Current News

Vermont Business Magazine On the Senate floor Wednesday, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) challenged Republicans to tell him he is “wrong” – that they will not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid if the tax bill passes and creates a $1.4 trillion deficit. Sanders predicted that in order to pay for the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, Republicans will move swiftly to cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other programs that working families desperately need.

The Republican budget calls for cutting nearly $500 billion from Medicare and cutting $1 trillion in Medicaid. Efforts to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicare have been a feature of House Speaker Paul Ryan’s budgets, Sanders said.

Vermont Business Magazine Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Wednesday announced a grant of more than $1.3 million for the Vermont State Police (VSP) to continue its aggressive work fighting the opioid epidemic in Vermont. This was the second-largest of only eight grants awarded nationwide through the highly competitive COPS Anti-Heroin Task Force (AHTF) grant program that Leahy created in the fiscal year 2015 Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) appropriations bill.

Vermont Business Magazine Today the TD Charitable Foundation awarded Housing Vermont a $100,000 grant to create home ownership opportunities while improving neighborhoods through the rehabilitation of dilapidated or vacant homes. In presenting the check, TD Bank Market President Phil Daniels congratulated Housing Vermont for its successful application to the highly competitive TD Charitable Foundation Major Grant program.

Phil Daniels TD Bank presents check to Nancy Owens Housing Vermont. Courtesy photo.

Vermont Business MagazineAttorney General TJ Donovan today joined a coalition of 19 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief opposing the Trump Administration’s decision to roll back a requirement under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for employers to include birth control coverage in their health insurance plans.Theamicus brief, filed today with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, supports the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s lawsuit seeking to stop the federal government from enforcing a new regulatory rule. This rule would authorize any employer with a religious or moral objection to contraception to block their employees, and their employees’ dependents, from receiving health insurance coverage for contraceptive care and services.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), along with five cosponsors in the Senate, introduced a comprehensive plan Tuesday to address the immediate humanitarian needs in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and ensure that the islands not only recover, but are able to rebuild in a way that empowers them to thrive. The Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act is cosponsored in the Senate by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif) Ed Markey (D-Mass) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass). Reps. Stacy Plaskett (D-VI), Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) and Darren Soto (D-Fla) will introduce a companion bill in the House.

The bill is endorsed by 75 organizations.

Vermont Business Magazine TheLake Champlain Community Sailing Center (CSC) has received a $150,000 grant from the James M Cox Foundation in support of its Love Your Lake capital campaign. The CSC’s Love Your Lake capital campaign is supporting the construction of its 22,180-square-foot new home on the Burlington waterfront: the Pomerleau Community Waterfront Campus and Raymond P Sullivan Sailing Education Center. Through this grant, the CSC will be closer to closing out the campaign. Cox Automotive is the parent company of Burlington's Dealer.com.

University of VermontToo little rain, or too much, is often a driver of poverty and hunger, leading to poor nutrition and food insecurity among vulnerable populations. According to a new University of Vermont study, rainfall patterns also provide clues on how to most effectively alleviate food insecurity. The study, just published inScientific Reports, is the first to analyze on a large scale the relationship between food insecurity among smallholder farms in Africa and Asia, rainfall patterns and a range of interventions - from agricultural inputs to agricultural practices to financial supports - designed to address the issue.

Vermont Business MagazineRegentis Biomaterialshas announced the start of its Phase III pivotal clinical trial of GelrinC for the treatment of focal knee cartilage defects with successful surgery on three patients, including one in Vermont.These procedures are part of a Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA) approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study to compare GelrinC to microfracture, the current standard of care treatment. The clinical study will be used to support a Pre-market Approval Application (PMA) which will allow Regentis to market GelrinC in the US.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Small Business Development Center (VtSBDC) will hold a workshop for those thinking about starting their own business. This workshop, titled ‘Starting Your Own Business,’ is aimed at helping future entrepreneurs turn their passions into a full-fledged business venture.The workshop will be held Thursday, December 7 at Springfield Regional Development Corporation office on Clinton Street in Springfield from 9 am to 1 pm.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington City Arts Monday announced that the flag designed by Owen and Lucas Marchessault of Burlington has been selected as the new flag for the City of Burlington. Public online voting ended on Friday, November 17.Residents were asked to rate the design and artist statements of the seven finalists from zero to ten; 1,427 residents participated in the voting phase; OwenandLucas' design received the highest score.

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Public Service Department and Green Mountain Power have agreed on a 5.02 percent rate increase for 2018, with a tradeoff of returning $18.2 million to ratepayers and lowering the rate of return for the next two years. The total rate base increase will be about $80 million. Any deal must be reviewed and approved by the Vermont Public Utilities Commission, which is expected to hand down a decision on or about December 15.

The agreement was made public this month by Montreal-based Gaz Metro, the parent company of GMP and Vermont Gas Systems.

Vermont Business Magazine Two Morrisville neighbors and famous Vermont brands are working together to build a better stationary bike. Manufacturing Solutions, Inc (MSI) has a long history of partnering with Concept2, Inc, best known for its rowing machines. As a manufacturing partner for Concept2’s renowned fitness and training products, MSI will again be working with Concept2, this time on the newly-launched BikeErg exercise bike.

Concept2 worked with MSI, both of Morrisville, to build its new exercise bike. Courtesy photo.