Current News

by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org A group of tripartisan lawmakers is pushing for an ‘economic bill of rights,’ a set of proposals that would, they say, address the income inequality gap between wealthy and poor Vermonters.

The legislative proposals include a hike in the state’s minimum wage to $12.50 to $15 per hour, a requirement that employers provide workers with earned sick time and family leave, a rental housing registry, and a ‘just cause’ provision that would eliminate the state’s ‘at-will’ employment law, which allows employers to lay off workers without cause.

by Hilary Niles vtdigger.org The House Ways & Means Committee heard Tuesday from solar developers, downtown business advocates and accountants, all of whom weighed in on proposed changes to state taxes in the Miscellaneous Tax Bill.
Some solar developers and municipal representatives disagree over how small-scale solar energy installations should be taxed ‘ or exempted from taxes. The state’s Department of Economic, Housing & Community Development made its case for $500,000 of additional funding for its downtown development tax credit program. And tax professionals protested stricter requirements for the self-reported ‘use tax.’
No action was taken Tuesday, as lawmakers wanted more information on several issues before deciding how to handle the requests. The Miscellaneous Tax Bill also may impose a new tax on telecommunications services to equalize impact in an age of digital technology and increase the health care claims tax.

After a roller coaster year, Vermont employers ended 2013 with 3,000 more payroll jobs (does not include farm, non-profit or government) than they had at the end of 2012. The latest figures released today showed no new jobs created in December, following a big jump of 2,100 payroll jobs in November. Meanwhile, Vermont’s labor force shrank by 950 workers, which led to a decline in Vermont’s unemployment rate.
Rebounding Income Taxes
It took five long years, but in fiscal 2013 Vermont’s personal income tax receipts exceeded their pre-recession level. Final figures released last week show the state collected $661 million during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013. That was the first time income taxes rose above $600 million since fiscal 2008. Income tax receipts are forecast to grow 5 percent this year and more than 6 percent in fiscal 2015.
More Jobs and Better Pay for Men

The Harris Hill Ski Jumping Competition slated for’ February 15 and 16, 2014’ in Brattleboro, Vermont, will feature more than 40 of the world’s top jumpers from the US, Europe and Canada. One contender is Chris Lamb of the Andover Outing Club, who won the 2010 and 2013 Harris Hill competitions and holds the hill record for the longest jump, 335 feet. Lamb says he’s looking forward to competing at Harris Hill and retiring the Fred Harris Trophy. The Fred Harris Trophy has only been retired five times.
Lamb is only one of a number world-class jumpers who have competed at Harris Hill’some as recently as last year. Of the recently announced members of the U.S. Olympic ski jumping team all have competed at Harris Hill. This includes Nick Alexander, Nick Fairall, Peter Frenette and Anders Johnson.

Hobby Lobby Stores, a privately held national retail chain of craft & home decor stores, is set to open a new store in Rutland. Construction and renovations have begun on this 47,000 square-foot building formerly occupied by Hannaford, located at South Main Street and Curtis Avenue.’
This is Hobby Lobby’s first location in Vermont, which is projected to open at the middle of March. The location will bring about 35 ‘ 50 jobs to the community paying $14 per hour for full time and $9.50 per hour for part-time associates. ‘ ‘
‘We are excited to bring our unique store to the community. Customers new to Hobby Lobby are pleasantly surprised at the size of the store as well as the crafts and home decor selection of merchandise we carry. Shopping at Hobby Lobby is a truly unrivalled experience in value and service,’ stated John Schumacher, Assistant Vice President of Advertising.’

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc, (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and beverages with its innovative Keurig brewing technology, today detailed its new K-Carafe capability for its Keurig 2.0 Brewing System, available for sale in Fall 2014. Keurig 2.0 brewers will be the first system to brew both one cup using a single serve pack and a carafe of coffee using the new Keurig’® K-Carafe’¢ pack.
"Both current Keurig brewer owners and non-owners told us the brewer functionality they wanted most was the ability to brew both a single serving and a pot of coffee from one system with Keurig speed, convenience and brand choice. Our next generation Keurig 2.0 brewers will do just that," said Brian P. Kelley, President and CEO of GMCR.

Northern Power Systems (www.northernpower.com), a next-generation renewable energy technology company based in Barre, Vermont, reports that 2013 has been its most successful year in its core business ever. Northern Power broke its previous sales records of the NPS 60 and NPS 100 wind turbines with triple digit orders, in terms of number of units, coming from its European markets.
Production at the company's US manufacturing facility in Barre is nearing full capacity and sources are actively being identified to meet additional demand. As a result, Northern Power expects its global fleet of distributed wind turbines to grow beyond 400 units by the end of 2014.

Verizon Wireless, operator of the nation’s largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network recently expanded fourth generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) network coverage in Berlin, Vermont. 4G LTE empowers Verizon Wireless customers with compatible devices to surf the Web, post status updates and photos, and download files wirelessly at speeds up to 10 times faster than customers on 3G networks.
Verizon Wireless first debuted its 4G LTE network in Vermont in May 2012. Recently, Verizon Wireless further enhanced its 4G LTE network in the Irish Hill area and along I-89 in Berlin, as well as along Route 63 in South Barre.

Crystal Rock Holdings, Inc (NYSE MKT: CRVP) has announced its financial results for its fiscal year that ended October 31, 2013. These results are filed on Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Total sales for fiscal 2013 decreased slightly to $71.0 million compared to $71.1 million in fiscal 2012. Gross profit increased slightly for the year ended October 31, 2013 to $36.7 million from $36.6 million for the year earlier. Gross profit as a percentage was 52% for both years.

Merchants Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: MBVT), the parent company of Merchants Bank, announced Tuesday net income of $3.82 million and $15.13 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.60 and $2.40, for the three months and year ended December 31, 2013, respectively. This compares to net income of $3.84 million and $15.19 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.61 and $2.42, for the three months and year ended December 31, 2012, respectively.
The return on average assets was 0.91% and 0.90% for the three months and year ended December 31, 2013, respectively, compared to 0.91% and 0.92% for the same periods in 2012. The return on average equity was 13.07% and 12.97% for the three months and year ended December 31, 2013, respectively, compared to 13.08% and 13.37% for the same periods in 2012. We previously announced the declaration of a dividend of $0.28 per share, payable February 20, 2014, to shareholders of record as of February 6, 2014.

Governor Peter Shumlin has announced grants to install 13 publicly-available electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in six of Vermont’s Designated Downtowns, an important step to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, implement the Comprehensive Energy Plan, promote more EV purchases and support local economies.’
‘These charging stations will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower the cost of transportation for families and businesses, and modernize our infrastructure,’ Shumlin said. ‘They also provide an important boost to our downtowns by encouraging folks to shop and dine while their car charges.’ ‘

This morning, the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved The Better Buildings Act (HR 2126), a bipartisan energy efficiency bill authored by Rep. Peter Welch and Rep. David McKinley (R-WV).’ Welch is a member of the Committee and the House leader on energy efficiency issues.’
‘The Committee’s action today demonstrates that energy efficiency is a policy area where there is common ground between both parties in Congress.’ Vermont has led the nation on efficiency and I am pleased that Congress is now making progress on this issue.’ Action on this bill and other pending efficiency initiatives will be good for the economy, good for the environment, and good for the bottom lines of American families and businesses.’ ‘