Current News

Vermont State Police A Vermont Superior Court judge Wednesday afternoon signed an arrest warrant for Jakiy Tramaine Corey Keith, 24, of Hartford, Connecticut, arising from the Feb. 2 shooting death of Kayla Wright. The warrant approved by Judge Rory Thibault is for a charge of first-degree murder and carries a bail amount of $250,000. Keith remains in custody on federal drug charges, and the timing of his arraignment in the Vermont murder case is unclear.

Vermont Business Magazine Working Fields has surpassed the $2M mark in equity funding from investors to support its regional expansion. As a mission-driven staffing agency and benefit corporation, Working Fields strengthens communities using a unique peer support model to increase access to employment for marginalized populations and connect local employers with dedicated job seekers. Since its inception in 2017, Working Fields has helped over 3,000 people with employment opportunities at more than 100 companies. Headquartered in Vermont, operating and actively expanding across New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts, Working Fields has received funding from 26 national and New England-based investors to accelerate its growth in the Northeast

Vermont Business Magazine Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Subcommittee Chair Ed Markey (D-Mass.) on Thursday issued the following statement: In America today, we have a dysfunctional and cruel health care system that is designed not to make patients well, but to make executives extraordinarily wealthy. There could not be a clearer example of that than private equity vultures on Wall Street making a fortune by taking over hospitals, stripping their assets, and lining their own pockets. Perhaps more than anyone else in America, Dr. Ralph de la Torre, the CEO of Steward Health Care, is the poster child for the type of outrageous corporate greed that is permeating through our for-profit health care system.

Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission TRORC is evaluating interest in expanding TRORC’s scope of services including Two Rivers helping towns secure additional staffing and expertise by creating a position at TRORC to be contracted to multiple towns, helping towns create joint or individual in-town positions, or obtaining services directly from TRORC on a one-off, contract-basis. Example positions include but are not limited to: Grants Manager, Zoning Administrator, and Town Administrator.

Vermont Business Magazine The winners of Vermont’s 2024 moose hunting permits were determined Wednesday, July 17, at a lottery drawing at the Fish and Wildlife office in Montpelier. The drawing is done by a random sort of applications that were submitted by the June 19 deadline. As part of the regular lottery drawing, a “special priority drawing” was held for five permits to go to applicants who are Vermont resident veterans. The unsuccessful applicants from the veteran drawing were included in the larger regular drawing that followed.  All applicants for both drawings who did not receive a permit were awarded a bonus point to improve their chances in future moose permit lotteries.

Agency of Commerce and Community Development Even if you are not submitting an insurance claim, report damage to Vermont 211 by using the Resident Form or Business Form. This data will only be used to help the state apply for a federal disaster declaration. Take pictures and document costs as you repair public infrastructure. If there is a federal disaster declaration, you will be reimbursed.

Vermont Business Magazine Union Bankshares, Inc (NASDAQ - UNB) today announced results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2024 and declared a regular quarterly cash dividend. Consolidated net income for the three months ended June 30, 2024 was $2.0 million, or $0.45 per share, compared to $2.7 million, or $0.60 per share, for the same period in 2023, and $4.4 million, or $0.98 per share, for the six months ended June 30, 2024, compared to $5.7 million, or $1.26 per share for the same period in 2023.  The Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.36 per share for the quarter payable August 1, 2024, to shareholders of record as of July 27, 2024.

Vermont Business Magazine In late June, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the Proposed Rule regarding Medicare home health services payment rates for calendar year (CY) 2025. The proposed rule contains a substantial cut to Medicare rates for the home health services many Vermonters depend on, creating new fiscal challenges for providers during an already difficult time. For 2025, the proposed rule permanently reduces the standard Medicare payment rate by 4.067%. Last year, CMS ultimately implemented half of the 5.653% cut that it initially proposed. This year’s cut includes the remaining 2.89% of the 2024 proposal, along with an additional cut to reflect claims paid through 2023.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Charity Clark today filed a lawsuit against pharmacy benefit managers Evernorth (owner of Express Scripts) and CVS as well as nearly two dozen affiliated entities for unfairly and deceptively driving up prescription drug prices in Vermont. Pharmacy benefit managers (sometimes referred to as “PBMs”) are the “middlemen” who negotiate contracts with pharmaceutical manufacturers, insurance companies, and pharmacies, and dictate the cost of prescription drugs that consumers must pay. The Attorney General’s lawsuit alleges these companies violated Vermont’s Consumer Protection Act by manipulating the marketplace and reducing access to certain prescription drugs, including lower-cost drugs, through a series of tactics with no transparency in their decision-making process.

Vermont Business Magazine Following a repeat of devastating flooding on the anniversary of last year’s floods, Vermont Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas reminded Vermonters to be aware of potential residential contractor fraud. She encouraged those seeking to hire residential contractors to do their due diligence by utilizing the homeowner and consumer protection resources provided by the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) and other state offices.

The Vermont State Police on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, arrested two suspects in connection with the February homicide of Kayla Wright, 29, of Derby. Aaron Camp, 34, of Derby faces charges of unauthorized burial or removal of a body and being an accessory after the fact to murder. Terron “Josh” Pendleton, 34, of Waterbury faces one count of being an accessory after the fact to murder. In addition, VSP detectives have applied for an arrest warrant for Jakiy Tramaine Corey Keith, 24, of Hartford, Connecticut, on charges of second-degree murder and unauthorized burial or removal of a body. Keith has been in custody since his arrest Feb. 6 on federal drug charges.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) joined Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) in sending a letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan and Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter, urging the agencies to crack down on the consolidation of emerging generative artificial intelligence (AI) by tech giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google. Consolidation stifles innovation, eliminates potential competitors, limits consumers’ ability to choose a variety of products, and puts America’s national security at risk.