Current News

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $2.98 per gallon, unchanged from a week ago, 7 cents/g from a month ago and 16 cents/g from a year ago. The lowest price in the state this week was $2.59/g while the highest was $3.19/g, a difference of 60.0 cents per gallon, according to AAA. Prices are lowest in Bennington ($2.80/g) and Rutland ($2.87/g) counties and highest in Essex ($3.16/g), Chittenden ($3.06/g), and Grand Isle ($3.06/g), according to AAA. The national average price of gasoline has risen 2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $2.87/g today. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Federal Nuclear Waste Policy (FNWP) Committee of the Vermont Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel (VT NDCAP) will meet on Monday, February 2, 2026, from Noon to 1:00 PM.  As permitted by ACT 133 of the 2024 Vermont Legislature, this meeting will be conducted solely as a webcast and teleconference. The February 2 meeting is for VT-NDCAP's Federal Nuclear Waste Policy Committee and NOT the full panel. VT-NDCAP has tentatively scheduled a meeting of the full panel for Monday evening, February 9.  Details about that meeting will be made available next week.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee on Rural Development, Energy, and Credit, today led 14 bicameral lawmakers in reintroducing the Opportunities in Organic Act, legislation designed to help farmers and other agricultural producers transition to organic practices and build successful and sustainable businesses. The Senators’ legislation would help eliminate steep barriers farmers often face to enter the industry, including high certification costs and insufficient technical assistance from existing United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs. The bill is led in the House of Representatives by Reps. Alma Adams (D-NC-12) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19).

Vermont Business Magazine Ahead of National Unclaimed Property Day on February 1, Treasurer Pieciak is reminding Vermonters to search for their unclaimed property at missingmoney.com. Unclaimed property includes lost checks, forgotten bank accounts, safety deposit boxes, and other financial property. Entities are required to annually turn these assets over to the State, and the Treasurer's Office safeguards them until claimed by rightful owners or their heirs. Unclaimed property can belong to individuals, businesses, nonprofits, government entities, and more. The Treasurer’s Office currently holds over $150 million in unclaimed property—money Treasurer Pieciak says is essential to return to Vermonters.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project (VAAP; www.vaapvt.org) is proud to announce that Vermont attorneys Erin Jacobsen and Margaret “Maggie” Frye are joining our staff as Practice Development Fellows. This innovative initiative strengthens Vermont’s immigration legal services ecosystem by investing simultaneously in durable practice infrastructure and an immediate expansion of direct legal services. The program pairs advanced-career attorneys interested in launching solo or small immigration law practices in Vermont with systems-building, mentorship, and supported representation experience—ensuring both near-term impact and long-term capacity.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State University (VTSU) achieved distinction from the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC) and is officially recognized as a leading public liberal arts institution. COPLAC comprises 26 colleges and universities across 25 states and one Canadian province. The organization drives awareness of the value of a high-quality, public liberal arts education in a student-centered, residential environment. COPLAC designation is a significant milestone and affirms VTSU’s commitment to providing excellent liberal arts and sciences education. This achievement identifies VTSU's role within the national consortium and expands VTSU's historic participation in COPLAC to the entire university.

Vermont Business Magazine The Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region's (CEDRR) regional marketing initiative, Real Rutland, has been awarded $150,000 through the Grants for Relocation Outreach Work (GROW) program. The two-year grant, administered by the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing, will support relocation and retention efforts through 2027. CEDRR’s commitment to increasing the population of Rutland County helps ignite economic growth and strengthen the region for everyone. Since the launch of Real Rutland in 2016, more than 250 individuals have relocated to Rutland County, filling available job positions, opening businesses, starting families, and encouraging friends and relatives to make the move as well.

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power's Energy Storage Lease program has been a great way for Vermonters to add battery backup to their solar array with no up-front cost. And now, GMP customers have a choice: they just added Enphase IQ batteries to the program, in addition to Tesla's Powerwall. Enphase is a great choice for many SunCommon customers who are likely to have the company's microinverters as part of their solar array already. GMP's lease program allows you to lease two batteries for $55/month, providing you with 20 kWh of stored energy on your Enphase IQ batteries. Now is a great time to prepare for possible power outages due to snow storms. Leasing a battery is a great option for homeowners that are interested in battery storage but may not want to invest upfront.

Vermont Business Magazine Have you checked out Vermont Electric Co-op’s incentives for electric technologies recently? These incentives are designed make the purchase of certain types of electricity-powered equipment more affordable for members. Almost 7,000 VEC members have taken advantage of incentives since the co-op began offering them in 2017. Since the program began, VEC’s incentives have eliminated the consumption of almost 24 million gallons of fossil fuel. That’s the equivalent of taking over 42,000 cars off the road for a year.  

Vermont Business Magazine David S. Silverman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Union Bank of Vermont and New Hampshire, announced today that the Board of Directors of Union Bankshares, Inc. has appointed Steven P. Cote, President of Chalmers Insurance Group, to the Union Bank Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2026. "We are pleased to welcome Steve to our Board," said Silverman. "His decades of leadership in the insurance industry, along with his commitment to strategic planning, client service excellence, and community engagement, make him an outstanding addition. Steve's experience and values are strongly aligned with Union Bank's mission to deliver exceptional, community-focused banking." 

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s state-wide Free Ice Fishing Day is Saturday, January 31, 2026. Free Ice Fishing Day is held annually on the last Saturday in January.  The day is geared toward giving new ice anglers an opportunity to try ice fishing before purchasing equipment or a fishing license, but any angler may ice fish on any waterbody open to ice fishing statewide without a license on Free Ice Fishing Day. To celebrate Free Ice Fishing Day, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department is holding an Ice Fishing Festival at Elmore State Park in Elmore.  The festival will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  The event is free and open to all ages as well as families with kids.

Vermont Business Magazine Waterfowl hunters who did not remove their hunting blind from the waters of the state earlier must do so before February 15 on Lake Champlain or May 15 on inland waters according to a reminder from the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. State law requires removal of the blind together with its contents and any surrounding debris located on or in the water before these deadlines to protect natural areas and to prevent boating accidents after the ice melts.