Single person owner-operated businesses now eligible On Monday, Aug. 3, Governor Phil Scott, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) and the Department of Taxes announced expanded eligibility for Economic Recovery Grants for Vermont businesses negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Under the original eligibility criteria, a business was required to have at least…

Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos is encouraging all Vermont voters to ensure that they exercise their right to vote in the upcoming Aug. 11 statewide primary elections. For those voters who have requested early/absentee ballots, Secretary Condos recommends the voter follow all instructions to properly vote their ballot, and return it to the Clerk in…

Employers are encouraged to apply On Monday, Aug. 3, Governor Phil Scott announced that beginning Tuesday, Aug. 4, public safety, public health, health care and human services employers whose employees worked to help mitigate or respond to Covid-19 may apply for hazard pay grant funds for their employees. “It’s important for Vermonters to remember that…

By Xander Landen, VTDigger The state saw more revenue than expected after residents and businesses filed 2019 tax returns this month, which will help the state as it weathers the economic strain and budget woes from the Covid-19 pandemic. As of July 28, the state had received $160 million in additional tax revenue in July. Some…

Hartford gets $247,200 to construct 21 new apartments On Thursday, July 23, Governor Phil Scott announced over $2.4 million in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) awards to eight communities in seven Vermont counties. The Vermont Dept. of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) awards approximately $7 million annually in competitive grants to Vermont cities and towns.…

By Julia Purdy Among the first-time moves to make the national 10-year population count more user-friendly, faster, and also as complete as possible, the Census Bureau has come up with “Push Week” (July 27-Aug. 2), a friendly competition to see how many new household responses the Census can land before Census workers hit the streets…

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department is holding a virtual public meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 5, to answer questions and record public comment on the draft 2020-2030 Vermont Big Game Plan. The meeting will be held virtually via Microsoft Teams on a computer or smart phone at this link:  tinyurl.com/y6w6tauv (please download the Microsoft Teams app ahead…

Humans and domestic animals not at risk An exotic disease deadly to wild and domestic rabbits called rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHDV2) has been making its way through the states of California, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Texas, and has also been identified in Mexico. The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) is…

53% of adults hold a certificate, degree, or industry certification, 17% short of state goal The number of Vermonters who have completed education and training after high school is on the rise. According the Lumina Foundation, 53% of working age Vermonters hold a certificate, degree or industry-recognized certification. The figure, up from 49%, is based on 2018…

Beginning Tuesday, July 14, individuals who established an initial claim for unemployment insurance benefits with the Vermont Department of Labor started receiving phone calls to confirm their identity and intent to file. This extra step is being taken to protect Vermonters against fraudulent filers using their personal information. This type of “impostor fraud” has been…

Governor Phil Scott announced Tuesday, July 14, that Vermont has joined 15 states and the District of Columbia in signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to accelerate electrification of the medium- and heavy-duty bus and truck market. The agreement calls for 100% of all new medium- and heavy-duty vehicle sales to be zero emission vehicles…

Health Department so far finds no indication of COVID-19 spreading in the community   A week after reports first surfaced of a potential outbreak in the Manchester area, 35 of 63 people with a positive antigen test for Covid-19 reported to the Health Department by Manchester Medical Center since July 10 have had a PCR…

By Anne Wallace Allen/VTDigger Move-in day at Vermont’s college campuses will be a relatively somber event this year, as students sign contracts promising to practice Covid-19 safety measures, enter quarantine if they’ve come from afar, and prep for party-free socializing. State officials on Tuesday, July 7,  released Covid-19 safety guidelines for college campuses, much as the state has…

On Monday, July 13, Attorney General T.J. Donovan joined a coalition of 18 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to stop a new federal rule that threatens to bar hundreds of thousands of international students from studying in the U.S. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts against the U.S. Department of…

Editor’s note: Mark Bushnell is a Vermont journalist and historian. He is the author of “Hidden History of Vermont” and “It Happened in Vermont.” This story was first published as a “Then Again” feature at VTDigger.org. To get a deeper understanding of Vermont’s history, you might want to go deeper, to the literal bedrock of the…