News

More Vermonters are able to take part in Vermont Housing Finance Agency's low-interest mortgage programs now VHFA has approved new income and purchase price limits. The Agency’s Board of Commissioners approved the changes on April 6. They took effect today. “We’re always working to give more Vermonters the opportunity to realize the dream of owning a home,” said Executive Director Sarah Carpenter. “With these new limits, many more Vermonters and Vermont properties have become eligible for VHFA financing.”

Vermont Pure Holdings, Ltd. (NYSE: VPS) announced that it has acquired the assets of Blue Hills Spring Water Company, Inc. of Quincy, Massachusetts. Blue Hills is better known by its popular brand Monadnock Mountain Spring Water. The assets purchased include trucks, dispensing equipment, bottles, and customer lists. Blue Hills' customers will be merged into Vermont Pure's local existing operation creating more density in the Boston market for the Company.

Marsh, the world’s leading insurance broker and risk advisor, has appointed Julie S. Boucher as leader of the firm’s U.S. Captive Solutions Practice, which currently manages nearly 350 captive insurance companies in seven major U.S. domiciles and has 114 employees. Ms. Boucher, a managing director of Marsh based in the Burlington, Vermont office, will be responsible for the growth and development of the U.S. captive domicile operations, including Vermont, Connecticut, New York, South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii.

Koosharem Corporation, parent of The Select Family of Staffing Companies, a top 10 national staffing leader, completed its acquisition of Walnut Creek, California-based Westaff, Inc. Westaff maintained a large network of successful franchise offices, of which the Mount Family Group of Burlington was a part. The Mount Family Group Ltd. operates Westaff branches in 9 cities and towns in the Vermont, New Hampshire and New York, including offices in Burlington and St. Albans.

Long time Medical Director of the Laboratory at CVMC, Dr. Brian Travis, has “passed the torch” to his colleague, Dr. Cathy Palmer, who has been named the lab’s new Medical Director.  Dr. Palmer received her MD/PhD degree from Indiana University and went on to complete an Internship and Residency in Pathology at the University of California San Diego Medical Center.  She came to Vermont to pursue a Clinical Fellowship in Cytopathology at Fletcher Allen Health Care and subsequently was a Research Fellow in Environmental Pathology at UVM.  Dr.

St Johnsbury Academy played an important role in helping Vermont record the nation’s largest five-year increase in the percentage of its high school student population scoring 3 or higher on at least one Advanced Placement (AP) exam. AP courses are designed to provide high school students college credit, advanced standing, or both, upon successful completion of a national examination administered by the College Board. According to the College Board, an exam grade of 3 or higher is a strong predictor of a student’s ability to succeed in college and earn a bachelor’s degree.

Peter Hofstetter, the Chief Executive Officer of Northwestern Medical since 1994, announced on Monday that he has accepted the CEO position at Holy Cross Hospital in Taos, New Mexico.

Ledyard National Bank is pleased to announce that they have made a Leadership Partner Pledge in the amount of $1,500 to the Upper Valley Housing Coalition. Ledyard National Bank proudly supports the Upper Valley Housing Coalition’s mission to promote balanced communities that provide an adequate supply of housing for the region’s workforce.

The Vermont Department of Labor’s Project WorkSAFE Program is pleased to announce that DEW Construction of Williston has met and successfully completed the requirements of the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) for the Jay Peak Ski Area Hotel Expansion Project.

Governor Jim Douglas today returned without signature Senate bill S.115, An Act Relating to Civil Marriage.  The text of Governor Douglas’ veto message follows. April 6, 2009 The Honorable David A. Gibson Secretary of the Senate State House 115 State Street, Drawer 33 Montpelier, VT   05633 Dear Mr Secretary:

The nine-member Judicial Nominating Commission named to recommend a slate of candidates to replace retiring U.S. District Judge J. Garvan Murtha will accept applications for the upcoming vacancy in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont through May 4. Applicants should visit the Vermont Bar Association’s web site at www.vtbar.org to obtain a questionnaire and further instructions.  

Green Mountain Power customers will be especially happy to see the sun shine in Berlin, Vermont, where the Company will build the largest solar array in Northern New England. At 200 kilowatts, the new array will be the largest project in Vermont when it is built this summer.

Vermont Administration Secretary Neale Lunderville on Friday sent state worker union leaders a counter offer to his original proposal to cut wages of the more than 8,000 state employees. Lunderville said on March 10, 2009, that in order to avoid 320 layoffs, the state and union would have to find $17 million in sustainable wage reductions.

Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz today announced the publication of Municipal Law Basics, an easy-to-read handbook designed to help citizens better understand the basic laws that apply to Vermont’s municipalities. Markowitz said, “If you have ever wondered who oversees local government, or whether you are allowed to tape meetings of your selectboard, or whether citizens may petition the school board to change a policy, then Municipal Law Basics is a publication for you.”

Statewide student winners of a financial literacy poster contest will be recognized by State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding and Governor Jim Douglas on April 9, 2009, 11:30 a.m., State House, Montpelier, Cedar Creek Room. The theme of the national contest, sponsored by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, was “I’m going to be a millionaire because I …” The student winners and their parents will be at the State House event.

