Current News

by Ed Barna Back in 1993, state legislators approved the ‘Mack Molding Bill,’ which created incentives to help keep the company expanding in Vermont rather than crossing the line and accepting offers from New York State.
Eight years later, Mack still matters, especially to Bennington County, where it maintains a major plant in Arlington. As a contract manufacturer, the company does much more than manufacturing’design, engineering, prototyping and testing are among their services’a versatility that has helped establish them as a presence in the industrial, transportation, computer, business equipment, medical, consumer and energy/environmental markets.

Where you live in the US makes a big difference in the level of health coverage assistance your children can receive from government-sponsored programs, according to the Foundation for Health Coverage Education (FHCE).Responding to reports that 1 in 6 children in the U.S. is uninsured, the non-profit (www.CoverageForAll.org), whose mission is to educate the uninsured, has ranked states by their Children's Health Insurance Programs' maximum income limits that would allow their children to be eligible for free or low-cost coverage.

With Vermonters preparing their tax returns, US Representative Peter Welch today traveled to Waterbury to outline federal tax relief available to Vermont individuals and businesses affected by Tropical Storm Irene.
‘Irene caused catastrophic damage to many Vermont homes and businesses,’ Welch said. ‘As Vermonters continue working to get back on their feet, they should know there is federal tax relief available to them that may help lessen the burden.’
At the home of Carrie Beck ‘ which sustained damage during Tropical Storm Irene ‘ Welch outlined a number of federal tax relief provisions for which Vermonters affected by Irene may qualify. These include:
· Individuals and businesses that sustained damage may be eligible to deduct storm-related losses from their income tax returns
· Taxpayers who reside or have a business in a disaster area may be eligible for extended deadlines from the IRS

800response, the Burlington, Vermont headquartered provider of vanity 800 numbers and web-basedcall tracking, announced today that its employees have collectively pledged to donate $4,000 to the United Way of Chittenden County throughout 2012.
Every year the company has a representative from the United Way of Chittenden County visit the offices to work with employees and teach them the overwhelming value that even a small donation will make over the course of the year. ‘Everyone at 800response takes pride in being a Vermonter. We’ve been supporting the United Way for over ten years, and are continuing with our dedication to make contributions to the lives of our neighbors and their families,’ says Laura Noonan vice president of marketing and corporate communications at800response.

People's United Bank, subsidiary of People's United Financial, Inc. (Nasdaq: PBCT), announced today it is launching a new marketing and advertising campaign based on research conducted with customers, employees and other stakeholders. The campaign highlights the traits of ‘empathy’ and ‘expertise’ that, as the market research demonstrated, characterize People’s United among its constituents.

The bank is unveiling the new brand messaging on Feb. 5 in a television commercial directed by Academy Award-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. The first of two advertisements will debut on NBC networks across New England during Super Bowl XLVI. They will feature the new People’s United tagline:What know-how can doSM.

Copley Health Systems announced it has received a $400,000 gift from the estate of Barbara Stevens. A long time volunteer at the hospital, Stevens had named Copley as a residual beneficiary of her estate. The gift will be used to support the hospital’s charitable care program. Copley Hospital provided more than $1 million in charitable care last year, and saw a 31 percent increase in the number of charitable care visits.
‘Barbara was very vested in the hospital and she understood how important the hospital is to the community,’ said Dot Reeve, Stevens’ niece. ‘Her many years of volunteer work at Copley and with the Copley Hospital Auxiliary exemplified her interest in keeping the hospital and our community healthy.’

Governor Peter Shumlin and legislative leaders today announced the inclusion of a "bronze plan" and a proposal to allow businesses with more than 50 employers to remain outside the Exchange until 2016. The governor, Senate President Pro Tem John Campbell and House Speaker Shap Smith made the announcement Monday, February 6.
‘Vermont is creating the first single payer plan in America that will make health care a right and not a privilege, contain costs and make Vermont the affordable health care state,’ Shumlin said. ‘Our goal is to have as much choice in the exchange as federal law allows, allowing Vermont employers to shop for health care there.’

The median income of married Vermont tax filers rose to $66,598 in 2010, the first inflation-adjusted increase since 2007, according to The Vermont Economy Newsletter’s analysis of just-released Vermont Tax Department data. After adjusting for inflation, median family income rose by 0.9%. Fifty percent of families earn more than the median and fifty percent earn less.
‘This is the first time since the recession that the median family income in Vermont has increased,’ noted Art Woolf, co-author of the study and editor of The Vermont Economy Newsletter. ‘During the recession real median income fell by 4.6%, so we are not yet back to pre-recession levels,’ noted Woolf.

Senator Patrick Leahy (D), Senator Bernie Sanders (I) and Representative Peter Welch (D) Friday announced that Vermont nonprofit housing assistance organizations will receive $1.2 million to help inform Vermonters about homeownership, preserve and develop affordable rental housing, and counsel homeowners facing foreclosure or the aftermath of Irene.
The federal NeighborWorks America program is awarding five competitive federal grants to Vermont’s NeighborWorks affiliates:
· Central Vermont Community Land Trust-- $81,075
(Serving Washington, Lamoille, Orange Counties)
· Champlain Housing Trust -- $395,430
(Serving Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle Counties)
· Gilman Housing Trust -- $185,700
(Serving Caledonian, Essex and Orleans Counties)
· NeighborWorks of Western Vermont -- $291,650
(Serving Addison, Bennington and Rutland Counties)

The School of Business Administration Dean’s Leadership Speaker Series is proud to welcome Co-Founder and Former CEO of Seventh Generation Jeffrey Hollender on Wednesday, Feb 15 at 11:45 am in the Livak Ballroom of the Davis Center.
Hollender is a leading authority on corporate responsibility, sustainability and social equity. He is the co-founder of Seventh Generation, a leading natural product brand known for authenticity, transparency and progressive practices. Seventh Generation was established in 1988 in Burlington, Vt. and remains an independent, privately held company distributing products to natural food stores, supermarkets, mass merchants and online retailers in both the US and Canada.
Hollender is also the founder of Jeffrey Hollender Partners, a business strategy consulting firm. He considers himself a "born entrepreneur."

Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss this afternoon issued the City’s March ballot warning which included a question related to the downtown TIF (Tax Increment Financing) district. It was the subject of a special Council meeting earlier today, where, with 10 of 14 Council members present and voting, the Council unanimously passed a resolution requesting that the TIF question be removed from the ballot.The ballot question was placed on the March 6, 2012, Town Meeting Day ballot by unanimous vote of the City Council on December 5, 2011.While the council still supports the TIF, recent problems with Milton's TIF have led councilors to believe that voters will turn down Burlington's request. They want to wait to give the city time to strengthen its case before the public. Kiss does not want to wait.
Kiss issued the following statement in conjunction with the TIF ballot item:

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Congressman Peter Welch (D) ‘ announced Friday that grants to nine Vermont agricultural producers, totaling $857,542, will support the agricultural innovation that is helping to shape Vermont’s economic future. The grants were awarded under a competitive process through the US Department of Agriculture Rural Development’s Value-Added Producer Grant program.Grants to creameries in East Hardwick and North Ferrisburgh are for $300,000 each.