Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Compliance with workplace safety requirements for farmworkers who are exposed to dangerous pesticides is lacking, according to a new report from the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law and Graduate School in partnership with Farmworker Justice and the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic. Improving pesticide safety compliance requires stronger enforcement and monitoring, training, shifts in workplace norms and policy change. The degree of compliance with existing regulations varies from farm to farm, and enforcement can be inconsistent. The health consequences of these failings can be severe, long-term and even fatal for the people who plant, tend, harvest and pack our nation’s food. 

Vermont Business Magazine According to GasBuddy, average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.42/g, down 1 cent per gallon from last week. They're down 14 cents/g from last month and down 26 cents/g from a year ago. The lowest price in the state is $2.99/g in Brattleboro, while the highest is $3.89/g in Island Pond. The national average price of gasoline has fallen 7 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.17/g today. International prices have stabilized, and demand has fallen, which could further lower prices.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) voted Wednesday to advance debate on President Biden’s national security supplemental package and released the following statement: “Tonight, I voted to advance debate on a national security supplemental funding package. If the United States Senate is indeed the ‘world’s greatest deliberative body,’ we owe it to the people to have constructive debate around how their dollars are spent. This supplemental package contains many important funding priorities for the U.S. and our allies: Humanitarian assistance for the more than 1.5 million civilians who are trapped and suffering in Gaza; funding to fight back against Putin’s aggression in Ukraine; resources for our Southern border and money to interdict dangerous drugs. But, we still have work to do..."

Vermont Business Magazine The Sunshine-makers at Lawson’s Finest Liquids have been recognized as Brewbound’s 2023 Craft Brewery of the Year. The award was announced today during the craft beer industry trade publication’s annual business conference in Santa Monica, Calif.  Lawson’s Finest’s award win comes during an impactful and innovative year. In 2023, the brewery earned B Corp certification, reached over $2 million donated to nonprofit organizations since 2018 through its multi-pronged Social Impact Program, celebrated the addition of Adeline Druart as CEO, and solidified its commitment to earth-friendly brewing with the completion of its rooftop solar array. 

Vermont Business Magazine On December 6, Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) unveiled the Inclusive Democracy Act, brand new, first-of-its-kind legislation that would end felony disenfranchisement in Federal elections, including for the nearly 2 million individuals currently incarcerated in the United States. An estimated 4.6 million citizens are denied voting rights because of a criminal conviction, with Black Americans disproportionately affected, accounting for one-third of total disenfranchised citizens.

Vermont Business Magazine As Vermonters prepare for the approaching cold weather, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is urging drivers to switch off their ignition to limit unnecessary idling of their vehicle engines. Motor vehicles are the largest source of air pollutants and greenhouse gases in Vermont. The exhaust from vehicle idling degrades air quality for all Vermonters and is most detrimental to children, older adults, and people with heart or lung disease.

Vermont Business Magazine Beginning in late December, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will spend several months gathering information about farm economics from farmers and ranchers across the Northeastern United States, as the agency conducts the third and final phase of the 2023 Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS).  To obtain the most accurate data, NASS will reach out to more than 40,000 producers nationwide, between January and April in 2024. The survey asks producers to provide in-depth information about their operating revenues, production costs, and household characteristics. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel (VT NDCAP) will hold its final meeting of 2023 on Monday evening, December 11, 2023 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  In addition to receiving updates from NorthStar and Vermont State Agencies regarding recent Vermont Yankee (VY) decommissioning activities, the Panel will hear presentations from the Vermont Department of Health and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on radiological monitoring programs at VY.  Additionally, the Panel will discuss and vote on its 2024 Budget and Educational Expense Protocol.  The current draft of the Panel’s 2023 Annual Report to the Vermont Legislature and Governor will also be reviewed and potentially approved.  Lastly, elections for 2024 Panel Officers will be conducted. 

Vermont Natural Resources Council Explore the opportunity to shape the future of your community with VNRC’s Small Grants for Smart Growth program! This special grant round, open until January 15, 2024, offers 1-3 grants of up to $5,000 for initiatives promoting flood-resilient community development. Smart growth principles guide this program, emphasizing inclusive, community-driven decisions for sustainable land development. Projects supported range from advocating for improved land use regulations to revitalizing downtowns, enhancing sidewalks, promoting housing affordability, and conserving agricultural or forestry lands. Be sure to share this opportunity to catalyze positive change in your town. 

Vermont Business Magazine After voting against the $110.5 billion emergency foreign aid supplemental bill that came before the Senate on Wednesday evening, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) released the following statement: "I voted NO on the foreign aid supplemental bill today for one reason. I do not believe that we should give the right-wing extremist Netanyahu government an additional $10.1 billion dollars with no strings attached to continue their inhumane war against the Palestinian people. Israel has the absolute right to defend itself against the Hamas terrorists who attacked them on October 7. They do not have the legal or moral right to kill thousands of innocent Palestinian men, women, and children."

Vermont Business Magazine Technology for Tomorrow (T4T) kicked off its Microsoft TechSpark partnership with a Roundtable Conversation on how to address the challenges and opportunities with digital inequality on Dec. 1 at the South Burlington Public Library. Guests included TechSpark U.S. Program Manager Michelle Schuler, Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, Vermont Community Broadband Board Executive Director Christine Hallquist, and Vermont nonprofit leaders from across the state. Enrollment is now under way for the free digital literacy courses T4T has designed as part of its partnership with Microsoft TechSpark. Both the 10-week basic digital literacy and 10-week introduction to AI courses will be offered January-March at the South Burlington Public Library. The courses, one for beginners and one for advanced learners, are free. Participants in the two cohorts will come from local nonprofit organizations.

by State Auditor Doug Hoffer Last week Vermont’s Tax Commissioner issued a letter announcing that education property tax bills are expected to increase by approximately 18.5% next year.  Among the chief contributing factors is a more than 16% increase in teacher health care costs. The governor, legislators, the unions representing teachers and state employees, and school administrators do not have to sit by and let these health care cost increases continue to strain public budgets. Fortunately, there are strategies to save money that would not hurt teachers or students, and which can be applied to the state employee health plan as well. Here, we discuss one of them, “reference-based pricing."