Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Secretary of State’s long-time Director of Elections, Will Senning, has announced he will be leaving that position next month for a new job with the federal government.  Vermont Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas shared the news today along with plans to conduct a nationwide search for Senning’s replacement. Senning has been with the Elections Division of the Secretary of State’s office for more than 12 years, 10 of those as Director. Senning now will become the Region 1 Election Security Advisor for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a division of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The agency is responsible for cybersecurity and infrastructure protection at all levels of government, and this includes the protection of elections.  

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power (GMP) is urging customers to plan ahead for damaging back-to-back regional storms that forecasters say will bring high winds, heavy wet snow, and rain across Vermont starting Tuesday. The National Weather Service issued a High Wind Watch for much of Vermont Tuesday evening through Wednesday with possible gusts above 65 MPH. This first storm is forecasted to be followed by a similar severe storm Friday evening through Saturday. In addition to internal GMP crews, GMP has more than doubled its field force with external crews.

Vermont Business Magazine At its December meeting, the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board (VHCB) invested in farm, natural land, and affordable housing projects that increase economic vitality and build strong communities throughout Vermont. Funding was approved to support the creation of 88 units of permanently affordable apartment housing in three Vermont communities through a total investment of $4.76 million, and an additional $1 million investment in funds to support housing developments statewide. The Board also voted to invest $3.2 million in the conservation of 409 acres in ten communities, and $300,000 to advance flood resilience efforts. Among the conservation projects funded was Vermont Outright’s initiative to purchase a summer camp on Lake Sunset, fulfilling its long-held vision to create a permanent gathering space dedicated to LGBTQ+ youth in Vermont and beyond.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) today sent letters to the CEOs of four pharmaceutical companies launching a major investigation into the extremely high prices these companies charge for inhalers that 25 million Americans with asthma and 16 million Americans with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rely on to breathe. The letters were sent to the four biggest manufacturers of inhalers sold in the United States – AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and Teva – which outrageously charge between $200 and $600 each for inhaler products that are typically purchased monthly.

Vermont Business Magazine In a landmark move to address Vermont’s urgent housing and homelessness challenges, the Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition and the Vermont Coalition to End Homelessness, two advocacy organizations with deep-rooted histories in Vermont, have merged to form a single organization: the Housing & Homelessness Alliance of Vermont (HHAV). As a merged organization, HHAV will help to unite voices from the housing and homelessness fields and leverage the expertise of its board and 60+ member organizations to meet the needs of vulnerable Vermonters and advocate for effective policies to ensure that all people living in Vermont have safe, stable, affordable homes and if homelessness occurs, it is brief, rare, and non-recurring. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Racial Justice Program Director of the ACLU of Massachusetts – and a Saint Michael’s College Professor Emerita – will deliver the keynote address during the College’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration and Convocation this month.  Lawyer, journalist, academic and advocate Traci Griffith, J.D. will speak at Saint Michael’s on Jan. 15, 2024, looking at the promises made in the U.S. Constitution and highlighting the ways in which society has fallen short in meeting those obligations. Griffith will bring both her legal expertise and personal experience to bear during her talk, titled “Promised on Paper, Pathetic in Practice: Race and the U.S. Constitution Through the Eyes of Dr. King.”  

Vermont Business Magazine The Attorney General’s Office announced that James Craft, 26, of Fair Haven, Vermont, was arraigned today on five felony counts and one misdemeanor count of Possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material. The charges brought against the defendant are the result of a criminal investigation, including the execution of a residential search warrant, conducted by the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (VT-ICAC), including personnel from the Attorney General’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, Manchester Police Department, and Fair Haven Police Department.

Vermont Business Magazine The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that on January 3, 2024, Carl Butterfield, 54, of Whitingham, Vermont, was sentenced in United States District Court in Rutland, Vermont, to serve 135 months in prison after his guilty plea to one count of possession of child pornography (also known as child sexual abuse material, or CSAM). Chief U.S. District Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford also ordered Butterfield to serve a 15-year term of supervised release.

Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.23/g, down 4.2 cents per gallon from last week's $3.27/g. The lowest price in the state yesterday was $2.89/g while the highest was $3.99/g, a difference of $1.10/g. The national average price of gasoline has fallen 3.8 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.03/g today. The national average is down 12.2 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 22.0 cents per gallon lower than a year ago, according to GasBuddy.

Vermont Business Magazine Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer and the “State of Lung Cancer” report reveals that it is detected at high levels in about 21.7% of homes in Vermont. During January for National Radon Action Month, the American Lung Association in Vermont is urging everyone to help save lives by testing their home for radon and mitigating if high levels are detected. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas emitted from the ground. Radon is odorless, tasteless and colorless, and can enter a home through cracks in floors, basement walls, foundations and other openings. Radon can be present at high levels inside homes, schools and other buildings. It is responsible for an estimated 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year and is the leading cause of lung cancer in people who have never smoked.

Vermont Agency of Agriculture Food & Markets Are you looking for funding to purchase specialized equipment like milk storage tanks, milk pipelines, glycol chillers, milk loading systems, reclaim systems for water, cooling equipment, plate coolers/heat exchangers, and more? If so, apply to the On-Farm Milk Storage & Handling Grant! Applications close on January 18th at 2pm. Awards will range from $15,000-$50,000 with a 25% cash or in-kind match requirement. Review the Request for Applications for the full program details. 

Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies Verde Technologies Inc. is developing an innovative alternative to traditional silicon solar panels. Headquartered in Burlington, this renewable energy company manufactures thin-film solar panels using the mineral perovskite. The product adheres to virtually any surface, making solar energy a viable option for all sunlit households.