Current News

Governor-elect Shumlin announced this afternoon that Doug Racine, the man whom he beat in a recount for the Democratic nomination last August, will be Vermont’s next Secretary of Human Services, Deputy Secretary and Commissioner of the Department for Children and Families. Doug Racine will be the Agency of Human Service’s next Secretary, Patrick Flood will continue in his role as Deputy Secretary and David Yacavone will serve as the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families.
This is the second appointment Shumlin has made from among his rivals for governor. In his first round of appointments, state Senator Susan Bartlett was named as a special adviser. She will play a key role in writing the budget.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets recently assessed penalties to two retail establishments for violating the Vermont scanner pricing law. The agency assessed the Price Chopper store in Derby a penalty of $3,750 and the Price Chopper store in Saint Johnsbury a penalty of $13,000.

AllEarth Renewables, Inc. of Williston, Vt., announced today that Andrew Savage will join the company's senior management team as Director of Communications and Public Affairs.

Savage is currently Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director for Congressman Peter Welch (D-VT) in Washington, DC. He previously directed communications and served as spokesperson for Welch, directed communications for President Barack Obama's successful presidential primary campaign in Utah, and earlier served as Aide to the Vermont Senate President Pro Tempore for Welch. Savage, 29 and a native of Calais, Vt., is a graduate of Middlebury College. He will begin with AllEarth in January.

The Vermont State Colleges this week announced the selection of two finalists for the position of president of Vermont Technical College. The names of the candidates were sent to the Board of Trustees by its presidential search committee following interviews with four candidates during the week of November 15. The two finalists sent to the Board of Trustees are Dr Kathleen Nelson, former president and President Emeritus of Lake Superior College in Duluth, Minnesota; and Dr Philip Conroy, Vice President for Enrollment and Marketing at Mount Ida College in Newton, Massachusetts.
The trustees will interview the finalists and consider a selection at their regular meeting on December 9th.

Governor-elect Shumlin today announced his "transportation team." Brian Searles will be the Agency of Transportation’s next Secretary; Sue Minter will serve as Deputy Secretary. Searles, former Transportation Secretary under Governor Dean, currently is director of Burlington International Airport. He has led the airport during several rounds of infrastructure improvements and increases in passenger boardings.

CitiCapital, the lead creditor for Burlington Telecom, the municipal telecommunications company, and the City of Burlington have failed to rework a financing deal on tens of millions of dollars in debt. CitiCapital will repossess the equipment as a result. However, before that happens the Vermont Public Service Board must approve any action that would significantly affect service. In the meantime, service will continue uninterrupted to BT customers. Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss issued the following statement Wednesday regarding Burlington Telecom’s negotiations with CitiCapital.
‘The City of Burlington has been in negotiations with CitiCapital to restructure its lease since early this year. The cornerstone of these negotiations has been a plan to utilize the positive cash flow Burlington Telecom is producing from regular operations to support a lease amendment. However, CitiCapital has been unwilling to make an accommodation the City could support.

Weekly unemployment claims rose steeply last week continuing an upward trend over the last couple of months. For the week of November 20, 2010, there were 1,401 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance, an increase of 508 from the week before. Altogether 9,563 new and continuing claims were filed, an increase of 795 from a week ago and 1,847 fewer than a year earlier. The Department also processed 2,385 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), 120 more than a week ago. In addition, there were 696 Second Tier claims for benefits processed under the EUC08 program, which is a decrease of 16 from the week before. The Unemployment Weekly Report can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/. Previously released Unemployment Weekly Reports and other UI reports can be found at:http://www.vtlmi.info/lmipub.htm#uc

On November 18, Entergy Vermont Yankee officials told the Vermont Health Department that the 300,000 gallon objective for groundwater remediation had been met, and groundwater extraction has been terminated. Radioactive tritium had been discovered leaking into the ground at the Vernon plant last January. Approximately 309,000 gallons had been extracted, and about 9,000 gallons were cleaned and returned for re-use at the plant. The remaining extracted groundwater is being trucked to a licensed radioactive waste processing facility in Tennessee. Final truckloads are scheduled for the end of November.

Stowe Mountain Resort opened for the 2010/2011 winter season today, Wednesday, November 24. Appropriately named ‘Ski Capital of the East’, Stowe is the premiere destination for skiers and snowboarders on the East Coast. Boasting two spectacular mountains including Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak, Stowe Mountain Resort is home to one of the best ski and snowboard schools in the country, terrain park and half pipe, and the famous ‘front four’ black diamond runs on the face of Mount Mansfield-- the tallest peak in Vermont.
Located in the heart of Stowe Mountain Resort, Stowe Mountain Lodge boasts ski-in/ski-out access to both Spruce Peak and Mount Mansfield while providing guests with the ultimate in luxurious slope side accommodations.

US households are expected to spend an average of $384 on Christmas gifts this holiday season, slightly less than last year’s estimate of $390, The Conference Board reports today. New England had by far the highest average of any
The survey of Christmas gift spending intentions covers a nationally representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. It was conducted for The Conference Board in November by TNS, the world’s largest custom research company.
‘Consumers are approaching the holiday season in a somewhat cautious mood,’ says Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. ‘However, with retailers already enticing consumers with markdowns and bargains, this season could very well match, perhaps even surpass, last year’s.’
(Click here for complete survey data or see below.)

At its recent breakfast celebration and awards ceremony (November 18th - Sunset Ballroom, Burlington) for the Northwest Region (Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle Counties), the Vermont Small Business Development Center (VtSBDC) announced the following winners in five categories. Ted Brady from Senator Patrick Leahy’s office and Brent Raymond from Congressman Peter Welch’s office, along with Steve Densham, Area Business Advisor with VtSBDC presented the awards to:
1. ‘Young Entrepreneurs’ - Eric Lavigne and Dana Pontbriand
VT Meat & Seafood Market - Williston, VT - Offering:
Fresh Local Organic Meats, Fresh Seafood - from Boston, Local Produce - from around VT, Specialty Roasts & Marinated Meats and Local Breads & Cheeses
2. ‘Social Responsibility’ - Janice Shade
True Body Products - Richmond, VT - Mission to make products that:
Contribute to a healthy lifestyle: are manufactured, packaged, marketed, distributed,

The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled that a Vermont law restricting the commercial use of information relating to physician prescribing patterns is unconstitutional. Judge John G Koeltl wrote the majority opinion overturning an April 2009 US District Court decision, concluding the Vermont law ‘is a commercial speech restriction that does not directly advance the substantial state interests asserted by Vermont.’
The federal appeals court ruled in favor of IMS Health, SDI and Source Healthcare Analytics, three leading health information companies that jointly filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent Vermont from enforcing the state law enacted in July 2009.