Current News

Vermont Business Magazine In honor of National Police Week, the Senate Judiciary Committee today advanced several bipartisan bills co-sponsored by Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) that support law enforcement and promote community safety. This includes the Carla Walker Act, sponsored by Sen. Welch and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), which would dedicate existing federal grant funds to support forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) DNA analysis and help solve previously unsolvable cold cases.  

Public Assets Institute Before the Covid pandemic, the numbers of Vermont men and women working remotely were roughly the same. This is according to the U.S. Census, which asked how workers usually got to work the week prior to answering the survey. During the pandemic, the number of both men and women working from home tripled. But after Covid’s peak, as telework declined a gender disparity emerged. From 2021 to 2024, more men than women returned to the office—6,700 compared with 3,100. Still, many more workers continued to work from home than did so before the pandemic.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont State Police arrested four people on charges of criminal trespass and resisting arrest Thursday morning, May 14, 2026, after they declined to leave a private office building in Williston. NBC5 confirmed that the office park is on Industrial Avenue, which had been the site of ICE protests earlier this year.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $4.55 per gallon, up 3 cents per gallon from last week, up 46 cents/g from last month and up $1.49/g from this time last year, according to AAA. The lowest price in the state this week was $4.25/g. Prices are lowest in Addison ($4.46/g) and Bennington ($4.50/g) counties and highest in Essex ($4.68/g), Orange ($4.61/g), and Grand Isle ($4.59/g), according to AAA. The national average price of gasoline has fallen cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.53/g today. 

Vermont Business Magazine For 40 years, Kittell Branagan & Sargent has helped Vermont businesses navigate complex financial decisions with clarity and confidence. Whether you’re managing growth, addressing tax challenges, or planning for what’s next, our team brings practical insight built on decades of experience across the state. This year, we’re proud to be celebrating 40 years of serving Vermont businesses. Over the past four decades, the KBS team has provided trusted accounting, advisory, and audit support to individuals and businesses throughout the state.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced the appointment of Kevin Geno of Rutland to fill the assistant judge vacancy in Rutland County following David Wolk’s resignation. Geno has served in law enforcement since 1976, first with the Rutland City Police Department and, most recently, with the Rutland County Sheriff’s Department following his retirement as commander of the Rutland City Police Department.

by Morgan Kelly, Dartmouth A Dartmouth study shows that annual rainfall in much of the world has consolidated over the past four decades into heavier storms with longer dry periods in between. The findings are the first to show that a year’s worth of rainfall packed into bigger and wetter storms means less water for aquifers and ecosystems, even if total precipitation increases. Because soil can absorb only so much water at once, what is not soaked up collects on the surface where it’s more readily evaporated.

Vermont Business Magazine 24 Southern Vermont Emerging Leaders were recognized on May 12th during the 9th annual Southern Vermont Economy Summit. The recognition event, conducted by the Southern Vermont Young Professionals and the Shires Young Professionals, celebrates young people from the Bennington and Windham regions. Individuals are nominated each year based on their work as community leaders and volunteers, and for their professional accomplishments and commitment to serving the region. The celebration was sponsored by the Vermont Community Foundation and Vermont State University Road to Success.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Parks Forever, the only non-profit foundation for Vermont’s 55 state parks, has announced the success of its first-in-the-nation, privately funded pilot program that provided over 30,000 free day-use visits to Vermont State Parks in 2025. This program, for eligible Vermonters with lower income, will continue in 2026. In partnership with Vermont State Parks, the Department for Children and Families’ Economic Services Division, and the Department of Health’s WIC Program, this initiative will run again from the end of May through October and is available to families and individuals receiving services through the Economic Services Division and WIC.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Congressional Delegation, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont), and U.S. Representative Becca Balint (D-Vermont), today announced the delivery of $20.83 million in federal funding, administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to support the Vermont Agency for Transportation (VTrans) and the City of Montpelier to repair damage caused by severe storms, flooding, and washouts in July 2023. The federal funding will deliver nearly $12 million in long-overdue funding to support permanent repairs to Montpelier’s City Hall, Fire Department, Police Department Buildings, and Fire Department Sidewalk and Ramp. VTrans will receive an additional $9 million to help rebuild portions of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail and the Washington County railroad. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is pleased to announce that an eighth lake has achieved the Gold Lake Wise Award. Great Averill Lake in Averill joins Echo Lake, Seymour Lake, Lake Iroquois, Lake Raponda, Lake Morey, Halls Lake, and Little Averill Lake in reaching this accomplishment. The Gold Lake Wise Award is granted to lake associations when 15% of the shoreland properties have received an individual Lake Wise Award.

Vermont Business Magazine ​The Vermont Auditor of Accounts released a report today recommending a review of how the VEGI growth incentive is measured. The report concludes that VEPC should consider replacing the current methodology with one using company specific average growth rates instead of industry ones. VEPC maintains that the program’s design ensures that incentives are only paid after performance targets are met and verified. VEPC’s response suggests the report only provides a framework for continued evaluation and improvement of Vermont’s economic development strategies, and its conclusions should be viewed "with caution." VEPC also suggests that alternatives might not be accurate or appropriate.