Current News

In the wake of our country's economic downturn, people are moving away from states with high unemployment, according to the 2009 Atlas Van Lines Migration Patterns study. Atlas' annual study has tracked the nation's moves since 1993. The Vermont unemployment rate was 6.4 percent in November and the New Hampshire rate was 6.7 percent, both well below the 10.0 percent national rate. Both states have been in-migration states over the last decade, including last year.
Residents of Rust Belt states continue to relocate in large numbers, as steel and manufacturing industry jobs decline. And while historically the nation has moved westward, heavy job losses, particularly in construction, manufacturing and tourism in California, Nevada and Oregon, have made these states less popular destinations than in years past.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) have been informed that the Ticonderoga (Ti) Ferry has suspended service effective today. According to the Ti Ferry operator, the reason for the suspension is that the company currently was not been able to secure marine insurance beyond yesterday, January 3.

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) and the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) announce the planned closing of the Connecticut River bridge carrying Bridge Street between Stewartstown, New Hampshire, and Beecher Falls, Vermont, for four days to allow for a detailed inspection of the bridge.
This daytime bridge closure will be in effect beginning Monday, January 4 through Thursday, January 7, 2010 from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM each day. Emergency response vehicles from the Beecher Falls Fire Department will be allowed to cross the bridge if necessary during the closure periods.
A signed detour will be in place on both sides of the Connecticut River during the bridge closure periods, directing motorists to the bridge crossing the river between Stewartstown, New Hampshire and Canaan, Vermont.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) will hold a public meeting in Vermont at 6 pm on Monday, January 4 to present the six possible designs for the new Lake Champlain Bridge. The meeting will be held at the Addison County Eagle building at 67 New Haven Road in Vergennes. The new bridge is expected to be built in 2011, according to transportation officials.
The meeting provides those who were not able to attend the series of meetings held December 12 in Ticonderoga with an opportunity to hear and discuss details about the six possible bridge designs and offer feedback on which design they like best. VTrans and NYSDOT are taking public input on the various designs. An announcement is expected in mid January as to which design will be built.

Governor Jim Douglas today announced he appointed Butch Shaw to serve as State Representative from the Rutland-6 House District. Shaw will fill the seat vacated by Peg Flory, who was recently appointed to the State Senate, and represents the towns of Pittsford and Sudbury.
“I look forward to working with Butch as we address difficult fiscal challenges and work to strengthen our economy," the Governor said. “I am confident that he will represent the people of Pittsford and Sudbury thoughtfully and with dedication.”
“It’s a great honor to represent the hardworking people of Pittsford and Sudbury in Montpelier,” said Shaw. “As a volunteer firefighter, it’s my instinct to run toward a problem, and that’s what I intend to do in the Legislature.”
Shaw is a resident of Pittsford, where he serves as Assistant Fire Chief, Chairman of the Board of Civil Authority and a Justice of the Peace. He is a former wrestling coach at Otter Valley Union High School.

State officials are hoping members of the public will turn out to give their input about Vermont’s plans for spending millions of dollars in federal housing and economic development funds.
The state is holding a series of Community Meetings as it drafts a 5-year Consolidated Plan required by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the approximately $12 million of federal funds Vermont receives from HUD annually.
“We’re asking Vermonters to share their views on how these dollars should be spent,” said Tayt Brooks, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Economic, Housing and Community Development. “The grants that we award from these funds go to both housing and economic development projects for low-income Vermonters around the state.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today announced that $5.7 million in emergency support to more than 1,000 Vermont dairy farmers has been released. The assistance, coming at a time when dairy farmers have experienced the lowest prices in 40 years, is part of a $350 million dairy assistance measure sponsored by Sanders.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture began processing payments under the Dairy Economic Loss Assistance Payment program just prior to Christmas. Farmers have already begun seeing deposits.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a senior member of the Senate appropriations committee, and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), cochairman of the Congressional Dairy Farmers Caucus, helped guide the measure through the congressional appropriations process.

There were 2,383 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance last week, an increase of 981 from the week before. Altogether 14,114 new and continuing claims were filed, an increase of 1,058 from a week ago and 433 more than a year earlier. The Department also processed 4,902 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), 183 fewer than a week ago. In addition, there were 2,716 Second Tier claims for benefits processed under the EUC08 program, which is an increase of 66 from the week before. The Unemployment Weekly Report can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/. Previously released Unemployment Weekly Reports and other UI reports can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/lmipub.htm#uc

Governor Jim Douglas and 10 other governors in the region took the next step toward developing a regional Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) by signing a Memorandum of Understanding that commits their states to continued participation in a regional effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fuels for vehicles and other uses.
“Vermont is a leader in limiting greenhouse gas emissions, but about 45 percent of our carbon footprint is generated from the transportation sector,” Governor Douglas said. “As with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, this partnership will help us meet our environmental challenges and encourage the creation of green jobs.”

Governor Jim Douglas has announced that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has established a critical grant partnership with the Vermont Department of Libraries and the Vermont Telecommunications Authority (VTA) to help public libraries compete for federal broadband stimulus funds made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. VTA, in collaboration with the Department of Libraries, plans to submit an application to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) in early 2010.

ION HoldCo, LLC, a partnership majority owned by Sovernet Communications (a subsidiary of Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATNI)) along with twelve independent rural telephone companies in New York, announced it has received a federal broadband stimulus grant of $39.7 million to augment its existing 2200 mile fiber network with 1,300 miles of additional fiber-optic middle-mile broadband network.The project, the ION Upstate New York Rural Broadband Initiative, will be completed in partnership with the Development Authority of the North Country (DANC) and will enable high speed Internet access to underserved communities throughout upstate New York, along with parts of Vermont and Pennsylvania. An additional $9.9 million will be invested in the project by ION and DANC.“This is great news for our great state,” said ION CEO James Becker.

Green Mountain Power, based in Colchester, has filed with the Vermont Public Services Board a new alternative regulation plan that continues the benefits of the existing plan for another three years, and introduces new measures to encourage additional efficiency. The plan is the result of months of negotiations with the Department of Public Service.
The new alternative regulation plan includes a mechanism by which Green Mountain Power will be compared to other utilities from around the country. Currently the company operates in one of the top tiers of performance and strives to make it to the very top of the list of performance benchmarked against utilities from all over the country.