Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont economists are suggesting that there could be an "April Surprise" in tax revenues, as income tax filers realize that they owe more in taxes this year because they earned more than expected. But it's not April yet and the January revenue results released this morning revealed another disappointing month for the vital personal income tax. The revenue targets are based on the recently revised Consensus Revenue Forecast adopted by the Vermont Emergency Board on January 20, 2015. Preliminary General Fund (GF) revenues totaled $153.39 million for January 2015, -$1.28 million or –0.83 percent below the monthly target. Year-to-date, GF receipts are $797.34 million, -$1.28 million or –0.16 percent below the cumulative target. The results are +$23.84 million or +3.08 percent above the year-to-date results of the prior fiscal year (FY 2014).

Nutrient Management Plans or NMPs, which help farms optimize yield goals, minimize inputs and prevent runoff into streams, rivers and lakes, are legally required by both large and medium farms throughout Vermont. With the legislative session underway, and water quality a top priority for many Vermont leaders, new legislation being proposed could see small farms, of which there are thousands and which range from dairy to diversified, become required to create and implement a nutrient management plan.

Norwich University continues its Todd Lecture Series this spring with “National Security Implications of Climate Change,’’ a presentation by former Army Chief of Staff, General Gordon R. Sullivan on February 5, 2015, at 7 pm in Plumley Armory on the Northfield campus. Sullivan served as the 32nd Army Chief of Staff under Presidents Bush and Clinton. In the post, the four star general helped reengineer and downsize the US Army in the wake of the Cold War, leading it into the Information Age while facing a 40 percent budget cut.

Sullivan is the president and chief executive officer of the Association of the United States Army, headquartered in Arlington, VA.

Two prominent leaders of social change will deliver public programs next month during their graduate program residencies at Green Mountain College. Renowned Vermont author and activist Bill McKibben speaks on Monday, February 16 at 7 p.m. in the College’s Ackley Auditorium. His talk “Imagining World Communities” will address ways in which humans are reassessing traditional approaches to providing food, energy, transportation and governance in response to rapid environmental and economic changes. The following evening, author and food activist Natasha Bowens presents “The Color of Food: Stories of Race, Resilience and Farming” at 7 p.m. in the Gorge in Withey Hall. Both programs are free and open to the public.

Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR) today reported fourth quarter 2014 as-reported earnings of $120.1 million, or 66 cents per share, compared with $146.9 million, or 82 centsper share, for fourth quarter 2013. On an operational basis, Entergy's fourth quarter 2014 earnings were$135.3 million, or 75 cents per share, compared with $179.3 million, or $1.00 per share, in fourth quarter 2013. For the year, Entergy's as-reported earnings were $940.7 million, or $5.22 per share, and operational earnings were $1,050 million, or $5.83 per share. These results compare with 2013 as-reported earnings of $711.9 million, or $3.99 per share, and operational earnings of $957.1 million, or $5.36 per share.

The ceremonial sledgehammering got more enthusiastic as pieces of the red barn wall started to splinter. It was also the only thing that could keep the crowd warm as the University of Vermont began the process of upgading its educational dairy farm on a sub-zero Tuesday afternoon. UVM broke ground a new instructional barn and milking parlor at the Paul R Miller Agricultural Research Farm, Phase I of a three-phase, $10 million upgrade of the farm, located on Spear Street in Burlington, just south of the main campus. The $2.55 million, 13,176 square foot teaching barn and milking parlor will accommodate an instructional herd of 50 cows and be completed in mid-September. For reasons of student safety, both facilities have safety and fire suppression systems not commonly found in barns.

To make way for the buildings, a little used, open-stall cow barn located at the front of the complex will be deconstructed. The barn was built in the 1960s.

Today Green Mountain Power launched a new mobile app to help customers better track their energy use in real time, monitor outages and manage their account. The convenient app will allow customers to access their accounts and pay their GMP bills from their phones or other mobile devises. The app is free to download and is available for both iOS and android.

“As Vermonters, we are increasingly busy in our lives so this app is really designed to empower our customers to access their account information, see their energy use and offer a new and convenient way to monitor outages that may impact them,” said GMP spokesperson Kristin Carlson. “This is part of our energy future, putting key information at our customers’ fingertips, offering them new products and services, while we continue to deliver clean, cost-effective and reliable power.”

App features include:

The Lake Champlain Committee has identified what invasive species could be the next invaders into Lake Champlain. The spiny water flea arrived in Lake Champlain last summer, becoming the 51st invasive species in the lake. We know it won’t be the last. Recently, a group of environmental professionals discussed what species posed the greatest risk of being the next arrival. Three likely candidates were round goby, hydrilla, and VHS.

Keurig Green Mountain, Inc (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee, coffee makers, teas and other beverages with its innovative brewing technology, announced on Wednesday its business results for the 13 weeks ended December 27, 2014, its first quarter of FY 2015. Revenue was lower than expected and shares, which had fallen slowly during the day, lost $4.89 to close at $121.20 (3.88 percent). Immediately following the report, which came just after markets closed, shares fell at a steeper rate and lost $8.18 (6.75 percent) to $113.02 by 4:30 pm. Shares continued to fall overnight and opened Thursday morning at $110 (52-week range $80.30 - $158.87).

Earlier in the day Keurig announced that one of its largest partners, Lavazza from Italy, had sold from January 26, 2015 through February 3, 2015, an aggregate of 1,991,379 shares of Common Stock of GMCR for an aggregate price of $251,205,430.70 in open market transactions on Nasdaq.

Vermont Business Magazine Bad mortgages in Vermont followed a downward trend as total non-current home loans across the country continue to plummet. There was a slight increase nationally in foreclosure starts from November, according to a national rating firm. Vermont's non-current mortgages were 6.9 percent in December 2014 (compared to 7.4 percent in November 2014), down 21.6 percent from a year ago. Foreclosures in Vermont were 4.9 percent and non-delinquencies were 2 percent (in November they were 5.3 percent and 2.1 percent of all mortgages).

The US average was 7.3 percent (7.7 percent in November), down 13.8 percent from a year ago. Vermont is in the middle of the pack in non-current loans, after first being well behind at the start of the Great Recession and then seeing bad mortgages steadily increase. The state has recently started to reduce the number of such loans at a faster rate than the national average.

by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org Vermont could be the first state in the nation to impose a payroll tax to fund Medicaid. The 0.7 percent payroll tax proposed by Governor Peter Shumlin to close the Medicaid reimbursement gap is anomalous nationally. The tax would raise $90 million a year. It would be the biggest tax increase since Governor Jim Douglas increased the sales tax in 2006 from 5 percent to 6 percent to help shore up the Education Fund.

Lawmakers say passage of Shumlin’s payroll tax, which would introduce a new broad-based tax on all employers, is a “heavy lift.” It would be applied to the payroll for all employees who now qualify for unemployment insurance.

State payroll taxes are uncommon. Four states — California, Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey — charge a payroll tax to pay for mandatory disability insurance. Oregon imposes a payroll tax to pay for public transit.

Johnson State College has received $3,000 from Union Bank to launch a new fund to support students engaged in internships at area businesses and organizations. The new Student Internship Support Fund will provide grants to students to defray costs associated with internships, such as transportation to work sites, wardrobe needs and mandatory background checks.

“This generous gift will help remove the financial barriers to internship opportunities,” says Ellen Hill, coordinator of internship programs at JSC. “Students often cannot afford to take unpaid internships, or they may have to take a paid job outside their field simply because they don’t have the funds to support their placement.”