Current News

Ten thousand pairs of top quality merino wool socks will find their way to needy Vermont youngsters this week thanks to the joint efforts of a charitable foundation affiliated with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont, a Northfield sock maker, and the state's community action agencies.
Governor James Douglas joined representatives of Blue Cross and Blue Shield and Cabot Hosiery Mills, Inc. at a Monday news conference at the Northfield sock maker's factory to announce the initiative. Douglas praised the Blue Socks for Kids project as an excellent example of private Vermont organizations working together to help their neighbors during difficult economic times.

Downtown Burlington's cooperative grocery store, announces three new members to its Board of Directors: Ann Ramsay, Susan Munkres, and Wayne Warnken. The new Board of Directors will begin their three-year terms on January 1.
Ramsay, a nurse and acupuncturist, has been a Co-op member for the past three years and was also a member many years ago when the Co-op was located on Archibald Street. Ramsay is also an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Nursing at the University of Vermont where she teaches several courses in Chinese Medicine.
Munkres has been involved in organic gardening, CSA's, farmers' markets, and co-ops for over 20 years, but most recently lived in the deep South where alternatives to the conventional food system were few and far between. She also teaches about food systems to high school and college students.

After hearing the testimony of those who would be affected by the Douglas Administration's proposed rescissions, the Joint Fiscal Committee determined that the state cannot solve its budget shortfall by disproportionately placing the burden on the backs of the most vulnerable Vermonters. Instead Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin and Representative Shap Smith worked with members of the Joint Fiscal Committee to craft a counter-proposal that better serves Vermonters.
The Joint Fiscal Committee recommended and approved its counter-proposal to reduce the severe impact of its rescissions on the mental health community, working parents, and small businesses.

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2008 was 5.7 percent, up five-tenths of a point from the revised October rate and up 1.9 points from a year ago.
"The nation's economic slowdown is showing up in more sectors of Vermont's labor market" said Patricia Moulton Powden, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor. "Bright spots remain in Education & Health services as well as Professional & Business services which continue to show annual growth."
Job Growth

Over 500 workers continued to work to restore power to the last 300 CVPS customers in Windham County Thursday morning.
"We made good progress Wednesday, and with the light so visible at the end of the tunnel, we're giving it all we've got yet again today," said spokeswoman Christine Rivers. "Each repair is still coming slow, as crews continue to spend hours to restore power one or two customers at a time, but we expect every customer outage we are aware of to be restored by late tonight. Thus we encourage customers still without power to call 1-800-451-2877."
At daybreak Thursday, more than 75 contract lines crews were working with 40 CVPS line crews, 50 tree crews and hundreds of support staff to wrap up the $3 million restoration effort that began Friday.

Central Vermont Public Service and the Vermont Department of Public Service have agreed to a rate settlement that will leave customer rates flat. In November, CVPS was authorized to increase its rates by one-third of a percent, while the DPS had suggested a decrease of 0.43 percent effective Jan. 1.
Rates will remain unchanged pending Public Service Board approval of the settlement with the DPS. Accordingly, the bill for a residential customer who uses 500 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month will remain $73.11.
By comparison, the same customer would pay up to $83.16 elsewhere in Vermont, and as much as $117.45 elsewhere in New England, according to the Edison Electric Institute.

Errors Contributing to 2 1/2 hour Outage across Northern Vermont on September 3 Identified
Montpelier, Vermont - The Department of Public Service today released a report detailing the results of a thorough investigation into the causes of an outage that left Vermonters across northern Vermont unable to call 9-1-1 on the morning of September 3, earlier this year. The report concludes that the outage was the result of a series of preventable errors or omissions by FairPoint and Verizon, operating under contract to FairPoint, in implementing system changes requested by the E-9-1-1 Board, which operates the E-9-1-1 system in Vermont.

Jolinda LaClair receives the 2008 Bernice R. Murray Award for Years of Dedication to Community Development in Vermont and the Nation
Montpelier, VT, November 19, 2008 - USDA Rural Development State Director for Vermont and New Hampshire, Jolinda LaClair, was presented with the Bernice R. Murray Award at the Vermont Community Development Association's (VCDA) Annual Meeting.

In a world where large format and desktop models dominate the field of ink jet printers, Pad Print Machinery of VT, Inc. has answered the call of industrial manufacturers with the Rapid Fire 1001 ink jet system.
East Dorset, VT, December 18, 2008 --(PR.com)-- Built with manufacturing in mind, the Rapid Fire 1001 is fully customizable for in-line applications, allowing industrial product marking at a speed and accuracy previously unavailable.
"Our expanded Ink Jet division of programmers, technicians and engineers have created a new digital ink jet line that brings the speed of digital to the needs of manufacturers," said PPMoV President Julian Joffe. "At the same time, industrial end users can expect the same top quality customer service and individualized attention that Pad Print Machinery of Vermont has built its reputation on."

Burlington, Vt. - Rep. Peter Welch joined Concord Coalition executive director Robert Bixby Thursday to call for a renewed focus on achieving long-term fiscal discipline at a forum sponsored by the Vermont Business Roundtable.
Welch and Bixby said that despite the need for short-term stimulus measures to reinvigorate a troubled economy, lawmakers must not lose focus on the long-term need to balance federal revenues and expenditures.
"While we have the need for a stimulus on the one hand, we must in this crisis focus immediately, diligently and energetically on structural issues in the federal budget that are not sustainable. The importance of building fiscal reform cannot be ignored in this time of crisis," Welch said. "The question for us in Congress is whether we're going to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time."

Chittenden Bank Presents Second Installment of $15,000 Pledge to the O'Brien Winooski Community Center
Winooski, VT - In 2002, the City of Winooski established a Community Development Department to focus on the creation of a community center. The goal was to create a facility designed to address the needs of their overall residential demographics, therefore serving people of all ages, interests and income levels. Winooski lacked a public space where programs could be offered to provide the community with benefits such as after school programs, a Teen Center, a Community Kitchen and summer activities for area youth. An under-utilized shopping center, just two blocks from the heart of the city was earmarked as the location. On March 31, 2007, the O'Brien Community Center opened its doors to the city of Winooski.
Chittenden Bank delivered the second installment of their 3-year pledge earlier this month.

Comments Sought on Revised Cleanup Plan for Burlington's Pine Street Canal Superfund Site
(Boston, Mass. - Dec. 17, 2008) - Following a careful review of previous work, EPA is seeking public input on recommended modifications to part of the underwater cap at the Pine Street Canal Superfund Site in Burlington, Vermont.
EPA's proposed modification is contained in a document called a draft "Explanation of Significant Differences" that proposes steps to repair and augment a leaking portion of the underwater cap installed several years ago. In 2006, EPA performed a "5-Year Review" of previous work at the Burlington site, and found that some portions of the cap are leaking oil and coal tar.