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PAI: Vermont school funding questions answered

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 3:59pm -- tim

Public Assets Institute Vermont’s education funding system is built on fairness for students, fairness for taxpayers, and local control. The statewide tax base supports school spending voted by each community. Each school district in Vermont sets its own budget and spending per pupil on or around Town Meeting Day. And all school taxes go into a single pot, the Education Fund. The Legislature sets a school tax rate schedule that applies to primary residences in all towns, so residents know their school tax rates based on their town’s voted per-pupil education spending.

Martin: Act 250 and the stifling of economic opportunity in Vermont

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 3:00pm -- tim

by Charles Martin, Government Affairs Director of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce While recent news of the cancellation of Montpelier’s hotel project is troubling, those familiar with Act 250 are not surprised. The decision to terminate the project is yet another example of how truly broken our state’s principal land use law is. Montpelier’s current problem is high-profile and outrageous, but don’t mistake it as an outlier. It is representative of what hundreds of permit seekers have gone through and will continue to experience if this law is not updated. To recap, the recently nixed Capitol Plaza project was approved by an Act 250 panel, the Development Review Board, the Design Review Board, and Montpelier voters. The City has invested more than $1 million in the project that will now be paid back in property taxes instead of parking garage revenues, as was originally planned.

CDC hits pause on J&J vaccine over possible blood clots

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 12:01pm -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine The CDC has issued a pause in the distribution of the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine for COVID-19 "out of an abundance of caution" related to possible but rare blood clots. Vermont also is pausing its use of the J&J and the VDH will contact those who already have a scheduled shot to offer them to either get the Pfizer/Moderna vaccines or wait until the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is once again cleared for use.

BETA inks deal to secure first 20 passenger Electric Vertical Aircraft (EVA) for Blade

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 11:47am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine BETA Technologies and Blade Urban Air Mobility today announced a binding agreement through which Blade will secure up to 20 BETA Electric Vertical Aircraft (EVA), becoming the company's first passenger service customer. Today's news comes on the heels of last week's announcement by UPS that it would buy up to 150 BETA EVA aircraft, plus charging stations, as part of that company's long-term solution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

EPA recognizes Efficiency Vermont’s service to low- and moderate-income Vermonters

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 10:18am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine The COVID-19 pandemic affected low- and moderate-income Vermonters disproportionately, impacting service and hospitality jobs and increasing the time – and energy – many Vermonters spent at home. Efficiency Vermont responded with a range of programs designed especially for income-qualified Vermonters, to help make energy efficiency measures more accessible and drive down energy costs for those with the highest energy burdens.

Robert Adcock named CEO of Springfield Hospital

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 6:39am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine Springfield Hospital’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Robert S (Bob) Adcock, MBA, FACHE, of Wildwood, MO, has been named its new Chief Executive Officer. Adcock most recently served as an independent contractor providing administrative consulting services to West Virginia University Hospitals, Inc, and as CEO of Fairmont Regional Medical Center in Fairmont, WV.

Southwestern Vermont Health Care thanks local businesses

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 5:49am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine The Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) Foundation recently approached several local businesses for help with an important project. Healthcare workers, working long hours caring for COVID-19 patients and others, needed a reminder to take a few moments to care for their own health and wellbeing. Businesses answered with donations of items that helped our staff remember to take care of themselves.

Health Commissioner Dr Mark Levine to appear on Medical Matters Weekly

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 5:20am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine Southwestern Vermont Health Care’s (SVHC) Medical Matters Weekly with Dr Trey Dobson, a weekly interactive, multiplatform medical-themed talk show, will feature Mark Levine, MD, as a guest on its April 14 show. Dr Levine is Vermont’s Commissioner of Health. They will discuss Dr Levine’s personal perspective of his work over the last year. The show is produced with cooperation from Catamount Access Television (CAT-TV) and airs live at 2 pm on Wednesdays.

Scheuermann: Vote coming on Stowe withdrawal from school district

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 5:07am -- tim

by Heidi Scheuermann (R-Stowe) Following the passage of Act 46 in 2015, an extremely bad piece of legislation calling for mergers (some forced) of school districts in a misguided attempt to bring cost containment and greater educational opportunities to Vermont students, the Stowe and Elmore/Morristown School Boards, with the support of the communities, worked collaboratively and unanimously agreed to fight against a forced merger. After exhaustive research since 2013 on the impact of a forced merger in our communities, both boards understood that a forced merger would have a negative impact on the education provided to their communities.

Holcombe named Director of UVM Cancer Center and chief of Hematology/Oncology

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 4:56am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine The Robert Larner, MD College of Medicine at The University of Vermont (UVM), in collaboration with the UVM Health Network (UVMHN) and the UVM Medical Center, has announced that Randall F Holcombe, MD, MBA, has been appointed director of the UVM Cancer Center (UVMCC) and chief of the Division of Hematology and Oncology in the Department of Medicine. Holcombe is expected to hold the newly established J Walter Juckett Chair in Cancer Research. He joins UVM and UVMHN from the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated University of Hawaii Cancer Center, where he has served as director since 2016. Holcombe will officially begin his tenure at UVM on August 1, 2021.

Green: Variants and outbreaks continue to put stress on hospitals

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 4:35am -- tim

by Devon Green, VAHHS Vice President of Government Relations Much like the weather, April in the legislature often brings its share of chaos and frenzy as we head into the home stretch. While it’s usually exciting, the unpredictability of the legislature hits a bit differently this year. Under COVID, every time our hospitals get their feet under them, another operational challenge presented itself—procuring PPE, creating negative pressure spaces, suspending services, testing and screening, resuming services, and administering community vaccinations. As the prevalence of variants rise, we continue to see outbreaks that fill ICUs and other hospital beds. Hospital budgets statewide have only a $3 million operating margin on a $2 billion dollar system.

Nominations sought for 2021 Vermont Business Wellness Leader award

Tue, 04/13/2021 - 4:24am -- tim

Vermont Business Magazine The Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness & Sports presents the Vermont Business Wellness Leader award annually to a Vermont business leader who goes beyond his/her occupational duties to foster wellbeing in the community. This person leads by example with motivational role modeling and generous service to the community. This person exhibits strong leadership in sustaining a culture of wellbeing. This person’s zeal for worksite wellness raises the bar for other employers.

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