Current News

Vermont Business Magazine On Friday, January 10, 2025, the US Department of the Treasury officially published final guidance regarding the 45V Clean Hydrogen Production Tax Credit. Clean Energy Group applauds the Treasury for not bowing to industry pressure to relax the core principles of its initial draft guidance, ensuring that 45V will primarily incentivize green hydrogen, which (as long as stringent guardrails are in place) is the only form of hydrogen production that will not lead to a dangerous increase in greenhouse gas emissions. However, some concessions in the final guidance, in combination with other federal funding and tax credits for fossil fuel powered hydrogen, leaves experts concerned.

Vermont State Police Following new information from the Keene, New Hampshire, Police Department about the whereabouts of a wanted individual in Vermont, the Vermont Drug Task Force arrested William S. Bostwick, 42, of Keene, NH, on January 9, 2025, in Putney, Vermont. Bostwick had two active warrants for his arrest issued by the Vermont Superior Court, Windham Criminal Division. These warrants were for failing to appear in court on original charges that included grand larceny, providing false information to a police officer (x2), DUI#1 drugs or both, violation of probation x3, DUI #3 drugs or both, possession of 2.5 grams or more of cocaine, resisting arrest #2, transportation of drugs into a detention center, and possession of a depressant, stimulant, or narcotic <100x dose. 

Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center 2025 marks VMEC’s 30th anniversary supporting Vermont Manufacturers. With over 200 years of collective experience behind those 30 years, we'll be celebrating all year long and you will benefit from our important milestone. We're starting the new year off with a thank you to YOU; effective immediately, we're reducing the fee of our Lean-based "standard" public training opportunities to 30% of their cost! Or put another way, a 70% discount! This benefit is just the beginning of what's to come this year. We're working on other exciting announcements on how we can celebrate together - Stay tuned!

Vermont Business Magazine The Cooperative Development Institute (CDI), a nonprofit from Northampton, MA, using cooperative models to solve problems in New England communities, has received $50,000 in seed money to identify a site to build a new manufactured home park in Vermont. This development project has the potential to bring a swath of affordable housing to a state that is currently going through one of the nation’s worst housing shortages. The ideal property would be near or connected to municipal water and sewer systems, be located in an area where there is support for development of new housing, and be large enough to make the cost of development feasible. Properties near employers with workforce needs may be beneficial as creating new housing will enable more workers to move to the state.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today delivered his 2025 inaugural address to a joint session of the General Assembly, marking the beginning of his fifth term and ninth legislative session as governor. He returned to many of the same themes as from his early years as governor: Affordability, too few kids for too much cost at too many schools, housing, an aging population, and the need to focus more on rural areas of the state. He used several anecdotes to make that last point of people facing too little opportunity with living expenses that are too high. Punctuated by nine standing ovations, the two loudest were for when he was describing public education, with property taxes that are too high and academic outcomes that are not high enough, so that the lawmakers and the administration must “be brave, together” to solve this problem.

VermontBiz These incentives, which come in the form of one-time bill credits for VEC members, are designed make the purchase of electricity-powered equipment more affordable. The program also benefits the entire co-op membership over time because the incentives pay for themselves through additional electric sales for the co-op overall.

More than 6,000 VEC members have taken advantage of incentives since the co-op began offering them in 2017.

VEC has exceeded its goals for the Energy Transformation Program and helped eliminate the consumption of over 22 million gallons of fossil fuel. That’s the equivalent of taking over 39,000 cars off the road for a year. 

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) today welcomed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) announcement of an increase in funding for Contingency Management (CM) services, one of the only evidence-based treatments available to treat stimulant use disorder. The new policy will increase funding for CM services from $75 to $750, per patient, per year. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, overdose is the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18-45. In Vermont, the rate of opioid-related deaths increased by over 18% from 2019-2023. 

VermontBiz Funding is now available from the Vermont Women’s Fund at the Vermont Community Foundation for programs that seek to address systemic barriers to economic well-being, and those that recognize the disproportionate impact of these barriers on women and girls by race, gender identity, sexuality, class, age, and ability.

Lake Champlain Basin Program After a busy fall, we have enjoyed settling into the relative quiet of winter in the Lake Champlain Basin. When the warm weather field season for research and outreach comes to a close, many of us appreciate the opportunity to work with data, assess our reach, and begin planning for the upcoming season. It’s also a busy time with grant reviews and awards and preparation for the next field season. Not all field work and research comes to a stop in the winter, however. As you’ll learn in this newsletter, winter poses a different set of challenges and opportunities to lake scientists and outreach staff working to reach residents and visitors to our watershed. 

Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.10 per gallon, up 1 cent per gallon from last week, down 1 cent from last month and down 14 cents/g from last year. The lowest price in the state this week was $2.69/g while the highest was $3.29/g, a difference of 60.0 cents per gallon. Bennington ($2.98/g) and Windham ($2.97/g) counties continue to have the lowest prices in the state. Prices rise as you move north, with Grand Isle ($3.20), Lamoille ($3.19) and Essex ($3.32) counties having the highest average prices, according to AAA. The national average price of gasoline is unchanged in the last week, averaging $3.06/g today. The national average is up 7 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 3 cents per gallon lower than a year ago, according to GasBuddy data

Vermont Business Magazine On 11-22 at 2:00 p.m., Jericho residents Gail and Tim McKenna continued their tradition of generosity by contributing $3,333 to Howard Center from their Catch 22 nonprofit. Catch 22 began managing football for the area and now continues fundraising to provide charitable support to organizations that are important to them. The McKennas have supported Howard Center for ten consecutive years, with their contribution amount and the date they give reflecting significant numbers in their lives. Their ongoing commitment strengthens Howard Center's ability to provide essential services in mental health, substance use, and developmental support for individuals and families.

Vermont Business Magazine Champlain College and nuwave Equity Corporation have announced the Vermont Culture Innovators Project, an impactful initiative designed to reshape workplace culture in Vermont businesses while offering students invaluable hands-on learning experience. This partnership underscores a shared commitment to equipping students with real-world skills such as effective communication, cultural awareness, and community engagement while fostering meaningful connections with employers in Vermont. A four-semester grant from the Vermont Community Foundation will support students and faculty working alongside nuwave leadership to improve workplace culture through technology. These initiatives are designed to create measurable impacts on businesses across diverse sizes, industries, and locations.