A Congressional Senate bill introduced late last week would enable the Vermont State Treasurer’s Office to try and return millions of dollars in matured unredeemed savings bonds to Vermonters. Senate Bill 827, the “Unclaimed Savings Bond Act of 2009,” would create a federal partnership with state unclaimed property programs across the country. Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy is one of the co-sponsors of the bill.

Nearly $227,000 of new funding is being distributed to the Vermont State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) to help Medicare beneficiaries in Vermont get more information about their health care choices. The funds are part of the $35.8 million being distributed to the 54 SHIPs that provide Medicare beneficiaries with local, personalized assistance on a wide variety of Medicare and health insurance topics.

Governor Jim Douglas will host a Summit on Pathways to Economic Stability at the State House on Monday, April 6. Governor Douglas will be joined by legislators, business leaders, community advocates, and others to develop recommended priorities and create pathways to economic stability for all Vermonters. As the challenges facing our state become more and more urgent, it is vital that we harness existing public initiatives, private partnerships, and our communities to address the root causes of poverty and identify both short- and long-term solutions.

At its March 25, 2009 meeting, CSWD Board of Commissioners proposed an amendment to its Solid Waste Management Ordinance to increase the solid waste management fee from $17.61 to $22.06 effective July 1, 2009. The fee is charged on each ton of trash generated in Chittenden County that is landfilled. The proposal would also reduce the tipping fee for recyclables at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) from $20 per ton to $10 per ton.

In an awards ceremony Wednesday evening, NRG Systems of Hinesburg and BioTek of Winooski were the big winners at the 2009 Best Places to Work event hosted by Vermont Business Magazine, the Vermont Chamber of Commerce and the Vermont Society of Human Resource Management. The event was held at the Main Street Landing Film House in Burlington. The companies were honored based on the results of surveys given to each company's employees. The awards honored five large companies (Over 150 employees) and 10 small & medium sized companies (15 to 149 employees).

Customers, shareholders and several Vermont businesses have contributed to a banner year for CVPS Shareheat, raising a record amount of money to help Vermonters avert heating crises. With donations continuing to come in, more than $375,000 has been raised for the 2008-2009 heating season, raising the program total to nearly $3.2 million since its inception in 1987.  The previous record was less than $250,000 in one year.

The Vermont Senate today passed the FY09 Budget Adjustment bill with a 26-1 vote.  The passage of this bill will ensure that Vermont continues to maintain vital state services.  The bill also allows the state to draw down millions of dollars made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. In addition to balancing the state budget, these dollars will put Vermonters to work and repair our crumbling roads and bridges. 

The University of Vermont has announced that three new legislative trustees, a gubernatorial appointee, and a new student trustee are joining its board of trustees. The new legislative trustees, elected by the Vermont General Assembly to six-year terms, are Carolyn Branagan, Christopher Bray, and David Potter. Governor Douglas has appointed Mark Young, who previously served as a legislative trustee from 2002-2007, to a six-year term.

A new company called ASK-intTAG will begin to manufacture electronically enhanced identification cards at the IBM facility in Essex Junction as early as this summer. A joint venture of ASK SA from France and WS Packaging from Green Bay, WI, the new company will compete in the growing market for enhanced driver’s licenses, passports and other secure forms of identification. ASK already produces such products for the US market in France. It uses imbedded computer chips and tiny antennas for the radio transmission technology.

Week Ending March 28, 2009 There were 1,179 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance last week, an increase of 109 from the week before. Altogether 18,599 new and continuing claims were filed, 92 less than a week ago and 7,754 more than a year earlier. The Department also processed 1,955 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), 13 less than a week ago. In addition, there were 1,140 Second Tier claims for benefits processed under the EUC08 program which is an increase of 52 from the week before.

Today, Ben & Jerry's lifted the lid on an April Fool's Day event aimed at raising consumer awareness of the government's recent approval of cloned milk and meat within the human food supply chain. In late-March Ben & Jerry's went undercover through the launch of Cyclone Dairy, a fictitious dairy company marketing milk made from 100% cloned cows, to gauge consumer reaction surrounding this issue.

Governor Douglas today announced that the Department of Health and Human Services has released more than $2.7 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to support expanded services at eight community health centers across Vermont. The funds are part of a total $338 million investment in centers nation wide. Community Health Centers were asked to submit plans explaining how the funds would be used. While proposals vary among grantees, strategies may include adding new providers, expanding hours of operations or expanding health services.

Ledyard Financial Group, Inc. (LFGP) announced today that its Board of Directors has voted to not participate in the U.S. Treasury Department’s Capital Purchase Program (CPP).  Ledyard was approved for funds, but after careful review of Ledyard’s core businesses and capital position, the constraints and uncertainties of the CPP, and the overall strength of the Company, the Board of Directors decided to withdraw Ledyard’s application.

Members of a leading small business association today gathered at the State House to impress upon Governor Douglas and their legislators the difficulty they are having surviving in the current economic climate. Small business owners urged the governor and legislative leaders to focus on policies and programs that make Vermont a more business-friendly state for entrepreneurs and small employers.

Governor Douglas on Wednesday will announce that a major new manufacturer will be setting up operations at IBM’s Essex facility and he will formally welcome them to Vermont. The announcement will be made at the IBM Microelectronics facility Presentation Center in Essex Junction at 3:30 pm.