Current News

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Vermont tax revenues made up some lost ground last month as the General Fund, Transportation Fund and Education Fund all surpassed their respective consensus targets for August. The Personal Income Tax came back after several lackluster months. The PI is the state’s most important General Fund revenue source. However, the Corporate Income Tax, which had been covering for the PI during that time, fell under projections. The State’s General Fund, Transportation Fund, and Education Fund receipts were a combined $239.2 million, exceeding the $220.0 million monthly consensus target by $19.2 million, or 8.7%. The Cannabis Excise Tax has brought in $2.6 million. However, Clauser cautioned that the July flooding has upended the reporting process (including some forbearance in some cases), which could take a few more months to sort out.

Vermont Business Magazine Building Bright Futures (BBF) is now accepting grant applications for the Vermont Early Childhood Fund (VECF). The application portal opened on Friday, September 29, at 8 am and will close on Friday, November 10, at 5 pm. VECF supports creative solutions to improve the well-being of children through age 8, their families, and the Vermont communities where they live. Thanks to a federal grant awarded to the state of Vermont in late 2022, the VECF will be able to expand its funding tenfold this year, from $105,000 for projects carried out in 2023 to $1.1 million for 2024 projects. Expanded VECF funding is slated to continue in 2025 and 2026.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the North Country Career Center, who will begin work to restore a nearby vacant farmhouse thanks to the CTE Construction Rehabilitation Experiential Learning Program and Revolving Loan Fund. Governor Scott advocated for new program with the help of Rep. Michael Marcotte of Newport, lawmakers and other stakeholders. The initiative is designed to give students hands-on experience by working directly on construction projects, which will also help expand Vermont’s housing stock and support community revitalization.

Vermont Business Magazine After more than 24 impactful years of implementing comprehensive safe water, sanitation and hygiene education programs in some of the most rural and underserved communities of Haiti and Honduras, Vermont-based Pure Water for the World, Inc (PWW) is closing its doors. With the persistent economic realities of increased financial pressures and fundraising challenges inhibiting the organization’s ability to continue its sustainable development programming, the Board of Directors has voted to phase out work in both countries. PWW will fulfill its existing commitments to funded programs, with anticipated closure dates of December 31, 2023 in Haiti and June 30, 2024, in Honduras. 

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger on Thursday announced he will not be seeking a fifth term. He made the announcement from the Lorraine B. Good Room in Burlington City Arts Studios on Church Street, where he first announced his intent to run for Mayor 12 years ago, surrounded by family, Department Heads, City staff, community leaders, and supporters. 

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) spoke on the Senate floor Thursday about the consequences of a shutdown – large and small – for Vermont families and communities. He urged the House to pass the Senate’s bipartisan Continuing Resolution, which includes $6 billion in disaster aid to replenish FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund, a critical resource for victims of natural disasters like the floods experienced in Vermont this summer. 

by Department of Disabilities, Aging & Independent Living Commissioner Monica White Vermont’s 45 senior centers across our state hold incredible value for older Vermonters and our communities.  I honor these organizations all year, but this month is a good time to reflect further on the importance of senior centers for all Vermonters. Senior Centers have long played an important role in my family. In 2011, my beloved Great Gram, Bernice White, then 95 years old, was honored with the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Waterbury Senior Center. I felt honored to be her great granddaughter and was delighted and proud to attend the ceremony where she received a plaque for her dedicated service. 

Vermont Business Magazine United Way of Northwest Vermont (UWNWVT), an organization dedicated to improving lives in Chittenden, Franklin, and Grand Isle counties, has officially launched its 2023 Community Campaign with the theme: United in Purpose. United Way is unique because it exists at the intersection of nonprofits, businesses, government, and community. Our work is powered by local people, organizations, and businesses that are committed to supporting the strength, vitality, and resiliency of our community. Together, we are United in Purpose.  

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Community Foundation announced today that it has awarded another $2,359,846 in flood recovery and relief grants across the state, including $418,500 in grants made directly to farmers under the Farm Disaster Relief Grant Program. The new round of grants from the Foundation’s VT Flood Response & Recovery Fund 2023 brings the total awarded from the fund to $4,430,284 since it was created ten weeks ago. Over that same time period, the fund has raised more than $11.3 million. The most recent grants include the first awards made directly to farmers, who as a group, suffered extensive monetary losses in flooding that affected over 27,000 acres of land.

Vermont Business Magazine Investigators from the International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont (UVM), are the first to study a promising tetravalent dengue vaccine in dengue-endemic Bangladesh. Their work, evaluating the single-dose tetravalent dengue vaccine candidate TV005, demonstrated safety and immune responsiveness in children and adults. The accompanying study was recently published in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) invites all to Harvest New England Day, this Friday September 29th. This exciting event, with thirty-eight Vermont businesses, takes place from 10am to 5pm on the Avenue of States at the Big E in West Springfield, MA. During Harvest New England Day you’ll find vendors set up to serve you inside and outside of the historic Vermont Building. Additionally, you can visit each New England state on the Avenue of States to answer trivia questions about agriculture in that state and get a passport stamped. Get a stamp from each state and get a free gift.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) awarded $58.9 million in grants to Vermont’s Communications Union Districts (CUDs) this summer. The construction grants were approved to expand broadband in five different CUDs across the state, bringing broadband to at least 13,000 currently underserved homes and businesses. The most recent grants were approved earlier this month. They include a $13.59 million grant to Lamoille FiberNet.