Current News

Vermont Business Magazine On Friday, August 10, Co-Founders of Runamok Maple, Eric and Laura Sorkin, were joined by Governor Phil Scott and US Senator Patrick Leahy at their new facility in Fairfax. The husband and wife duo were presented with a grant certificate awarded to the town of Fairfax. Runamok Maple, which specializes in infused maple syrup, is one of the 14 northern Vermont organizations who will benefit from $2.8 million in federal grants from the Northern Border Regional Commission.

In particular, this grant will allow Runamok Maple to expand, giving them the opportunity to hire over 50 new employees. The town of Fairfax will receive $263,000 for water and wastewater infrastructure for the maple company’s new facility.

by Sarah Kaeck, Owner/founder of Bee's Wrap This summer, we saw two studies about Vermont that appeared in contrast: One rated Vermont as one of the best places to live. The other paints Vermont as a hard place to find employees and run a business. As a business owner and employer, I know both are true, but I believe a crucial piece of the conversation is missing: Why is it hard to recruit employees and, once we recruit them, what structures are in place to keep them here and help them thrive?

I own Bee’s Wrap, a sustainable food storage company, in Bristol. Bee’s Wrap began in my kitchen six years ago and has grown into a thriving small business.

Our growth has been organic, but substantial. We doubled our sales numbers each year until 2017, when they tripled. We invested in machinery, rented new production and administrative space, and our staff increased from two to nine to twenty-four.

Vermont Business Magazine Connecticut Governor Dannell Malloy, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo, and Vermont Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement related to ISO New England and affordable electricity. ISO-NE is charged with maintaining electric supply and reliability in New England. New England, as a region, has the highest electric rates in the nation (though not the highest electric bills, largely because of efficiency). Maine Governor Governor Paul LePage did not sign the statement.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Governor Phillip B Scott and Québec Premier Philippe Couillard signed a Joint Declaration Sunday, aiming to strengthen their long-standing cooperative ties in a variety of sectors to foster economic growth and job creation. The signing ceremony came at the conclusion of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers conference hosted by Scott in Stowe. This Joint Declaration builds upon the Cooperative Agreement between the governments of Québec and Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The UVM Medical Center and Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals will resume negotiations on Monday, August 13 and Tuesday, August 14 with the assistance of a federal mediator. Monday marks the 25th bargaining session since talks began in late March.

“Our goal from the outset of negotiations has been to present thoughtful proposals that address the concerns nurses have raised while balancing our commitment to providing high quality, affordable health care in our community,” said Eileen Whalen, MHA, RN, president and chief operating officer of the UVM Medical Center. “We are hopeful these next two sessions with the mediator will lead to the fair resolution we are all seeking.”

Vermont Business Magazine Ship-builder Austal successfully completed acceptance trials on the US Navy's Burlington, Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF 10), last week, in the Gulf of Mexico. Burlington is slated for delivery to the U.S. Navy in the Fall and is the tenth ship in Austal’s 12-ship portfolio valued at over $1.9 billion.

“Another trial completed for the incredibly successful EPF program,” Austal USA President Craig Perciavalle said. “I am so proud of our dedicated workforce and how they keep achieving these milestones staying on schedule and budget.”

The ship was christened in February 2018 by Marcelle Leahy, wife of Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy.

Sister ship (EPF 10) USNS Brunswick. US Navy photo.

Vermont Business Magazine Lamoille Housing Partnership (LHP) recently hosted the inaugural Summer Harvest for Housing to benefit the affordable housing non-profit’s mission in Lamoille County and Hardwick. On a steamy Friday evening in Johnson, more than 60 folks gathered under a large tent at Legion Field to enjoy a community style dinner, with live music and lawn games to benefit Lamoille Housing Partnership. The Summer Harvest for Housing fundraiser benefitted the local non-profit’s mission of “creating and preserving affordable housing for low and moderate income residents of Lamoille County and Hardwick.”

Saint Michael's College The members of the Society of Saint Edmund, founding religious order of Saint Michael’s College, will conclude their 175th Anniversary year of celebration with a Mass at Saint Anne's Shrine, Isle La Motte, Vermont, on August 15, 2018, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, at 11 am.

by Jack Hoffman, PAI There’s a case to be made that this year’s budget showdown in Montpelier was lot of high drama with little substance. After all the drama, the budget that was finally approved created one problem that the Legislature will have to address next year and ignored another that should have been addressed long ago.

Vermnont Business Magazine Union leaders from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) 2320, 2326 and 2327 and the Communication Workers of America (CWA) Local 1400 informed Consolidated Communications on Friday that union members have ratified the tentative labor agreements reached on Aug. 4. The new contracts, which cover approximately 1,200 workers in Northern New England, will run through August 7, 2021.

Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department As incidents of bears breaking into homes, garages, sheds and vehicles in Vermont increases, so too should efforts by residents to bear-proof their homes and secure potential outdoor food sources that can attract bears. While searching for food in early July, one bear broke into a Killington home through an open window, and another Killington bear entered the Northstar Lodge through an open door. A Pownal woman awoke to the sound of a bear breaking through a kitchen window to access a honey comb that had been left within reach, while a similar incident occurred in Townsend where a bear broke into a kitchen freezer.

Vermont Business Magazine Today Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos announced that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Election Data & Science Lab has released its 2016 Elections Performance Index (EPI), ranking Vermont 1^st overall in elections administration for the 2016 election. The EPI is widely considered by state election administrators as the most reputable elections management index, and provides a non-partisan, data-driven measure of how well each state is performing in managing its national elections work, using a number of indicators ranging from voter turnout to the availability of online tools for voter accessibility.

Vermont (86 percent) finished just ahead of Minnesota and Delaware. California, Oklahoma and Idaho (58 percent) rounded out the bottom. SEE FULL LIST BELOW.