Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Consolidated Communications (Nasdaq: CNSL) is celebrating and thanking its employees for volunteering in the communities where they live and work, during National Volunteer Week (April 16-22). Across Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, Consolidated employees volunteered nearly 2,000 hours with more than 50 organizations in 2022. One such volunteer, Dennis Barr, OSP Engineer at Consolidated, turned his love for sports into a way to help young athletes. The Greater Hartford Youth Football Association is a non-profit youth sports program serving the White River Junction, area. Each year about 50 kids in grades four through six, participate in the youth football program.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Representative Becca Balint (D-Vermont) delivered remarks on the House floor in opposition to the rule and against HR 734, the Protection of Women and Girls in Schools Act. “I rise in opposition to the rule, and to speak clearly and directly on HR 734, which Republicans are ironically calling the “Protecting Girls in Schools Act.” This bill is undeniably an attack on our kids. And does nothing to protect girls. Bills like this are aimed at taking away rights from LGBTQ+ Americans, often time kids. Kids and their families are being targeted and harassed for political gain. Is this the nation we want to live in?"

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont announced today that it has committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 as the cornerstone of a Comprehensive Sustainability Plan (CSP) that lays out strategies for increasing energy efficiency and reducing emissions. The CSP prioritizes decarbonization and features objectives in the areas of operations, governance and planning, and research and learning. The university will develop a program for “greening” campus labs, and reduce waste generated per campus user 10% by 2035. Over the next six years, UVM will develop a campus energy plan to help prioritize renewable energy investments, increase the percentage of electric vehicles in the fleet, make buildings more efficient, and drill geothermal test wells on campus.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont is excited to announce the inaugural Research, Innovation, Sustainability, and Entrepreneurship (RISE) Summit, taking place June 21-22, 2023. The new RISE Summit will bring together researchers, business leaders, and alumni to spotlight the opportunities and challenges of economic development in Vermont and the surrounding region. The convened leaders will discuss solutions to pressing needs including clean water, sustainable energy, affordable housing, food production, and more, and demonstrate the potential for university-community-business partnerships to succeed in these areas.

Vermont Business Magazine Following a jury trial, Everett A. Simpson, 45, formerly of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, was convicted on all counts – two counts of federal kidnapping and two counts of interstate transportation of stolen vehicles. According to court documents and testimony, on January 4, 2019, Simpson absconded from the Valley Vista treatment facility in Bradford, Vermont, and stole a commercial van in Newbury, Vermont, eventually deserting that vehicle in a parking garage in Manchester, New Hampshire on the morning of January 5. Later that same day, in the parking lot of the Mall of New Hampshire, Simpson kidnapped a young woman and her four-year-old child after forcing his way into the young woman’s car. Simpson held the woman and her child against their will, driving from New Hampshire into Vermont, where Simpson attempted to locate his estranged wife.

by Representative Ashley Bartley (R-Fairfax) Highlighting a study from the University of New Hampshire, the number one concern for Vermonters today is housing; both finding affordable housing but also the ability to purchase. In 2022, Republicans and Democrats alike ran on combating the housing crisis facing our State. A crisis, I will add, that is decades in the making. That is why the Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs committee spent the first half of the session on producing S.100, the Senate's omnibus housing bill that included funding to assist those experiencing homelessness and other important housing-related programs and organizations. The bill also contained strong and much needed Act 250 revisions.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced the appointment of Danielle (Danny) Fitzko as commissioner of the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation (FPR). Fitzko has served as interim commissioner since January 2023, and has worked at FPR since 2003, including as director of forests for the past four years. She replaces Michael Snyder, who served as FPR commissioner for 12 years. Fitzko will lead FPR’s 130 full-time employees across four divisions, and over 400 seasonal workers that mainly operate our world class Vermont State Park system. The FPR team works to support the diverse offerings of the Vermont landscape: scenic vistas featuring mountains, lakes, and rivers; and a strong rural identity of working lands, outdoor lifestyle, and traditions.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today signed three bills into law. These are: H.28, An act relating to diversion and expungement; H.466, An act relating to technical corrections for the 2023 legislative session; and S.54, An act relating to individual and small group insurance markets. He noted that for H.28, that the expungement, which he agrees with, would be better served by sealing the records instead of destroying them.

by David Coates & Mark Crow Just a year ago, we wrote that the recommendations by the Vermont Pension Benefits, Design and Funding Task Force to fix the retirement systems for state workers and teachers (later included in the pension reform legislation enacted in 2022) did not go far enough. A good start, but not far enough to make the systemic solutions needed for the systems’ sustainability. As we wrote, one measure to help make the systems sustainable is to conduct more frequent reviews of the systems’ actuarial assumptions. The 2022 legislation, however, extended the actuarial assumptions established in 2019 to 2023. We stressed, at that time and now, that the actuarial assumptions should be reviewed at least every three years.

Vermont Business Magazine Forbes Advisor analyzed 2022 figures from the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC), to find the rates of common parasites and diseases among cats and dogs in each state. This included the rate of positive tests for common pet problems such as heartworms, intestinal parasites, tick-borne diseases and viruses. Vermont was found to have the second highest rate of infection for cats and dogs on average, with 6.17% of all tests proving positive for disease or parasites. The Mountain State was found to have 29,752 positive cases of disease and parasites out of a total of 482,041 tests. The most common issues among dogs are the tick-borne diseases anaplasmosis and Lyme disease, at rates of 21.06% and 12.63% respectively, while roundworm was most common in cats at a rate of 5.58%.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today issued the following statement: “In my Inaugural Address, I asked legislators to join me to make the most of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity we have as a result of historic federal funds and state surpluses. I believe we do that by revitalizing our county economic centers and their surrounding communities that have been left behind for far too long. Because the fact is, the real majority in the Legislature is not about political parties. It comes from the more than 100 lawmakers who represent small communities that need our help. Unfortunately, despite the efforts of my team and many legislators from these small towns, initiatives that would help communities and families are being sidelined and sacrificed in order to satisfy political agendas and appease special interest groups."