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by Bill Schubart The Vermont Nonprofit sector is a major contributor to Vermont’s economy and to the well-being of Vermonters. Its 6000 organizations represent about 20 percent of Vermont’s overall economy and employ about 14 percent of its workforce. Nonprofit missions range from the dominant healthcare and education sectors to arts and culture, the environment, journalism, housing, hunger/food systems, equity, poverty and more. As such, nonprofits have a vital role to play in the quality of life for many Vermonters. The traditional role of government in assuring the well-being of its citizens is often subcontracted to the nonprofit sector, especially in areas like alleviating hunger, homelessness, or poverty.

Agency of Commerce & Community Development The Economic Recovery Bridge Program provides $30 million in funding to businesses who can show a net loss on their 2020 federal tax returns. The program will give priority during the first 30 days to businesses that have yet to receive any state or federal financial support from COVID-19 recovery programs. The application portal will go live the week of June 7. ACCD will host a webinar to review guidelines and go over application materials for the Economic Recovery Bridge Program on Wednesday, June 2 at 3 pm.

Vermont Business Magazine The VDH is reporting only two cases of COVID-19 as cases in Vermont, across the region and across the US subside. There have been no COVID-related deaths in the state in 15 days. Vermont is the only state with no fatalities during that span. Governor Phil Scott has said that once 80 percent of eligible Vermonters are vaccinated, all state COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted. At his Tuesday press conference, Governor Scott said that only about 11,000 more Vermonters need to get their shot in order to meet this goal.

Vermont Business Magazine After holding base rates flat for the past year to help customers facing the economic hardship created by the pandemic, Green Mountain Power today filed a request with the Public Utility Commission to increase base rates beginning October 1 by 4.69 percent. This filing marks the third and final year of what is called a “multi-year rate plan” where GMP forecasted annual rate increases at approximately 2.72 percent. If approved by regulators, customers will pay less than previously estimated, or about 2.47 percent averaged over the three years.

Vermont Business Magazine The Attorney General’s Office today announced Max Misch, 38, of Bennington, Vermont, was arraigned in the Criminal Division of the Vermont Superior Court in Bennington for violating a condition of release previously ordered by the Court in an ongoing criminal proceeding, State of Vermont v. Max Misch. Misch is currently being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office for allegedly violating Vermont’s ban on large capacity magazines.

Vermont Business Magazine With a shared goal of providing greater access to care in southwestern New Hampshire, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in New Hampshire and Brattleboro Memorial Hospital announced the hospital has joined Anthem’s Pathway Network of health care providers serving consumers in the individual health insurance marketplace as of today, June 1.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Community Foundation has granted $10,000 through the Vermont Women’s Fund to fund a partnership between Voices Against Violence and Growing Money, two programs of the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO). Through the partnership, survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in Franklin and Grand Isle Counties will learn financial skills to increase their confidence and to become self-sufficient.

Vermont Business Magazine State Treasurer Beth Pearce today announced the names of twenty Vermont students who won this year’s prize drawing for the Treasurer’s Office’s Reading is an Investment financial education program. The winners were drawn from 2,419 K-6 students who completed all steps of the financial literacy curriculum, entitling them to the drawing for one of twenty $250 college savings accounts.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, US Small Business Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman issued a statement on the closure of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to new loan guaranty applications, which has provided over $798 billion in economic relief to small businesses and nonprofits across the nation, keeping employees employed and helping businesses come back stronger than ever.

Vermont Business Magazine Vaccines are available without an appointment while the supplies last. A list of state-run walk-in clinics is listed below. However, many pharmacies across the state also offer walk-in vaccinations through the federal program, some of whom offer the Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine. The number of spots are an estimate. The best way to guarantee your vaccine is to make an appointment.

Vermont State Police On Sunday night the Vermont State Police responded to a reported single vehicle crash on Rt 109 by McNally Rd in the town of Cambridge. When Troopers arrived on scene they found the operator, Marie Ann Perreault deceased. The initial investigation revealed that the involved vehicle was traveling west on Rt 109 when it left the roadway and struck a tree. State Police were assisted by Cambridge Fire and Cambridge Rescue.

by John McClaughry Governor Phil Scott’s only veto of the 2021 session is of a bill (S107) that would raise from 19 to 20 the age before which the identity, arrest and criminal charge of young adults must be kept confidential. The governor opposes the bill because it would “raise the age of accountability for crimes and afford young adults protections meant for juveniles, without adequate tools or systems in place for access to rehabilitation services and other supports needed both to hold these young adults accountable and help them stay out of the criminal justice system in the future.”