Current News

Attorney General William H Sorrell announced that the Plaintiffs who are seeking to invalidate Act 120, Vermont’s law requiring the labeling of food produced with genetic engineering (GE or GMO), are now asking the federal appeals court in New York City to rule on their request to halt the Vermont law. On April 27, 2015, the United States District Court for the District of Vermont denied Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction in its entirety. Today, Plaintiffs appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit seeking to overturn the District Court’s decision.

No briefing schedule for the appeal has yet been set. However, it is likely that Plaintiffs will pursue some acceleration of the usual process. The normal timeframe for parties to complete their briefing and the court to schedule a date to hear oral argument at the appellate level can run from 7 to 9 months.

Vermont Business Magazine and the Vermont Chamber of Commerce have selected the three finalists for the Deane C Davis Outstanding Business of the Year Award: Bond Auto Parts, Champlain Cable Corporation, and S.D. Ireland. One of these impressive finalists will be named the Deane C. Davis Outstanding Vermont Business of the Year on Thursday, May 21 in an awards presentation ceremony that kicks off the 31^st annual Vermont Chamber Business & Industry EXPO. The award winner will be announced at 10 am in the foyer of the Sheraton Burlington Conference Center.

This year’s finalists exemplify the resourcefulness, innovation and success of Vermont’s statewide businesses. They all share a dedication to their employees, communities and Vermont’s natural environment. Each represents a unique story of vision, commitment and growth.

The Department of Buildings and General Services will be auctioning a large assortment of State vehicles and equipment to the general public beginning at 10 am on Saturday, May 9, 2014. The May 9 physical auction of State vehicles is expected to be very well attended. The auction will be held at the Agency of Transportation Central Garage located at 1756 US Route 302, in Berlin, Vermont (05602), across from the Wayside Restaurant.

“This is an ABSOLUTE auction with no reserves. All vehicles will be sold to the highest bidder rain or shine,” said Terry Lamos the State’s Surplus Property Coordinator. “This auction is on many calendars across New England and Quebec. It has become a destination event for many who come year after year in hopes of obtaining a good deal on a vehicle or piece of equipment,” said Lamos. State officials are hopeful that a portion of the equipment and vehicles being offered finds their way back into service in Vermont communities.

by Governor Peter Shumlin Even as Vermont’s economy continues to show signs of progress, the message I hear from Vermonters is that they don’t feel the economic recovery is reaching their pocket books. While we have the 6th lowest unemployment rate in America and Vermont employers have thousands of job openings, incomes and wages for working Vermonters have not recovered fast enough from the depths of the Great Recession. This is a national trend from which Vermont is not immune, and it’s why I am so focused on making this economy work for every single Vermonter. As the legislative session comes to a close, I am very concerned about proposed income tax hikes that will make it even harder for working Vermonters to get ahead. In my view, we need to make every effort to cut spending before we ask middle class Vermonters to pay higher taxes.

by Timothy McQuiston Vermnt Busness Magazine FairPoint Communications, Inc (Nasdaq: FRP), Vermont's largest communications provider, today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2015. The landline phone and Internet company reported that accrued pension and other post-employment benefit obligations have declined a combined $680.3 million from December 31, 2014 to March 31, 2015, based primarily on the new collective bargaining agreements following the resolution of the prolonged strike, which ended in February. Also, unlevered Free Cash Flow minus Estimated Avoided Costs(1) of $32.9 million for the quarter; adjusted EBITDA minus Estimated Avoided Costs(1) were $61.7 million for the quarter; capital expenditures were $26.4 million; net loss was $45.2 million; and revenues were down $3.1 million.

The East Central Vermont Community Fiber-Optic Network (ECFiber) today formalized its longstanding policy of giving extra bandwidth to schools, public institutions and libraries. See list of qualifying organizations below.

“Thanks to our high speed infrastructure and state-funded dark fiber and grants that have helped interconnect many of our hubs, ECFiber has excess bandwidth (particularly during daytime hours) and we are pleased to be able to offer it to all these institutions, many of which operate under tight budget constraints,” said Irv Thomae, Chairman of ECFiber and Governing Board delegate from Norwich. “Although 400 Mbps is currently the fastest speed we offer, we hope to be able to continue to provide these institutions the fastest speed we offer in the future. We hope to provide 1 Gigabit per second speeds within one year.”

(For those who remember connecting at 56 kbps dial up speeds just a few years ago, 1 Gbps is 200 times faster than 56 kbps.)

Eight rural, underserved Vermont communities are getting help to boost broadband Internet speeds. The towns of Norwich, Pittsfield, Randolph, Royalton, Jamaica, Rochester, Reading, and Bradford will receive nearly $900,000 for speed improvement upgrades, Governor Peter Shumlin announced today.

“I’m proud that we have reached near universal broadband coverage in this state in the last four years,” Shumlin said. “Now our focus has to turn to improving the infrastructure we have rolled out so that it keeps pace with the changing needs of a 21^st century economy. That means boosting broadband speeds, and these grants will do that in some of the hardest to reach Vermont towns.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing entitled, “Ensuring an Informed Citizenry: Examining the Administration’s Efforts to Improve Open Government.” Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) has long worked to improve government openness and transparency, and was inducted into the FOIA Hall of Fame in 1996 for his work.

by Mike Barwell, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Three national organizations have confirmed Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center’s (DHMC) leadership for providing the highest quality of patient care. The distinctions include accreditation with the Gold Seal of Approval by The Joint Commission, a four-star rating for patient satisfaction on Hospital Compare; and recertification as the region’s primary trauma center:

The Brookfield Floating Bridge Celebration Planning Committee has announced today two-day celebration focused around the opening of the 8^th Brookfield Floating Bridge on May 23 and 24. Festivities will take place in the center of Brookfield, Vermont, in the vicinity of Hippo Park, the floating bridge, and the Old Town Hall. The Brookfield Floating Bridge is the only bridge of its kind east of the Mississippi. There have been seven bridges over the past centuries, and the opening of this bridge marks the eighth bridge traversing the lake. The bridge, designed by TY Lin and constructed by the Kenyon Corporation and Miller Construction, is expected to last 100 years.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will present 34 citizenship candidates to the Vermont District Court during a special venue naturalization ceremony at the Neshobe School in Brandon on Wednesday, May 6. USCIS will present the candidates to the Honorable Colleen A. Brown, US Bankruptcy Judge, US District Court Vermont District, who will administer the Oath of Allegiance to America’s newest citizens.

The Honorable Judge Brown and representatives from Vermont’s congressional delegation will welcome the new the citizenship candidates and their guests. Musical selections will be performed by the Neshobe School 5th and 6th grade chorus and the Preamble to the Constitution will be performed by the 5th grade students.

Governor Peter Shumlin will sign new legislation passed in the 2015 session strengthening Vermont’s captive legislation in a variety of areas including groundbreaking changes to the investment guideline to allow marketable securities along with cash, trusts and letters of credit to meet the minimum capital requirement. Governor Shumlin will hold a ceremonial signing of the bill alongside captive insurance industry professionals on May 7, in Burlington.

“These improvements in Vermont’s law may seem technical,” Governor Shumlin said, “but taken as a whole they continue to advance Vermont’s standing as the ‘Gold Standard’ for domiciles and will provide greater flexibility and clarity going forward for our companies.”