Current News

Vermont Business Magazine As an opiate epidemic continues to grip Vermont and the rest of America, Governor Peter Shumlin on Wednesday signed a law that seeks to address the source of that crisis: Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved opioid painkillers that are handed out at an alarming rate. The new law will set limits on the number of powerful, addictive painkillers that can be prescribed for some procedures in Vermont. The legislation, S243, directs the Commissioner of Health to adopt rules governing the prescription of opioids for acute pain  and place limits on the number of pills that can be prescribed for some procedures. The rules would apply to all prescribers, including dentists. The law will also require prescribers to provide all patients with information and education concerning safe use, storage, and disposal of prescription opioids.

Vermont Business Magazine The 16th annual Grand Isle Family Fishing Festival will be held on Saturday, June 11 and organizers are planning for an exciting day of fishing fun and trophy catches. Designed for young anglers and families, the festival offers basic fishing instruction and the opportunity for kids to catch big trout in the hatchery pond. While the event as a whole is for families, the hatchery pond will only be open to fishing for kids. No prior fishing experience is needed and Vermont Fish & Wildlife will be supplying fishing rods, reels and bait for use by participants. The festival will run from 9 am to 3 pm at the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station at 14 Bell Hill Road in Grand Isle. Registration will close at 2 pm, but the hatchery pond will remain open to fishing until 3 pm. Bass season begins Saturday, June 11.

Vermont Business Magazine The State of Vermont has named Vergennes-based Nathaniel Group, Inc. a Vermont Green Business for the company’s environmental stewardship and sustainability efforts.  The Vermont Green Business Program provides assistance to businesses working to “green up” their operations and recognizes businesses of all sizes for meeting a set of environmental sustainability standards. These standards are posted on the program websites (www.vbep.org).

In addition to participating in an environmental assessment, Nathaniel completed a large energy reduction program that reduced energy consumption by 47 percent. The program involved delamping fluorescent fixtures, installing motion sensor light switches in some rooms, and installing  LEDs in exterior light fixtures. Last year the company replaced its aging HVAC units with new high efficiency models.

Vermont Business Magazine Mach7 Technologies (ASX:M7T), a global provider of enterprise imaging solutions based in Burlington, Wednesday announced it has been named a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: US Healthcare Provider VNA/AICA Unstructured Data Platforms for Integrated Care 2016 Vendor Assessment. This study focuses on Vendor Neutral and Application-Independent Clinical Archive (VNA and AICA) platforms that allow providers to manage and provide access to disparate types of unstructured content among multiple departments, across the entire integrated delivery network (IDN), and between affiliated providers in the community.

Study Highlights Participants, Contenders, Major Players and Leaders

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Peter Shumlin today signed into law the state budget. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 budget appropriates $5.8 billion in state and federal funds, representing an increase of $134 million, or 2.4 percent, over the FY2016 Budget Adjustment Act.

by Andrew A Pallito, Commissioner, Department of Finance & Management It is the end of another legislative session and the beginning of another campaign season.  As with all campaign seasons, the State’s budget will likely become a topic of debate and conversation. Vermont, unlike most states, does not have a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget. However, Vermonters still expect fiscal responsibility from state government. Even in difficult times, such as the Great Recession and Tropical Storm Irene, the State has continuously refused to run a deficit. Moreover, Vermont has fully funded rainy day funds, and has refused to tap them during difficult budget periods. 

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger said this morning that the city will not pursue the Trump Campaign through the court system in an attempt to collect an unpaid bill. Trump was billed for extra police and related services when he gave a speech at the Flynn Theater in early January. The much publicized event drew a long-line of supporters to hear the presumptive Republican presidential nominee speak. Extra police were called in and Main Street in front of the Flynn was blocked off. A small but vocal group opposing Trump also showed up. The entire event was peaceful.

Vermont Business Magazine Phil Scott, Republican candidate for governor, today introduced his plan to modernize state government by streamlining services to produce more efficiency, while also creating a better experience for Vermonters, principally by upgrading the state's Information Technology system. He also bludgeons existing management protocols by using the "disastrous" example of Vermont Health Connect to make his point.

Vermont Business Magazine Tax revenues did not meet targets again in May, despite a spectacular performance by the Corporate income tax. While the state is still trying to rectify Personal income tax errors that have plagued many electronically filed returns, the consumption taxes, especially the Sales and Gasoline taxes suffered. Gasoline receipts were down over 16 percent, which dragged down the Transportation Fund nearly 7 percent. GF Revenues were also down for the fiscal year. May is the 11th month of FY 2016. May tends to be a slower month for consumption taxes as it's between tourism seasons. Overall, General Fund revenues for the month were down by -$.66 million or –0.86 percent, totaling $75.38 million versus a monthly target of $76.04 million. This shortfall is driven by underperformance across the board with the exception of the Corporate Tax, which saw an above target performance of $3.17 million versus a target of $.43 million. The General Fund finished May with a cumulative year-to-date shortfall of -$15.31 million, $1,283.82 million versus a target of $1,299.13 million. Compared to the prior fiscal year, (FY2015), the current cumulative results for GF are +$30.05 million, or 2.40 percent ahead.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve has announced its 2016 award recipients for service and support to Vermont’s Guard and Reserve members. At their annual banquet held recently in Montpelier, VT ESGR recognized over 30 employers who provided outstanding support over the past year. Guest speaker for the event was Lieutenant General (Retired) Mike Dubie, previous Adjutant General for Vermont, and now President, Revision Military Technologies.

Top award recipients receiving the “Pro Patria” award were Northfield Savings Bank, small business private sector category; Radiology Services at the UVM Medical Center, large business private sector category; and Windsor Police Department, public sector category. This is the highest award that a state ESGR office can present.

Vermont Business Magazine - Today Governor Shumlin signed H.857, An act relating to timber harvesting, with the following message: As part of signing H.857, I am directing the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development to work with the Secretary of Natural Resources to publish guidance for the appropriate implementation of Section 16 of the bill.  Specifically, I direct ANR to work with ACCD to promulgate rules and revise ACCD’s Planning Manual to include the following direction for planning commissions seeking to fulfill obligations under the Municipal and Regional Planning and Development Act, Chapter 117 of title 24.    

Vermont Business Magazine - On Saturday, June 11, MedAssets-Precyse will celebrate the on-boarding of 18 medical coding graduates who recently completed an intensive pre-apprenticeship education program. Earlier this year, more than 350 unemployed or underemployed Vermont residents applied to be selected for one of the slots in Vermont HITEC’s Certified Medical Coder Program.  The program prepares the students for the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) medical coding certification exam, and upon graduation from the program participants are provided a certified medical coder apprentice position at MedAssets-Precyse.  These positions receive full wages and benefits.