Current News
by tim
In a profound turnaround in policy, Governor Douglas announced late this afternoon that he will no longer urge the Legislature to vote on the Vermont Yankee relicensing this session, he is also at least temporarily pulling support for the plant's owner, Entergy, to spin off the plant into a new corporation called Enexus, and he says that top management at the plant should be replaced because he has lost trust in them. He said that Entergy must not only find and fix the tritium leak at the plant, but must be transparent in its processes.
by tim
Parents and teachers have a creative opportunity to discuss with kids the current economic climate and its personal challenges. The theme for the 2010 Be Money Wi$e Financial Literacy Poster Competition is “$mart Money Choices = A Brighter Future.” The deadline for poster submissions to the Vermont State Treasurer’s Office is February 19.
“This contest gives Vermont children a way to visually illustrate how personal financial decisions can lead to a positive future, even in the face of today’s economic challenges,” said State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding.
The 2010 National Financial Literacy Poster Competition is sponsored in Vermont by the State Treasurer’s Office, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of New Hampshire and Vermont, and the Vermont Bankers Association. The national contest is sponsored by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
by tim
Vermont’s congressional delegation took their concerns over the safety of Vermont Yankee and the credibility of its management straight to the head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission yesterday. Led by Senator Bernie Sanders, he and Senator Patrick Leahy and Representative Peter Welch met with NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko in Sanders’ DC office. The three emerged to hold a brief conference call with reporters. Their message was unified and clear, the source of the tritium leak at the nuclear power plant in Vernon must be found, it must be fixed, and management must be held accountable for inaccurate statements related to sworn testimony concerning the plant's infrastructure.
The most blunt statement came from Leahy.
“I don’t find the company credible,” Leahy said during the late afternoon conference call. Leahy and his colleagues frequently called into question the veracity of the management team and owner of the facility, Entergy Nuclear of New Orleans.
by tim
The State of Vermont will unveil six new veteran license plates during a ceremony at 12:30 p.m. January 28th in the Cedar Creek Room at the State House. During the ceremony, Department of Motor Vehicle Commissioner Robert Ide will unveil plates honoring veterans who served in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the Iraq War, and the Afghanistan War. The first recipient of a new plate will be Vermont National Guard Adjutant General, Major General Michael Dubie, who will receive a plate honoring his service in Iraq.
The new plates will be available to eligible veterans beginning February 3rd.
“There is no additional fee for the new recognition license plates, and veterans can apply to receive them at any time,” Ide said. “To be eligible, veterans must have served in the combat theater that is recognized by the plate for which they apply.”
by tim
Newly-named Vermont Lake Monsters General Manager Nate Cloutier has completed the reorganizing of the team’s front office staff, which now consists completely of “home grown” talent from the state of Vermont. Joining the Lake Monsters front office are Kate Echo as Merchandise and Accounting Manager and Shelby Sorrentino as Director of Marketing and Promotions, while Steve Hennessey will continue as Director of Ticket Operations along with taking on more responsibility within the front office.
Echo, who resides in Shelburne and is a 2005 graduate of CVU, recently graduated from the University of Vermont in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. She has worked the past five summers as a bookkeeper for Lake Champlain Cruises and began working for the Lake Monsters during the 2009 season.
by tim
Some states are making dramatic improvements in their Recovery Act websites but others are still failing to make effective use of online technology to educate taxpayers about the impact of the stimulus. Vermont was cited as fifth worst in the nation. So finds Good Jobs First in Show Us the Stimulus (Again), a report released today which updates GJF's July findings; text plus state appendices at: www.goodjobsfirst.org/stimulusweb.cfm.
"Some states are striving to deliver on President Obama's promise that the Recovery Act would bring unprecedented transparency and accountability," said Good Jobs First executive director Greg LeRoy. "Led by Maryland, which again receives our highest score, these states' Recovery Act websites help taxpayers understand and evaluate how the Recovery Act benefits their state."
by tim
Vermont families earning less than $48,000 a year may qualify for federal and state tax credits under the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program that could mean thousands of dollars in their pockets. The Vermont State Treasurer’s Office is joining with other state and federal organizations to remind Vermonters about this credit. January 29 is EITC Awareness Day nationwide.
“Surprisingly, the IRS estimates as many as 25 percent of all eligible taxpayers don’t file for the EITC because they are unaware of it,” said State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding. “This special tax benefit for working people of low or moderate incomes has been available on the federal level since 1975 and at the state level since 1987. As Vermonters prepare their 2009 tax forms, I urge them to check their eligibility for this benefit.”
by tim
Congressman Peter Welch and 21 members of Congress introduced legislation late last week to close a loophole that allowed Verizon to avoid hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes when it sold its northern New England landline operations to FairPoint Communications. The legislation, HR 4486, would eliminate the Reverse Morris Trust (RMT) provision of the federal tax code, which is increasingly used by regulated utility companies to avoid paying taxes while divesting of public infrastructure.
“This loophole is bad for taxpayers, bad for consumers and bad for workers,” Welch said. “It’s hard to understand what public good is achieved by subsidizing a corporation’s efforts to unload public resources on a debt-saddled company.”
by tim
In a December 30, 2009, article titled “America’s Best And Worst Banks,” Forbes.com ranked NBT Bancorp as the ninth-best bank in the nation. NBT recently opened a branch in Burlington.
Forbes ranked the 100 largest banks, thrifts and holding companies on “eight financial measures that gauge asset quality, capital adequacy and profitability.” These financial institutions each have $5 billion or more in assets. The website ranked the institutions on each measure and added up the individual rankings.
Forbes noted that NBT Bancorp’s reserves as a percentage of nonperforming loans was 165 percent, the “fifth-highest among big banks.” NBT Bancorp was one of only two institutions from the East Coast to make the top 10. More information on the rankings can be found at www.forbes.com/bank-ratings.
by tim
Speaker Shap Smith and Senate President Pro Tem Shumlin, today called on the Douglas Administration to institute a transparent, independent process by which Vermonters receive information about the leak at Vermont Yankee. The leaders also called on the Department of Public Service (DPS) to reinstate their opposition to the proposed Enexus spin off due to the discovery of the radioactive isotopes tritium and cobalt 60 at the plant, which could potentially double the costs of decommissioning.
by tim
The federal stimulus plan has helped push Vermont's construction industry for 2009 above levels in 2008, despite reductions in both commercial and residential development. McGraw-Hill Construction today reported on December and year-end contracts for future construction in the state of Vermont. For year-end, overall construction was just over a billion dollars, up 39 percent over 2008. This was led by $593.2 million in road and bridge construction. Meanwhile, year-end results for residential construction was down 27 percent and commercial building was down 17 percent.
Source: Research and Analytics unit of McGraw-Hill Construction. 1.25.2010. The firm produces Dodge Reports and Sweets Catalog Files.
by tim
The Vermont Chamber of Commerce and Vermont Business Magazine are pleased to announce the 2010 winners of the Best Places to Work in Vermont Awards. The rankings will be announced at the Best Places to Work in Vermont event March 29.
This year s award recipients are (alphabetical):
Small/Medium Companies
Edward Jones
King Arthur Flour Company
Mascoma Savings Bank
MBF Bioscience
NRG Systems, Inc.
Resource Systems Group, Inc.
Seventh Generation
The Bank of Bennington
TPW Management LLC
Wells River Savings Bank
Large Companies
Dealer.com
Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee
Green Mountain Power
Merchants Bank
Vermont Electric Power Company, Inc.