Current News

Vermont Business Magazine - According to first quarter analysis of Callahan & Associates’ Return of the Member (ROM) scoring system, University of Lake Michigan, Deere Employees Credit Union, River Valley Credit Union, PCM Credit Union, and Credit Union of Vermont take the top spots for their respective peer groups; with Deere Employees holding the top overall score for the fifth consecutive quarter.

ROM attempts to capture all aspects of a member’s relationship with their credit union, and Callahan has altered and re-weighted this member-value metric over the years to reflect the evolution of the credit union industry and the ever-changing 5300 Call Report. The ROM calculation considers three core credit union functions: Return to Savers (savings), Return to Borrowers (lending), and Member Service Usage (product usage). 

Vermont Business Magazine • Sterling College has been awarded $225,000 from The Endeavor Foundation to further develop its Global Field Studies curriculum. The grant will allow the environmental stewardship college to develop new Global Field Studies, including two-week, four-week, and semester-long global study opportunities.

“Our mission of environmental stewardship education demands that students understand complex environmental and social issues in a global context,” said Sterling College President Matthew Derr. “The Global Field Studies program supports the broadening and deepening of students’ learning and research, so our graduates can be effective environmental stewards in a diverse and complex world.”

He continued, “This grant comes at a moment in history when our mission and vision for environmental stewardship education is paramount to addressing the challenges facing humanity and the natural world.”

New program combines building efficiency, renewable heat, and solar power

Vermont Business Magazine Vermonters will spend over $2 billion on fossil fuels this year, money that is leaving the state instead of growing the local economy. Cutting invisible energy waste can go a long way towards changing this equation. Reducing home energy use is important to Vermonters, but many don’t know where to get started or how to make the best energy saving investments. That’s the basis for Zero Energy Now, a new program from the nonprofit Building Performance Professionals Association of Vermont (BPPA-VT).

Vermont Business Magazine A new Vermont rule effective May 1 prevents invasive insects from piggybacking into the state on untreated firewood. As summer camping season arrives, visitors to Vermont should be prepared to buy firewood in-state or be able to verify that imported firewood is heat-treated to USDA-approved standards. The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation already urges all campers and homeowners to purchase wood locally. The new rule strengthens protection of Vermont’s forests by reducing the likelihood that invasive pests and pathogens, such as the emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle, will enter the state.

Vermont Business Magazine The Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) has completed the first draft of the 2016 update to the Chittenden County Multi-Jurisdictional All Hazards Mitigation Plan. The purpose of mitigation planning is to identify policies and actions that can be implemented over the long term to reduce damages to lives, property, and the economy from future disasters.

The CCRPC will be hosting a public meeting on Wednesday, June 29, 2016 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 pm at the CCRPC office in Winooski (110 West Canal Street) to describe the draft Multi-Jurisdictional Plan and receive public input. The draft Plan can be viewed at http://www.ccrpcvt.org/our-work/emergency-management/hazard-mitigation-plan/.

by Jenna Whitson, VCRD Community and Policy Manager Some may hear the words “Climate Economy” and feel disconnected from the concept. Some may think it’s all about solar electric generation; others may think that market-ready advances in energy and efficiency are a dream for the future. However, myriad creative Vermont businesses of all types and sizes are already growing this economic sector in Vermont and finding ways to reinvent, innovate, and collaborate in response to climate change while stimulating green economic development, boosting profitability, and creating jobs. Vermont businesses are leading the way and developing competitive strategies that are beginning to build our national reputation and could stand to position Vermont, yet again, as an example for the rest of the nation.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos has announced that early voting will officially open on Friday, June 24th. Beginning on Friday, any registered voter will be able to request a ballot from their town clerk by phone, mail, or online and cast their vote for the August 9^th election. The elections staff has already finalized and sent out the ballots to town clerks and some towns may even open their early voting before Friday.

“Vermont’s early voting system is one of the many ways our office ensures voting is accessible to eligible Vermont voters,” states Secretary Condos. “We recognize that many Vermonters have busy schedules and may not be able to take time away from work or their families to vote on August 9^th. Early voting ensures these people are not left out of the democratic process by giving them more opportunities to cast their vote.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Farm Show has announced it will support the Farm and Agricultural Resource Management Stewards (FARMS) 2+2 Scholarship program for the next 4 years.  The Farm Show has committed $43,000 to the FARMS 2+2 Scholarship program, which provides scholarships to young Vermonters who are pursuing dairy careers. Founded in 2001, the  FARMS 2+2 scholarship funds half tuitions for two years of study at Vermont Technical College (VTC) and full tuition for two subsequent years at the University of Vermont (UVM). 

Vermont Business Magazine The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Windham & Windsor Housing Trust (WWHT) celebrated National Homeownership Month at Putney resident Dennis Miller’s new home at Locust Hill Mobile Home Park Tuesday. Miller is the first homeowner to purchase an energy efficient modular home through USDA Rural Development’s Energy Efficient Manufactured Home Pilot Program.

“Manufactured homes have long offered an affordable housing option for many Vermonters, however older manufactured homes often have high maintenance and operational costs,” said Ted Brady, USDA Rural Development Vermont and New Hampshire State Director. “The energy cost savings of new manufactured and modular homes, combined with USDA’s long-term, low-rate, no-down-payment mortgages, offer existing and potential manufactured housing park residents new financing opportunities.”

Vermont Business Magazine Bruce Lisman’s gubernatorial campaign today announced it has released a provocative television ad about Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott’s close working relationship with Governor Peter Shumlin. The 30-second ad released by the Lisman campaign, “Breaking News,” features comments from Bruce Lisman about Phil Scott’s standing with the Governor at a press conference to support the failed state health exchange and Phil Scott’s general support of the Governor’s budgets. The ad notes that Scott has called Shumlin “fiscally prudent”.

In the ad, Bruce Lisman also stresses that he will not follow politics as usual in Vermont and will lead the state in a new direction.

The ad is being broadcast on WCAX and WPTZ, and on cable. To view the ad click here http://www.lismanforvermont.com/BreakingNewsAd

Vermont Business Magazine Democratic gubernatorial candidate Sue Minter today laid out a Vermont Energy and Climate Plan. Her plan, laid out in a statement from her campaign, is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the energy sector, supporting strong continued job growth in clean energy, and cutting energy costs for Vermonters. Minter also called on all candidates to stand up for Vermont clean energy solutions and jobs, and to oppose moratoriums and bans on clean energy technologies.

"I am the candidate who is concerned about climate change, and who wants to make more progress on energy efficiency and local renewable energy," Minter said. "It is unbelievable to me that we have candidates running for Governor in the year 2016 who want to ban renewable energy when we now have over 17,000 Vermonters proudly working in the clean energy sector." 

Vermont Business Magazine Matt Dunne, Democratic candidate for governor, today unveiled a comprehensive senior citizen policy platform including a proposal to exempt middle class Vermonters’ Social Security income from all state tax and benefit calculations. Dunne made the announcement following a visit to the Bugbee Senior Center in White River Junction. Currently, Social Security income that is taxable at the federal level is also counted as part of Vermont taxable income. In addition, all Social Security income is included in the definition of Vermont household income, which is used to calculate benefits such as property tax adjustments and renter rebates. Moreover, it is often considered a double tax because earned income tax is calculated before Social Security contributions are withheld.