Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Today RepRepresentative Peter Welch (D-Vermont) led a bipartisan letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Purdue demanding that he increase trade war relief payments to dairy farmers. Welch and the legislators assert in the letter that the current trade mitigation program has failed to fairly compensate dairy farmers slammed by retaliatory tariffs.

“While we appreciate the Administration’s efforts to assist producers with damages they have incurred due to retaliatory tariffs, the amount of assistance directed to dairy producers in previous trade relief efforts was inadequate,” wrote the legislators. “We encourage you to increase dairy assistance to a level that more accurately reflects the damages dairy farmers have faced.”

Vermont Business Magazine At a press conference Thursday, Governor Phil Scott reflected on the 2019 legislative session, praising lawmakers for working with him to ensure civility, even in areas of disagreement. Below is a full transcript of Governor Scott’s remarks plus video.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed legislation Thursday making Vermont the 14th state in the nation to raise the age of sale for tobacco products to 21. The law, known as Tobacco 21, was approved on April 30 2019, by the General Assembly and is expected to decrease the rate of tobacco use among teens by 12 percent.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont will celebrate its 218th commencement on Sunday, May 19. While Sunday’s forecast is calling for rain showers, it does not indicate severe weather, therefore the university's main commencement ceremony and College of Arts and Sciences ceremony will take place outdoors on the university green. 

Graduates and guests are urged to dress appropriately for the weather. Tickets will not be required for the main ceremony or the College of Arts and Sciences ceremony.

Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation, an internationally renown philanthropic foundation, will deliver the commencement address at the main ceremony.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s Agency of Agriculture Food & Markets (VAAFM), Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) and the US Commercial Service are participating in the National Restaurant Association Show on Saturday, May 18th to Tuesday, May 21nd in Chicago, Illinois. Along with state officials, seven Vermont craft food and beverage businesses will be participating various activities associated with the trade show.

Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment numbers rose modestly last week. Claims had spiked to nearly a 1,000 in April but about half of that peak now. Claims for the week of May 11, 2019, totaled 434, up 54 from last week. Claims were 77 more than they were at this time last year.

Vermont Business Magazine Police officers from across Vermont, family members, state and federal officials, and members of the public will gather Friday, May 17, 2019, at the Vermont Police Academy in Pittsford to pay tribute to law-enforcement officers and other first responders who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

Vermont Business Magazine FirstLight, a leading provider of fiber-optic data, Internet, data center, cloud and voice services to enterprise and carrier customers in Vermont and throughout the Northeast, announced Thursday that it has acquired Maine Fiber Company (“MFC”). This transaction will further enhance its fiber network throughout the State of Maine. 

Vermont Business Magazine Union Bankshares, Inc (NASDAQ – UNB), the parent company of Union Bank in Morrisville, today announced the results of voting at the company’s annual meeting of stockholders held on May 15, 2019. Approximately 87% of the Company’s outstanding shares of stock were represented at the meeting. Incumbent directors Steven J. Bourgeois, Dawn D. Bugbee, John M. Goodrich, Nancy C. Putnam, Timothy W. Sargent, David S. Silverman, John H. Steele, Schuyler W Sweet and Neil J. Van Dyke were reelected to a one-year term. At the annual meeting the shareholders also elected Joel S. Bourassa for the first time to a one-year term on the Union Bankshares Board of Directors. Election of directors was by plurality vote.

Vermont Business Magazine New England is expected to have sufficient resources to meet peak consumer demand for electricity this summer under both typical and extreme weather conditions, according to ISO New England Inc, the operator of the region’s bulk power system and wholesale electricity markets. This summer, under typical weather conditions, electricity demand is forecasted to peak at 25,323 megawatts (MW). Extreme summer weather, such as an extended heat wave, could push demand up to 27,212 MW. More than 32,000 MW of capacity is expected to be available to meet New England consumer demand for electricity.

by Tom Rogers, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department Vermont is a wildlife viewing showcase.  With a variety of habitats for wildlife to choose from, Vermont contains vast green woods, bogs straight out of a fairy tale, and even alpine tundra on top of its highest peaks. The state is an avian crossroads, where snowy owls spend the winter and magnolia warblers spend the summer. From birds singing to moose bugling to fish jumping, here are Vermont’s premiere wildlife watching opportunities.

Get splashed by trout jumping up Willoughby Falls

Vermont Business Magazine The Burlington Electric Department (BED) launched a new electric lawn mower (E-mower) rebate campaign, called Mow Electric, which will help the Burlington community fight climate change and provide BED customers with the opportunity to save money with a $100 rebate on residential E-mowers and a $3,500 rebate on commercial-grade E-mowers.  BED is the first utility in Vermont to offer residential E-mower rebates and the utility offering the largest commercial E-mower rebates in the state. The potential environmental benefits of mowing electric are significant, with one study suggesting that the pollutioncaused by one hour of operating a gas-powered lawn mower is equivalent to driving one car for 160 miles.