Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Following what it called a successful store opening, Target is continuing to hire team members for its South Burlington small-format store. Target is holding all-day job fairs for approximately 100 new seasonal team members on October 25 and 26 at the store. In addition, the company will continue to offer extra hours to current team members to accommodate their interest and availability.

Vermont Business Magazine The ACLU of Vermont announced today that it is appealing its public records lawsuit, Doyle v. City of Burlington Police Department, to the Vermont Supreme Court, seeking access to police bodycam footage of an alleged use-of-force incident. The case was filed on behalf of Reed Doyle, a Burlington resident who is challenging the Department’s demand that he pay hundreds of dollars simply to view the footage.

Vermont Business Magazine Famous for his radio ads promoting car sales in the Northeast Kingdom at several dealerships ("Take route 14, 15 or 16") Dan Keene, dealer principal and president at Twin State Ford in Saint Johnsbury, Vermont, has been nominated for the 2019 TIME Dealer of the Year award. The nomination was announced Monday by TIME.

Keene is one of a select group of 51 dealer nominees from across the country who will be honored at the 102^nd annual National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show in San Francisco on January 25, 2019. The announcement of this year’s 50^th annual award was made by Jorg Stratmann, publisher, TIME, and Doug Timmerman, president of Auto Finance for Ally Financial.

by Secretary Michael Schirling, Agency of Commerce and Community Development Around the country, states and cities are competing for talent, financial investment, and to attract the next generation of workers and families. As this acceleration of “purpose built” economic ecosystems continues Vermont has clear advantage. We are one of the safest, healthiest and most vibrant places to live in the nation.

We have a good education system that, with the courage to innovate and modernize, can be transformed into the very best in country – adding an even greater incentive for young families to stay or relocate here. These attributes are the foundation of Governor Scott’s approach to significantly improving the economic trajectory in all 251 communities in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Trauma patients – with injuries ranging from those suffered in auto accidents to battlefield wounds – often seem, initially, to be stable, only to deteriorate without warning. If not recognized early, this deterioration in condition can lead to shock or even death. Doctors and researchers in the Emergency Department at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC), as well as colleagues at Dartmouth College, the Thayer School of Engineering, and the Geisel School of Medicine, hope to improve care for seriously injured patients with a new $3 million Precision Trauma Care Research Award from the Department of Defense’s Combat Casualty Care Research Program.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Governor’s Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities (GCEPD) announced the employer award recipients for the “Spirit of the ADA” awards. Awards are given to employers who reflect the spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act in their employment practices and successfully meet the following criteria:

by John McClaughry The 2018 legislature, alarmed by the repeal by Congress of the Obamacare tax on persons who failed to buy government-approved health insurance, decided to impose a state mandate to do the same thing, to take effect for the 2019 insurance year.

But the legislature balked at announcing the penalty needed to enforce its new mandate. It created a working group to recommend “a financial penalty or other enforcement mechanism” by November 1. That group’s inconclusive draft report is now out. It’s encouraging that some of the seven members balked at inventing a new Big Hammer, leaving open the precise method for enforcing the mandate.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Conservation Voters (VCV) has released its complete slate of pro-environment endorsements for candidates running for the Vermont State Legislature. For the first time in nearly four decades, no Republicans made the list. VCV is a nonpartisan organization, and this year's endorsements include Independent, Democratic, and Progressive candidates.

by Secretary of State Jim Condos Election Day is fast approaching! On Tuesday, November 6^th Vermonters will head to the ballot box to vote for the people who will represent them, from Justice of the Peace all the way up to Governor and members of Congress.

Free and fair elections are the bedrock of our democracy, here in Vermont and across the country. As Vermont’s Chief Election Official, I work hard daily to ensure that every eligible Vermont voter who wishes to cast a ballot can do so, with confidence in the security and integrity of their vote.

We can be proud of Vermont’s elections process. We have made tremendous strides in improving voter access and breaking down unnecessary barriers to register and vote for all eligible voters.

Vermont State Police At approximately 2230 hours on Saturday October 20, 2018, the Clarendon Fire Department was notified and responded to a fire alarm activation at a warehouse owned and operated by the Vermont Country Store. While en-route to this call it was upgraded to a working structure fire. This structure is a warehouse type structure of over 16,000 square feet. This warehouse stored overflow stock items for the VCS. It held approximately 5 percent of the stores stock. It was valued at over $2 million in loss.

Vermont Business Magazine Ledyard Financial Group, Inc (ticker symbol LFGP), the holding company for Ledyard National Bank, with a branch in Norwich, Vermont, today reported record quarterly earnings for the third consecutive quarter. Net income for the quarter ended September 30, 2018, was $1,382,986 or $0.44 per share compared to $1,124,246 or $0.36 per share for the same period in 2017, an increase of $258,740 or 23%. Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, was $3,932,184 or $1.27 per share compared to $3,252,706 or $1.07 per share for the same period in 2017, an increase of $679,478 or 21%. Revenue growth and the effects from tax reform continue to contribute positively to the Company’s results.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Democratic candidate for governor, Christine Hallquist, received the endorsement of former governor Madeleine May Kunin Monday. “I believe that Hallquist will move Vermont in the right direction. Her plan to connect every home and business with fiber optic cable will boost economic development, especially in rural Vermont.”