Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and Susan Collins (R-ME) today introduced the Supporting All Producers (SAP) Act, legislation to require the United States Department Agriculture (USDA) to consult with maple producers when determining education and research priorities for the Acer Access and Development Program (Acer). Acer is a competitive grant program, supporting research and education related to maple syrup production and sustainability in the maple syrup industry. The bill was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representatives Becca Balint (D-Vermont) and Nick Langworthy (R-NY). 

by Jack Hoffman, Public Assets Institute Expansion of Vermont’s childcare subsidy program with an infusion of $120 million in new revenue will be a signal achievement of the 2023 legislative session if it survives a gubernatorial veto. There is more to be done, but this will be transformative for Vermont. Not just for families currently using paid childcare and any family thinking about having a kid or another kid, going back to work, or moving to Vermont, but for the well-being of all our kids. That means a better state for all of us. Unfortunately, in the rush to adjournment, public debate about how to fund childcare expansion got short shrift.

Vermont Business Magazine The national average price of gasoline this Memorial Day weekend is projected to be $1.10 less than it was in 2022, at $3.53 per gallon on average. Though, lower gas prices alone may not be enough for many Americans to hit the road this summer. According to GasBuddy’s 2023 Summer Travel Survey, released today, 64% of Americans are planning to take a summer road trip this year, up from 58% last year. However, 60% of that group has yet to confirm their plans by booking accommodations, activities or other travel plans. Meanwhile, Vermont gasoline prices have fallen below the national average, after rising during the winter.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced the availability of $3.6 million in grants to municipalities to upgrade their wastewater pretreatment facilities and capacity management. These improvements protect the health and safety of workers at these wastewater treatment facilities while also improving clean water and environmental outcomes and ensuring capacity for future growth.

Vermont Business Magazine The increasing frequency and damage from cybersecurity attacks against public institutions are driving demand for improved protection and more effective security operations. In response to this challenge, NuHarbor Security, the industry’s most trusted managed security provider, has scaled rapidly to support the evolving and critical needs of this market. NuHarbor has expanded their team by over 150% since 2021 and today announces the arrival of seasoned business executive Mark Fleeman as Vice President of Commercial. Mark will lead the company’s continued expansion into new accounts and new markets.

Vermont Business Magazine State and regional planners are hosting two meetings in May 2023 about the state’s Draft Tactical Basin Plan for the Ottauquechee and Black Rivers and adjacent Connecticut River Tributaries (Basin 10). This Plan has been developed to protect and restore rivers, lakes, and wetlands in southeastern Vermont from Killington to Springfield. “Tactical basin plans are the guidebooks for achieving healthy watersheds – from identifying surface waters that need restoration and protection to outlining action items to achieve water quality goals."

Vermont Business Magazine State and regional planners are hosting two meetings in May 2023 about the state’s Draft Tactical Basin Plan for the Lake Memphremagog, Tomifobia, and Coaticook Basin that runs from Craftsbury to Newport and Averill (Basin 17). This Plan has been developed to protect and restore rivers, lakes, and wetlands in northeast Vermont including the Black River, Barton River Clyde River, Tomifobia River, Coaticook River, and several smaller streams that flow directly into Lake Memphremagog. “This Tactical Basin Plan identifies water quality concerns across the Lake Memphremagog watershed and strategies to restore the lakes and rivers that are so important to this region of the state."

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department and the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board are accepting public comment and will hold three public hearings on new proposed regulations for trapping and for hunting coyotes with the aid of dogs. The new proposed regulations come in response to the Vermont Legislature’s Act 159 and Act 165, both passed last year. Act 159 directed the department to improve trapping safety and the welfare of animals trapped during the state’s regulated trapping seasons. The department’s proposal includes establishing a safety buffer between public roads, state-owned trails, and places where traps can be set, and restricting the use of body-gripping traps to reduce the risk to pets.

by Logan Solomon, Community News Service Connecticut’s second biggest natural gas energy generator looms over Ian McDonald’s town, Killingly, where his two children belong to a school district with facilities just two miles from a plant that pumps nitrogen dioxide into the air. For every 200 people in Killingly, almost 30 live below the poverty line. It’s in a county that, in a 2012 report, had the state’s highest prevalence of asthma, an ailment aggravated by breathing in high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide, federal officials say. Killingly is a poster child for the type of situation Vermont leaders say they can alleviate by amping up the state’s solar energy output. Tens of thousands of solar panels over the last six years have been dispensed across Vermont's roofs and yards.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation (FPR) is conducting road maintenance and improvements to the Pinnacle Meadow Road in Stowe. The construction started on May 1, and is expected to run into the second week of June. Public access to Pinnacle Meadow Road and the associated trailhead parking area is closed during construction. Work will take place on the Pinnacle Meadow Road between Upper Pinnacle Road and the trailhead, and on the forestry road between the trailhead and Pinnacle Meadow Vista. The project will install and replace culverts and improve erosion control features to improve water management and road bed integrity.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department is accepting public comments on a new Accessibility Transition Plan that addresses the 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards for recreational boating facilities on its more than 200 Fishing Access Area properties. The department’s fishing access areas allow the public to enjoy boating, fishing, hunting, and trapping on over 130 Vermont waterbodies free of charge. Over the past two decades, the department has upgraded features like parking areas, docks and fishing platforms to meet the standards outlined in the ADA as part of other infrastructure projects. The new Accessibility Transition Plan—drafted by department staff and reviewed by diverse stakeholders -- aims for a more deliberate approach to future upgrades.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Board of Education today voted to exempt private schools that receive public vouchers from the latest education quality standards. In response, the Vermont-NEA, the union which represents most teachers, said today that the state board provided yet another example of why the Legislature must end the practice of sending the public’s money to unaccountable private schools. The board – a majority of whom are private school advocates – made it clear that it doesn’t see the need to hold private schools to the same high standards required of public schools, according to the Vermont-NEA.