Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced the appointment of Dave , of Rutland, to serve as the Governor’s appointee on the School District Redistricting Task Force after signing H.454, An act relating to transforming Vermont’s education governance, quality, and finance systems into law. The Task Force is charged with recommending new school district boundaries and configurations to the General Assembly for action next legislative session.

Vermont Business Magazine Yesterday, hundreds of households, including families with children and medically vulnerable community members reached their 80-day limit in the state-sponsored General Assistance Emergency Housing Program. From June 23 to July 1, data indicates that 478 households will exit from the program statewide, including 100 households in Chittenden County. The data for Chittenden County includes 35 families and 61 children, and around 40 medically vulnerable individuals. On Monday, June 30, the city sent a letter of advocacy to the governor, signed by the mayor, members of the City Council, and the chiefs of Burlington Police and Fire Departments, calling on state officials to stop the exit of over 800 vulnerable people, which only required a rule change. Municipalities and service providers across the state are forced to manage the crisis resulting from ineffective homeless response policies.  

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) today released a statement on Paramount's decision to settle Trump's bogus lawsuit against the program 60 Minutes. “The decision by the Redstone family, the major owners of Paramount, to settle a bogus lawsuit with President Trump over a 60 Minutes report he did not like is an extremely dangerous precedent in terms of both the First Amendment and government extortion. Paramount’s decision will only embolden Trump to continue attacking, suing and intimidating the media which he has labeled “the enemy of the people.” It is a dark day for independent journalism and freedom of the press — an essential part of our democracy. It is a victory for a president who is attempting to stifle dissent and undermine American democracy."

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET) has launched a new job board to connect local talent with top employers across the state. The Jobs in Vermont platform is free, curated, and designed to cut through the noise of traditional job sites. Whether you're hiring or job hunting, this tool makes it easier to find the right fit—fast.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington-based commercial real estate firm V/T Commercial has announced their second quarter 2025 transactions. These include: Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc. signed a new lease for 34,878 SF at 35 Thompson Street, South Burlington. Linda Letourneau and John Beal represented the landlord, and Tony Blake and Yves Bradley represented the tenant; Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. relocated to its new facility at the Champlain Mill, Winooski and leased 17,167 SF.  Tony Blake represented VHB and Steve Donahue of Donahue & Associates represented the landlord, MWG Champlain Mill, LLC; and Yves Bradley, representing TFB Realty, LLC, leased 70,000 SF to ThyssenKrupp Supply Chain Services NA, Inc. at 372 VT Route 67, Shaftesbury.

Vermont Business Magazine The Upper Valley Haven has officially broken ground on its new Shelter and Resource Center for people who are unhoused at 608 North Main Street in White River Junction, Vermont. The milestone comes as the organization celebrates surpassing its ambitious $10.2 million campaign goal — thanks to the overwhelming generosity of donors, foundations, and public funding partners. These gifts and pledges will allow the Haven to complete the purchase and development of the property and fund a significant portion of operating expenses over the first five years after opening in 2026.

Vermont Business Magazine A group of hemp producers and craft brewers want to establish Vermont as a leading producer of non-alcoholic hemp-infused beverages. The newly launched Vermont Hemp & Beverage Coalition is on a mission to showcase how strategic partnerships can generate employment, reinvigorate small farms, and craft innovative products. The Vermont Hemp & Beverage Coalition has released a statement urging Vermont lawmakers and regulatory agencies to develop policies that will encourage the growth of a regulated hemp beverage market. 

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed the education transformation bill, which was a centerpiece of legislation and one which came as a conference committee hammered out the last details at the end of the session, on June 16. The legislation provides a roadmap that begins with setting school district boundaries by July 1, 2026, which is a year earlier than in the initial version. 

Vermont Natural Resources Council Today, July 1st, marks a key deadline for a couple of our top state-level policy priorities. The Vermont Climate Council just finalized the 2025 update to the Climate Action Plan, and phase 1 of the neonicotinoid pesticide ban we helped pass with a broad coalition in 2024 is taking effect. Meanwhile, we just learned that the U.S. Senate passed Trump's Budget Reconciliation Bill (on a 51-50 vote), which includes a wide range of deeply concerning policies and funding cuts, including backwards-looking provisions that double down on coal and other fossil fuels while significantly undermining clean energy. Analysts anticipate this bill will increase families' energy bills and kill hundreds of thousands of clean energy jobs across the country (among many other harmful impacts). 

Vermont Business Magazine Northfield Savings Bank Chair of the Board of Trustees, John W. Lyon, announces today that Joseph B. Bator is being appointed President & CEO of Northfield Savings Bank, effective September 1, 2025. Bator will also be elected to the boards of Northfield Mutual Holding Company and NSB. He is succeeding Thomas S. Leavitt, who is retiring in September following 11 years leading the company. Bator has extensive background in commercial banking. He most recently served as Regional Vice President, TD Bank, based in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Windsor community celebrated the official grand opening of Central and Main Apartments. Co-owners and co-developers, Windham & Windsor Housing Trust (WWHT) and Evernorth partnered to develop these 25 newly constructed, highly energy-efficient, and permanently affordable apartments on Main Street in the heart of the Designated Downtown. The Windsor Improvement Corporation generously donated the land for this project and garnered widespread community support to transform the previously vacant and underutilized site into the home of Central and Main Apartments. This development features an all-electric building design, incorporating technologies such as heat pumps, whole-building ventilation systems, and a robust thermal shell. Accessibility is a top priority, with an elevator servicing all apartments for enhanced adaptability of residents. 

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Charity Clark today joined a multistate coalition in filing a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS’) decision to provide unfettered access to individual personal health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In the seven decades since Congress enacted the Medicaid Act to provide medical assistance to vulnerable populations, federal law, policy, and practice has been clear: the personal healthcare data collected about beneficiaries of the program is confidential, to be shared only in certain narrow circumstances that benefit public health and the integrity of the Medicaid program itself.