Current News

Bromley Mountain Resort We’ve got another stellar weekend ahead of us with our two favorite things in the forecast: sun and snow! We’ve got a light movement coming in tonight and tapering off by mid-Friday morning which may deliver 1-3” of fresh snow. Saturday and Sunday are expected to be chock full o’ sunshine which we’ll be soaking in thanks to our southern-facing slopes. We’ve had some of the best conditions of the season over the past week and that is expected to continue for our 38th Kåre Andersen Telemark Festival, happening this Saturday, 2/24 and Sunday, 2/25. 

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed H.850, An act relating to transitioning education financing to the new system for pupil weighting. Scott signed the bill in Washington, DC, where he is attending the National Governors Association annual meeting. The new law seeks to reduce property tax increases this year, which could reach 20 percent without action by local school districts. Without the new language, school districts would have had their hands tied in their budget requests before voters, by either hiking property tax rates or cutting budgets, or both. The new bill will at least un-tie their hands, but does not by itself reduce tax increases.

Vermont Business Magazine Bank of Burlington has announced the appointment of Victoria Bronner as President, a position previously held by Chief Executive Officer, Geoffrey Hesslink. Bronner joined the Bank as the Chief Operating Officer in March of 2023, a position she will continue to hold in addition to this new appointment. In this role, Bronner will oversee all aspects of the Bank’s operations and staff. Bronner was part of the initial formation of Bank of Burlington and assisted with regulatory approvals, capital raise, and business planning. 

Vermont Business Magazine The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with Stepping Stones Children’s Center, Inc, a childcare center that provides childcare services for children ages 2 years old to 5 years old in Burlington, Vermont, to resolve allegations that Stepping Stones was not operating in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The settlement agreement addresses an ADA complaint filed by the parents of a child with a disability, alleging that Stepping Stones terminated the child from the program because of his disability. Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Stepping Stones will implement nondiscriminatory policies, practices, and procedures for children with disabilities

Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.24 per gallon, up 1 cent per gallon from last week. They are up 10 cents/g from last month and down 21 cents/g from last year. The lowest price in the state yesterday was $2.93/g in Brandon, while the highest was $3.39/g, at several stations across the state. The national average price of gasoline has risen 3 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.27/g today. Gasoline prices tend to rise this time of year.

Vermont Business Magazine With spring construction season ahead, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wants to remind Vermonters about additional requirements to help protect the state’s waterways. Construction activities may require a Vermont Construction General Permit 3-9020 when the total land disturbance is: Equal to or greater than 1 acre; or, less than 1 acre – but is part of a larger common plan of development – if the larger development will ultimately result in the disturbance of 1 or more acres.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement on S.311, An act relating to bringing everyone home. This bill was passed unanimously out of the Senate Economic Development committee last week and will now move to Senate Natural Resources. S.311 includes many of the proposals in H.719, An act relating to housing development and unit rehabilitation, a tri-partisan bill introduced in the House with the Administration’s partnership, but the House has not taken it up. “If we want to make the most of the hundreds of millions of dollars we’ve invested in housing, we must make it less expensive, faster and easier to build and rehabilitate housing in Vermont. Because despite historic investments, there remains a lack of housing to meet the needs of Vermonters in every single county.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department has proposed issuing 180 moose hunting permits in Vermont’s Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) E in the northeastern corner of the state in a continued effort to reduce the impact of winter ticks on moose in that area.  No permits are recommended for the rest of the state.  This is the same permit allocation that was approved by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board in 2023. The proposal was given initial approval by the Fish and Wildlife Board at its February 21 meeting and is now available for public comment.

Vermont Business Magazine Public hearings on the status of migratory game bird populations and proposed 2024 migratory game bird hunting seasons for the interior zone of Vermont and Lake Champlain zone in New York and Vermont will be held Tuesday, March 12 and Thursday, March 14. The annual Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board informational hearings will be held from 6:30 to 9 p.m. on March 12 and March 14, 2024.  Information to attend the hearings is as follows: Tuesday, March 12, (in person only), Ticonderoga Fish and Game Club, County Route 56, Ticonderoga, NY 12883 (Across from Reale Construction); Thursday, March 14, (in person only), Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, 111 West Street, Essex Junction, Vermont 05452-4695. (To be held in the Act 250 conference room).

Vermont Business Magazine DeFreest Farms, with support from local, state and federal conservation partners, has successfully protected a 70-acre parcel in Waitsfield for farming, flood resilience and recreation, the Vermont Land Trust (VLT) announced today. The conservation project is the first in the nation to close under a new funding program to help farmers acquire farmland through USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Visible from Route 100 and located on Tremblay Road, the newly protected land lies along the eastern bank of the Mad River in the heart of the scenic and productive Mad River Valley. The conservation easement on the 70-acre parcel protects its productive soils from development and ensures that the land will remain available to future farmers. It also protects the property’s many water, habitat and recreational resources.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine New data has revealed which states are expected to have the highest electricity bills this year and which will have the lowest. Hawaii is anticipated to pay out the most, and Utah to pay out the least.  Vermont ranked lower than all New England states (33rd, $1,513.34), and was lower than the US average ($1,730.55).  By comparing consumer costs between November 2022 and 2023, an annual increase was calculated for each state, determining a total bill for each household.  electric rates do not translate into electric bills necessarily. For instance, Alabama's electric rate is 14.89 cents/kwh, far lower than Vermont's 21.57 cents/kwh, but their estimated annual bill is 10th highest at $2,064.63, nearly $500 more than Vermont's. 

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott's office today responded to criticism that he is not doing enough to address public safety by releasing a statement saying that in Governor Scott’s Budget Address, delivered to the Legislature in January, he said, “I don’t think there will be a lot of disagreement about what’s in this budget. The disagreement will lie in what’s not in it. But pretending we can fund everything isn’t realistic.” So, when “critics say” the governor has not prioritized public safety, they are ignoring the budget reality and some key facts. First, Governor Scott’s budget did prioritize public safety. In a year where available revenue only allowed for 3.57% growth in the General Fund budget over the previous fiscal year, the governor proposed funding agencies, departments and services with public safety responsibilities at an average of 5.6% more than the previous year.