Current News

by Rob Roper Lawmakers recently passed a bill that begins the process for a major expansion of state-subsidized childcare for birth to five-year-olds rolled out over the next few years. The new law, crafted and pushed by the special interest group Let’s Grow Kids, could have major negative consequences for children, families, and taxpayers.

Let’s Grow Kids’ goals are, in a nutshell:

1) Capping payments to ensure that no family pays more than 10% of their income for childcare. This sounds nice but reduces the amount of money entering the system.

2) Establishing a central bureaucracy and infrastructure to oversee the program. This, of course, will require more money coming into the system. And

3) Ensuring that childcare workers are “compensated on par with their colleagues in similar professions” (read, “unionized public school teachers”), which will require a lot more money coming into the system.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and Senator Patrick Leahy issued statements today in response to the Canadian Government’s announcement that it will ease travel restrictions for fully vaccinated Americans, effective August 9.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Amtrak returned to Vermont today with a splash. The literal splash was provided by ongoing rain that stopped just in time for passengers to board in Essex Junction. The festive atmosphere was a backdrop to what Amtrak officials say is the biggest ridership day in Vermont since the Vermonter (previously the Montrealer) began operating in 1995. Over 600 passengers were scheduled to ride the rails Monday after the pandemic shut down the service in March 2020.

Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing The Economic Recovery Bridge Program is open and now accepting applications for any business that can show continued revenue loss due to COVID-19. Previous priority was given to those businesses who had yet to receive any state or federal funding. Applications are now being accepted and processed for any business that can show additional loss beyond funds already received.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Department of Corrections is partnering with 15 community organizations to provide reentry housing and services to incarcerated individuals released from correctional facilities. Effective July 1, 2021, Vermont DOC is funding 274 beds/apartments with 15 housing providers, including two new Community Justice Centers. Housing will be offered in every district, including in Lamoille and Orange Counties, where DOC housing has not existed before.

Vermont Business Magazine At meetings on June 23 and July 8, the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board committed $31,447,000 in state funding and $22,364,574 in federal funds to preserve, rehabilitate and create homes and to expand shelter capacity. A total of 389 homes will be created, with 221 reserved for previously homeless households and those at risk of homelessness.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program, a program of the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board, is expanding services to help working lands businesses navigate urgent needs related to COVID-19. Funding to support this programming comes from the State of Vermont, allocated by the Vermont Legislature.

Vermont Business Magazine GlobalFoundries (GF), the global leader in feature-rich semiconductor manufacturing, today announced its expansion plans for its most advanced manufacturing facility in upstate New York over the coming years. These plans include immediate investments to address the global chip shortage at its existing Fab 8 facility as well as construction of a new fab on the same campus that will double the site’s capacity. Separately, GF said they will also be making targeted investments in our Burlington, Vermont, facility in the next two years.

Vermont Business Magazine Advancing a long-term plan to address the evolving health care needs of patients in our region, the UVM Medical Center in Burlington has requested permission from the Green Mountain Care Board to begin planning a modern outpatient surgery center that would further its commitment to provide high quality care at the lowest cost, in a health care setting most appropriate for each patient. Through the filing of a Conceptual Certificate of Need (CON), the hospital seeks an expedited review following the reduction of available operating rooms resulting from the closure of the Fanny Allen outpatient location due to air quality issues.

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power (GMP) is reminding customers that they’re invited to join GMP’s Bi-Annual Open House meeting on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, at 5:30 p.m. live on the GMP Facebook page. It is a chance to meet with company leaders and ask questions about GMP’s Multi-Year Regulation Plan, base rate request, performance measures for customers, innovative programs, and GMP’s climate plan.

Vermont Agency of Agriculture Food & Markets A new law may help some Vermont business owners sleep a little better at night. Vermont Act 31, An Act Relating to Limiting Liability for Agritourism, went into effect on July 1, 2021. Act 31 acknowledges that there are “inherent risks” in participating in agritourism activities and shifts those risks to properly warned consumers. The Act covers recreational, educational, entertainment, historical and nature-based activities on farms, such as farm tours and pick-your-own. It does not include on-farm lodging, retail establishments or farm stands.

by Elizabeth Campbell Vermont is a glorious place to live for so many reasons but if you, like me, are the parent of an adult child with significant cognitive disabilities, Vermont can be a scary place to call home. Not because Vermonters aren’t unfailingly kind to my son, who has a particularly challenging form of Down Syndrome and so will need lifelong supervision. It’s a scary place to live because once I am no longer able to care for my son, he will likely end up in Vermont’s adult foster care system, which Vermont calls “Shared Living.”