Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Chamber of Commerce has released its 2025 Session Legislative Outcomes Report, a comprehensive review of key policy developments that impacted the state’s business environment during the recent legislative session. In a year defined by escalating fiscal pressures, a deepening affordability crisis, and a $9 billion state budget, the Vermont Chamber remained focused on championing a pragmatic, data-informed policy agenda. The rising cost of living, a severe housing shortage, and unsustainable healthcare and education expenses require more than short-term fixes. These challenges demand durable, systemic solutions that prioritize growth and elevate the voices of Vermonters, whether heard around family tables, in boardrooms, or on the factory floor.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced $3.5 million of funding to support low- and moderate-income Vermont homeowners in repairing or replacing their failed or inadequate on-site water or wastewater systems. This is the fourth round of funding for the program. Eligible homeowners may apply for this round of on-site funding by 3 pm on Wednesday, September 3, 2025. The application process includes submitting an online pre-qualification form. 

by Lauren Milideo, UVM The University of Vermont has secured over $5.5M in National Science Foundation funding to support researchers investigating next-generation artificial intelligence computing, human tissue mechanics, atmospheric science, underground robots, and renewable energy systems. The largest grant of $2.1M is for a new supercomputer for artificial intelligence research at UVM’s Vermont Advanced Computing Center. Named IceCore, the new, high-performance computing cluster is 100 times faster than existing UVM systems. Led by Chris Danforth of UVM’s College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, this grant will enable about 1,000 UVM researchers and collaborators from across Vermont and New England to study such timely topics as infectious diseases, computational social science, and the behavior of large language models like ChatGPT.

Vermont Business Magazine The Brattleboro Retreat has announced the 2025 Brattleboro Retreat Gala, an evening of inspiration, recognition, and celebration in support of mental health care. Marking the Retreat’s first gala in a decade, the event will take place on Friday, September 19, 2025, at 5:30 PM at the scenic Stone Garden in Westmoreland, NH, and will feature the presentation of the Anna Marsh Award to longtime board member and advocate Elizabeth Catlin. Set against the stunning backdrop of the Connecticut River, guests will enjoy an elegant evening featuring live music, extravagant hors d’oeuvres, a thoughtfully curated dinner, and decadent desserts. This year's Gala will raise vital funds for the Brattleboro Retreat Endowment Fund, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the region’s leading mental health care institution. 

Vermont Business Magazine A grant from the Melissa Andrews Trust has funded a crucial software update for the Pulmonary Function Test machine (PFT) at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital (NVRH), ensuring that patients with respiratory illnesses can continue to access essential diagnostic care close to home. Residents of Caledonia, Essex, and Orleans counties experience higher rates of chronic lung diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) than the rest of the state. Contributing factors include higher smoking rates, widespread use of wood-burning stoves, and limited access to health care. Nearly 15% of adults in the NEK live with a lung disease, and over 60% of those cases are uncontrolled.

Vermont Business Magazine In June, members of the volunteer Rutland Area Medical Community Scholarship Committee awarded five $3,500 scholarships to local students pursuing a career in healthcare. The scholarship program has been made possible through the generosity of Rutland area physicians, retired physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. Now in its ninth year, the Rutland Area Medical Community scholarship is intended to stimulate the region’s best and brightest students and aimed at creating opportunities that empower recipients to achieve excellence in education. Eligible candidates include high school seniors, local college students, and Rutland area medical community employees who are working toward furthering their goal of a career in healthcare.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported last week that the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations remain under 5 cases statewide, after a spike last winter. Overall COVID trends are declining in Vermont and across the US. The Vermont COVID-19 pandemic death total stands at 1,300 as of July 5, 2025, with 1 reported death from the previous week (the most recent data available from the CDC). WHO also reported that global COVID-19 deaths keep declining. The VDH is no longer reporting COVID fatalities and cases in Vermont. Wastewater testing indicates that COVID-19 virus levels in Vermont also fell to very low levels after they had spiked in January. Concentrations are low/very low at South Burlington, Burlington, Essex Junction, Montpelier, St. Albans, and Ludlow. The Middlebury site shows moderate concentrations.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) will submit a Statement for the Congressional Record blasting Senate Republicans for attempting to advance President Trump’s rescission request, which claws back congressionally appropriated funding, and his FY26 budget, which also threatens funding for HIV/AIDS and other life-saving global health programs. In his statement, Senator Welch warns that the White House’s drastic cuts in funding to sustain the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and fulfill the United States’ pledges to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will hurt the world’s most vulnerable. Senator Welch says that if Congress advances these cuts, the legislative body will share responsibility for sabotaging one of the great, bipartisan public health achievements of this century.  

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Charity Clark has filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration for unlawfully freezing an estimated $26 million in federal funding meant for Vermont schools. Nationwide, $6.8 billion in federal funding has been frozen just weeks before the start of the school year. This funding supports six longstanding programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education, and, without it, school districts—particularly those serving high-need student populations—will be impeded from retaining key staff, maintaining high-quality educational offerings, and providing mentorship and training programs to improve instructional capacity. 

Vermont Business Magazine Building Bright Futures (BBF) has announced a new round of grant recipients for the Vermont Early Childhood Fund (VECF), totaling $1.9 million in awards for new projects and an additional $1 million in funding to existing grantees focused on Vermont children and families. Thanks to these grants, awardees in every region of Vermont will be able to pursue important and innovative projects. The VECF Opportunity Grant ($10,000 to $80,000) has the goal of supporting easy-to-achieve solutions with direct results. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is issuing an air quality alert for north and central Vermont for Tuesday, July 15. Wildfire smoke from Canada is expected to elevate concentrations of fine particles to “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” (code orange) on the Air Quality Index especially in northwest Vermont. “Moderate” (code yellow) conditions on the Air Quality Index are expected for southern Vermont. The air quality forecast will be updated on Tuesday afternoon for conditions expected on Wednesday. 

Vermont Business Magazine Casella Waste Systems, Inc (Nasdaq: CWST), a regional solid waste, recycling, and resource management services company, today announced that it has signed an agreement for the acquisition of the assets of Mountain State Waste. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter pending regulatory approvals. Financial terms were not disclosed. Mountain State Waste provides residential, commercial, and industrial waste collection services across North Central and Southwestern West Virginia and parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky. The acquisition includes multiple hauling operations and a transfer station, providing Casella with adjacent geographic expansion into the franchise markets of West Virginia and opening new areas for future growth.