Current News

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

Vermont Business Magazine The New England Regional Defense Industry Collaboration (NERDIC) kicked off an Industry 4.0 series of workshops to support competitive advantages and growth of our regional defense supply chain. In the first of the Tuesday noontime webinars, Stanley X, in partnership with DeepHow, shared their AI-powered solution to capture, train and transfer knowledge among skilled workers.

Vermont Business Magazine The Patricia A Hannaford Career Center (HCC) has announced that Collins Aerospace, Vergennes, Vermont, has provided HCC and its maker-space, The Makery, $5,000 to support its growing high-tech manufacturing training programs. A portion of these funds was used to purchase a GlowForge Laser Cutter with the remainder of the funds planned for additional equipment purchases that support HCC’s workforce development initiatives.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont has the third highest increase in real home value in the nation. First American Real House Price Index (RHPI) measures the price changes of single-family properties throughout the US adjusted for the impact of income and interest rate changes on consumer house-buying power over time at national, state and metropolitan area levels. Because the RHPI adjusts for house-buying power, it also serves as a measure of housing affordability.

Vermont Business Magazine On April 17th, H.315 was enacted (Act 9). The Act appropriates $10 million of funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to ACCD to provide priority funding to businesses that have not received prior State or Federal financial assistance. To the extent that funds remain available, the program is also intended to provide funding to businesses that have suffered a tax loss even after receiving State or Federal aid.