Current News
by tim
US Senator Patrick Leahy (D) and the US Army Corps of Engineers Tuesday announced plans to move forward with $1.65 million in storm water management projects in South Burlington.The Corps and the City of South Burlington have signed an agreement to develop the projects, which are authorized under a Leahy program enacted in 2000 to forge and help finance local-federal partnerships to ease local drainage problems and help achieve compliance with Vermont water quality rules, by reducing polluted runoff from developed areas reaching Lake Champlain and its tributaries.
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Approximately $25 million in State of Vermont Citizen Bonds will be offered for sale on March 5. This offering is part of a larger bond sale that was scheduled for last October, but postponed shortly after Tropical Storm Irene caused widespread destruction in the state. The opportunity to purchase the general obligation bonds will be made available first to Vermont residents and businesses. Previous Vermont Citizen Bond offerings have sold out in a matter of hours.
‘After Irene, it made sense to postpone the bond sale so that the State could more thoroughly assess the impacts and costs related to the storm damage,’ said State Treasurer Beth Pearce. ‘Since then, the municipal bond interest rates have fallen and we expect to lock in some of the lowest borrowing costs in Vermont’s history.’
by tim
by Anne Galloway vtdigger.orgEntergy Corp filed a motion with the US District Court on Friday to recover $4.6 million in legal fees for its lawsuit against the state.
The Louisiana company prevailed in federal court on January 20 when Judge J. Garvan Murtha struck down two state laws that required Entergy to seek approval from the Legislature to continue operating Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant past its 40-year anniversary and to store high level nuclear waste at the plant site.
The state has 30 days to appeal the decision.
Entergy says it is entitled to an award of attorneys’ fees because it also prevailed on its claim under the Commerce Clause.
Chanel Lagarde, spokesman for Entergy, said in a written statement that ‘the law allows for the prevailing party to seek recovery of attorney’s fees.’
by tim
Gossens Bachman Architects in conjunction with Housing Vermont and the Rockingham Community Area Land Trust were recently recognized by the John M. Clancy Award for Socially Responsible Housing for the transformation of the historical NAMCO Block in Windsor, Vermont.
The John M Clancy Award for Socially Responsible Housing was established in 2004. The intent of the John Clancy Award for Socially Responsible Housing is to recognize and encourage excellence in the planning, design, construction and maintenance of socially responsible urban housing by honoring an organization, a group, or an individual who has been a major force behind one or more built housing developments characterized by excellence in planning, design and construction.
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Six New England communities will benefit from EPA technical assistance through the ‘Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities’ program. The communities, Simsbury, Conn., Fall River, Holyoke, Northampton and Roxbury, Mass., and Burlington, Vt. were among 56 communities in 26 states that will receive technical assistance under this program.
Each community will receive the assistance from EPA-funded private-sector experts. The technical experts will work with the communities on actions they can take to improve the economy, the environment, and quality of life. Some examples may include improving pedestrian access and safety, incorporating green infrastructure, or conducting an economic and fiscal health assessment.
by tim
NCO Financial Systems, Inc., a subsidiary of NCO Group, Inc, a provider of business process outsourcing services, announced that it has signed Assurance of Voluntary Compliance agreements (collectively, the "AVC") with the following States:Alaska,Arkansas,Idaho,Illinois,Iowa,Kentucky,Louisiana,Michigan,Nebraska,Nevada,New Mexico,North Carolina,North Dakota,Ohio,Oregon,Rhode Island,South Carolina,Vermont, andWisconsin(collectively, the "Multi-State Group").
by tim
Ledyard Financial Group, Inc. (ticker symbol LFGP), the holding company for Ledyard National Bank, today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2011. Net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, was $690,277, or $0.67 per share compared to $601,853 or $0.59 per share for the same period in 2010, an increase of $88,424 or 14.69%. Net income for the twelve months ended December 31, 2011, was $2,609,013, or $2.53 per share compared to $2,528,888, or $2.47 per share for the same period in 2010, an increase of $80,124 or 3.17%. The Company continues to be impacted by a slowdown in lending activity due to general economic conditions. In addition, the fourth quarter results in 2011 were impacted by an addition to the allowance for loan losses (’Allowance’), increased expenses associated with non-performing loans, and the charge off noted below relating to a single loan taken this quarter.
