Current News

Dealer.com (www.dealer.com), the global leader in automotive internet marketing solutions, has been named one of ‘America’s Best Places to Work’ by Outside magazine. Out of a total of 50 companies who made the 2011 list, Dealer.com ranked No. 14. The full list and related story will be published in the September issue of Outside magazine, available on newsstands August 16, 2011.
‘We are incredibly honored to be listed on Outside’s Best Places to Work in America,’ said Mark Bonfigli, CEO of Dealer.com. ‘At Dealer.com, our commitment to the wellness and happiness of our employees has always been a top priority. But there is also great value in providing our team with these unique benefits. Our employees are enthusiastic about their work and consistently provide excellent customer service, develop innovative products and build forward-thinking digital marketing solutions for our clients.’

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be closing its temporary assistance office in Chittenden County and reducing hours at those in Washington and Caledonia counties as it begins to wind down some of its flood recovery efforts.
The disaster recovery center in Colchester will close Friday, August 12 at 6 p.m., while the centers in Barre and St. Johnsbury will remain open but with reduced hours. Individuals can visit these centers or call FEMA's Helpline at 800-621-FEMA (3362).
The remaining disaster recovery centers remain open, but Barre will no longer be open on Sundays, instead opening Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The St. Johnsbury center will be open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sundays from noon to 6 p.m. Previously, it had opened at 8 a.m. Sundays.
Current DRC locations in Vermont and hours:
Mallett's Bay Fire Station
844 Church Road
Colchester, VT 05446

Over 30 local restaurants and caterers are joining the fight to end senior hunger by supporting the Top Chef of the Champlain Valley. The Top Chef benefits CVAA’s Meals on Wheels and Case Management programs. Over 235,000 Meals on Wheels are delivered each year to homebound seniors in the Champlain Valley. The Top Chef of the Champlain Valley, an Iron Chef Experience will be held at UVM's Davis Center on August 8 at 6pm.

A number of new entries in the lexicon of University of Vermont people and places will be made when the naming opportunities in the Alumni House renovation project have all been spoken for.
Among the first is the "Newton Library," an elegant oak-paneled enclave in the expansive Queen Anne mansion at 61 Summit Street slated to become the focal point for UVM alumni activities in the coming decades.
Named in recognition of a $250,000 gift from School of Business Administration alumnus Jeffrey Newton '79 of Concord, MA and his wife Sarah, the Newton Library is expected to be a central gathering and relaxation spot for visiting alums when they arrive on campus.

Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) officials are advising motorists that there will be traffic delays in the southbound lane of Interstate 89 between exits 16 and 14 until at least Friday August 5th. VTrans officials said contractors are installing an access road to allow work on a pipe. This has required the closure of the southbound driving lane starting just north of exit 15. Some traffic stoppages have been reported as of this morning.
Work on the project is set to begin at 9 am to accommodate morning ‘drive time traffic.’ However, state officials will be monitoring the situation to see if further adjustments will have to be made.

Green Mountain Power today asked the Vermont Public Service Board to authorize a 3.2 percent rate increase to go into effect on October 1, 2011, as part of its alternative regulation plan.
"Green Mountain Power customers enjoy some of the lowest rates in New England and Vermont, and keeping rates low drives every decision at Green Mountain Power," said Mary Powell, Green Mountain Power president and chief executive officer. "Our energy strategy is focused on low cost, low carbon, incredibly reliable power resources and our operating strategy for over a decade has been based on being the highest quality, lowest cost service provider in the region. We have been very successful controlling expenses and this increase is driven by very important and necessary investments in infrastructure and modest increases in power supply costs."

There were 582 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance last week, an increase of 49 from the week before. Altogether 7,024 new and continuing claims were filed, a decrease of 228 from a week ago and 2,397 fewer than a year earlier. The Department also processed 1,601 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), 22 more than a week ago. In addition, there were 753 Second Tier claims for benefits processed under the EUC08 program, which is a decrease of 9 from the week before. The Unemployment Weekly Report can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/. Previously released Unemployment Weekly Reports and other UI reports can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/lmipub.htm#uc
Vermont's unemployment rate increased one-tenth in June to 5.5 percent. See story HERE.

The EB-5 immigrant investor program is being enhanced by transforming the intake and review process. In May, US Citizenship and Immigration Services proposed fundamental enhancements to streamline the EB-5 process which include: extending the availability of premium processing for certain EB-5 applications and petitions, implementing direct lines of communication between the applicants and USCIS, and providing applicants with the opportunity for an interview before a USCIS panel of experts to resolve outstanding issues in an application. After reviewing stakeholder feedback on the proposal, USCIS is developing a phased plan to roll out these enhancements and is poised to begin implementing the first of these enhancements within 30 days.

Essex Junction, VT, USA (August 3, 2011) ‘ Revision, the leading developer of ballistic protective eyewear for militaries worldwide, has secured a contract with the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) to supply its Land Forces with Revision’s Prescription Rx Carrier over the next five years. It has an estimated value of up to $14 million during the life of the contract. Once prescription-filled, the Rx Carriers provide vision correction for troops who need improved vision in all environments ‘ including laser-threat situations. Revision’s Prescription Lens Carrier was selected for its interchangeable design and its high-impact ocular protection that has been demonstrated through the numerous testing procedures required by military standards.

The Organic Trade Association, based in Brattleboro, is pleased to announce that it has selected Michael Funk of United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) and Mark Lipson of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to receive its prestigious Organic Leadership Awards for 2011.
"Both Michael Funk and Mark Lipson have had a long commitment to the organic movement. Michael has been instrumental in the growth and advancement of the natural and organic industry for over 30 years, while Mark has demonstrated personal commitment, leadership and vision with regard to advancing organic farming since the early 1980s," said Christine Bushway, OTA's Executive Director and CEO.

Vermont ranks fifth in the nation home price increase from June to May. CoreLogic (NYSE: CLGX), a leading provider of information, analytics and business services, today released its June Home Price Index (HPI) which shows that home prices in the U.S. increased by 0.7 percent in June 2011 compared to May 2011, the third consecutive month-over-month increase. According to CoreLogic, national home prices, including distressed sales, declined by 6.8 percent in June 2011 compared to June 2010 after declining by 6.7 percent* in May 2011 compared to May 2010. Excluding distressed sales, year-over-year prices declined by 1.1 percent in June 2011 compared to June 2010 and by 2.1* percent in May 2011 compared to May 2010. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions.

The Vermont Department of Health Tuesday issued a report stating that it had detected strontium-90 in the edible portion of fish in the Connectict River upstream from the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon. Governor Peter Shumlin again called for Vermont Yankee to operate extraction wells to test for radionuclides. Vermont Yankee responded that it has an extensive system of testing wells, none of which has detected strontium-90.
The governor issued the following statement Tuesday following the strontium-90 report: