Vermont Business Magazine At the 70th anniversary celebration of his family business, DuBois Construction in Middlesex, Phil Scott announced his plan for a full and complete separation from the 70-year-old, central Vermont construction company he has co-owned and run for more than 30 years, if he is elected governor.
"Obviously, this was not an easy decision to make, nor do I take it lightly," Scott told his employees and supporters just after noon on Saturday. "Should the people of our state hire me for this important job, I will sell my portion of the company."
“I first ran for the Senate to bring the voice of small businesses and their employees to Montpelier. Even though I would have never guessed it then, I have come to understand that this work -- the work of making sure the voice of every working Vermonter, every employer, and every family is heard in Montpelier -- is needed now more than ever,” Scott said. “That's why, after 6 years of watching the economy and affordability be put on the back burner, I decided to step up and run for governor. And I want every Vermonter to know that I will be a full-time Governor, focused entirely on serving the people of our state and fully committed to restoring the faith and trust in government that has been lost in the last 6 years.”
Scott had been dogged by opponents Bruce Lisman in the Republican primary and the Democrats in the general election about contracts DuBois has had with state government and might bid on in the future. DuBois does heavy equipment construction and excavation. A minority of its work is comprised of state contracts.
While Sue Minter, against whom Scott will face off in November, has been relatively quite about the issue, the Vermont Democratic party has been more vociferous. Just on Friday, party director Conor Casey said in a press conference: "Vermont voters deserve assurance from the next governor and their administration that they'll be putting the taxpayer intersts first, not business interests or bottom-line objectives."