Current News

Fuse, LLC, a marketing agency specializing in connecting brands with teens and young adults, today was named to Outside Magazine’s seventh annual “Best Places to Work” list. Fuse was selected out of hundreds of companies across the US. 2014 marks the third year Fuse has been named to the list.

The full list is available HERE.

Outside’s “Best Places to Work” list is designed to acknowledge and celebrate innovative companies setting new standards for a healthy work-life balance.

Governor Peter Shumlin today appointed Jessica Holmes, a Middlebury College professor of Economics, including Health Economics, to serve on the five-member Green Mountain Care Board. She will serve a six-year term, replacing outgoing member Karen Hein of Jacksonville, whose term expired.

“Jessica has extensive academic and professional experience in health care economics,” Shumlin in a statement. “She comes to the board with an in-depth knowledge of how the health care system is funded currently, and the ability to analyze options for controlling costs now and into the future.”

Jessica Holmes. Middlebury College photo.

Approximately 45,000 Vermonters, who collectively lost an estimated $1 million, will benefit from a global settlement reached by 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission with AT&T Mobility LLC, Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell announced today. The settlement resolves allegations that AT&T Mobility placed charges for third-party services on consumers’ mobile telephone bills that had not been authorized by the consumers, a practice known as “mobile cramming.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont economy will continue to grow for the next several years, according to a report to be presented Thursday, but at a slower rate than for both the rest of New England and the rest of the US. Slow growth in labor and wages and an aging population are contributing factors to this forecast. The closing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon will have a negative impact on the economy. The possible sale of IBM in Essex Junction and its resultant status creates an unknown.

Have your taste buds been craving something a little wild and crazy lately? Ben & Jerry’s fans are in for a “swinging” adventure with the newest Saturday Night Live-inspired flavor, Two Wild & Crazy Pies. With inspiration from the classic SNL sketch starring Steve Martin and Dan Aykroyd, which first aired in 1977, Two Wild & Crazy Pies combines coconut cream pie ice cream, chocolate cream pie ice cream, and adds in a scrumptious chocolate cookie swirl. This is the third of four unique SNL-themed Ben & Jerry’s flavors to appear at the company’s Scoop Shops nationwide. The sketch features Yortuk and Georg Festrunk dressed in plaid slacks and polyester shirts as the two Czechoslovakian brothers who “cruise and swing so successfully” as they try their best to fit in with their new surroundings.

Responding to internal complaints about the lack of financial oversight and poor governance at an Upper Valley charity, the Attorney General’s Office filed a petition in Windsor Superior Court to remove members of the Emerge Family Advocates governing board for violating their duties as board members or for gross abuse of discretion. The Attorney General also requested a preliminary injunction to halt Emerge’s provision of services and prevent it from spending more charitable assets until the superior court appoints a special trustee to review Emerge’s current finances and has received the trustee’s recommended course of action.

The National Park Service (NPS) recently selected RSG, based in White River Junction, to serve as the nation’s lead contractor for visitor use and social science research in the national parks through a five-year, up to $20 million contract. This provides RSG with a unique opportunity to help the NPS with the stewardship of America’s national treasures, the national parks. The National Park Service’s mission is to preserve “the natural and cultural resources and values of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.” From managing snowmobiling use in Yellowstone and rafting on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, to traffic congestion and crowding in Yosemite Valley, RSG will work with the NPS through this contract to help address the agency’s most complex and high-profile management challenges.

A $600,000 award from the US Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is the final investment in the Flexible Capital Fund’s capitalization goal of $4 million. Known as Vermont’s only royalty financing fund, the Flexible Capital Fund L3C (Flex Fund), provides flexible debt in the form of revenue-sharing loans and technical assistance to growth stage value-added agriculture, forest products, and clean technology companies with socially responsible missions.

Vermont ranks number one in energy efficiency according to a study undertaken by wallethub.com. Energy constitutes one of the biggest expenses for consumers. The study was based on “home-related energy efficiency” and “car-related energy efficiency.” According to wallethub, the average American household spends more than $2,200 a year on energy bills, almost half of which goes to heating and cooling expenses.

Vermont's eight mayors today endorsed Governor Peter Shumlin for a third term. The mayors represent municipalities from around the state and political points of view from Republican to Democrat to Independent. The governor has frequently been seen with the mayors at many events, groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings over the last few years and frequently cites their accomplishments in downtown development projects. In 2012, Shumlin received the endorsement of seven of Vermont's mayors. The mayors endorsing Shumlin this year are Bill Benton, Vergennes; Liz Gamache, St Albans; John Hollar, Montpelier; Thom Lauzon, Barre; Chris Louras, Rutland; Paul Monette, Newport; Mike O’Brien, Winooski; Miro Weinberger, Burlington.

The Jay Peak Biomedical Research Park received an Act 250 Permit in September authorizing construction of the 84,934-square-foot, four-story, AnC Bio bio-medical manufacturing facility at 172 Bogner Drive in Newport, according to the Northeastern Vermont Development Association. Work will begin in October and hundreds of area construction workers will be employed. AnC Bio will conduct cutting-edge research on stem cells; manufacture artificial organs like portable dialysis machines and heart-lung machines; and operate clean rooms. The building will be FDA certified throughout the construction process and biomedical projects that will take place in the facility will be FDA approved before work begins.

Q Burke Mountain Resort:

Dealer.com, a Dealertrack Technologies solution (Nasdaq: TRAK), proudly announced it has been selected for the third time as one of OUTSIDE's Best Places to Work 2014. This year, the company ranked No. 84. Each year, OUTSIDE recognizes the top 100 companies in the United States that help their employees strike the ideal balance between work and play. These companies encourage employees to lead an active lifestyle, are eco-conscious, and prioritize giving back to the community.

OUTSIDE noted Dealer.com's emphasis on full-body holistic fitness, recreational sports and health facilities as well as the locally-sourced food choices on-site. Employees stay active and healthy by participating in on-site fitness classes like CrossFit, playing on the indoor tennis courts or outdoor sand beach tennis court, or enjoying the bike path along Lake Champlain. In winter months, the company offers discounted ski/ride passes to several local mountain resorts.