Current News

Northeastern Vermont Development Association Governor Phil Scott announced Tuesday that he will extend the State of Emergency today until August 15. He has been extending it on a month-by-month basis. When announcing the extension this week, Governor Scott urged Vermonters and out-of-state visitors to quarantine after returning to the state, stating that vigilance is allowing safe re-openings. "It's not time to let your guard down."

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health is reporting a possible outbreak in southern Vermont, but more testing needs to be done. Dr Levine said the department is currently responding to a report of over 30 people who tested positive through antigen testing at a clinic in Manchester. Antigen tests may not be as accurate as PCR tests. Dr Levine also noted that even if you have quarantined as mandated out-of-state, if you then take mass transit (plane, train, bus) to get to Vermont, it negates your quarantine and you must then do so for 14 days here (or seven days with a negative test) once you arrive.

Vermont Business Magazine Beginning Tuesday, July 14, individuals who established an initial claim for unemployment insurance benefits with the Vermont Department of Labor may receive a phone call to confirm their identity and intent to file. This extra step is being taken to protect Vermonters against fraudulent filers using their personal information. This type of “imposter fraud” has been on the rise across the country.

Individuals may ask the Department’s call center representative to provide further information to identify themselves, or if they do not feel comfortable providing information to the representative, the claimant can call the trusted Claimant Assistance Line at 877-214-3332 and select ‘Identity Confirmation’ from the menu options to connect with a call center representative. Claimants who do not validate their identity with the Department of Labor, if contacted, will likely see a delay in the processing and payment for their claim.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General TJ Donovan has released guidance to assist businesses in complying with changes to Vermont’s Security Breach Notice Act. As of July 1, 2020, more types of information—including health and genetic information, login credentials, and additional government IDs like passport numbers—are considered “Personally Identifiable Information” that requires notice to consumers if stolen or otherwise subject to a breach. By helping businesses understand the law, the guidance aims to help ensure that timely notice is provided to Vermont consumers so they can protect themselves if their sensitive information is exposed.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott, the Agency of Human Services, and the Department of Vermont Health Access announced today that Vermont’s Health Care Provider Stabilization Grant Program will launch on Friday, July 17, 2020. The grant program, first proposed by the Administration and amended by the Vermont Legislature, utilizes up to $275 million from the federal Coronavirus Relief Fund to provide direct cash grants to eligible health care and human service providers who have lost revenue and/or observed increased expenses due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Vermont Business Magazine In years past, it was difficult to welcome as many people as wanted to attend the Southwestern Vermont Health Care Foundation’s Summer Gala at the Hubbell Homestead in Bennington. There just wasn’t space. The event is called the Spirit of the Summer Gala. It is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday, July 17, and attendees must register by 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, July 16.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Tuesday afternoon to divest the university’s endowment of fossil fuel investments, adding another milestone in UVM’s long history of leadership on environmental issues. The university will immediately end new direct investment in fossil fuels, will fully divest from public investments in fossil fuels by July 2023 and will allow pre-existing multi-year private investments, which it stopped acquiring in 2017, to lapse without renewal.

Vermont State Police Following continued investigation, police have determined that Tuesday morning’s motor-vehicle pursuit, which ended with the driver fleeing on foot near Lake Iroquois in Williston, is a separate incident from Monday night’s shooting at the Maple Tree Place shopping plaza. Both investigations remain active and ongoing. Investigators received a description of a vehicle involved in the shooting as a white van. Tuesday morning, the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Department attempted to stop a white van for speeding on Interstate 89 in Richmond, and the operator accelerated and led police on a pursuit that ended at Lake Iroquois. The operator fled on foot.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets (VAAFM) today announced the Vermont COVID-19 Agriculture Assistance Program for dairy producers and processors who have experienced income loss, additional expenses and market disruption as a result of the pandemic. The application will open on Friday, July 17 with an available $25 million in federal Coronavirus Relief Funds for qualified applicants.

Vermont Business Magazine Karen and Brian Wiseman carefully cultivated their careers. Both spent years at Boston-area bio-tech and pharmaceutical companies, dedicated to the advance of health, wellness and medicine. “I was a chemical engineer, working on the early development of protease inhibitors, now used to treat HIV,” Karen recalls.

Vermont Business Magazine The transportation sector accounts for 44 percent of Vermont’s total greenhouse gas emissions, and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles make up 14 percent of the on-road sector total. Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles include large pickup trucks and vans, delivery trucks, box trucks, long-haul delivery trucks and school and transit buses. Nationally, truck emissions are the fastest growing source of greenhouse gases and truck travel is expected to increase significantly in coming decades.

Vermont Business Magazine The SBA Vermont District Office hosts a free daily webinar from 9 to 10 a.m. Monday to Friday to discuss Paycheck Protection Program forgiveness and other changes. The SBA Vermont District Office also hosts a free webinar from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays to discuss the Paycheck Protection Program, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Advance, and any pertinent updates.