Current News

The Vermont Chamber Hospitality Council is pleased that the National Restaurant Association (NRA) presented its first annual Congressional Leadership Award to U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) in recognition of his efforts to fight hunger.
“Senator Leahy’s contribution is meaningful to the restaurant industry because it helps our dining employers be good citizens while freeing up resources to invest in their businesses and their employees, said Vicky Tebbetts, Vice President of the Vermont Hospitality Council. “A vibrant dining industry is critical to Vermont’s tourism economy.”
The National Restaurant Association created the Congressional Leadership Award to recognize members of Congress who advocate on behalf of important restaurant industry causes and support legislation that help the industry to sustain its role as a job creator, a career training ground, and a cornerstone of the community.

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) is bringing a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to Vermont this weekend to examine the state of competition in the Northeast in the context of the dairy crisis that continues to squeeze dairy farms in Vermont and across the nation. Leahy, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has set the hearing for 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, at the St. Albans City Hall, 100 Main Street, in St. Albans, Vermont. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will join Leahy for the hearing, which is titled: “Crisis On The Farm: The State Of Competition And Prospects For Sustainability In The Northeast Dairy Industry.”
Witnesses will include the new head of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, Christine Varney. Three Vermont farmers will also testify, as well as an economist with Agri-Mark dairy cooperative, and the chief economist of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Meeting in Saint John, New Brunswick, today, the New England Governors' Conference, Inc. (NEGC) adopted bold regional visions for supporting development of renewable energy resources in and around New England and for preserving its natural environment. The meeting took place during the 33rd Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers (NEG/ECP).

Yesterday, New England state agriculture leaders joined forces with dairy promotion organizations to launch the Keep Local Farms program. Inspired by the Fair Trade concept, Keep Local Farms will help to get more money directly to dairy farmers while creating stronger connections between farmers and their customers. The program is an effort to ensure dairy farmers in the Northeast are paid a sustainable price for their milk and to provide consumers with a way to support local dairy farmers, their community and the local economy.
The Keep Local Farms program is a creative and innovative approach to help our struggling dairy farmers in a very difficult economic environment. Vermonters are committed to helping preserve our dairy heritage and this program is one way we all can contribute. I look forward to the seeing the Keep Local Farms program succeed, said Governor Douglas.
The Problem:

The TransUnion Credit Risk Index, a statistic developed to measure the changes in average consumer credit risk within various geographies, increased 0.83 percent from 127.26 in the first quarter of 2009 to 128.32 in the second quarter of 2009. While 13 states experienced quarterly declines in the Credit Risk Index, this measure at a national level reached an all-time high for the third consecutive quarter. The Credit Risk Index (CRI) is defined as the weighted average probability of 90-day delinquency or worse among consumers in a given region relative to the nation as a whole.

CVPS Cow Power, the first manure-to-energy program in the country, was named the top utility renewable energy choice program in the United States on Monday. CVPS Cow Power was presented the Green Power Leadership Award and named Utility Green Power Program of the Year at “Renewable Energy Markets 2009,” an international energy conference sponsored by two federal agencies and the Center for Resource Solutions.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy, and CRS sponsor the Green Power Leadership Awards, which recognize the actions of individuals, companies and organizations that significantly advance the development of renewable electricity sources through green power markets.

Governor Douglas today announced the appointment of Chad Schmidt as Bennington County Sheriff. Schmidt replaces Gary Forrest who retired after 24 years as Sheriff.
“I want to extend my congratulations to Chad,” said Governor Jim Douglas. “I believe he has the experience and skill to keep our communities safe.”
Schmidt has 14 years experience in the Bennington Country Sheriff’s Department serving most recently as Deputy Sheriff. Schmidt is a graduate of Southern Vermont College where he received a degree in criminal justice as well as the Vermont Police Academy in Pittsford, VT. He also received a certificate of completion in courses focused on leadership and administrative development at the FBI National Academy in Virginia.

The Douglas Administration today announced that they would seek two furlough days and five unpaid holidays as a means to find $7.4 million in labor savings as directed by the Legislature s Joint Fiscal Committee. This proposal is an effort to reach a compromise on labor savings and avoid reductions in force at this time. To find middle ground, the offer today does not include a FY 2010 pay reduction as did prior Administration offers and relies on furlough days and unpaid holidays, which are temporary savings that complicate budget problems in coming fiscal years. Last week, the union offered a similar plan of four furlough days and four unpaid holidays plus eliminating a wellness program to achieve a similar level of savings. The state had set a deadline of September 18 to avoid about 200 more layoffs.

Dr. John O Meara, Saint Michael's College assistant professor of physics, learned last week that he and five colleagues from around the country have received a $474,617 grant from NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, to carry out a study of galaxies and their halos. Professor O Meara s portion of the grant is $46,983.
Our work tries ultimately to answer the question: Where do galaxies get the material they need to form stars? Dr. O Meara said.
The official name of the project is A Comprehensive Study of Highly Ionized Plasma in Galaxies and their Halos at 1.5

One day after its executives were grilled by regulators in an unusual three-state joint conference, FairPoint Communications was given a one-week extension to respond to questions about its ability to continue operating in the state of Vermont.
Originally, FairPoint had until September 10 to formally respond to a show cause petition filed by the Department of Public Service. On Wednesday, September 9, the company filed for and received an extension, pushing back the deadline to later this week. At stake is the company's Certificate of Public Good, its license to conduct business as a regulated utility in the state.

US Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) joined Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss and officials from Burlington International Airport (BTV) Friday afternoon at the airport to announce $12.75 million in Federal Aviation Administration airport improvement grants. Leahy, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, directly secured more than $1.5 million for the projects, with the rest provided through American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ( stimulus package ) grants and competitive FAA grants.
Leahy said the funds will be used to upgrade taxiways and runways leading to the airport s new South End Development; to acquire land around the airport to mitigate noise and help with development projects; and to install new energy efficient runway lights. The South End Development project will help existing aviation-related businesses already housed at the airport and attract new business opportunities, Leahy said.

Associated Industries of Vermont convenes its 89th Annual Meeting on Tuesday, October 6 at the Capitol
Plaza Hotel in Montpelier. Vermont is currently seeing a convergence of several very significant energy policies that pose imminent
challenges for the state and carry serious implications for Vermont's ratepayers. The Legislature, Public
Service Board, Public Service Department, and utilities will make critical decisions in the coming months,
and it is important for Vermont employers to be aware of what is at stake.
In addition to looming "end game" in deciding the fate of Vermont Yankee, decisions on future contracts
with Hydro Quebec are also coming due -- placing two-thirds of Vermont's energy supply in question in
the very near future. At the same time, the debate continues between letting the market or state
mandates drive renewable energy development. On top of this, regional, national, and international plans