Current News

Governor Peter Shumlin said today that the Vermont State Hospital in Waterbury, which was closed following Tropical Storm Irene, will not re-open, and outlined his plan to ensure Vermont’s mental health community has access to quality services across the state.
The plan includes acute in-patient care in at least two locations, increased services that enable individuals to remain in their communities, expanded local emergency services, and increased support for effective programs helping those with mental health conditions. The governor said these improvements would be monitored and evaluated, and discussions about a long-term plan will continue, and acknowledged the need to talk about other inpatient capacity.

Bavarian goodness continues to spread throughout the New England and Upstate New York areas. Ehrmann USA, LLC, with a manufacturing plant in Brattleboro, Vermont, has announced that its All Natural Bavarian Lowfat Yogurt, which hit US dairy aisles only a few weeks ago, is now available in more than 500 stores throughout New England and Upstate New York. Shaw's, Price Chopper, Hannaford, and Tops are the primary store locations in New England and Upstate New York now selling Ehrmann, one of Europe's leading yogurts.
A beloved family recipe with Bavarian roots, Ehrmann Yogurt is now made fresh in Brattleboro using state-of-the-art manufacturing technology to deliver one of the creamiest and purest lowfat yogurts available in America today. A portion of net profits from the sale of the products are donated to the milk farmers.

In the last three months, both Democrats and Republicans have sponsored Federal legislation to compel online retailers to collect sales and use tax and several states have moved forward with their own legislation, including Vermont, based on a review of online nexus rules by CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business and the leading global provider of tax, accounting and audit information, software and services (CCHGroup.com).
"Whether legislatively compelled at the Federal or state level or through online retailers seeing it as inevitable, the trend is moving toward more online retailers collecting sales and use taxes," said Daniel Schibley, JD, CCH Senior State Tax Analyst. "While it may not have significant implications for this holiday tax season, consumers should be prepared to start seeing sales tax collected on more and more of their online purchases in the years ahead as cash-strapped states look for more revenue sources."

Dr Pramodita Sharma, the Sanders Professor at the University of Vermont, will be making her first Vermont appearance on Thursday, October 27, to discuss the ‘Role of Entrepreneurialism in Sustaining Family Enterprises.’ Her research on the succession processes, governance, and dynamics underlying family firms has been recognized by several international organizations, while her latest co-authored book titled "Entrepreneurial Family Firms" is used in family business courses around the world and is being translated into Mandarin and Greek.

Vermont radio and television stations, including cable and satellite TV systems, will participate in the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on Wednesday, November 9. The test, originating from Washington, D.C., will begin at approximately 2:00 p.m. Eastern and will last for about 3-1/2 minutes.
During the test, the public will hear a message indicating that "This is a test." The audio message will be the same for radio, television, and cable TV. However, television viewers will see a ‘text crawl’ at the top of their TV screens that says, ‘The Primary Entry Point has issued an Emergency Action Notification for Washington, D.C., until 2:15 p.m.’ TV viewers may or may not see other on-screen text indicating that the alert is a test. Viewers should rest assured, however, that this is only a test.

Green Mountain College announced today that it is enhancing its current commitment to assisting families paying for a GMC education by mounting an ambitious multi-year affordability plan. The plan addresses: academic merit scholarships, Make-a-Difference scholarships (a scholarship program that rewards students who engage in community service projects), and need-based grants to attract the most motivated and prepared students.
The College will implement the plan beginning this spring (January) for new students and continue with entering students in fall 2012. All of the affordability strategies being implemented are designed to assist in lowering the average debt for all graduating students.

The Vermont Attorney General’s Office has entered into an Assurance of Discontinuance filed in Washington Superior Court, with Subaru of Keene owner William Fenton. In 2010 Subaru of Keene ran radio and newspaper ads offering Vermont consumers the opportunity to buy at ‘employee prices’ and to ‘pay what the dealer pays’.
An Attorney General investigation discovered that there was no employee pricing and employees and consumers negotiated the sales price of their car with no special employee or dealer reductions. The dealer also did not disclose the dealer rebate received on car sales.
‘Dealers that falsely advertise to lure consumers mislead consumers and also steal business from dealers that follow the rules,’ said Attorney General William H. Sorrell. ‘Consumers need to question advertising and make sure they understand the true cost of a vehicle to the dealer, including dealer rebates.’

Darn Tough Vermont, domestic manufacturer of premium all-weather performance socks, is smashing growth projections set earlier this year. Last February, Darn Tough Vermont announced it was hiring more employees and increasing its knitting machine inventory by nearly 50 percent. After second-quarter assessments, the sock maker says it is investing an additional $400,000 into its hosiery mill this year, most of which will be allocated for more Italian-made seamless knitting machines, the most sophisticated seamless knitting machines available. The company also expects to continue adding jobs.

Technology Park announced today that Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc has made the decision to lease additional space at the 177-acre Technology Park corporate campus in South Burlington, Vermont. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc will lease approximately 22,000 square feet of office space in an existing LEED certified Class A commercial office building at 55 Community Drive.
In addition, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. has also leased 8,632 square feet at 30 Community Drive also within Technology Park for a new data center. This 275,000 square foot building is ideally suited to hosting data center operations due to redundant power fed through an onsite substation, substantial cooling capacity, low electricity rates and a secure and strategic location. Interior tenant improvements for both spaces will be constructed by ReArch Company (www.rearchcompany.com) of South Burlington.

US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) introduced legislation Thursday to make the fraudulent sale of maple syrup a felony offense. The legislation is cosponsored by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The bill is called the Maple Agriculture Protection and Law Enforcement (MAPLE) Act.
‘Vermonters take pride in the natural products our state produces, and I have been alarmed by the growing number of individuals and businesses claiming to sell Vermont maple syrup when they are in fact selling an inferior product that is not maple syrup at all,’ said Leahy. ‘This is fraud, plain and simple, and it undermines a key part of Vermont’s economy. I know that hardworking syrup producers in Maine, New York and other states have been similarly hurt by this crime. Our bill will deter this criminal conduct.’

Randolph National Bank, the White River Valley’s Hometown Bank, recently donated $1,300 to six local towns severely damaged by flooding during Irene. The money was raised during one of the bank’s ‘Jeans Day’, in which bank staff make a small donation for the privilege of trading pinstripes for blue jeans.
On Jeans Day on September 2nd, the usual $5donation was waived in favor of a ‘free’ jeans day, with the bank encouraging those employees who could to donate whatever they wanted with the promise of matching funds from RNB. Staffers from across the bank’s network of eight offices stepped up to the challenge to collect the $1,300.
In addition to making the cash donations, bank employees gave generously with time, supplies and money to their communities and neighbors.
The funds were split between the following organizations:

Waitsfield, Vermont-based Resort Maps, creator of more than 100 hand-drawn travel maps across the United States, Canada, England, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico, recently announced its acquisition of Discovery Map International of La Conner, Washington. The acquisition unites two of the leading publishers of illustrated maps in the United States. Both companies have published colorful hand-drawn free visitor maps of popular destinations for more than 25 years.