Current News

Vermont State Police Following completion of autopsy and notification of relatives, the Vermont State Police is able to identify the victim as Brett Novak, 58, of Sharon. The Chief Medical Examiner’s Office currently lists the cause and manner of death as pending. On Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, the Sharon Fire Department and South Royalton Rescue Squad were dispatched to a fire in a camper trailer at 4573 Vermont Route 14 in Sharon after numerous 911 callers reported seeing black smoke coming from the camper. Sharon Fire arrived, entered the camper and extinguished the fire. Sharon Fire located a man deceased inside the trailer.

Vermont Business Magazine Secretary of Administration Sarah Clark today released Vermont’s revenue results for December 2025. The General Fund missed its monthly target, while the Transportation Fund and Education Fund both exceeded their monthly targets. The State’s General Fund, Transportation Fund, and Education Fund receipts were a combined $295.3 million, representing collections of $0.05 million, or 0.02%, above the $295.2 million monthly target in the consensus forecast adopted by the Emergency Board at its July 2025 meeting. Total General Fund revenues for December were $204.1 million, -$5.3 million or 2.5% below the $209.4 million monthly cash flow target, driven by a second month of significantly lagging Corporate Income Tax receipts.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation today formally announced the gubernatorial appointment of Christine Brown as Deputy Commissioner of its Captive Insurance Division, solidifying a role in which she has served in an acting capacity since the start of the year. Brown’s appointment confirms Vermont’s long-standing reputation as a trusted, well-regulated domicile in an increasingly complex global risk environment. DFR leadership is grateful for Brown’s willingness to serve. Commissioner Kaj Samsom applauded her contributions to the Department for over 20 years and said they were instrumental in maintaining continual, effective Division operations.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Vermont Commission on Women Chair Esther Charlestin announced her candidacy for Vermont Lieutenant Governor. Commissioner Charlestin will seek the Democratic nomination to serve all Vermonters. Already former Lieutenant governor Molly Gray has announced she will again seek the Democratic nomination for the post, as has another Democrat, Ryan McLaren. Current Republican Lieutenant Governor John Rodgers has said he would seek reelection.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington-based Fluency announced Tuesday its partnership with TikTok to scale its new TikTok Automotive ads category. Fluency has built a Digital Advertising Operating System (OS) that currently powers over $3 billion in annual media spend and 250,000+ monthly campaigns. Now that it’s integrated with TikTok, automotive ad agencies and brands can easily extend the campaigns they’re already running to TikTok and manage all their ad channels all in one place. Fluency, the digital advertising operating system for automating paid media operations at scale across all major channels, announced that digital ad agencies and brands will be able to deploy, manage and optimize TikTok Automotive Ads, the platform’s new automotive ad category, directly from its centralized platform.

Vermont Business Magazine A new study has revealed the states with the lowest college graduation rates, naming Alaska as having the worst rate in the country. The data, done by SEO agency Hennessey Digital, looked at the graduation rates across all colleges in each state according to the latest available data from US National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS). Vermont ranks #5 nationally for college graduation rates at 69.80%—an impressive 8.88 percentage points above the national average of 60.92% and securing the Green Mountain State's position among America's higher education elite. With 7 in 10 college students (4,222 of 6,049) successfully completing their degrees, Vermont—the nation's second-smallest state by population—dramatically outperforms 45 larger states.

VMEC and the VT Department of Labor (VT DOL) have announced their latest Apprenticeship partnership. The American Manufacturing Apprenticeship Incentive Fund is a new pay-for-performance federal incentive program administered by VMEC on behalf of the U.S. Department of Labor. It is designed to help employers create, expand, and sustain Registered Apprenticeship programs in advanced manufacturing. 

Vermont Business Magazine Windsor County Sheriff Ryan Palmer is facing multiple charges related to numerous reported incidents of sexual misconduct, according to the result of a monthslong investigation by the Vermont State Police. The investigation began in July 2025, when VSP received numerous anonymous tips through the Vermont Tip Line alleging possible misconduct surrounding the Windsor County Sheriff’s Office, specifically its finances and the management of funds. The case was assigned to detectives from the Vermont State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations from outside the area to avoid any potential conflicts of interest in pursuing the matter. 

Vermont League of Cities & Towns This message from Phil Latvis, Director of Risk Management Services, offers a quick look back at 2025 and an encouraging look ahead to the opportunities and improvements coming in 2026. Announcements & Updates By Sunday 2/1, TM Warnings Must Be Posted. The last day for selectboards to warn their town meetings is this Sunday! Unlike some statutory deadlines, this one is not automatically extended to the next workday.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak announced that the City will open an extreme cold weather shelter in partnership with the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO) at the Miller Center at 130 Gosse Court in response to the dangerously cold weather forecasted this week. After reviewing weather modeling in consultation with the City’s Emergency Management Director, officials have determined the forecasted temperatures the evenings of Thursday, January 29 and Saturday, January 31 meets the City’s criteria for operation of an extreme cold weather shelter.     Hours of operation will be from 5pm on Thursday, January 29 until 8am on Friday, January 30 and from 5pm on Saturday, January 31 until 8am on Sunday, February 1.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing (VDTM) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening communities around the state by announcing 15 partner organizations were approved for grant funding in the second cycle of the Grants for Relocation Outreach Work (GROW) program. The grants support local, regional, county-wide, or state-wide organizations conducting new resident relocation, recruitment, and retention activities.

Vermont Business Magazine The Putney School has received a transformative $2 million endowment gift from alumna Carol Stein ’61 to establish the Norwood Hinkle Faculty Chair in Music, honoring the legendary educator who shaped the school’s music curriculum for more than three decades. The endowment will support the position of Director of Music, ensuring long-term stability for a program that has been central to Putney’s identity since its founding. Stein, who sang in madrigals and studied music history and harmony under Hinkle at Putney, established the chair in recognition of the profound influence he had on generations of students. Norwood Hinkle served as music director at The Putney School from 1939 to 1972.