Current News

When John Crabbe began what is today one of the most successful event rental businesses in Vermont, he looked to a national business leader for his inspiration. One quote in particular from Lee Iacocca resonated with Crabbe, ‘people do business with people, not businesses.’ Crabbe knew early in his career that he wanted to personalize the service that he gave his customers and to also become a significant contributor to his community. These two guidelines helped to shape his leadership style and earn him the recognition by his peers with the 2010 Vermont Chamber of Commerce’s Allied Member of the Year award.

Ibex Outdoor Clothing, innovators of year-round merino wool apparel and accessories for men and women, today announced that it opened its first brick and mortar store in the Back Bay area of Boston. The new 1,000 square foot store, which opened on historical Newbury Street, gives Bostonians and visitors the opportunity to fully experience the unique, fun-loving culture of the leading wool apparel brand designed to meet the needs of the everyday adventurer.

In the middle of winter when the temperature drops in Vermont, the woodshop at Yestermorrow Design/Build School will be warming up. On January 30, 2011, the school will be kicking off its second annual 11-week Woodworking Intensive program. The program is designed to give aspiring professionals, career changers, and hobbyists alike a solid grounding in woodworking and furnituremaking techniques.

Senator Patrick Leahy says a new $5,765,474 US Navy contract with Goodrich for additional units of the company’s groundbreaking helicopter maintenance diagnostic system, produced by the firm’s facility in Vergennes, shows the advanced system has quickly taken its place as a key maintenance feature of US military helicopter programs.
Goodrich’s Health and Usage Management Systems (HUMS) give mechanics feedback on a helicopter’s engine performance, structural performance, and rotor function and wear, allowing a helicopter to be serviced before major systems fail. As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and of its Defense Subcommittee, Leahy led as the panel’s early promoter of the concept and technology behind HUMS. Enabled by his work, HUMS units have become standard equipment on military helicopters.

Vermont's tax revenues exceeded targets for the General Fund and Transportation Fund, but the Education Fund fell below its target for the month as revenues, in general, continue to show a slow recovery from the severe, three-year-old economic downturn.
General FundSecretary of Administration Neale F. Lunderville released the August 2010 General Fund Revenues today. August is the second month of fiscal year (FY) 2011. General Fund revenues totaled $81.70 million for August 2010, and were +$7.30 million or +9.81% above the $74.41 million consensus revenue forecast for the month. Year-to-date General Fund performance of $163.92 million was +$3.69 million, or +2.30% ahead of year to date target of $160.24 million.

In Vermont the annual direct costs to the economy attributable to smoking were in excess of $652 million, including workplace productivity losses of $138 million, premature death losses of approximately $221 million, and direct medical expenditures of $293 million, according to a new study by the American Lung Association.

The City of Burlington announced today that a GIS (’Geographical Information System’) feature is available on the City’s Website. GIS integrates a variety of informational categories, or ‘layers,’ with an interactive map of a particular geographic area. For example, within Burlington’s GIS feature, one can choose to show all of the real estate transactions in the City over the last 12 months; clicking on a specific property will show the property address, sale date, and sale amount. ‘Layers’ on Burlington’s GIS feature include Census block tracts, current building permits, ward boundaries, the City’s FY11 street paving plans, and the location of parking garages, parking lots, and electric vehicle charging stations, among many other categories of information.

Governor Jim Douglas today announced he will be leading a delegation of Vermont employers to Asia next month to promote investment through the EB-5 Investor Program. The Vermont EB-5 Regional Center is run through the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and has raised over $100 million in new capital for companies and projects in Vermont.
“I am happy to go to the other side of the world to help great Vermont employers grow and create jobs,” said Governor Douglas. “In this challenging economy, helping home grown Vermont businesses succeed is critical to our recovery.”

With both the Rural Energy Savings Program Act today moving out of the US House and into the US Senate and the Small Business Job Creation Act moving the other way, two bills heavily supported by Vermont's congressional delegation are moving closer to becoming law. The jobs bill especially has been contested for several months.
With Representative Peter Welch’s support, the US House passed legislation that will support rural America by creating 20,000-40,000 jobs, investing in energy efficiency upgrades and saving 1.6 million families on their energy bills. Welch is a cosponsor of the legislation.
By a vote of 240 to 172, the House passed the Rural Energy Savings Program Act (H.R. 4785), which provides low-cost home improvement loans to consumers for energy efficiency upgrades.

IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced innovative new chip-making technology for power-management semiconductors ‘ the company’s first foray into a segment seen as critical to the development of alternative energy sources, smart buildings and new consumer devices. The new chips for this "Smart Planet" infrastructure will be manufactured at IBM's plant in Essex Junction starting in the first half of 2011.
An IBM spokesman said there will be no specific change in IBM employment in Vermont from this announcement. However, he said the plant has been adding manufacturing employees to handle strong customer demand.

The US Small Business Administration (SBA) is accepting nominations for the 2011 Vermont Small Business Awards. Each year, SBA showcases and recognizes successful and inspiring small business owners and business champions.
Nominators may submit a one-page nomination letter, in any format, to the SBA Vermont District Office by October 15, 2010. Candidates who advance to the final selection stage will be asked to submit a nomination packet. State winners are eligible to compete for regional and national honors.
Each winner will be recognized at a spring gala event, hosted by Vermont Business Magazine, and attended by SBA, the governor, state congressional staff, lenders, the media and other members of the business community. Katy Lesser of Healthy Living was last year's winner. (2010 Winner Story, PHOTOS, VIDEO)
The SBA Vermont District Office is accepting nominations for the following award categories:
o Small Business Person of the Year

The Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday unanimously approved bipartisan legislation to repeal exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that were enacted as part of the Wall Street reform bill, which was signed into law in July. The legislation is sponsored by Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Committee members Chuck Grassley (R-IA), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Ted Kaufman (D-DE).
The legislation will eliminate several FOIA exemptions for certain records provided to the SEC. The exemptions were included in the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.