Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed into law the following bills, passed by the General Assembly: H.20, An act relating to pretrial risk assessments and pretrial services; H.151, An act relating to vital records, mausoleums and columbaria, and emergency health orders; H.154, An act relating to the failure of municipal officers to accept office.

by Secretary Julie Moore, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources If we want to revitalize vacant village centers, encourage compact development, expand the availability of affordable housing and high-quality childcare, address the growing climate crisis, attract younger people to stay in and move to Vermont, and invest in workforce development, we need to look underground. I’m not talking figuratively. The solution, quite literally, lies beneath our feet.

Vermont Business Magazine Grid innovations, VEC’s new commitment to cleaner power, a conversation about state policy with Lt. Gov. Molly Gray, and other topics are on the agenda for Vermont Electric Co-op’s Annual Meeting set for May 8. The meeting, entitled An Adaptable Resilient Grid: Teaming up for a Bright Future.

by David Kelley When I was young everyone in my family hunted and fished. In fact, when I was young, it seemed like everyone in Vermont hunted and fished. At Otter Valley, where I went to high school, absenteeism shot up during deer season. Going to deer camp was a rite of passage for most teenage boys. Almost all of my neighbors hunted and fished. On the other hand, I never knew a single person who trapped until years later when I moved to Montana. In Montana I occasionally worked with a neighbor who claimed to be a direct descendant of Kit Carson, and who was a trapper. In Montana I got to see trapping up close and personal. It wasn't pretty.

Vermont Business Magazine Starting tomorrow, vaccine registration opens to college students who are residents of another state and do not intend to stay in Vermont for the summer, as well as to people who live part of the year in Vermont. The VDH today is reporting 48 new cases of COVID-19, as numbers stay low. However, there was one more death for 246 statewide. Over 60 percent of Vermont adults have received at least one shot.

Vermont Business Magazine National Life released its 2020 Annual Report, which highlights the company’s response to doing business during the global pandemic. Accomplishments included: Life sales were $354 million; $3.1 billion was paid to policy owners in benefits; the company remained first for Fixed Indexed Annuities in Employer Sponsored Plans; core earnings of $289 million set a record for the company; $1.99 million was donated through the National Life Group Foundation.

Vermont Business Magazine Out of concern for Lake Champlain’s underwater ecosystems, the Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) and the Lake Champlain Committee (LCC) have appealed a permit issued by the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) to allow the sinking of a 152-foot-long ferry near the Burlington waterfront. The permit authorizes the Vermont Division of Historic Preservation and the Lake Champlain Transportation Company to sink the MV Adirondack as an artificial reef for recreational use by scuba divers.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General TJ Donovan today announced a settlement with a small Florida-based company that routed thousands of foreign scam robocalls to Vermonters. The Attorney General investigated the company—Strategic IT Partner—after reports of scam robocalls to the Vermont Consumer Assistance Program. The settlement will prevent Strategic IT Partner from bringing any robocalls into the US from abroad unless the company first verifies they are wholly legitimate. The Attorney General also today announced the formation of a Robocall Team to assist in the office’s ongoing efforts to combat scam calls in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Buildings and General Services has resumed the online auctions offering a large assortment of State vehicles and equipment. BGS administers the State’s Surplus Property Program which receives and redistributes items no longer needed by the State such as office furniture, computer equipment, vehicles, and hundreds of other items. The auctions are an excellent opportunity for Vermont communities and others throughout New England to obtain a good deal on a vehicle or piece of equipment. Access to the auction system is facilitated by Auctions International.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Department of Labor Commissioner Michael Harrington today issued the following statement: “On Monday April 26, 2021, the Vermont Department of Labor received formal notification from Koffee Kup Bakery (KKB), in the form of a Notice of Potential Layoff (also referred to as a WARN Notice), that the company was ceasing operations at its Burlington and Brattleboro facilities effective immediately. In an effort to immediately support the roughly 250 Vermonters who have lost their jobs, our Workforce Development and Unemployment Insurance divisions have begun the process of coordinating Rapid Response services. Additionally, a number of employers across the state have contacted the Department of Labor interested in hiring individuals who were impacted by this closure."

Vermont Business Magazine Champlain College President Benjamin Ola. Akande is returning to St Louis to assume a leadership role at one of the nation’s largest investment banking and financial services firms. His last day as president will be May 31, 2021. The Board of Trustees has accepted his resignation as announced in an email to the college community today.

Benjamin Ola. Akande. File Photo