Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Founding partners Lisa Senecal and Scott Labby announced today the launch of The Maren Group. The Maren Group is a private consulting group focused on issues of economic abuse including sexual harassment, discrimination, domestic violence, and child support enforcement (collectively “SDDC”). While this abuse primarily affects women, it results in broad and significant costs for all individuals, businesses, and the economy as a whole. The Maren Group works with individuals, corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and investors to investigate, audit, and manage both specific cases and general practices. The Group also addresses broader social policy issues and practices that increase risk to individuals, employers, reputations, and shareholder value.

by John McClaughry Over the past six weeks the House Ways and Means Committee has diligently worked to produce a coherent bill to shift Education Fund spending from some people and districts to other people and districts, and erect a disincentive to excessive school district spending. This is a very intricate and difficult task that, frankly, probably 90% of the legislators don’t readily understand.

Its proposals have included lowering school property tax rates in 2020, changing the parameters in the school property tax-determination formula, eliminating the income sensitivity program that lets 70% of Vermonters pay school taxes on the basis of their incomes, creating a new $59 million income tax education surcharge, and putting every school district into what up to now has been punitive excess spending territory.

Vermont Business Magazine The North Country Hospital Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of President & CEO, Claudio Fort. Fort is leaving to fill the position of long-time CEO of Rutland Regional Medical Center, Thomas Huebner, who is retiring at the end of March. Chairman of the North Country Hospital Board of Trustees, Frank Knoll, expressed appreciation for Fort’s nine years of service at the helm of North Country Hospital, stating: “Claudio has left the organization well positioned for the future and we wish him continued success in his new position.”

The North Country Hospital Board of Trustees is working with Fort to develop a transition plan and begin the search process for Fort’s successor.

Vermont Business Magazine The City of South Burlington has reached a tentative agreement with Shawn Burke to be the next chief of police. Burke will fill the position upon the retirement of Chief Trevor Whipple in January 2019. Burke currently is deputy chief at the Burlington Police Department.

Public Assets Institute The unemployment rate often tops the headlines, but it’s the number of people working that counts. In January in Vermont that number reached its highest point in five years. Employment exceeded 335,200 for the first time since March 2013. While still below the 2006 pre-recession peak, employment has been trending upward over the last year.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program, a program of the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board, awarded a total of $368,794 to 12 Vermont farms through its Water Quality and Dairy Improvement Grant programs. Five farms from Rutland, Franklin, and Addison counties were awarded $146,829 in Water Quality Grants. These grants leveraged $1.6 million in additional funding for capital improvement projects to reduce runoff and improve manure management and soil health. The Viability Program grants are matched by the farmers’ funds, bank loans, and grant funding from the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets. Funding for the Water Quality Grants comes from the State of Vermont’s Capital Construction and Bonding Act.

Vermont Business Magazine Capital projects totaling $10 million will enhance the Stratton experience throughout the year, with a new high-speed Snow Bowl lift topping the list of investments for 2018-19. Now part of the Alterra Mountain Company family, Stratton skiers will enjoy the ride on a new Doppelmayr lift designed and situated to minimize the impact of wind and inclement weather while providing easier access to beginner terrain from the summit of southern Vermont’s highest peak as well as to signature trails including the double-black diamond World Cup, which hosted Vermont’s first ever World Cup races in 1978.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Learning-Support Initiative (VLSI) Board of Directors announced today that Bradford Smith has been named VLSI’s first Executive Director. “Brad brings exceptional skills and a deep commitment to fulfill VLSI’s mission of helping students who learn differently get to and through college,” said Dorothy Schnure, Chair of the VLSI Board. “The Board is impressed with Brad’s ability to connect with members of our communities who understand the need for greater educational equity for these learners, and with his vision to expand VLSI’s outreach to Vermont students and their families.”

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott has signed into law new captive insurance legislation further strengthening Vermont's captive law in a variety of areas. Passed by Vermont's general assembly in the first part of the 2018 legislative session, the law includes regulatory enhancements for branch captives, as well as standardizing the state's annual filing date for annual reports and premium taxes.

"It is critical that we are responsive to the needs of the industry. These improvements to our captive legislation illustrate Vermont's ongoing commitment to the captive insurance industry, which has been an economic boon for the state," stated Governor Phil Scott. "This bill will further advance Vermont's reputation as the 'Gold Standard' of domiciles and will provide greater flexibility and consistency for our companies going forward."

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for January was 2.9 percent. This reflects no change from the revised December rate. The broad metrics all showed mild improvement. The seasonally-adjusted Vermont data for January show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 276 from the prior month’s revised estimate. The number of employed persons increased by 443 and the number of unemployed persons decreased by 167. The changes were not statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series. However, the unadjusted unemployment rate increased month-to-month and year-to-year.

Vermont Business Magazine The Manufacturing Institute announced this week they will award GLOBALFOUNDRIES' (GF) employees Kendra Kreider Goudreau, Kate Wagner and Teresa Bazan with the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Award. The STEP Ahead Awards honor women who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their careers and represent all levels of the manufacturing industry, from the factory-floor to the C suite.

Kreider Goudreau is a process lead in SC process & systems integration from Essex; Wagner is a principal engineer in manufacturing engineering from Burlington; and Bazan is a senior product line manager from Essex. GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the largest manufacturer in the state, with about 2600 employees. GF acquired the former IBM semiconductor facility in Essex Junction in 2015.

Vermont Business Magazine There will be a public meeting in Barre on Thursday, March 15^th, 2018 to discuss the discovery of emerald ash borer in Orange County. The meeting is being hosted by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, in cooperation with the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the US Forest Service.