Current News

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. 

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Charity Clark, in partnership with New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella, led a coalition of nine other states in filing an amicus brief supporting state court litigation against Meta. The brief, filed yesterday in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, highlights decisions from Vermont and other state courts which have found that Meta is not immune, under the federal Communications Decency Act, from claims that the company uses coercive design features to addict children to its social media platforms. 

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott’s office today announced a range of appointments made in the second quarter of 2025. Boards and commissions serve an important role in state government, giving Vermonters numerous opportunities to serve their state and communities. The Governor’s office is currently soliciting applications to fill vacancies and upcoming term expirations. All those interested in serving on board or commission should visit the governor’s website.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported last week that the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations fell are still close to zero statewide, after a spike during the winter. Overall COVID trends are declining in Vermont and across the US. Wastewater testing indicates that COVID-19 virus levels in Vermont also fell to very low levels after they had spiked in January, with the exception of the Montpelier site, which still shows a moderate level in test results. Most other pathogens in wastewater also show low indications. The Vermont COVID-19 pandemic death total stands at 1,298 as of June 21, 2025, with 2 reported death from the previous week.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Dr. Marlene Tromp officially began her tenure today as the 28th president of the University of Vermont, marking a new chapter in the university’s leadership. Middlebury College also has a new president starting today, as Ian Baucom takes over from Laurie Patton. Tromp joins UVM after six years as president of Boise State University. UVM’s Board of Trustees announced her selection as the university’s next president on March 20, 2025. Baucom was provost at UVA from 2022, prior to which he worked for eight years as Dean of its College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Middlebury announced his selection for the presidency on January 22.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State University is sponsoring this year’s Ninety-Nines International Conference, taking place in Burlington from July 9-13, 2025. The non-profit organization, made up of thousands of licensed women pilots spanning 44 countries, hosts this annual, prestigious international gathering to bring together aviators, industry professionals, and advocates for women in aviation. As part of the event, Vermont State University (VTSU) will be showcasing its Professional Pilot Technology program, which is the only one of its kind in the state. The program is designed to prepare students for careers as professional commercial pilots, offering hands-on training, expert instruction, and direct pathways into the aviation industry.

Vermont Business Magazine Northwestern Medical Center (NMC) celebrates a milestone this June as their next cohort of nursing pathway students advance after completing a year of prerequisite health courses to their Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) coursework at Vermont State University (VTSU). LPN is the first nursing credential in a stepped licensure training program, leading to Registered Nursing, one of the most critical professions in the NMC healthcare system. Each participant is an NMC employee who is sponsored through a comprehensive three-year earn and learn program designed to help earn Registered Nurse licensure (RN). 

Vermont Business Magazine The Delta Dental Institute released its 2024 Community Impact Report, highlighting more than $119 million in investments to improve oral health across all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. These efforts impacted over 15 million lives nationwide, reinforcing Delta Dental's role as the nation's largest oral health philanthropist. This initiative impacts over 419,000 lives in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, including an $8.2 million investment by Northeast Delta Dental.