Current News

Vermont Business Magazine After a one-week decline weekly unemployment claims rose again last week, but are lower than they were at this time last year. For the week of March 16, 2019, there were 641 claims, 211 more than they were the previous week, but 97 fewer than they were a year ago.

Vermont Business Magazine One month after reaching a historic low, Vermont's unemployment rate fell again to a record low 2.4 percent in February, according to the Vermont Department of Labor report released Friday morning. The February rate reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised January rate. The current estimate of 8,436 unemployed Vermonters is the lowest total since April 1988. While the number of employed has increased, the year-over-year data reveals a decrease in the labor force and a steep decline in the number of people unemployed. Vermont is now tied with Iowa, New Hampshire and North Dakota for the lowest rate in the nation.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Works Management Company, LLC, an independent alternative investment firm whose mission prioritizes both social impact and competitive financial return for Vermonters, has closed an investment with Cloudfarm, Inc., dba Seedsheet, a successful manufacturer of pre-fab gardening systems and technologies out of Middlebury. Proceeds of the financing will be used to fund several new senior management positions for the team and to automate and expand the company’s manufacturing capacity. Seedsheet expects to create more than 10 new jobs in Middlebury over the next 12 months with this investment.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s Killington Resort, the largest ski and snowboard resort in Eastern North America announced Thursday it will unveil a reimagined K-1 base lodge, which will open with an expanded footprint during the 2020-21 season; a new 4-person, fixed grip chairlift that will debut during the 2019-20 season and replace the existing North Ridge Triple chairlift; and significant upgrades to Killington and sister resort Pico Mountain’s snowmaking systems, which means guests will experience a better, more consistent and more reliable snow surface, all with a lower impact on the environment. All upgrades are pending permit approval.

by Bill Schubart It’s time to close the Women’s Prison in South Burlington. As the legislature and the Dept. of Corrections consider how to repatriate the Vermont prisoners housed in Mississippi, several legislators see the larger picture. We don’t need new prisons. We need to address the causes of crime such as poverty, abuse, and addiction and develop more cost-effective alternatives to incarceration, like treatment, training, and restorative justice.

There’s mounting support for closing the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility (CRCF) this year and transitioning the few women who need supervision to the existing system with extra protections as necessary.

Vermont Business Magazine College of St Joseph president Dr Jennifer L Scott announced today in a letter to the college community that a potential institutional partner has backed out, thus forcing the college to close its doors "given our current accreditation deadline and critical financial condition." The Rutland college is the third in southwestern Vermont to announce its closing this year. Students have been offered a teach-out arrangement with nearby Castleton University. Green Mountain College in Poultney announced it was closing in January and Southern Vermont College in Bennington announced in early March that it also would close.

Vermont Business Magazine The Chittenden Superior Court has denied Purdue Pharma’s motion to dismiss the State’s case against it. The judge ruled that the State may bring all its claims against Purdue Pharma arising from allegations that it “aggressively and misleadingly marketed opioids such as Oxycontin in Vermont, leading to massive addiction and the resulting societal costs.” Attorney General TJ Donovan said, “This decision is an important step toward holding Purdue responsible for its contribution to the creation of the opioid crisis.”

The Court’s decision can be found here.

The State’s lawsuit is based on Purdue Pharma’s behavior surrounding marketing of OxyContin and other long-acting opioid products for the treatment of chronic pain, including:

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Technical College and GlobalFoundries will host Governor Phil Scott at a press conference to announce the launch of their GlobalFoundries Technician Program on March 22, 2019. The press conference will begin at 11 am with opening remarks by the governor, followed by Vermont Tech President Patricia Moulton and GlobalFoundries' Senior Location Executive Dale Miller. A representative from Senator Bernie Sander's office will also be in attendance as the organizations detail the new workforce development opportunity for Vermonters to gain a credential of value while employed and earning a salary. This opportunity expands access to post-secondary training for high school graduates through this innovative public-private partnership between Vermont Tech and GlobalFoundries.

Vermont Business Magazine Krista Tippett, host of the public radio show On Being and a bestselling author, will deliver the 2019 Middlebury College Commencement address on Sunday, May 26. A National Humanities Medalist, Tippett is a Peabody Award–winning broadcaster whose weekly show is carried on more than 400 public radio stations across the country. On her show, Tippett explores broad cultural and spiritual questions about what it means to be human and how we want to live. Her wide range of guests have included Desmond Tutu, US Senator Cory Booker, US Women’s Soccer champion Abby Wambach, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. The On Being podcast has been downloaded more than 200 million times. Tippett is also the founder and leader of the On Being Project and the curator of the Civil Conversations Project.

​Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont will award honorary degrees at the May ceremony to commencement speaker Darren Walker, Suzanne Preston Blier, John Bramley, Jackson JW Clemmons, Michela Gallagher, and Marcelle Leahy.

Vermont Business Magazine ISO New England has published its 2019 Regional Electricity Outlook (REO), an annual report looking at the trends and challenges affecting New England’s power system, as well as the work being done by the ISO to ensure the region’s homes and business have reliable electricity. ISO New England Inc is the operator of the region’s bulk power system and wholesale electricity markets.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Secretary of Agriculture Anson Tebbetts and National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) Executive Director of Public Policy Nathan Bowen attended the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday with US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. Secretary Perdue invited several key associations to the closing bell including representatives from the National Corn Growers Association, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and the National FFA Organization. Secretary Tebbetts serves as Vice Chair of NASDA’s Animal Agriculture Committee.