Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy on Thursday announced a significant funding increase for the Vermont-Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center. The Center, operated by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM), was originally selected as one of three regional dairy innovation centers through a competitive process in 2019. As Vice Chairman of the US Senate Appropriations Committee, Leahy secured a significant increase to the national program’s funding level in the fiscal year 2020 Agriculture Appropriations Bill which allowed the allocation for Vermont to increase from $450,000 in 2019, to more than $6.1 million in 2020.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor reported that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for July was 8.3 percent. This reflects a decrease of one and two-tenths percentage points from the prior month’s revised estimate of 9.5 percent. The comparable United States rate in July was 10.2 percent, a decrease of nine-tenths percentage points from the revised June estimate. The Vermont unemployment rate is still higher than the worst of the Great Recession (The Vermont peaked at 6.9 percent; the US rate peaked at 10.6 percent in January 2010). The official Vermont March unemployment rate was 3.1 percent, but the April rate was 15.6 percent, the highest on record.

Vermont Business Magazine The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) announced today that Legal Services Vermont will receive a $375,970 Pro Bono Innovation Fund grant. LSC’s Pro Bono Innovation Fund is intended to encourage and expand pro bono efforts and partnerships to serve more low-income clients. Legal Services Vermont will use the grant to build a coordinated, centralized and sustainable infrastructure for statewide pro bono efforts in Vermont. It will collaborate with key stakeholders to develop and implement a robust statewide pro bono system using best practices for recruitment, flexible volunteer venues and effective data tracking to expand access to justice for low-income families in the state.

​Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Women’s Fund, the state’s largest and first philanthropic resource dedicated to women and girls, recently announced the launch of its 100-for-100 Campaign, an initiative to celebrate the 100th anniversary of women’s voting rights and finance a special round of grant-making this fall. Nearly one hundred years ago to the day, the 19th Amendment of the Constitution was officially ratified thus guaranteeing American women the right to vote. Despite the landmark legislation, this privilege was not extended to women of color until 1965.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, AARP announced the awardees for its 2020 AARP Community Challenge grant program, including five recipients right here in Vermont. A total of nearly $2,4 million will be distributed to fund 159 “quick action” projects across the country, helping communities make immediate improvements and jumpstart long-term progress to support residents of all ages. In Vermont, grants totaling nearly $45,000 were awarded to five organizations across the state. Some 32 applications were received from a variety of communities and statewide entities. Each of the projects must be completed by December 18, 2020.

Vermont Business Magazine The Public Service Department today announced $3,926,650 in grant awards to Internet Service Providers to serve over 5,800 eligible locations with broadband connections in response to COVID-19. Of those slated to receive service from the grant-funded projects, more than 2,200 lack a connection of 4/1 Mbps and 465 were identified as having a telehealth, distance learning, or telework need. The goal of the COVID-19 Emergency Connectivity Initiative is to use Federal Coronavirus Relief Funds to build high-speed broadband service to unserved and underserved locations by December 30.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health is clarifying who is a close contact. Both time and distance matter. Close contact generally means being within six feet for 15 minutes or more, of the person who tested positive while they are contagious (infectious). Examples of close contacts include someone you live with, rode in the car with, or had dinner with. Close contact does not mean: being more than six feet away in the same indoor environment for a short period of time, walking by, or briefly being in the same room. The VDH also is reporting today four new cases of COVID-19 for a statewide total of 1,537. There are two people hospitalized and deaths remain at 58.

Vermont Business Magazine After collecting hundreds of thousands of pounds of food for Rutland County residents over its existence and watching the need balloon due to COVID-19, the GMP Food Challenge is going digital with cash donations that the Rutland Community Cupboard can turn into food for Vermonters needing assistance. The challenge begins today and runs through September 30.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Art Council announces the 30 recipients of its foundational Arts Partnership awards, providing three years of unrestricted, general operating funds for arts organizations across Vermont who keenly understand the needs of their communities and address those needs through the arts. Awarded only once every three years, the Arts Partnership award represents the largest investment in organizations that are helping to support the Council’s mission to cultivate and advance the arts and creativity throughout Vermont.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment claims continued their descent last week in Vermont. Nationally, claims, which had fallen, were back over 1 million. After a steep decline as the economy began to reopen in April, initial unemployment claims for the last several weeks flattened, rose slightly and now have been falling consistently since the beginning of July.

Vermont Business Magazine Casella Waste Systems, Inc (NASDAQ:CWST), a regional solid waste, recycling and resource management services company based in Rutland, today announced that it has priced the previously announced offering of $40.0 million aggregate principal amount of New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (Issuer) Solid Waste Disposal Revenue Bonds (Casella Waste Systems, Inc Project) Series 2020R-1 (Bonds) to be issued under an indenture between the Issuer and the bond trustee (Indenture).

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Futures Project presents a white paper, Vermont’s Taxing Dilemma, to look beyond our immediate circumstances to understand how our current taxation structures can either drive or inhibit long-term economic recovery and growth. Their recommendations include: shifting the Vermont tax structure over time to the middle of the surrounding states for the percentage of taxes per average Vermonter’s income; growing Vermont’s tax base by attracting and retaining Vermonters seeking a simpler, more rural lifestyle with opportunity, affordability, and racial diversity.