Current News

Governor Peter Shumlin and the Vermont State Employees Association announced today that they have reached tentative agreements on labor contracts covering three bargaining units: Corrections, Supervisory and Non-Management Units. These agreements are subject to ratification by the VSEA membership and cover a two-year period, from July 2012 to June 2014.
Under the terms of the contracts, state employees will receive a 2 percent increase in July 2012 and an additional 2 percent increase in July 2013. In accordance with the contract now in place, the 3 percent decrease in compensation taken by state employees for the 2011-2012 fiscal years will be restored at the end of June 2012. In addition, previously ‘frozen’ step movement will resume in July 2012.

At the Good Samaritan Haven, Representative Peter Welch (D-VT) today announced bipartisan legislation to help rural states like Vermont secure additional funding to fight homelessness. Welch is introducing the bill with Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY).
Welch’s bill (HR 3141) would increase federal funding to Vermont for the federal Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) program. Established in 1990, PATH provides funding for local efforts to help homeless, mentally ill Vermonters and those at risk of becoming homeless.

There were 1,250 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance last week, as claims remain at a high level post Tropical Storm Irene. However, new claims decreased of 111 from the week before. Last summer's historically low claims came to an abrupt end with the storm. The numbers then dropped signifcantly in the following weeks after the storm, but in the last several weeks there has been mostly an increase in the number of new claims. The latest numbers are more than double the initial claims observed in July and August.

Central Vermont Medical Center (CVMC) and Fletcher Allen Health Care, now affiliated as Fletcher Allen Partners (FAP), recently made a significant step in sharing resources while improving patient care without the need for transporting the patient to Burlington.
Intensivists, Dr. Gil Allen and Dr. Ryan Clouser, located at Fletcher Allen in Burlington, were able to consult with Dr. Craig from The Health Center in Plainfield while he was at the bedside of a patient in CVMC’s intensive care unit by means of a roving telemedicine unit. Intensivists are physicians with specialized training in critical-care medicine who care for patients in intensive care units.

Governor Peter Shumlin announced today that Verizon Wireless recently activated a new cell site in Warren that expands wireless voice and 3G data coverage at Sugarbush Resort and the town of Warren, as well as the surrounding areas. The company invested in Washington County to continue to stay ahead of increasing demand for reliable voice and mobile Internet access, moving the state closer to the Governor’s goal of statewide service by the end of 2013.

Larry Sudbay, President and Chief Executive Officer of SymQuest® Group, the region’s leading provider of network and document technology solutions and services, is pleased to announce the winner of the fifth SymPowered Office $25,000 Makeover is the Vermont Center for Independent Living.

Vermont is the beneficiary of more than $500,000 in federal funding to improve health care and education in the northern part of the state. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Thrusday that 100 recipients in 34 states and one territory will receive $30,172,507 to improve access to health care and educational services in rural areas. Funding is provided through the USDA Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Program. The announcement included a $499,870 grant to North Country Supervisory Union in Newport, VT and an $84,141 grant to Orleans-Essex VNA & Hospice also in Newport.

The US Small Business Administration has announced that federal economic injury disaster loans are available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private non-profit organizations of all sizes located in Addison, Bennington, Chittenden, Grand Isle and Rutland counties in Vermont as a result of the effects of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee that occurred from Aug. 27 through Sept. 15, 2011.
"These counties are eligible because they are contiguous to one or more primary counties in New York. The Small Business Administration recognizes that disasters do not usually stop at county or state lines. For that reason, counties adjacent to primary counties named in the declaration are included," said Frank Skaggs, director of SBA's Field Operations Center East in Atlanta.

Sarah London, an Assistant Attorney General in the Public Protection Division who has focused on consumer protection and antitrust efforts, will become Gov. Peter Shumlin’s legal counsel. London replaces former Counsel Beth Robinson, who resigned to take a seat on the Vermont Supreme Court.
‘I am proud to welcome Sarah to my staff and am excited to start working with her. Sarah is an exceptional lawyer who understands the legislative process, has great judgment and will be a pleasure to work with,’ the Governor said. ‘I know she will be missed at the Attorney General’s office and I appreciate Attorney General Sorrell giving Sarah his blessing to join our office.’
As legal counsel, London will provide guidance to the Governor and his administration, spearhead Gov. Shumlin’s transparency-in-government agenda, work with lawmakers on key legislation, and more. London will officially step into the new position on Jan. 3.

Only three months after Southern Vermont endured its worst natural disaster in decades, Mount Snow Resort managed to complete more than $9 million in capital improvements including the installation of the Bluebird Express; the only high speed detachable six passenger bubble lift in North America, which will whisk guests to the mountain's 3,600' summit for the first time this Saturday, December 10 at 9:00am. The resort has a full schedule of festivities planned to celebrate the occasion including a blueberry pancake breakfast, ribbon cutting ceremony, VIP speakers and a lift line party.

People’s United Bank recently presented a $25,000 check to John R. Killacky, Executive Director of Flynn Center for the Performing Arts in Burlington, Vermont.

The Walter Cerf Community Fund, a component fund of the Vermont Community Foundation, announced 2011 grant awards totaling $115,823 to 40 organizations. Since 2001, the fund has made grants to organizations located in Addison
County or Brandon, or that have a statewide reach and make a unique contribution to Vermont. Priority interests are the arts, education, historic preservation, and social services, reflecting the pattern of giving established by Walter Cerf during his lifetime.
Cerf, a native of Germany who made Leicester, Vermont his home in his later years, gave more than $10 million to organizations and projects in Vermont before passing away in 2001. Cerf focused much of his giving within his community of Addison County and Brandon; grants from the Walter Cerf Community Fund reflect that focus, with two-thirds of the grants reserved for Addison County/Brandon projects and one-third reserved for statewide projects. Each grant awards up to $5,000.