Current News

The U.S. Small Business Administration will offer government guaranteed loans to finance inventory for eligible auto, recreational vehicle, boat and other dealerships under a new pilot program announced today by SBA Administrator Karen Mills. Dealer Floor Plan (DFP) financing will be available beginning July 1, according to Mills. She announced the new program during a visit to Kokomo, IN, with Dr. Ed Montgomery, President Barack Obama’s Director of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers.
“Countless small businesses, including dealerships, across the country are facing significant challenges as a result of the uncertainty in the auto industry,” Mills said. “Floor plan financing can offer some dealerships the opportunity to get through these tough economic times by allowing them to keep their inventory and cash flow intact, as well as save the jobs these small businesses provide.”

The Paramount Theatre in Rutland announced today an expanded and varied Tenth Anniversary Season of presentations at the Paramount Theatre. The Paramount has expanded to EIGHT performance Series at the theatre, including SUMMER MUSIC, POPULAR MUSIC, CLASSICAL MUSIC, THEATRE, THEATRE DEVELOPMENT, FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT, COMEDY (new this season) and an upcoming, soon-to-be announced film series as well. Bruce Bouchard, Executive Director commented, We, at the Paramount, are immensely proud and happy about what has transpired inside this building and around this community in the past 14 months. In challenging times, both the board of the theatre and the entire community has responded with a resounding vote of confidence and support, and have created the context for success for the organization for years to come. Bouchard continued, We have set perhaps the most ambitious, varied and diverse season to date for the Paramount.

Beginning June 1, VPR presents a special series exploring the history, culture, and natural resources of Lake Champlain. Champlain 400 marks the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain s exploration of the region. Each Monday in June, VPR News will air Stories from the Lake. In the morning, Morning Edition host Mitch Wertlieb focuses on the lake s history, from the days when whales frolicked where ferry boats now sail to the stories of how battles and trade helped to form a nation.
In the afternoon, All Things Considered host Neal Charnoff looks at culture and life in the Champlain basin, from what the region looked like when Champlain arrived in 1609, through the warriors, farmers, and sailors who followed.
Champlain 400 continues throughout the summer with a broad range of special programming, including:

Union Bank is pleased to announce the promotion of Karyn J. Hale to Vice President, and Carrie R. Locklin to Assistant Treasurer. Hale is a member of the Bank s Finance Department. Locklin is a member of the Bank s Audit and Compliance Department.
Hale has been employed by Union Bank since November 2005. During her employment Hale has had an active role in developing and maintaining the Bank s compliance with Section 404 of the federal Sarbanes-Oxley Act and recently has been serving as Finance Officer, responsible for supervising the Bank s accounting department. She is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of Vermont and maintains memberships with the AICPA and the VT Society of CPAs. Hale successfully completed the Graduate School of Bank Investments and Financial Management from the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina. Hale resides in Lyndonville with her husband Rick and their son.

Based on preliminary estimates, ski areas nationwide tallied 57.1 million visits for the 2008/09 season, making it the fifth best season on record. Over the last 10 seasons (1999/00 – 2008/09), the industry has averaged 56.7 million visits. The 2008/09 season represents a 0.8 percent increase from the 10-year average, and just a 5.5 percent decrease from the record 2007/08 season of 60.5 million visits. At 13.8 million visits in 2008/09, the Northeast region was up 5.5 percent from its 10-year average. Meanwhile the Southeast region, at 5.62 million visits, was up 3.8 percent from its 10-year average; the Midwest region, with 7.41 million visits, was down 1.1 percent from its 10-year average; the Rocky Mountain region, with 19.79 million visits, was up 1.3 percent from its 10-year average; and finally the Pacific West region, with 10.54 million visits, was down 5.8 percent from its 10-year average.

