Current News

Over the last several months, Saint Michael's College has named four new members to its governing board of trustees and has announced a new board chairman.
William Gallagher, CEO of Atlantic Data Services of Quincy, MA, is the new board chair. Gallagher and his wife Penelope are the parents of 1999 Saint Michael's College graduate, Becky, and her husband Thomas Fontana who is also a 1999 graduate.
New members of the board are the following:
Dr. Sultan Ahamed, president and chairman of the board of Connecticut Medical Insurance of Glastonbury, and senior attending surgeon of William Backus Hospital of Norwich, Conn.
Rev. Michael Jacques, SSE, pastor St. Peter Claver Church, New Orleans, La.
Rev. Richard Myhalyk, SSE, executive director of the Edmundite Southern Missions, Selma, Ala.

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for September 2011 was 5.8 percent, a decrease of one-tenth of a percent from the August rate. Compared to a year ago, the rate is lower by one-tenth of a percentage point. The Vermont unemployment rate continues to be well below the national rate. In September 2011, the seasonally-adjusted national unemployment rate was 9.1 percent. The United States has held steady at this rate for the last three months.

Vermont Business Magazine Merchants Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: MBVT), the parent company of Merchants Bank, announced that its Board of Directors declared today, April 17, 2014, a dividend of 28 cents per share, payable May 15, 2014, to shareholders of record as of May 1, 2014. This quarter represents our 70th consecutive quarterly dividend payment and our 34th consecutive quarter at the current payout level.

KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) today announced third quarter net income from continuing operations attributable to Key common shareholders of $229 million, or $.24 per common share. Key’s third quarter 2011 results compare to net income from continuing operations attributable to Key common shareholders of $163 million, or $.19 per common share, for the third quarter of 2010. The results for the third quarter of 2011 reflect an improvement in noninterest expense and lower credit costs from the same period one year ago. Third quarter 2011 net income attributable to Key common shareholders was $212 million compared to net income attributable to Key common shareholders of $178 million for the same quarter one year ago.
· Net income from continuing operations of $229 million, or $.24 per common share, for the third quarter of 2011
· Year-to-date net income from continuing operations of $656 million, or $.71 per common share

Five companies that charged local consumers and businesses on their telephone bills for services to which many of the affected Vermonters say they did not consent have entered into settlements with the Vermont Attorney General’s Office, bringing to 13 the number of such settlements since mid-March of 2011. Together, the five firms billed over 3,600 Vermont consumers and businesses over $280,000, all of which must be refunded, if that has not already been done. In addition, each will pay the State of Vermont $10,000 in penalties and costs.
Attorney General William H. Sorrell said that the settlements are part of his Office’s continuing crackdown on ‘cramming,’ or the placing of unauthorized inadequately-noticed charges on local telephone bills. ‘Most Vermonters have no idea that they can be billed for non-telephone services by their local phone carriers; we won’t allow other companies to take advantage of that,’ he added.

Governor Peter Shumlin said today that the Vermont State Hospital in Waterbury, which was closed following Tropical Storm Irene, will not re-open, and outlined his plan to ensure Vermont’s mental health community has access to quality services across the state.
The plan includes acute in-patient care in at least two locations, increased services that enable individuals to remain in their communities, expanded local emergency services, and increased support for effective programs helping those with mental health conditions. The governor said these improvements would be monitored and evaluated, and discussions about a long-term plan will continue, and acknowledged the need to talk about other inpatient capacity.

Bavarian goodness continues to spread throughout the New England and Upstate New York areas. Ehrmann USA, LLC, with a manufacturing plant in Brattleboro, Vermont, has announced that its All Natural Bavarian Lowfat Yogurt, which hit US dairy aisles only a few weeks ago, is now available in more than 500 stores throughout New England and Upstate New York. Shaw's, Price Chopper, Hannaford, and Tops are the primary store locations in New England and Upstate New York now selling Ehrmann, one of Europe's leading yogurts.
A beloved family recipe with Bavarian roots, Ehrmann Yogurt is now made fresh in Brattleboro using state-of-the-art manufacturing technology to deliver one of the creamiest and purest lowfat yogurts available in America today. A portion of net profits from the sale of the products are donated to the milk farmers.

In the last three months, both Democrats and Republicans have sponsored Federal legislation to compel online retailers to collect sales and use tax and several states have moved forward with their own legislation, including Vermont, based on a review of online nexus rules by CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business and the leading global provider of tax, accounting and audit information, software and services (CCHGroup.com).
"Whether legislatively compelled at the Federal or state level or through online retailers seeing it as inevitable, the trend is moving toward more online retailers collecting sales and use taxes," said Daniel Schibley, JD, CCH Senior State Tax Analyst. "While it may not have significant implications for this holiday tax season, consumers should be prepared to start seeing sales tax collected on more and more of their online purchases in the years ahead as cash-strapped states look for more revenue sources."

Dr Pramodita Sharma, the Sanders Professor at the University of Vermont, will be making her first Vermont appearance on Thursday, October 27, to discuss the ‘Role of Entrepreneurialism in Sustaining Family Enterprises.’ Her research on the succession processes, governance, and dynamics underlying family firms has been recognized by several international organizations, while her latest co-authored book titled "Entrepreneurial Family Firms" is used in family business courses around the world and is being translated into Mandarin and Greek.

Vermont radio and television stations, including cable and satellite TV systems, will participate in the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on Wednesday, November 9. The test, originating from Washington, D.C., will begin at approximately 2:00 p.m. Eastern and will last for about 3-1/2 minutes.
During the test, the public will hear a message indicating that "This is a test." The audio message will be the same for radio, television, and cable TV. However, television viewers will see a ‘text crawl’ at the top of their TV screens that says, ‘The Primary Entry Point has issued an Emergency Action Notification for Washington, D.C., until 2:15 p.m.’ TV viewers may or may not see other on-screen text indicating that the alert is a test. Viewers should rest assured, however, that this is only a test.

Green Mountain College announced today that it is enhancing its current commitment to assisting families paying for a GMC education by mounting an ambitious multi-year affordability plan. The plan addresses: academic merit scholarships, Make-a-Difference scholarships (a scholarship program that rewards students who engage in community service projects), and need-based grants to attract the most motivated and prepared students.
The College will implement the plan beginning this spring (January) for new students and continue with entering students in fall 2012. All of the affordability strategies being implemented are designed to assist in lowering the average debt for all graduating students.

The Vermont Attorney General’s Office has entered into an Assurance of Discontinuance filed in Washington Superior Court, with Subaru of Keene owner William Fenton. In 2010 Subaru of Keene ran radio and newspaper ads offering Vermont consumers the opportunity to buy at ‘employee prices’ and to ‘pay what the dealer pays’.
An Attorney General investigation discovered that there was no employee pricing and employees and consumers negotiated the sales price of their car with no special employee or dealer reductions. The dealer also did not disclose the dealer rebate received on car sales.
‘Dealers that falsely advertise to lure consumers mislead consumers and also steal business from dealers that follow the rules,’ said Attorney General William H. Sorrell. ‘Consumers need to question advertising and make sure they understand the true cost of a vehicle to the dealer, including dealer rebates.’