Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Dam Safety Program of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced the public launch of the new online Vermont Dam Inventory. The upgraded, publicly-available inventory of approximately 1,200 of Vermont’s dams provides data to identify dams for maintenance, upgrades, replacement, or removal and ensure the resilience of the state’s dams into the future.

Vermont Business Magazine Hunting and fishing are recreational uses of the National Wildlife Refuge System. At the Silvio O. Conte National Fish & Wildlife Refuge, we welcome people of all backgrounds and abilities to participate in recreational hunting and fishing. The Silvio O. Conte NFWR is seeking public review and comment on a supplemental Environmental Assessment and revisions to its 2021 hunting and fishing plan. The public is invited to review the revised draft Hunting and Fishing Plan, Compatibility Determination, and supplemental Environmental Assessment. The comment period will stay open through May 25, 2023. The draft document is available online beginning April 24, 2023.

Vermont Business Magazine Cathedral Square’s Elm Place in Milton received a Green Building Award last week at the eleventh annual Vermont’s Greenest Building Awards, hosted by the Vermont Green Building Network (VGBN). This award is given to projects demonstrating energy use intensity at least 50% below the regional average energy use for buildings of the same end use and incorporating other sustainability features. Completed in 2017, Elm Place features 30 one-bedroom apartments for modest- and low-income older adults located on a smart growth site in the heart of Milton’s downtown. The 28,000-square-foot energy efficient building is Vermont’s first certified Passive House multifamily residence.

Vermont Business Magazine On February 16, 2023 the VT Nursery & Landscape Association held their annual meeting and trade show at the University of Vermont Davis Center, which was attended by 150 people. During the VNLA annual business meeting annual awards were presented as listed below. During the business meeting they also announced the establishment of the Dr. Leonard P. Perry Scholarship Fund. For 35 years, Dr. Perry was a UVM Emeritus Professor/Extension Horticulture Specialist at the University of Vermont and the VNLA celebrates Dr. Perry’s legacy in establishing this scholarship fund in his name.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont today announced a new initiative that will fund and support students in launching their business ideas and growing them into successful enterprises in Vermont at a special Grossman School of Business (GBS). The Joy and Jerry Meyers Cup is a first-of-its-kind competition in Vermont made possible by a donation to the Grossman School of Business by Chip Meyers, the son of two UVM alumni, representing the Meyers Family Trust. This business launch competition, which starts in fall of 2023 with funding for the next 10 years, aims to help launch the businesses and careers of outstanding undergraduate entrepreneurs at UVM. Each year, the grand prize winner will receive more than $200,000 in cash along with in-kind services to help grow their business idea in Vermont after graduation.

Vermont Business Magazine Citizens announced today that its national Citizens Business Conditions Index (CBCI) rose to 53.7 in Vermont (up 9.4%) and 53.9 (up 6.9%) in the US in the first quarter, reflecting continued strength in the labor market, more new business openings and positive corporate revenue trends. The Index had dipped below 50 during the fourth quarter of last year and the bounce-back during the first quarter signaled a return to positive business conditions. Citizens Bank has branches across Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced new legislation today to combat the rise in illicit use of the animal tranquilizer Xylazine, also known as Tranq. The Testing, Rapid Analysis, and Narcotic Quality (TRANQ) Research Act directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to take steps to enhance understanding of Tranq and other novel synthetic drugs, develop new tests for detection, and establish partnerships with front—line entities that are often the first points of contact with new street drugs.

Vermont Business Magazine The Green Mountain Council Eagle Scout and Summit Award Recognition Day is on Thursday, April 27, in Montpelier. This event will recognize 46 Vermont youth who have earned Scouting's highest ranks, including the inaugural class of female Eagle Scouts. The event will commence with Scouting's Report to the State and a reading of the official proclamation recognizing the 2022 Class at 11:30 am in the Cedar Room of the Statehouse. This will be followed by a lunch program at the Capital Plaza where Lt. Governor David Zuckerman will provide the keynote address.

by Department of Economic Development Commissioner Joan Goldstein It’s fair to say we are living in an unusual economic environment. Historically high interest rates and inflation are creating challenging conditions for businesses large and small, and impacting the wallets of individual Vermonters. You don't have to work in economic development to see how squeezed folks are feeling — just go grocery shopping. These new challenges come after a lengthy pandemic wreaked havoc on health care, hospitality, education, arts and cultural institutions, and the small business community. This exacerbated our pre-existing labor shortage, housing shortage and added supply chain disruptions that persist across all sectors of the economy.

Vermont Business Magazine Today the Vermont House of Representatives passed S.73, an act relating to workers’ compensation coverage for firefighters with cancer, in a unanimous vote. The legislation expands workers’ compensation benefits for firefighters including the cancers that are covered to provide greater parity for women in the firefighter profession. The Vermont Speaker of the House, Rep. Jill Krowinski, and the President of Professional Firefighters of Vermont, Christopher Dube, issued a joint statement on the passage of the bill.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, US Senators Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), both members of the Senate Agriculture Committee, introduced the bicameral Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act, legislation aimed at holding corporations accountable for the exploitation of children and workers in the food industry. The bill prohibits the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from contracting with companies that have committed egregious labor law violations and/or have contracted with vendors that have incurred, and failed to rectify, serious worker or labor infractions. U.S. Representative Greg Casar (D-TX) introduced companion legislation in the House.