A survey conducted by Opinion Dynamics for the New England Energy Alliance found New Englanders favor market-based approaches to limit greenhouse gas emissions and improve energy efficiency by a significant margin in comparison to government regulation and mandates. There also seems to be no inclination to roll back electricity industry restructuring as a very significant 78% of survey respondents at least somewhat favor consumer choice and competition for electricity.
78% say they favor competition in the electricity industry

The weekly Pink Floyd radio show "Floydian Slip" will end its 13-year Vermont run on Winooski's Champ 101.3 with show #701 on June 7. Station management informed the show's host, Craig Bailey, of its decision on May 28, citing the FM station's evolving format and the show's lack of sponsorship as reasons. Bailey started the show in 1989 on 106-VIC, a student-run station at Ithaca College, where he was a senior. After a year on the now-defunct WEXP 105.1 in Burlington, he brought the show to Champ in 1995.
"I never imagined this would last as long as it has, but I'm not quite ready to have it end," said Bailey. "I suppose I'd consider pitching it to another station or webcasting it on my own. I haven't decided.
"I appreciate the chance to do a good-bye show on Champ. It's not very often a DJ is let go and then invited back behind the mic one last time."

Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin and Speaker Shap Smith today announced a companion bill that the Vermont Legislature will consider and pass during the special session on June 2 to enhance the legislative budget and economic development efforts. Some of the strongest objections made by Governor Douglas, which triggered his promised veto of the budget, are addressed. Among those are: changing the capital gains increase to July 1 (the start of the state fiscal year, instead of retroactive to January 1); giving farmers a 40 percent break on capital gains; addressing the growing shortfall in the unemployment insurance trust fund; and recognizing constitutional concerns over the governor's ability to lay off state workers. The cost to the budget and how these changes will be paid for was not addressed. These changes could make the budget more palatable to swing votes away from sustaining the governor's veto and toward and override.

Vermont Governor Jim Douglas signed into law Wednesday H.445, An Act Relating to Capital Construction and State Bonding, which makes $109 million in investments for a wide range of capital projects from school construction to parks and recreation infrastructure. Douglas, who hosted the bill signing at Little River State Park in Waterbury, noted the bill goes beyond traditional capital expenditures and focuses heavily on generating economic activity, creating jobs and leveraging federal funds to speed recovery.
In a program reminiscent of the federal Civil Conservation Corps, the bill devotes nearly $6 million to forest, park and recreation infrastructure and the expeditious creation of hundreds of private sector building trades jobs throughout the state.

Governor Jim Douglas has signed into law a bill that will enhance the regulation and expansion of the captive insurance industry in Vermont, a key provider of revenues and jobs for the state. At a ceremony in Burlington Wednesday, Douglas signed the omnibus banking and insurance legislation, S.42, and praised it as an important step in maintaining Vermont’s position as the largest captive insurance domicile in the U.S. and the second largest in the world in terms of gross written premium.
“As our state tackles budget and revenue challenges, my administration continues to recognize how critical the captive insurance industry is to Vermont and the need to continue investing in our infrastructure and innovating in our regulation,” Douglas said.

The Council on the Future of Vermont (CFV) was a two year project of the Vermont Council on Rural Development. Join us in a regional roll-out of the results where residents can learn about the CFV process and share their ideas and priorities for their own towns and Vermont. A series of free and open public discussions will be held around the state this summer.
FIND YOUR REGIONAL MEETING BELOW!
All Meeting Times are: 6pm to 7:30pm
July 1: Island Pond, Island Pond Welcome Center
July 2: North Hero, Public Library
July 7: Middlebury, venue TBA
July 8: Burlington, Fletcher Free Library
July 9: Rutland, Rutland Free Library
July 14: Bennington, venue TBA
July 15: Brattleboro, Marlboro Graduate Center
June 10: Randolph, Gifford Medical Center, Conference Center
June 11: White River Junction, Hartford High School
June 16: Barre, Old Labor Party Hall
June 18: St. Albans, Bellows Free Academy

Senior political correspondent Juan Williams of National Public Radio and other national media will be the keynote speaker at the summer meeting of the Vermont Business Roundtable, which will be held on June 18 at the Sheraton Burlington Hotel and Conference Center. Williams will deliver The Latest from Washington An Insider s View following dinner and a brief awards presentation.
Roundtable members and government leaders from across the state are expected to attend the event, and non-members are also encouraged to participate. Dubbed a Summer Celebration, the regular meeting of the Roundtable s membership will culminate in an evening of social networking, celebrating leadership and learning political insights from one of the nation s leading political analysts.