Current News

by NextUp Editor Becky Hayes Dwight Ritcher and Nicole Nelson are an American roots act based out of Boston/ NYC and currently living in Burlington, Vt.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders While the federal stimulus law (the CARES Act) contains a number of provisions to keep families in their homes and help them pay rent, it does not go nearly far enough. The law puts a moratorium on foreclosures and evictions while also providing mortgage forbearance for homeowners with federally-backed mortgages. It also includes a moratorium on evictions for properties receiving any federal assistance. However, this does not provide relief for millions of Americans.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported today that there were 843 cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. This is an increase of 16 cases from Friday's report. There were two more deaths for a total of 46 statewide. And there were 5 more hospitalized for a total of 37. The modeling presented in Governor Scott's media briefing Friday indicated that Vermont is still doing better than the previous best-case scenarios. The state is still maintaining strict adherence to the governor's emergency "Stay Safe, Stay Home" order.

Vermont Business Magazine At his afternoon briefing on Friday, Mayor Miro Weinberger announced that, in consultation with the City Council and Police Commission, he has decided to suspend the search for a new Chief of Police for one year. This follows a search process to date that included soliciting input on the job description in January, posting the position publicly in February and receiving applications, and preparing to assemble a search committee in early March when the coronavirus hit.

Leonine Public Affairs The legislature will need to reconvene (in the event they’ve been able to recess) in August to address the FY2021 budget for the remainder of the fiscal year. With this year’s tax filing deadline being pushed back to July 15 lawmakers will not know how much revenue they have to work with until that time. They will undoubtedly also have to consider other fiscal issues, like the appropriation of additional stimulus dollars, school funding and other developments relating to health and the economy.

Agency of Commerce & Community Development On Monday, April 27th at 10 am, ACCD will host an introductory webinar for municipal leaders to discuss the tools currently available (and what tools are being considered by the state) to help towns access financing that bridges expected revenue gaps due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vermont District SBA Office is conducting free daily webinars, Monday thru Friday at 9 am, to discuss SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Advance.

by John R Brumsted, MD, The UVM Health Network COVID-19 has forced health care providers into a balancing act: Even as we step up to meet the demands of this pandemic, we haven’t forgotten about our patients who require non-COVID care. This newsletter has examples of both priorities. There’s a story of surviving COVID-19, illustrating the resilience, expertise and community support needed to combat this illness. And there’s a story about expanded video-visit technology, which allows us to meet patients where they are. We’ve also taken precautions to minimize the risk of in-person visits when the situation calls for it. The common thread: We are here for our communities, now and into the future.

Vermont Business Magazine Charitable giving has been at the heart of Community Bank throughout its more than 150-year history and most recently, the bank donated $45,000 to support local communities during this unprecedented time. The bank has celebrated National Good Neighbor Day (Sept. 28) over the last few years by making donations of time and money to local non-profits. In response to the impact COVID-19 has made on local nonprofits, Community Bank is paying it forward and celebrating Good Neighbor Day early this year.

The bank has made monetary donations to local nonprofits, helping to ensure that they can continue to support community members throughout the bank’s four-state footprint, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Massachusetts.

Vermont Business Magazine Operation Clean Sweep is coming to Burlington April 29 – May 8 2020. Street sweeping is vital to Lake health and our health. Sweeping picks up sediment and leafy debris which contains phosphorus and prevents it from entering the Lake where it can fuel cyanobacteria blooms. This also keeps the roads safer by clearing them of debris and protects homes and infrastructure by limiting flooding from clogged storm drains. I

Vermont Business Magazine Ledyard Financial Group, Inc (Ticker Symbol: LFGP) announced today a regular quarterly dividend of $0.19 payable June 5, 2020, to shareholders of record as of May 15, 2020. Ledyard Financial Group, Inc, headquartered in Hanover, New Hampshire, is the holding company for Ledyard National Bank. Ledyard National Bank, with a branch in Norwich, Vermont, was founded in 1991 and is a full service community bank offering a broad range of banking, investment, tax and wealth management services.

Vermont Business Magazine People's United Financial, Inc (NASDAQ: PBCT) today announced that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.3515625 per share on the Company's Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock. The dividend is payable on March 15, 2018 to shareholders of record at the close of business on March 1, 2018.

People's United Financial, Inc., a diversified financial services company with $44 billion in total assets, provides commercial and retail banking, as well as wealth management services through a network of approximately 400 branches in Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

Vermont Business Magazine Modeling indicates Vermonters’ actions in maintaining social distancing are clearly connected to significantly slowing the spread of the virus. But as the nation reached a grim benchmark of 50,000 deaths associated with COVID-19, Governor Phil Scott emphasized the need for continued – and even expanded – vigilance. The Stay Home, Stay Safe order is still critical, and each of us must remain committed to doing our part to help prevent the spread of the virus and protect the vulnerable by following all social distancing and public health guidance. Today's numbers reveal that there were two new cases for a total of 827, one additional death for 44 and total hospitalizations fell by 12 to 32.