by tim
The Clark Group, a national environmental consulting and government affairs firm, with offices in Montpelier, VT and Washington, DC, announced today that it has been awarded a $34 million blanket purchase agreement to provide the EPA with technical, analytical and outreach assistance to the national ENERGY STAR® program in the Commercial, Institutional, and Industrial (CI&I) sectors.
The Clark Group's partners on this contract are two Vermont-based, non-profit organizations with unparalleled experience in energy efficiency program design, analytics, and implementation: the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC) located in Burlington, VT, and the Institute for Energy and the Environment (IEE), located at the Vermont Law School in South Royalton, VT. VEIC is widely known for its management of Efficiency Vermont, the nation's first energy efficiency utility.
by tim
Green Mountain Power and Central Vermont Public Service have launched a new website, www.gmpcvpsmerger.com, packed with information on the pending merger of the companies.
The joint GMP-CVPS site contains important information for customers, including the package of merger benefits, as well as a calendar highlighting the rigorous state and federal regulatory approval process now under way.
The site includes status updates on all the required approvals necessary for the sale of CVPS to GMP parent, Gaz Metro Limited Partnership, and the merger of the two Vermont utilities. So far, five of the 10 necessary approvals have been received or waived, including approvals from CVPS shareholders, the U.S. Department of Justice, and other states in the region.
by tim
Statewide assessment results for Fall 2011 were released by the Vermont Department of Education today at a press conference held in Montpelier. The results are from the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) exams, given to Vermont public school students in grades three through eight and grade 11. Students are tested in Reading and Mathematics. Writing is assessed at grades 5, 8, and 11. Science is given in grades 4, 8 and 11 each spring.
The following table illustrates the percent of Vermont students proficient in the content area by grade span:
Grade Level
Reading
Math
Elementary/Middle School (3-8)
74%
65%
High School (11)
73%
36%
Grade Level
Writing
Science*
Elementary School
54%
53%
Middle School
59%
29%
High School
48%
30%
*Science assessed in May 2011
by tim
Joe Perrotto, President and CEO of Country Home Products (CHP), today announced the spin-off of its Sunward solar hot water division. The new company -- Sunward Systems, LLC -- will continue to offer residential solar hot water systems and be headquartered in Vergennes.
‘Development of a solar hot water product line has been a great experience for CHP,’ said Perrotto. ‘Sunward sales grew by over 50% last year and it has become Vermont’s most popular brand of solar hot water system. But that growth was not in the sales channels we anticipated, and the more Sunward grows the more it will conflict with our core brand -- DR Power Equipment.’
Sunward Systems LLC will be located in lower level of 75 Meigs Road in Vergennes.
‘In most cases existing customers won’t notice the transition,’ said Perrotto. ‘This is a win-win. CHP and Sunward Systems will focus on what they each know best, and customers will reap the benefits.’
by tim
Vermont State Auditor Tom Salmon, CPA, CFE, today released the results of an audit that looked at how the state ensures that it does not pay Medicaid funds to providers that owe state taxes.
The Medicaid program is the largest human services program in Vermont. In fiscal year 2011, about $1.27 billion was spent on Vermont’s Medicaid program with about $412 million coming from state funds.
The Department of Taxes reported that in October 2011, about $130 million in taxes owed to them was more than 60 days overdue. Our audit addressed the question of whether any of these back taxes might be owed by Medicaid providers who would have the potential to receive state funds while owing the state money.
The audit found 68 Medicaid providers that owed a total of about $360,000 in state taxes was delinquent more than 60 days. These were a mix of provider types, including physicians, durable medical equipment suppliers, and pharmacies.