Current News

Susan L Donegan, commissioner of the Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) today announced the appointment of Kaj Samsom as deputy commissioner of the Insurance Division. Samsom joined DFR in 2006 as insurance examiner and in 2011 became director of the Insurance Division’s Licensing and Examinations section. In that role, he managed a team of CPAs and was responsible for all licensing and examinations of insurance companies, as well as financial analysis-related decisions for the Division. He has been a key adviser to DFR leadership on complex evaluations requiring Departmental approval.

Donegan said, “Kaj is invaluable to our team; he shows initiative and seriousness of purpose while balancing many responsibilities,” she said, “I look forward to continuing to rely on Kaj’s good counsel and willingness to tackle tough issues as he joins the other deputies in helping me to oversee DFR.”

by Laura Krantz vtdigger.org The Vermont Department for Children and Families was fined at least $139,000 by the federal government after failing an audit of its child welfare system, but avoided paying the penalty by improving its practices, according to the federal Administration for Children and Families. The ACF in 2007 audited Vermont and every other state as part of the Child and Family Services Review. That federal audit is the most recent; the next review is scheduled for next year.

Lynne Klamm, interim director of the Department for Children and Families Rutland office, testifies alongside DCF Commissioner Dave Yacavone before a joint legislative committee investigating child protection in Vermont on July 23, at the Statehouse. Photo by Laura Krantz/VTDigger.org

Vermont Business Magazine One of the hallmarks of the Shumlin Administration has been its consistency of leadership. With rare exception the major posts have been occupied by the same people who were there at the governor's first swearing in ceremony. But that has now changed. Governor Peter Shumlin Tuesday announced that Doug Racine will be stepping down as Secretary of the Agency of Human Services. Racine later confirmed he was fired Monday. Harry Chen, a physician and current Commissioner of the Department of Health, has stepped in as Interim Secretary while a search for a permanent replacement is conducted.

GDF SUEZ Gas NA (GSGNA) has announced it has entered into a purchase agreement with Gaz Metro LNG, LP of Montreal that will make available up to 1.0 Bcf (billion cubic feet) of additional LNG (liquefied natural gas) to meet the peak 2014-2015 winter demand in New England.

"This second annual arrangement with Gaz Metro represents an important step in the further diversification of our supply portfolio, as well as an opportunity for us to take advantage of gas purchases on this continent to increase our supply assets, and to continue to ensure reliability to New England when resources can be tight—the winter heating season," said Frank Katulak, President and Chief Executive Officer of GSGNA. "Additional and reliable supplies such as these will also allow us to cost effectively provide more services to the marketplace by optimizing existing natural gas infrastructure in the region."

Becker's Hospital Review included Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in its 2014 list of "100 Hospitals and Health Systems with Great Oncology Programs." Organizations included on this year's list are considered to be leaders in quality patient care, cancer outcomes, and research.

The Becker's Hospital Review editorial team selected hospitals for inclusion based on rankings and awards from a variety of reputable sources. The following awards were considered as part of the criteria for inclusion on the list: U.S. News & World Report cancer rankings, Truven Health Analytics, CareChex cancer care rankings, National Cancer Institute designations, the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer accreditations, American Nurses Credentialing Center designations, and recognition from the BlueCross BlueShield Association.

Vermont will receive $1.68 million from the US Department of Veterans Affairs to help address veteran homelessness, US Senator Bernie Sanders, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee chairman, announced today. The grant to the University of Vermont is part of the VA’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families program, which is providing approximately $300 million to 301 community agencies to help low-income veterans and their families.

Nationwide, homelessness among veterans declined 24 percent from 2010 to 2013. These grants will help roughly 115,000 veterans who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness.

“Veterans' homelessness is a national disgrace. In recent years we have made some good progress in lowering the rate of veterans' homelessness in Vermont and throughout the country, but we still have a long way to go. This grant will enable us to continue going forward and provide dignity to some struggling veterans and their families,” Sanders said.

Vermont Business Magazine Some of the largest departments – the Agency of Human Services, Department of Children and Families, Vermont Health Access and Public Safety – took the biggest hits as the Shumlin Administration attempts to cut over $31 million in General Fund spending to realign the state budget with lagging tax revenues.

Appearing before the Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Committee today at the Vermont State House, Administration Secretary Jeb Spaulding and Finance and Management Commissioner Jim Reardon outlined $31.3 million in proposed adjustments in state spending for the current fiscal year to match projected available revenues, consistent with the updated revenue forecast adopted by the Vermont Emergency Board on July 24. The adjustments are spread broadly across state government, but they said that they preserve core state services, do not require furloughs or layoffs, and ensure Vermont will end the fiscal year with a balanced budget.

Sisters and Brothers Investment Group, LLP has admitted violations of Vermont’s Hazardous Waste Management Rules at a pair of Burlington properties and has agreed to pay $70,000 in civil penalties for the violations. “Vermont businesses that generate and handle hazardous waste must follow the State’s hazardous waste management rules," said Attorney General William H Sorrell. “Those rules protect the public health and the environment. We take violations of the rules seriously,” Attorney General Sorrell added.

At the site of a major downtown redevelopment, Governor Peter Shumlin announced the allocation of $2.4 million in tax incentives to 37 projects, supporting nearly $78 million in downtown and village and village center construction and rehabilitation projects. “These incentives are proven to jumpstart transformation in communities and have brought jobs, business and housing to downtowns and villages across the state,” said the Governor. “And when we put people to work revitalizing our communities, we not only support local economic development – we’re building a better and stronger Vermont for the next generation.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Department of Public Service, in conjunction with the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and the Department of Information and Innovation, has released the 2014 Telecommunications Plan public comments draft. The Plan addresses the major ongoing developments in the telecommunications industry, including broadband infrastructure development (including at least a minimum level of service to currently un-served regions), regulatory policy and recommendations for future action. The plan also includes the long-standing but elusive goal of "universal availability of mobile service along travel corridors and near universal availability statewide."

Jay Peak Resort announced in a statement Friday that it will pay out an additional $350,000 this year to the partners in its first EB-5 project, Tram Haus Lodge. The payment comes just eight months after Jay Peak Management Inc paid the investors in this project more than $750,000 as part of the project’s guarantee to return 100 percent of investors’ funds. While there are well over 500 EB-5 operators in the country, less than one percent have commenced with a payout strategy, making Jay Peak’s guarantee of a repayment exceptional, the statement said. Some of the investors were reportedly upset that their status as limited partners had been reverted to IOUs last year.

Vermont Attorney General William H Sorrell asked the US District Court for the District of Vermont late Friday afternoon to dismiss the lawsuit brought by food manufacturer trade associations to invalidate Act 120, Vermont’s law requiring the labeling of genetically engineered (GE, also knownn as GMO) food. “The State’s motion makes the case that Vermont’s labeling law withstands all five challenges to its constitutionality made by Plaintiffs and that the Court should dismiss the suit without requiring the State to answer the Complaint or engage in further litigation,” said Attorney General Sorrell. “While the Plaintiffs prefer not to disclose that their products are made with genetic engineering, over 90% of the general public supports labeling genetically engineered foods,” he added.