Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Today Comcast announced that across Vermont, Xfinity Internet customers woke up to 50% to 100% faster upload speeds, as well as faster download speeds, all at no additional cost. Xfinity Internet tiers, and the NOW branded prepaid products, will benefit from 50 to 100 percent faster upload speeds than before, helping customers upload large files in a flash when working from home or posting videos to social media in seconds. Download speeds will also increase for most Internet tiers.

by Ed Fox, VTRGA Vermont has an opportunity this legislative session to pass comprehensive data privacy legislation which strikes a responsible balance between protecting consumer data and ensuring businesses and nonprofits can continue to thrive. The introduction of a common-sense data privacy bill by Senator Thomas Chittenden, with bipartisan cosponsors including both the Senate Majority and Senate Minority Leaders, represents a thoughtful, regionally compatible approach—one that safeguards personal information while fostering economic stability.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development, Energy, and Credit, joined Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) in reintroducing the bipartisan Farm Ownership Improvement Act. This bill will help producers compete in the farm real estate market by launching a pilot program for a pre-approval or pre-qualification process for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Direct Farm Ownership loans. 

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Secretary of Administration Sarah Clark today released Vermont’s revenue results for January 2025. The General Fund and Education Fund exceeded their respective monthly consensus cash flow target, corresponding to the annual consensus forecasts as adopted by the Emergency Board at its July 2024 meeting, while the Transportation Fund failed to meet its target. The GF was led by vital Personal Income results, which had slumped in the last couple of months. Corporate revenues also had a strong month. The tax season can offer uneven data. Meanwhile, the consumption revenues also rebounded, with the Sales and Meals & Rooms taxes both exceeding their projections. The Transportation Fund results were down, including the Gasoline and Diesel taxes, offset by an increase in auto sales.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported last week that the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations are down. Hospitalizations fell to just under 5 after a spike in January. Likewise wastewater testing indicates that virus levels fell steeply also after a spike, especially in Montpelier, but also at most test sites. The Vermont pandemic death total stands at 1,278 as of March 6, 2025, an increase of 2 from the previous week (the most recent data available from the CDC). 

Vermont Business Magazine Building on three decades of collaboration, Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CWST), a regional solid waste, recycling, and resource management services company and the University of Vermont, an R1 research institution, announced that they are partnering to launch the Casella Center for Circular Economy and Sustainability at UVM. Casella has committed $1.5 million to launch the Center, which will bring together leading scientists, engineers, and materials management experts to serve as an industry-first interdisciplinary hub for research, workshops, and lectures on sustainable waste and materials management, resource solutions, climate leadership, and community engagement. This is the first research center that Casella has launched.

Vermont Business Magazine Northeast Delta Dental Foundation announced it supported 59 tri-state organizations with $794,450 in grants in 2024. Initiatives chosen supported a variety of oral health categories including Community Health Centers of the Rutland Region as well as funding for other dental clinics, in-school programs, scholarships, research, education, recruitment and events. Vermont was able to expand its oral health initiatives with several Foundation grants, including a donation of $25,000 to Community Health Centers of the Rutland Region (see image below) to purchase a 3D X-ray machine. The organization serves 9,000 adults and children. The Foundation also granted funds to People’s Health and Wellness Clinic, which provides services to underrepresented populations. 

Vermont Business Magazine On Monday, March 17, the West Ridge Center, a Rutland Regional Medical Center specialized clinic for recovery and addiction, will kick off an Open Access Model for admissions. The Open Access Model is designed to improve access and reduce wait times for individuals seeking support for their opioid use disorder (OUD). Currently, the West Ridge Center treats between 350-425 patients daily. With the recent addition of a nurse practitioner and the new Open Access Model, the West Ridge staff can provide treatment for patients when they are ready to receive help. Under the new Open Access Model, patients will be seen Monday through Friday from 6am to 11am and can expect to spend approximately two hours for a full assessment by clinical staff.

Vermont Business Magazine A trip to the local Emergency Department (ED) with a child can be a high stress situation for any parent. And while the ED care team at University of Vermont Health Network – Central Vermont Medical Center can’t erase parents’ anxiety completely, the group’s recent participation in a statewide initiative focused on improving pediatric readiness earned them accolades for the care and clinical management they provide to the hospital’s youngest patients. The Always Ready for Children program is a collaboration of Vermont Department of Health, Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) and Vermont Child Health Improvement Program (VCHIP).

by Devon Green, VP of Government Relations, VAHHS Since the legislators were all out of town last week, we’re taking a break from our regularly scheduled Legislative Update to highlight a recent report from The Pew Charitable Trusts and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Vermont was spotlighted as a leader in suicide prevention, including the Vermont Emergency Department Suicide Prevention Quality Improvement Initiative, spearheaded by the Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott issued a proclamation recognizing March as Red Cross Month to honor the compassion and dedication of people who serve communities throughout Vermont. “March is American Red Cross Month, a special time to honor the kindness of our neighbors who aid families in need every day in Vermont, across the United States, and around the world and their dedication touches millions of lives each year as they carry out the organization’s 143-year mission of preventing and alleviating suffering in the face of emergencies,” Scott said in the proclamation. “Thanks to the statewide community of volunteers and partners through the American Red Cross, people in Vermont facing a disaster can meet their basic emergency needs, including having access to safe shelter, food, and critical health and mental health services, for free, day or night.”

Vermont Business Magazine Amy Stoll, Pharm.D., MPH, CDCES, BCACP, who serves as a Clinical Pharmacist at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont since 2021, is the recipient of the “2025 Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year Award” from the Vermont Pharmacists Association in recognition of her active participation in the association, volunteering in her community, and supporting providers with clinical decision making.