Current News
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The Vermont Telecommunications Authority (VTA) announced today its intention to fund a multi-provider fiber communications link between Newport and Hardwick. VTA funds in the amount of $500,000 for construction of the fiber link were authorized in Act 53 of the 2011-2012 legislative session. VTA intends to ensure that the design of the proposed facility will include fiber strands which can be used for middle-mile and last-mile broadband purposes, as called for in the authorizing legislation.
‘The VTA has received strong expression of community support for the expansion of fiber optic facilities in the Northeast Kingdom,’ said VTA Executive Director Christopher Campbell. ‘This project will connect and extend existing and planned fiber networks in one of Vermont’s most rural regions.’
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Expanding broadband Internet coverage in Vermont could lead to the creation of thousands of new jobs, according to a new report from the Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) industries.
The STUDY, ‘Economic Benefits of Broadband Expansion in Northern New England,’ measures three economic impacts ‘ share of GDP, share of employment, and compensation per worker. The study’s authors note that an increase in broadband access of just 7 percent would stimulate nearly $275 million in economic growth and create or save more than 5,200 jobs in Vermont.
‘Broadband access is such a major part of our lives and is vital to businesses operating successfully in the 21st century,’ said Economist Scott Moody, a co-author of the report. ‘The facts are clear, increased broadband access means more jobs for Vermonters.’
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The Agency of Administration is hosting four listening sessions across Vermont to help inform the design of future health care reform financing plans. These sessions will include presentations on the challenges facing Vermont’s health care system, possible principles for a health care financing system, and an overview of potential funding sources.
Participants will use these informational presentations and their own experiences to offer input on the potential principles and funding sources for health care reform financing.
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About 12,000 CVPS customers are without power this morning. Heavy wet snow began building up and bringing down trees, tree limbs and lines primarily in Windham and Windsor counties around 4:30 a.m. A large transmission fault occurred at about 7 am, affecting more than 5,500 customers. Crews are working to sectionalize that problem, and restore power to those customers within the hour. The storm is expected to continue until early this afternoon, so we may also see additional outages this morning.
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AM Best Co has upgraded the issuer credit ratings (ICR) to ‘a+’ from ‘a’ and affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) of National Life Insurance Company (NLIC) (Montpelier, VT) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Life Insurance Company of the Southwest (Dallas, TX) (together known as National Life). These companies are the insurance subsidiaries of NLV Financial Corporation (NLVF) (Montpelier, VT), which is the intermediate holding company in the organization’s mutual holding company structure. Concurrently, A.M. Best has upgraded the ICR and senior debt ratings to ‘bbb+ from ‘bbb’ of NLVF. AM Best also has upgraded the debt rating to ‘a-’ from ‘bbb+’ on NLIC’s $200 million 10.50% surplus notes, due 2039. The outlook for the FSR is stable, while the outlook for the ICRs and debt has been revised to stable from positive. (See below for a detailed listing of NLVF’s debt ratings.)
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MVP Health Care and Vermont Managed Care have entered into an innovative partnership to provide Vermont residents with "Vermont First," a unique approach to deliver high quality care through a Vermont focused network of providers.
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While in the midst of rebuilding their flagship facility in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene and the most destructive flooding to Vermont in nearly a century, Simon Pearce introduced a limited-edition Commemorative Barre Tealight to raise money for Vermont flood relief. A total of 4,566 tealights were sold in a month and a half span, raising $91,320 for the American Red Cross of Vermont & the New Hampshire Valley.
The tealight, retailing for $40, was sold at SimonPearce.com and all eight Simon Pearce retail locations with Simon Pearce donating $20 of each sale to support both Red Cross flood relief and to help bring a model of community sheltering to the region that will serve the people of Vermont for years to come. Each tealight was engraved with ‘VT 8-28-11,’ the date Tropical Storm Irene swept through Vermont.
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Associated Industries of Vermont, with the support of several state and regional business organizations, will host a series of special briefings to help Vermont employers learn about how the state's new health care laws will impact your insurance choices in the coming years, and what you can do to weigh in on these changes and the choices being made for the state. The briefings will focus on the state's implementation of federal reforms and look to the intended implementation of single payer healthcare. Presentations will be made by insurance reform experts Susan Gretkowski and Heidi Tringe of MacLean Meehan and Rice, LLC.
Events currently scheduled:
· November 29, St. Albans, Chow! Bella Restaurant, 8:00 am to 10:30 am
· November 30, Montpelier, Capitol Plaza Hotel, 9:00 am to 11:30 am (8:30 registration)
· December 7, Rutland, College of St. Joseph, 9:00 am to 11:30 am (8:30 registration)
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The US Department of Transportation will release $15 million in emergency funds to help Vermont rebuild and repair roads and bridges destroyed or damaged by floods, Vermont’s congressional delegation announced today.
The Federal Highway Administration emergency grant includes $14 million for repairing damage caused last August by Tropical Storm Irene, according to Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.).
Another $1 million will help cover repair costs for highways and bridges washed out during heavy spring flooding.
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A strong spawning run has brought large numbers of landlocked Atlantic salmon from Lake Champlain into the Winooski River this fall. During the eight week season that ended on November 10, 189 salmon were collected in the fish lift at the Winooski One hydro-electric facility.
"This has been the best year we've had since the lift began operating in 1993," says Nick Staats, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fishery biologist who is monitoring the salmon run in cooperation with the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. "It's a 44% increase over last year's record 130 fish, and it's a positive sign that sea lamprey control efforts on Lake Champlain are paying off."
Biologist Nick Staats with a salmon trapped at the Winooski One Hydro-electric dam. The largest salmon caught at the dam during the fall 2011 season was 28.5 inches long.
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State Treasurer Beth Pearce, legislative leadership, and the Shumlin administration today announced a package of measures that will accelerate highway aid and education payments and allow disaster-impacted towns to defer education payments due to the State on December 1.
‘A key to Vermont’s successful recovery from the disasters that have struck is the ongoing partnership between State and municipal governments,’ said State Treasurer Beth Pearce. ‘The package we are announcing today recognizes that Vermont towns do not stand alone as they work to rebuild. We must continue to exercise flexibility in our financial planning to provide impacted communities with the help needed to fully recover.’
The financial package includes:
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NRG Systems, manufacturer of measurement systems for the renewable energy industry has agreed to invest in Oenko, a manufacturer and installer of lattice towers for wind resource assessment and wind farm monitoring. This investment pairs NRG Systems’ nearly 30 years in the wind energy industry and its complete system approach with Oenko’s cutting-edge lattice tower technology.
‘This line of lattice towers complements our existing tower offerings,’ said Barton Merle-Smith, Director of Marketing and Sales. ‘Our investment enables us to offer customers greater choice in towers, booms and mounting hardware ‘ meeting the full range of customer needs anywhere in the world.’