Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Lake Champlain Chamber celebrated its 112th Annual Dinner on Thursday, April 13 with more than 300 attendees at the DoubleTree by Hilton. Four awards were presented to businesses and business leaders to recognize their accomplishments and contributions to our community. The Chamber also welcomed its Chair of the Board of Directors, Ashley Wainer. Chamber President Cathy Davis said of the event, “It's important to take the time to celebrate the businesses, organizations and individuals that create economic opportunity and make really positive contributions to our community. All of the award winners this year are outstanding examples of ingenuity and exceptional impact. It's our collective focus as a business community on the role we play in change that sets Vermont apart as a place to live, work, and do business."

Vermont Business Magazine Union Bankshares, Inc (NASDAQ - UNB), parent company of Union Bank with branches in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire, today announced results for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and declared a regular quarterly cash dividend. Consolidated net income for the first quarter was $3.0 million, or $0.66 per share compared to $2.5 million, or $0.55 per share, for the same period in 2022, an increase of $495 thousand, or 20.0%. Interest income was $13.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to $9.7 million for the comparable period in 2022, an increase of $3.3 million, or 34.1%, due to a combination of higher volumes of interest earning assets and higher average yields. Interest expense was $3.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to $763 thousand for the same period in 2022, an increase of $2.3 million, or 302.5%.

Vermont Business Magazine State Treasurer Mike Pieciak announced Wednesday that the application for the “10% in Vermont” program is now available on the Treasurer’s website. Additionally, a link to a webinar from earlier this week discussing the expanded program is now available on the website. Prospective applicants are encouraged to review the program details to ensure a complete application. Last week at the Bardwell House in Rutland, Pieciak announced an expansion of the program that authorizes the Treasurer to invest up to 10% of the State’s average daily cash balance for economic development in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin is the first hospital in Vermont to offer an innovative treatment for tears of the anterior cruciate ligament – one of the most common knee injuries across the U.S. The BEAR Implant is the first medical advancement to enable the body to heal its own torn ACL. JP Begly, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at UVM Health Network – Central Vermont Medical Center, performed the first surgery in Vermont using this novel approach last month. The BEAR implant is a major shift from the current standard of care – a reconstruction that replaces the ACL with a graft from another part of the body.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Vermont elected officials, local business leaders, and advocates gathered at the State House to call for swift action to advance legislation (S.25) that restricts PFAS and other toxic chemicals from cosmetic and menstrual products, and bans PFAS from textiles and artificial turf athletic fields. The bill passed the Senate unanimously, and has now been sent to the House Committee on Human Services for their consideration. The chemicals banned by this bill – including PFAS, phthalates and formaldehyde – are all linked to numerous negative human health impacts. Recently, the EPA issued their first-ever proposal to regulate 6 of the thousands of PFAS chemicals, affirming that virtually no level of these chemicals is safe for drinking water.

Vermont Business Magazine New data from the National Association of Realtors reveal middle-income homeowners in Burlington/South Burlington accumulated $84.070 in wealth as their homes appreciated over the last 10 years. The data, which was featured prominently in NAR’s new report, Wealth Gains by Income and Racial/Ethnic Group, speaks to the value agents and Realtors bring to consumers when helping buy and sell homes that build generational wealth. NAR data also showed substantial variation and inequality in wealth gains across different income and racial and ethnic groups. Low-income homeowners in these areas were able to build $123,840 in wealth in the last decade from home price appreciation only, while upper-income households saw an increase of $170,090.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington, Vermont, which has regularly made the cleanest cities lists for both ozone pollution and particle pollution, experienced a worsened level of particle pollution from 2019-2021, according to the American Lung Association’s 2023 “State of the Air” report, which was released today. Nationally, the report found that nearly 120 million people, or more than one in three, in the U.S. live in counties that had unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution. The Lung Association’s 24th annual “State of the Air” report grades Americans’ exposure to unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone air pollution, annual particle pollution and short-term spikes in particle pollution over a three-year period. This year’s report covers 2019-2021.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Corrections on Tuesday evening announced an unsuccessful escape attempt at Northeast Correctional Complex (NECC) in St Johnsbury. Mid-afternoon Tuesday, Department security staff became aware of an incarcerated individual’s attempt to escape the secure section of the facility. The individual was identified as Seth Brunell, a detainee at NECC. Brunell did not leave the secure section of the facility and did not pose a danger to the public during the event.

by Ciara McEneany, Community News Service Vermonters are one step closer to receiving job-protected leave to deal with the fallout of sexual and domestic violence as part of Democrats’ major paid leave bill, which passed through the House and into the Senate last month. Since the start of the session the bill has seen a $17 million bump in its cost — likely heightening opposition from Gov. Phil Scott and employers in the state. The bill, H.66, aims to create the Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program. Along with providing traditional types of paid time off, the bill would also fund time off for survivors of domestic or sexual violence and their guardians.

Vermont Business Magazine Middle and high school educators in Vermont can increase their financial literacy and personal finance teaching skills by attending a free, online, asynchronous graduate level course that will be available from July 3 through August 25. Funding for the course is again being provided by Northfield Savings Bank Foundation. All of the available spots for this session are open to Vermont educators. Applicants will be notified of acceptance no later than June 2.