Current News

(Vermont Business Magazine) Secretary of Administration Neale F Lunderville announced today that all three state of Vermont revenue figures - General Fund, Transportation Fund and Education Fund - all exceeded forecasts for the month of March. General Fund revenues exceeded expectations by 21 percent, or nearly $13 million for a total of $75 million. The principal factor was personal income tax net, which was 37 percent higher than expected. Transportation was up nearly $1 million, or 5 percent, gasoline and vehicle purchase taxes were up significantly. The Education tax was up $560,000 or 5.3 percent.

e-Vermont is a new $4 million initiative to help rural Vermont towns take full advantage of the Internet and advance a wide variety of local needs including economic development, school innovation, job creation, downtown marketing, community engagement, and e-commerce. Two dozen communities statewide will be selected to work with the new e-Vermont Partnership in a comprehensive effort combining online services, training, access, awareness, and planning. However, applications are due by April 30 to be considered among the 12 communities for Round One.
By reaching the bedrocks of Vermont communities—schools, businesses, municipal government, libraries, health and social services groups—e-Vermont will promote new collaborative efforts for identifying and implementing previously untapped resources and help our towns fully realize the potential of the digital age.

(Vermont Business Magazine) The Senate passed S288, the so-called jobs bill, that will use federal stimulus funds in an effort to put Vermonters back to work and encourage small business investment. An amendment to the bill restores the Vermont Seal of Quality program. The Seal is intended to assure consumers that the product, such as maple syrup or dairy products, is a purely Vermont product. The Agency wanted to end the program because they do not have the resources to enforce the strict regulations, and without that guarantee the program is neither valid nor effective.

To continue to stay ahead of rising demand for 3G wireless applications and Internet access in Windham County, Vermont, Verizon Wireless has enhanced its local network. Since 2000, the company has invested $2.6 billion into its New England network, including $192 million in 2009, and recently earned recognition from J.D. Power and Associates for “Highest Call Quality Performance among Wireless Cell Phone Users in the Northeast”.

Recent upgrades to existing 3G cell sites provide increased 3G data capacity at:

Magic Mountain Ski Area in Londonderry
Mount Snow Ski Resort in West Dover
Stratton Mountain Ski Resort in Stratton

Source: Verizon Wireless. LONDONDERRY, Vt.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--4.9.2010

At a press conference held today at the Vermont State House, four Vermont senators urged the Legislature to consider the “Consensus Economic and Fiscal Impact Analyses Associated with the Future of the Vermont Yankee Power Plant” prepared by Tom Kavet of Kavet Rockler & Associates, LLC and Jeff Carr of Economic & Policy Resources, Inc. The analyses, based on information from numerous economic and energy experts, finds relicensing Vermont Yankee and adopting a strong renewable energy policy will yield “the largest average positive employment and other economic impacts, with immediate job gains, no job losses and lower long term power bills.”

Senator Bernie Sanders today meet with Rutland County officials to discuss the appropriation of almost $700,000 in federal funds for energy efficiency projects in communities throughout the county. In addition, the senator announced over $60,000 in federal funding for six area senior centers.
The energy efficiency funding comes from the federal stimulus program and is being distributed through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program that was created by legislation Sanders authored.

Vermont Public Radio has been honored with six regional Edward R. Murrow Awards from the Radio Television Digital News Association. VPR received awards for breaking news coverage, feature reporting, investigative reporting, series, sports coverage, and for the website.
The winning coverage includes:
Coverage of Captain Richard Phillips, who was taken captive by pirates off the Somali coast, including an interview with Phillips on Vermont Edition (Breaking News).
Lynne McCrea's continuing coverage of a homeless family in Chittenden County and their struggle to put down roots (Feature Reporting).
Nina Keck's coverage of the Vermont National Guard members who said they were denied promotions and permanent positions at the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield (Investigative Reporting).

Vermont Emergency Management (VEM) has been fully accredited under the national Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP). EMAP is a review process for state and local emergency management programs to ensure they are in compliance with national standards. Vermont joins 21 other states and four jurisdictions with accredited programs.
EMAP provides emergency management programs the opportunity to be recognized for compliance with national standards, to demonstrate accountability, and to focus attention on areas and issues where resources are needed. EMAP has 63 criteria with which to identify areas for improvement at emergency management organizations.
“Our emergency management team deserves the thanks and praise of Vermonters for achieving this accreditation,” Governor Douglas said. “We have worked hard in recent years to ensure that our disaster preparedness and response systems are coordinated and ready to meet the needs of Vermonters in a crisis.”

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act enhancements to U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loan programs have led to a major rebound in Vermont of SBA-backed loans for small businesses and greater access to much-needed capital. SBA lending in Vermont dramatically increased in the second quarter of the 2010 fiscal year, Jan. 1, 2010 through March 31, 2010. Compared to the second quarter of FY 2009, the 2010 second quarter increased 169 percent from 35 to 94 7(a) loans, with a dollar volume increase from $6,591million in 2009 to more than $19 million, an increase of 191 percent. (See spread sheet for additional details.)
Signed into law on Feb. 17, 2009, the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provided broad-reaching assistance to small businesses, including an increase in the guarantee on all loans up to 90 percent from 75-85 percent and the elimination of guaranty fees, resulting in substantial savings for small business borrowers.

Governor Jim Douglas has announced $208,723 in Historic Preservation Barn Grants that will be awarded to 25 farms (see list below) to help make repairs needed to keep the barns in use. In a ceremony at the Dodge Farm in Berlin, which received $10,000 to repair its barn roof, the governor noted that the program promoted two of Vermont s most important industries, agriculture and tourism.
Our farms are more than just providers of jobs and bonds to our agricultural past, they boost our tourism industry by preserving our working landscape, Governor Douglas said. Preserving these magnificent barns for future generations isn t just good for the view, it s good for our economy.
The farm s owners, Kristen Gallagher and Loren Thompson, purchased it in July 2009 with the assistance of the Vermont Land Trust, and have set up a farming operation there that will include a Community Sponsored Agriculture program (CSA) as well as small-scale livestock operations.

AM Best Co has downgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) to B+ (Good) from B++ (Good) and the issuer credit rating (ICR) to “bbb-” from “bbb” for First Beacon Insurance Company (First Beacon) (Burlington, VT), a captive insurer of Alcatel-Lucent. The outlook for both ratings remains negative.
The rating actions reflect concerns over the financial position of First Beacon’s ultimate parent, Alcatel-Lucent. Supporting the rating is a robust level of risk-adjusted capitalization and a stable operating performance.

Many people do not yet fully understand how the recently approved health insurance reform legislation will affect their health insurance coverage, access to services, or options available to them or their families. This has created an opportunity for scam artists and criminals looking to confuse and defraud the public.Stories of fraudsters going door-to-door to sell phony insurance policies, and accounts of con artists attempting to make dishonest profits by urging consumers to obtain coverage in non-existent "limited enrollment" periods they claim are made possible with this new legislation have already been reported by the media.“Vermonters can sometimes feel like we’re a safe distance from the scams and fraudulent activities we hear about on the national news,” said Paulette Thabault, Vermont’s Commissioner of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration (BISHCA).