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Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment claims fell last week, but remain relatively high. While this is typical for this time of year, claims are actually lower than they were last year. Most industrial sectors saw at least some increase for the week, with Manufacturing seeing the biggest increase with 317 claims alone, up nearly 200 in one week. However, Services fell from 752 claims the previous month to 414, but still had the most claims for any sector, as it typically does.

The holidays typically produce wild swings in unemployment claims, because of an increase in hiring in the Service sector, from retail to delivery-related businesses, and then an abrupt round of layoffs. It is also represents the end of the construction season.

For the week of December 3, 2016, there were 1,218 claims, down 202 from the previous week's total and 55 fewer than than they were a year ago.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Humanities and the Vermont Arts Council together have now distributed nearly three-quarters of a million dollars in emergency relief grants to 122 Vermont cultural organizations, including museums, libraries, performing arts venues, and other cultural centers. The Covid-19 Cultural Relief Grant Program supported humanities and arts organizations struggling to survive the economic fallout resulting from the pandemic.

by Jack Hoffman, Public Assets Institute The federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) pumped $1.19 billion into the Vermont economy in April, May, and June to help employers hang onto nearly 114,000 jobs during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. To put that in perspective, in normal times Vermont has about 315,000 non-farm payroll jobs, and the state’s total output of goods and services in a three-month period is about $8.7 billion.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health today is reporting 16 new cases of COVID-19 statewide, with 11 of those cases in Chittenden County. The VDH reminds Vermonters that with “feels like” temperatures forecast to reach nearly 100 degrees this week, Vermonters are urged to know how to keep safe and cool. Heat illnesses are a real danger, even for young people. In fact, Vermonters between the ages of 15 and 34 have a greater risk of going to the emergency department for a heat-related reason compared to adults aged 35 to 65.

The Vermont State Police is identifying the Rutland City Police Officers present at the time of Wednesday’s shooting. State police investigators have determined that Officer Billings fired his service weapon during the encounter on Terrill Street. Officer Harvey was struck by the SUV in the course of the incident. The investigation into the full time line and sequence of events is continuing Thursday, July 9, 2020, including interviews with the officers that were involved.

Vermont Business Magazine On July 9th, the Local Support and Community Action Team of the Governor’s Economic Recovery Task Force will launch a series of virtual COVID-19 Recovery Visits to be held in each county across the state over the next several months. The Action Team was convened in mid-April as part of the Economic Mitigation and Recovery Task Force and charged by Governor Scott with identifying and replicating regional and community recovery initiatives and uncovering gaps in recovery efforts to ensure equitable distribution of resources, especially in rural areas and underserved populations.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont PBS and Vermont Public Radio and today announced the 2020 VPR - Vermont PBS Debates, a series of pre-recorded primary candidate debates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor leading up to Vermont’s primary election on August 11. The first debate is scheduled for Tuesday, July 14 during Vermont Edition and at 8 p.m. on Vermont PBS. Moderated by Vermont Edition host Bob Kinzel, the debate will feature Republican lieutenant governor candidates Dana Colson, Meg Hansen, Jim Hogue and Scott Milne.

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) invites Vermonters to attend three online presentations in July to review a collaborative watershed action plan for the Northern Lake Champlain Direct Drainages. The plan encompasses a portion of the Lake Champlain watershed that stretches from Ferrisburgh to Swanton, including the Lake Champlain Islands, as well as Shelburne, Burlington, Malletts and St Albans Bays.

Developed in partnership with members of local communities, state and federal agencies, watershed groups, regional planners, and agricultural partners, the basin plan covers four key areas:

Vermont Business Magazine After closing in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Shelburne Museum plans to reopen on July 30. The museum’s 45-acre grounds will be open four days a week along with select exhibition buildings, museum Director Thomas Denenberg announced today.

Vermont Business Magazine The Community Health Centers of Burlington (CHCB) announced today that Jeffrey McKee, PsyD, has joined the organization as Chief Executive Officer. A native of Rutland, Dr McKee graduated from Castleton University with a Bachelor’s degree in in Psychology. He received his Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Indiana State University before returning home to Vermont. Working first at Rutland Mental Health as the Director of Children’s Services and then at RRMC, he demonstrated a passion for developing programs and services that met some of the community’s most pressing health care needs.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency Foundation has donated $1,500 per week for 10 weeks through their Dramatic Impact and Enduring Legacy Grants. Amid stay-at-home orders due to COVID-19, The Vermont Agency Foundation observed individuals and businesses stepping up and living The Foundation’s mission to Dramatically Impact the Lives of Others.

Vermont Business Magazine At the request of Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issued a report Wednesday, “Trends in the Internal Revenue Service’s Funding and Enforcement,” examining the causes of hundreds of billions of dollars in annual tax avoidance and evasion, facilitated by budget cuts to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). CBO found that the estimated amount of taxes owed but ultimately unpaid was $381 billion on average annually from 2011 to 2013 according to the latest data from the IRS. The tax gap is almost certainly substantially higher given that the total revenue collected has gone up by more than a third since that time. A recent academic study found that roughly 70% of the gap is explained by underpayment of the top 1%.