Current News
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Vermont Business Magazine Vermont unemployment insurance claims again increased last week as layoffs and business closures resulted in a rush of new claims. Entering the third week of Governor Scott's "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order, the claims were not the exponential increase as witnessed the previous week. The total number of initial claims received to date since March 15, 2020: ≈ 71,667 (as of 4/7/20). At February's Labor Force level, 71,667 claims equates to a 21.1% unemployment rate.
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Vermont Business Magazine The Catamount Community Forest Committee is seeking comments on a new Forest Management Plan for the Catamount Community Forest, a 393-acre conserved property owned by the town of Williston. The property, a beautiful and important piece of forested land with unique forest types and wildlife habitat, is now protected with a conservation easement held by the Vermont Land Trust and the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board.
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Vermont Business Magazine The Issues Committee of the Vermont Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel (VT NDCAP) will hold a Special Meeting on Monday afternoon, April 13, 2020 from 12 noon to 1 PM. In accordance with changes to the Vermont Open Meeting Law in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting will be conducted via teleconference.
The Special Meeting is open to the public. Those wishing to join the meeting may do so using the following conference call line:
Phone number: (802) 552-8456
Conference Room Number: 616 800 146 (followed by the “#” sign)
Questions regarding the meeting may be directed to Tony Leshinskie, State Nuclear Engineer, at 802-272-1714, or [email protected].
Source: PSD 4.8.2020
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Vermont Business Magazine The Public Service Department has announced the winners of the second round of grant funding through the State’s Broadband Innovation Grant Program. The grants will support two feasibility studies and subsequent business plans for the deployment of broadband in rural, unserved, and underserved areas of Vermont.
The second round of funding, per Act 79 of 2019, will fund studies produced by two electric utilities. The Department will award grant funding to two grant recipients:
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Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement regarding the passing of former Vermont State Representative Bernie Juskiewicz. “Although this terrible new disease took Bernie from us, the impact of his service will live on..."
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Vermont Business Magazine The annual hearings will be held with the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department and Board. The meetings will be held electronically due to COVID-19 and social distancing. The electronic meetings will be April 13, April 15 and April 16. Prior to the meeting, the department strongly encourages members of the public to review information that will be discussed.
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Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott’s request for federal disaster funds to assist the state of Vermont in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been approved by President Donald Trump. The president approved the state’s request for federal Public Assistance (PA) funds for the state and all towns for costs incurred in the response to and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vermont Department of Finance and Management has advised that the state has already expended well over $20 million in response costs.
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Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders announced to staff in a livestream video call this morning that he is ending his presidential campaign. He will support Joe Biden. He said he will not take his name off the primary ballots and will continue to accumulate delegates in order to move his progressive agenda forward.
"I have concluded that this battle for the Democratic nomination will not be successful, and so today I am announcing the suspension of my campaign," he said.
Taking a breath, he made the announcement from Burlington on Twitch.TV. Along with the campaign announcement, he thanked, his staff, supporters and the thousands of donors to his campaign. He also emailed his thanks to supporters in an email Wednesday (see below).
By ending his active campaign Sanders is all but ensuring that former Vice President Joe Biden will be the Democratic nominee in November against President Donald Trump.
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Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott, Health Commissioner Mark Levine, MD, and HHS Secretary Mike Smith arrived at this morning press briefing wearing cloth face masks. The state is advising that everyone in Vermont wear a cloth mask when they leave their home. Wearing a mask will not prevent you from getting the disease known as COVID-19. They said social distancing and washing hands are vital to containing the disease. As for how Vermont is doing in that regard, Scott said he will announce on Friday an extension of his "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order from two weeks ago. The Friday announcement will provide more data and modeling that will detail the expected course of COVID-19 in Vermont, how long he will extend the "Stay Home" order, and what new conditions he would include in the amended executive order.
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Vermont Business Magazine In an opinion piece published today in The Guardian, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) laid out the “core principles” which he believes must guide Congress’s next legislative package to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.
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by Chris Carrigan, Vice President of Business Development for the Vermont Chamber of Commerce Vermont, along with the rest of the world, is dealing with an unprecedented public health emergency. The toll on our communities and businesses has been significant.
As the COVID-19 pandemic disrupts supply chains and reveals shortages of emergency health care supplies needed by hospitals, Vermont’s manufacturing community is stepping up with innovation, commitment to community, and action.
To support the fight against COVID-19, the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, partnering with state and federal government agencies, is engaging manufacturers to quickly locate urgently needed medical supplies and to identify manufacturers who can retrofit and adapt their operations to manufacture essential personal protective equipment (PPE), medical devices, and life-saving medicines.
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Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Health Department recommends that all Vermonters wear cloth face coverings when outside of the home to help slow the spread of COVID-19. This advice is based on new data about how COVID-19 can spread before a person has any symptoms. A mask helps protect others around you if you are infected and don’t know it. The VDH offered this recommendation today.