Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Congresswoman Becca Balint (VT-AL) today sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to work closely with Congress to secure supplemental disaster aid for urgent flood recovery and long-term disaster mitigation in Vermont. This letter comes as Congress must act to provide additional federal funding for agencies that respond to disasters and follows Sanders and Welch’s letter to Senate colleagues to approve such additional aid for the state.

by Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First, Vermont Business Magazine A Vermont judge has agreed that a lawsuit filed against Middlebury College officials for their controversial and unannounced decision to improperly remove the name from the historic Mead Memorial Chapel can proceed. Dr. John Abner Mead, a former Vermont governor, to mark his 50th class reunion from Middlebury College, donated $75,000 in 1914 to build the iconic Mead Memorial Chapel in the middle of campus to honor his ancestors. 

Vermont Business Magazine Disaster Recovery Centers will open at 8 a.m. Aug. 10 in Johnson (Lamoille County) and Danville (Caledonia County) to help Vermont residents affected by the July severe storms, flooding, landslides and mudslides. The joint recovery center, a temporary facility established in partnership between the town, the state of Vermont and FEMA, will help survivors apply for FEMA assistance, upload documents and answer questions in person.  

Vermont Business Magazine  Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) is delighted to present the 2023 Arthur Gibb Award for Individual Leadership to Darby Bradley, in recognition of his over three decades long career dedicated to Vermont’s land and people. Darby was formerly VNRC’s Assistant Director and Staff Attorney, President of the Vermont Land Trust and Chair of the Vermont Environmental Board under Governor Kunin. VNRC will present the award to Darby at VNRC’s Annual Meeting at Lareau Farm Inn in Waitsfield on September 21st.  

by Dan Smith, President & CEO, Vermont Community Foundation It’s been three weeks since the torrential rains that flooded so many of our families, friends, and neighbors. Slowly, in many towns, the trash and debris are being hauled away from sidewalks; homes and businesses are airing out. And many of our fellow Vermonters are trying to make sense of where they go from here. But for some, the process of cleaning up is just getting started. As of today, only 5 counties of Vermont’s 14 remain outside the emergency disaster declaration. Addison County, which has yet to be declared by FEMA, received six inches of rainfall overnight last Thursday into Friday, leading to more flooding and destruction. And on Friday, downtown Rutland was hit hard by more rain.

by US Senator Bernie Sanders As you know, Vermont has suffered its worst natural disaster since 1927. The recent floods have damaged 4,000 homes and 800 businesses, as well as roads, bridges, and public infrastructure throughout the state. The cost of repair will run into many hundreds of millions of dollars. Needless to say, the congressional delegation – myself, Senator Welch, and Representative Becca Balint – working with Governor Scott, will do everything possible to make sure that Vermont gets its fair share of federal disaster relief. If you have been impacted by the floods, or know someone who has been affected, please click here and here for more resources, information, and next steps.

VermontBiz The Vermont Community Foundation announced today that it has awarded another $1,069,338 in grants to help Vermont recover from the devastating flooding across the state last month. 

The new round of grants from the Foundation’s VT Flood Response & Recovery Fund 2023 brings the total awarded from the fund to just over $2 million in the month since it was created.   

The fund has raised $6.1 million in gifts and commitments since it was announced on July 11. That total includes $5.4 million in gifts and $700,000 in pledges.

VermontBiz Today, the Green Mountain Care Board is starting FY24 hospital budget hearings using new evidence-based tools to examine expense growth against established national and regional benchmarks. This approach will allow GMCB to evaluate how rising hospital costs should impact charges that are passed on Vermonters with commercial insurance.

“Overall, the hospital budget requests are high again this year, with only 2 of 14 hospitals meeting the two-year budget guidance for net patient revenue growth,” said Owen Foster, GMCB Chair. “With GMCB’s new data tools, we will be looking at hospitals’ expenses compared to national trends and benchmarks to identify ways to avoid any unnecessary expenses. The goal is to contain costs and limit how much Vermonters have to pay for health care while ensuring Vermonters can access the care they need.”

VermontBiz With the start of Vermont’s 2023-24 academic year just around the corner, leaders from UVM Health Network, Vermont State University and Community College of Vermont (CCV) on Wednesday welcomed more than a dozen students who will enter the University’s revitalized Respiratory Therapy Training program this year.

The students – 14 of whom will begin classes this fall, as part of the program’s first two cohorts of learners – hail from communities across Vermont and organizations throughout UVM Health Network. They heard messages of welcome and encouragement from health system and academic leaders, who gathered at the University’s Williston Campus, where the program’s classroom and hands-on clinical training spaces are located, to celebrate the revitalization of a program that had been in danger of being shuttered due to financial challenges and waning student interest.

VermontBiz The Lake Champlain Chamber, in partnership with TBW Consulting and Padgett Coaching, is pleased to announce the launch of the THRIVE Executive Program. THRIVE Executive is an intensive leadership development program designed to provide senior leaders with the tools needed to inspire and lead their team and organization, today and into the future. Registration is open until September 1, 2023. 

“We are so pleased to partner with TBW Consulting and Padgett Coaching on Thrive Executive,” said Cathy Davis, president of the Lake Champlain Chamber. “We often hear from business leaders that they want to support their employees' professional development but they also want a space to connect with other executives and focus on their growth as leaders. This program helps fill that need.” 

Vermont Business Magazine The ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain will open a new and expanded toy store in early September in downtown Burlington in collaboration with Vermont Teddy Bear. The Tinkering Turtle by ECHO and Vermont Teddy Bear, located at 210 College St., will feature a unique selection of hands-on STEM toys, pretend play, games, puzzles, books, and signature brands like Fat Brain, eeboo, Melissa & Doug. The store will include a Vermont Teddy Bear Design Studio, inviting guests to create their very own custom, one-of-a-kind classic. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Southern Vermont CUD (SoVT CUD) celebrated the region’s future during a ribbon cutting yesterday, announcing the region as Gig Community. Through a partnership with Fidium, SoVT CUD will reach universal service coverage just 13 months after receiving a grant from the Vermont Community Broadband Board in October 2022. Construction of the all-fiber network is near completion and will make multi-gigabit service available to every home and business in its 14-town service area: Arlington, Bennington, Dorset, Landgrove, Londonderry, Manchester, Peru, Pownal, Rupert, Sandgate, Shaftsbury, Sunderland, Winhall and Woodford.