Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The third round of mass testing for all Vermont facilities showed no new positive cases of COVID-19 among the more than 2,000 Vermont staff and inmates tested. The testing schedule included the six in-state facilities and Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility (TCCF) in Tutwiler, Mississippi. This latest round of testing was conducted as part of Vermont DOC and Vermont Health Department’s plan to test all Vermont facilities on a rotating basis. The fourth round of mass testing began Monday, October 19, at Northwest State Correctional Facility.

Vermont Business Magazine William “Bill” Beaton of Groveland, MA, is the new President and CEO of Agri-Mark/Cabot. Beaton’s appointment was approved by the Agri-Mark Board of Directors at their July 2019 meeting allowing for a seamless transition with the co-op’s former President and CEO Ed Townley, who retired this summer.

Vermont Business Magazine A federal judge has ruled in favor of the lawsuit filed earlier this year by Attorney General TJ Donovan to protect food assistance. In January, Attorney General Donovan joined a coalition of 15 attorneys general and New York City in filing a lawsuit to stop the Trump Administration from eliminating food assistance for nearly 700,000 Americans, including more than 200 Vermont households as of January 2020. The lawsuit, filed in the District of Columbia, challenged a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule that would limit states’ ability to extend benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known in Vermont as 3SquaresVT, beyond a three-month period for certain adults.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) today announced $5.9 million in approved financing for Vermont businesses and farms during the quarter ended September 30. VEDA also approved an additional $641,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for 44 Vermont businesses and farms during the quarter before the program ended on August 8.

Vermont Business Magazine With winter around the corner and heating costs projected to increase this season, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) joined a bipartisan coalition of 40 senators in urging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to release funds for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) as swiftly and at the highest level possible under the current continuing resolution.

by Bill Stritzler The falling of leaves and shortening of days always mark a busy time for my industry – the ski resort industry. We are once again busily preparing for the ski season ahead. A critical part of that preparation is the hiring of seasonal workers. We are rapidly approaching the time of year when our workforce swells from two to three hundred shoulder season employees to 1,300 winter employees. Over many years, members of this workforce have been students and graduates of the Vermont State College System (VSCS) and Northern Vermont University (NVU) in particular. In fact, with NVU we have the opportunity to find the well-trained employees needed to operate our Resort.

Vermont Business Magazine Monday marks the first day of a week-long international virtual event called #BlackinCardioWeek. This social media-based initiative was co-organized by Debora Kamin Mukaz, PhD, a postdoctoral associate conducting cardiovascular research at UVM's Larner College of Medicine. Originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, her research focuses on defining biomarkers related to incidence of hypertension and diabetes, with an emphasis on studying racial disparities.

Vermont Business Magazine United Academics, the faculty union of the University of Vermont, on Friday evening declared an impasse in contract negotiations with the UVM administration. The administration is seeking to cut faculty compensation as non-union salaries already have been reduced across the board. The university is facing a $9.4 million budget hole. The union maintains the administration is using the pandemic to roll-back compensation, including retirement benefits. The dispute will now go to a third-party, non-binding mediator to facilitate further negotiations.

This contract negotiation impasse comes three weeks after the administration and the faculty reached impasse in separate negotiations on the immediate impacts of COVID-19 to faculty work conditions.

by Bruce Edwards, Vermont Business Magazine If you want to get a sense of the Bennington County economy during COVID-19, a good place to start is with Bill Colvin, assistant director with the Bennington County Regional Commission.

by Bruce Edwards, Vermont Business Magazine Mention the town of Arlington and Norman Rockwell’s name invariably pops up. Arlington was Rockwell’s home for a number of years when he was creating illustrations for the Saturday Evening Post. While the artist’s former home attracted its fair share of tourists and Rockwell fans (it’s now a bed and breakfast), Arlington is also home to two of Bennington County’s largest employers, Mack Molding and The Orvis Company.

Vermont Business Magazine Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate Rules Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) today released a report summarizing for the American people what to expect on Election Day and reinforcing the Democrats’ call to encourage everyone to vote.

Vermont Business Magazine Following the decision by the State of New Hampshire to close indoor skating facilities for two weeks, Governor Phil Scott today issued an executive order prohibiting Vermont’s skating rinks from accepting new reservation for use of their facilities beginning today, October 16, at 5 pm, through midnight on October 30, 2020.