is that we are marking today. An attempted coup incited not against a president, but by a president, who promoted and still promotes a litany of lies, to overturn the results of an election in order for him to hold on to power that he no longer possesses. We are in the business of words, but there are none to adequately capture the damage that he and his henchmen have done and are doing to our country.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Corrections detected one new incarcerated case of COVID-19 during intake quarantine at Northwest State Correctional Facility (NWSCF) in St. Albans. The testing was conducted January 4. As of Thursday morning, five incarcerated individuals are considered positive across three Vermont facilities, all of which were identified in intake quarantine. Statewide, 41 positive staff cases currently exist across six correctional facilities, six field offices, and Central Office.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced that the State has opened registration for COVID-19 booster shots for children 12 to 15 years old, following approval by CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky late Wednesday night. This age group can receive their Pfizer booster as early as five months after their second Pfizer dose. Children ages 16 and 17 have already been eligible for a Pfizer booster but can now also get their booster shot as soon as five months after the second dose.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont gasoline prices today held at $3.35 a gallon from last week, according to vermontgasprices.com (GasBuddy). They are 5 cents less than a month ago and $1.11 more than a year ago. Nationally, prices are up 2 cents from last week to $3.30, down 5 cents from last month and up $1.00 from last year.

The lowest prices in Vermont can be found in Middlebury ($3.15/g) and the highest prices are in Addison ($3.59/g).

Burlington gas prices are up 1 cent per gallon in the past week, averaging $3.37/g today, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 100 stations in Burlington. Gas prices in Burlington are 4.1 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand $1.09/g higher than a year ago.

Vermont Business Magazine Coronavirus cases are rising and a new variant has quickly spread across the country. Still, millions of Americans remain unvaccinated and say they have no plans to change that. Online insurance broker QuoteWizard looked at the latest data on vaccine hesitancy. They found that concerns over side effects, government mistrust and indifference are the main reasons why people aren’t getting vaccinated. In Vermont, the reasons follow a similar pattern to the national data: 54% are worried about side effects; 36% are waiting to see if it’s safe; 26% don’t trust COVID-19 vaccines; 28% don’t trust the government; 11% don’t believe COVID is a threat.

Vermont Business Magazine iSun, Inc (NASDAQ: ISUN), a leading solar energy and clean mobility infrastructure company based in Williston, announced Wednesday that it has been selected to design and deliver an expected total of 1,780 off-grid solar canopies to be located at EV charging stations. iSun has 50-years of construction experience in solar, electrical and data services and a provider of proprietary electric vehicle charging platforms

by Bill Schubart “The oldest weekly newspaper in Vermont is on its last legs.” The Boston Globe reported in Mid-December of the Vermont Standard of Woodstock. The Vermont media landscape is in turmoil. The technologies of news-gathering and presentation are merging and altering the economic support systems for hyper-local, statewide, and national media.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Electric Co-op (VEC) is continuing to offer a wide variety of bill credits this year for members who purchase certain electricity-powered devices for their homes or businesses to transition away from fossil fuels. More than 2,700 VEC members have taken advantage of incentives through VEC’s Energy Transformation Program since the co-op began offering them in 2017.