Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s lift-service skiing history began in 1934 with the installation of the first ski lift in the country: a rope tow powered by a Ford Model T engine on Gilbert’s Hill in Woodstock. A year later, the second rope tow in Vermont was built by Wesley Pope on Glenn Skiff’s farm in Jeffersonville. After that, small ski areas began popping up all around the state. The Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum has been documenting Vermont’s “lost” and “lost and found” ski areas for twenty-five years. To date, 184 have been identified, including four that were in the planning stages but never opened. The upcoming exhibit, “Searching for Vermont’s Lost Ski Areas – Part 2,” is a schuss down memory lane for those who learned to ski or ride at one of these slopes. In Part 2 of the exhibit, an additional 113 documented areas, not featured in Part 1, are introduced through photographs, interviews, newspaper clippings, and memorabilia from the Museum’s collection. 

Vermont Business Magazine Smugglers' Notch Resort (Smuggs) is collaborating with Snowball Effect to advance Snow Sports programs and further its unique culture and community. As a leader in the industry and an independently owned, locally focused resort, Smuggs continues to set standards for family-friendly programs, instructor opportunities, and inclusive community engagement. With a shared commitment to community impact and Snow Sports growth, Smuggs, and Snowball Effect bring renewed focus to empowering guests of all ages.

Vermont Business Magazine The Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center (NE-DBIC) has announced the Dairy Processor Modernization Grant Awards. Dairy processors in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont were selected for awards.  Individual award amounts will range from $62,000 to $350,000 with a total of $1,476,649.50 in overall funding. Projects from this grant will support dairy processors in modernizing their processing facilities to lead toward long-term business viability.  These projects focus on installing specialized equipment, including a whipped cream cheese mixer, a precision weight cheese cutter, a vat pasteurizer, and a rotary filler-sealer. This equipment will help grantees increase production, improve employee working conditions, and reduce product waste.  

Vermont Business Magazine The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Vermont District Office is urging Americans to embrace the spirit of the holiday season by supporting local small businesses on Small Business Saturday, an annual event founded by American Express and celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2024. To kick off the season, Senator Peter Welch, joined SBA District Director Darcy Carter for a tour of Winooski encouraging all to support a local small business on Small Business Saturday.      

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, on Friday issued the following statement regarding upcoming committee assignments in the 119th United States Congress: "I am proud of what we have accomplished during my time as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Over the last two years, we have made progress in reducing the outrageous cost of prescription drugs, standing up for workers’ rights and the trade union movement, expanding primary health care, and protecting public education. In the next Congress, I look forward to serving as the Ranking Member on HELP."

Vermont State Police On Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024, VSP troopers were notified of an event that had occurred the previous day at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital in St. Johnsbury involving a reported assault of two correctional officers by 48-year-old Joseph Heim of Fayston, who was an inmate in their custody. Troopers began an investigation, during which they learned Heim had attempted to take a set of keys from the correctional officers and fought with them while at the hospital following a medical event. The correctional officers were able to prevent Heim from escaping and successfully restrained him. The COs were uninjured.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senators Peter Welch (D-Vermont), Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) joined U.S. Representatives Delia Ramirez (D-IL-03) and Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ-07) to introduce the CBP Guidance on Personal Belongings Act, bicameral legislation to require the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) to develop guidance for the handling of personal property of individuals arrested, restrained, or confined by the Agency. Senator Welch’s legislation would expand protections for all individuals traveling through CBP custody to ensure they can retain and retrieve their essential personal belongings if confiscated. The bill would also help to ensure that individuals can maintain access to their medications unless CBP officials have identified a specific safety concern or provided an equivalent replacement medication. 

Public Assets Institute Vermont added about 1,600 net new jobs during the 12-month period ending March 2024. Almost 70 percent of those jobs came from new businesses. After a record rise in the wake of the pandemic, the pace of job growth slowed, especially among existing private sector employers, with the biggest decline taking place during the year that ended in March 2024. Existing private sector businesses in the state added more than 15,700 jobs from March 2023 through March 2024. But they also laid off more than 15,200 people, for a net gain of fewer than 500. Startup companies created about 8,600 jobs, while business closures wiped out almost 7,500, a gain of about 1,100.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermonters affected by July’s severe storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides have until 10 p.m. on Monday, November 25 to apply for federal disaster assistance, which may include FEMA grants to repair homes and replace property. For the storms that took place July 9-11, residents in the designated counties of Addison, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Lamoille, Orleans and Washington are eligible to apply. For the July 29-31 storms, those in the designated counties of Caledonia, Essex and Orleans can apply. Vermonters affected by both July storms must submit separate applications for each event.

Vermont Business Magazine The US Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from Vermont, allowing the state to request access to more than $5 million to implement its Digital Equity Plan. This funding comes from the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, one of three Digital Equity Act grant programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This funding is part of the “Internet for All” initiative, a key component of President Biden’s “Investing in America” agenda. For a variety of reasons, many Americans struggle to use the Internet connection available to them—for example, some lack the skills to navigate online resources and protect their personal and financial information online; others cannot afford a computer or tablet at home.   

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) on Thursday led Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) in introducing legislation that would restore congressional funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Senator Welch’s legislation would help address the mounting humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank by repealing funding prohibitions on UNRWA included in Congressional appropriations bills, and directs the U.S. Department of State to rescind the temporary pause in funding for UNRWA. The legislation expresses congressional support for appropriating critical funds to UNRWA for Fiscal Year 2025 appropriations packages. 

Vermont Business Magazine Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement on the recent action by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif for war crimes committed during and after the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks: The Geneva Conventions were agreed to after the horrors of World War II to establish standards meant to protect civilian populations and prevent warring nations from engaging in barbaric actions. The International Court of Justice and, later, the International Criminal Court (ICC) were created to enforce those standards. Today, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and his former Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, for war crimes including the use of starvation as a method of warfare and directing attacks against the civilian population.