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Vermont Business Magazine Yesterday, Governor Phil Scott signed S.44: An act relating to authorization to enter into certain immigration agreements. The act removes an existing loophole that would have allowed law enforcement agencies to enter into collaborative agreements with federal immigration authorities without the governor’s approval in a declared state or federal emergency. “We are pleased to see Governor Scott sign S.44, taking another important step forward in building the state's firewall against federal overreach. This closes a loophole which could have allowed rogue law enforcement agencies to begin working with federal immigration authorities without the consent and advice of the governor and attorney general."

Vermont Business Magazine National gasoline analyst GasBuddy has released its 2025 Summer Travel Survey results and forecast for summer travel, revealing that American road trip culture remains resilient despite ongoing economic uncertainty. GasBuddy forecasts that the national average price of gasoline will be $3.08 per gallon on Memorial Day, making it the cheapest Memorial Day at the pump since 2021, but lowest inflation adjusted since 2003*. Prices are forecast to average $3.02 per gallon over the summer from Memorial Day through Labor Day, with a sub-$3 per gallon national average possible on some days, especially toward the latter half of the summer.

Vermont Business Magazine As folks head to their lakefront properties for the summer, the Vermont Lakes and Ponds Program is offering guidance to help property owners protect and restore their lakeside properties. The Shoreland Best Management Practices guidance highlights different ways owners can improve their properties to benefit lake water quality and the health of lakeshore habitat. Owners can use this guidance to plant native trees and shrubs, install rain gardens to absorb runoff, improve driveways and pathways, create no-mow zones, and more. The Shoreland Protection Act regulates new activities in protected shoreland areas that are within 250 feet of the shoreline of lakes and ponds that are 10 acres or bigger.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont House of Representatives voted to pass S.126, an act relating to health care payment and delivery system reform, on a tri-partisan vote of 99-38. The legislation is a landmark health care reform bill aimed at reducing health care costs, improving patient access, and ensuring long-term sustainability for Vermont’s health care system.  S.126 tackles long-standing concerns with Vermont’s fragmented and increasingly expensive health care system by moving toward a system that rewards quality, access, and sustainability. The bill authorizes the Green Mountain Care Board to implement reference-based pricing to rein in commercial health care costs and requires a strategic redesign of how care is delivered across Vermont.

Public Assets Institute Vermonters may be feeling the effects of a tightening job market. Job openings in the state have fallen to their lowest level since November 2020, dropping by 4,000 positions between February and March. These openings include both full-time and part-time jobs for which employers are actively recruiting. Some of the decrease is due to employers filling positions, and some is likely due to postings getting pulled down. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed Vermonters increased over the same period, leaving fewer job openings per unemployed person. The last time Vermont had such a low number of openings per person seeking work was March 2021. 

by Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First, Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Public Works Director Chapin Spencer was busy recently pushing for more than a $16,100 a year pay raise for the wife of Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak as the city’s CEO was contemplating laying off about two dozen municipal employees due to a projected $8 million budget shortfall. Spencer, in a memo to the Burlington Board of Finance and City Council on April 14, argued to give Megan Moir, the director of water resources, an annual pay increase from $124,681 to $140,843. Spencer, who was appointed by Mulvaney-Stanak of the Progressive Party, also asked that the raise for the mayor’s wife be made retroactive to Dec. 9, 2024 because of the delay in getting the pay increase pushed through. Both the Board of Finance and the full City Council approved the pay hike in separate meetings.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed the $9.1 billion 2025 budget "Big Bill" into law. His signature was expected. I appreciate that this budget makes important affordability investments – most notably the $77 million general fund transfer to the education fund to help stabilize property taxes this year, and $13.5 million in much needed, targeted tax relief for young families, lower income, working Vermonters and seniors on fixed incomes. However, affordability must also be about getting state government and public education on a sustainable fiscal path; fixing systemic policy issues that make homebuilding, homeownership and rent far too expensive; and keeping and attracting the workers and employers we need for a strong economy. In all, he signed four bills today: H.398, An act relating to the Vermont Economic Development Authority; H.493, An act relating to making appropriations for the support of the government; S.44, An act relating to authorization to enter into certain immigration agreements; S.56, An act relating to creating an Office of New Americans.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development, Energy, and Credit, this week joined Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) in leading 20 of their colleagues urging the Trump Administration to immediately reverse course on its plan to illegally and unilaterally terminate the ENERGY STAR program. In their letter, the Senators highlight the cost-saving benefits of the program, which is projected to save the average American household $450 on utility bills each year simply by choosing ENERGY STAR certified products. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR has reduced energy costs for American families and businesses by $500 billion, including $42 billion worth of savings in 2020 alone. For every federal dollar spent on ENERGY STAR, Americans have enjoyed $350 in savings. 

Vermont State Police On May 13th 2025, members of the Vermont State Police received the report of a lewd and lascivious conduct with a child incident in the town of Berkshire. Investigation revealed that over the course of the years 2024 and 2025 James Rivera-Martinez committed three (3) counts of Lewd and Lascivious Conduct with a Child. On May 21st 2025, Rivera-Martinez was taken into custody without incident and transported to the St. Albans State Police Barracks for processing. At the conclusion of processing, he appeared before the Franklin County Superior Court in order to face the forementioned charges. Following the arraignment, he was transported to Northwest Correctional Center and lodged for lack of $15,000.00 bail. 

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Rutland community celebrated the groundbreaking of Maplewood Commons Apartments. Co-owners and co-developers Cornerstone Housing Partners and Evernorth have partnered to develop Maplewood Commons Apartments, the new construction of 30 permanently affordable homes in Rutland, Vermont. Maplewood Commons Apartments will transform a vacant industrial site into a vibrant, newly constructed three-story building with 30 energy efficient, permanently affordable apartments for families.

Vermont League of Cities & Towns Things are heating up under the golden dome as adjournment looms large. Last week, the $9.1 billion “Big Bill” for state appropriations was passed and the year’s premier housing proposal hit a roadblock. In this Weekly Legislative Report, we update you on the budget, a rollback on the electrification of heavy-duty trucks, legal trails, and more – and make an urgent call to action to support CHIP. The FY26 Appropriations bill, H.493, was passed and delivered to the governor for his signature on May 15. Governor Scott is expected to sign H.493, but always has five days excluding Sundays to sign, veto, or let passed bills become law without his signature. 

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor reported that the seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for April was 2.7 percent. This reflects an increase of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The Labor Force and the number of Employed both fell, while the number of Unemployed increased slightly. The civilian labor force participation rate was 65.1 percent in April, a decrease of two-tenths of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. Vermont now is tied for the third lowest jobless rate in the US, after being second lowest for many months. Vermont is tied with Montana and is below South (1.8%) and North Dakota (2.6%). Nevada continues to have the highest rate (5.6%). The comparable United States rate in April was 4.2 percent, no change from the revised March estimate.