Current News

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, led Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in reintroducing the Student Loan Deduction Act, legislation to allow households utilizing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)—known as 3Squares in Vermont—to deduct monthly payments made on federal and private student loans from their income when calculating eligibility for the food assistance program.  

by Amanda Kuhnert On a rainy Friday afternoon in late spring, Cairsten Keese, a school counselor at U-32 Middle and High School in Montpelier, Vermont, glances at the clock on her office wall. “In 15 minutes, the kids will be on their movement break, and I'll probably have 20 of them popping in to say hi, grab a mint, and head back to class,” she says, pointing to a bowl of mints and a stash of snacks on her desk for students who need a quick boost and a friendly check-in between classes. Keese was inspired to become a school counselor by the influence of her own high school counselor. “I think I was the kind of kid who could have easily fallen through the cracks,” she said. “But she really saw me for who I was and made a point to check in with me regularly. I remember thinking—wow, what she does is pretty cool.”

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) has announced registration is now open for this year’s annual Women’s Economic Opportunity Conference (WEOC), held Saturday, September 27, 2025. Vermonters interested in attending this free event can learn more and sign up by visiting welch.senate.gov/weoc. “The annual Women’s Economic Opportunity Conference helps create new connections, expand opportunities, and open new doors. This free event was championed for over two decades by my predecessor Senator Patrick Leahy and his wife Marcelle—now, Margaret and I are honored to continue this tradition. I hope Vermonters from across the state attend this year’s conference and learn from experts and fellow participants,” said Senator Welch.  

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Chamber of Commerce has announced the keynote presentations for the 2025 Solutions Summit. Grounded in the Vermont Economic Action Plan, this event focuses on solutions for workforce growth, housing expansion, and community revitalization. Held on September 18, 2025, at Hotel Champlain in Burlington, this year’s event will bring together business, state, and municipal leaders to translate strategy into action. Attendees will explore the foundations of the Economic Action Plan and hear from other communities and businesses at various stages of implementation. Through expert insights and break-out sessions, attendees will develop scalable, actionable strategies to build a more affordable, prosperous Vermont. 

Vermont Business Magazine This weekly report is a list of planned construction activities that will affect traffic on state highways and interstates throughout Vermont beginning September 8, 2025. Please remember to drive safely in all work zones. Lives depend on it.   

The 15th Annual Champlain Valley Buddy Walk will take place at Burlington's Battery Park on Sunday, October 5, with on-site registration opening at noon and the walk commencing at 1 PM. More than 150 people are expected to attend the event, which is one of 250 Walks across the country this fall to raise awareness and funds for programs that benefit people with Down syndrome and their families. The Buddy Walk® Program was established in 1995 by the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) to promote acceptance and inclusion for people with Down syndrome. It is still the premier walk program for our community in the United States.

by Connie Beal Many in our community have expressed understandable fear and dismay at the reported estimate that 45,000 Vermonters will lose their health insurance because of the federal bill signed into law on July 4. However, this outcome is far from inevitable. While some Vermonters might lose health coverage under the new law due to being ineligible, many more could lose coverage simply because they cannot complete the process of recertification or navigate available health insurance options.  

by Seven Days Staff On September 6, 1995, Seven Days newspaper overcame long odds and surprised skeptics when its inaugural 28-page issue hit the streets of Vermont. Cofounders Pamela Polston and Paula Routly, both arts writers and editors, had no prior publishing or business experience. Polston, a former punk rocker, and Routly, a former ballerina, borrowed $68,000 from friends and set out to create what they described as: “the newspaper we would want to read and write for.” In the three decades since, the arts-and-news weekly has bucked national industry trends and steadily grown in size and influence to become Vermont’s largest-circulation print newspaper and a go-to source of award-winning, rigorously reported local journalism. The paper often runs 100-plus pages a week. 

Vermont Business Magazine Saint Michael’s College will host a talk September 11 by author and computer scientist Dr. Arvind Narayanan, an expert on Artificial Intelligence (AI), including its value and pitfalls. Narayanan, a professor at Princeton University, is co-author of the 2024 book AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can’t, and How to Tell the Difference, one of Nature's 10 best books of 2024 and one of Forbes's 10 must-read tech books of that same year. The book served as this year’s common read for all Saint Michael’s College first-year students during a time when AI is increasingly prevalent.      

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Vermont weekly unemployment claims for the week ending August 30, 2025, fell to their lowest level this year, after a spike in manufacturing layoffs in July. New claims were 189 last week, down 72 claims from the week before and down 32 from last year at this time. Claims, which tend to be lowest in the summer, were 181 at the end of September 2024. Meanwhile, the US August Labor Report indicates that employment is waning. This comes after a poor July report and another revised lowering of the June numbers.

Vermont Business Magazine The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated today that on September 2, 2025, Jonathan Whalley, 52, of St. Albans, Vermont, was sentenced by United States District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to a total term of 74 months’ imprisonment to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release. Whalley previously pleaded guilty to both Mail Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft in relation to his purchase of six vehicles using the stolen identity of a Vermonter. Judge Geraci imposed a 50-month term of imprisonment on the Mail Fraud conviction, and the 24-month mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment for Aggravated Identity Theft, resulting in the total 74-month sentence. 

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott addressed a wide range of issues at his press conference Thursday, including contentious topics on the future of the Green River Reservoir, public safety in Burlington and the recent audit of the Burlington Electric Department (which found deficiencies), Canadian tourism, the federal government finally releasing $15.8 million for electric vehicle charging stations and the possible windfall from the $1.7 billion Powerball drawing on Saturday. But he opened the presser by discussing the importance of river cleanup this month.