Thursday, May 20, 2021
The House on Wednesday voted unanimously in favor of a bill that includes $630,000 for the program. The bill has been sent to the governor for his signature.
The Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs had proposed this year to make the popular program permanent, and to spend $1 million annually to reimburse workers who were new to the state up to $5,000 for moving expenses. That amount could rise to $7,500 for someone who moved to an area with a higher-than-average unemployment rate or lower-than-average annual wages.
Tags: remote worker program , Vermont legislature , study , Web Only , Image
The joint resolution passed easily, advancing on a 29-1 vote to a final reading of the bill. The House had previously approved it by a 135-8 vote.
Sen. Ruth Hardy (D-Addison) introduced the resolution by saying that systemic racism was “inextricably intertwined" with COVID-19, citing a “disproportionate negative impact of the pandemic on people of color."
Hardy cited infection rates of nearly 13 percent among people of color compared to 6 percent for white residents. She also highlighted two outbreaks — one in Winooski affecting a New American community and one in Shoreham among Jamaican agricultural workers — that she said illustrate the connection between the pandemic and economic status.
Tags: systemic racism , COVID-19 , Russ Ingalls , Ruth Hardy , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, May 19, 2021
The conference committee formed to reconcile Senate and House versions of the much-anticipated broadband bill, H.360, hammered out a compromise on Tuesday. Both chambers signed off on the deal on Wednesday.
“This represents, I hope, a finely tuned vehicle that will get us much further than we could ever imagine going,” Sen. Ann Cummings (D-Washington), told her colleagues, who passed the compromise unanimously.
Rep. Laura Sibilia (I-Dover) said the original bill promised a "paradigm shift" in funding the "historic infrastructure project" of bringing broadband to every corner of the state.
"The report from the committee of conference delivers that shift, with a new community broadband model to connect all Vermonters," Sibilia said.
Tags: broadband , internet , rural communities , Vermont , ARPA , American Rescue Plan Act , Web Only , Image
The charge stems from Morrigan's refusal to answer questions during a hearing that was part of an ongoing inquest — or secret investigatory proceeding — into Ralph "Rizz" Jean-Marie’s disappearance. Prosecutors are using the confidential court process to compel under-oath testimony from people they believe are withholding information that might help investigators. An unknown number of other people have also been subpoenaed.
Tags: Lee Morrigan , Rory Thibault , Ralph Jean-Marie , Contempt , Charge , Web Only , Image
The civil complaint, filed in Vermont Superior Court on Tuesday, accuses the diocese of allowing the Rev. Leo Courcy Jr. to continue his ministry for decades with "unfettered" access to children, despite knowing he was a pedophile.
Tags: Bishop Christopher Coyne , Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington , sexual abuse , statute of limitations , Web Only , Image
Mayor Miro Weinberger has picked City Councilor Brian Pine (P-Ward 3) to be the next director of the city's Community and Economic Development Office.
The mayor and Pine announced the decision at a virtual COVID-19 briefing on Wednesday.
Pine is no stranger to CEDO, having worked as the department's housing director for close to 18 years, including nearly three under Weinberger. He left the post in 2015 and has since held various consulting gigs in the private sector. Pine is currently the interim coordinator of the Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition.
Tags: Brian Pine , CEDO , Community and Economic Development Office , Burlington , City of Burlington , Mayor Miro Weinberger , Web Only , Image
Using its plant in Essex Junction, GlobalFoundries will partner with Raytheon Technologies to develop and commercialize new semiconductor technology for mobile and wireless uses.
“This makes it ideal to handle 5G and 6G wireless signals, which require higher performance levels than legacy wireless systems," the prepared statement said.
Semiconductor chips are used in an array of electronic devices and are big business globally. The Semiconductor Industry Association said the industry employs more than 277,000 people in the U.S. Its members are pushing for a $50 billion federal investment program to incentivize domestic semiconductor manufacturing and raise the country's share of global semiconductor manufacturing.
The New York-based GlobalFoundries, which has plants in the U.S., Europe and Asia, said it employs about 2,000 people at its Vermont plant. A company spokesperson said the new agreement will not create more local jobs nor will it require changes to the workspace at what is known as the "Fab 9" plant.
Raytheon, based in Waltham, Mass., is a major weapons and aerospace manufacturer. GlobalFoundries, owned by the sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates, Mubadala Investment Company, is the third-largest chip manufacturer in the world.
Tags: GlobalFoundries , Raytheon , Essex Junction , plant , Fab 9 , semiconductor , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, May 18, 2021
Lawmakers, voting rights advocates and Secretary of State Jim Condos all applauded the passage of S.15, which now heads to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott, who is expected to sign it.
“The passage of our bill sends a clear signal that we believe our democracy is stronger when we make it more accessible and open to all Vermonters,” House Speaker Jill Krowinski (D-Burlington) said in a press release. “S.15 counters the prevailing trend across the U.S. where state legislatures are curtailing voter access with more restrictive election laws."
Senate President Pro Tempore Becca Balint (D-Windham) framed the bill as a way to ensure the high voter participation rates seen last year continue into the future.
“When we make voting more accessible, more people vote. When we make voting more accessible, democracy better reflects the will of the people,” Balint said.
Tags: Elections , mail-in voting , fraud , Becca Balint , Jim Condos , Jill Krowinski , Phil Scott , vote by mail , Web Only , Image
Electric aviation startup Beta Technologies plans to build a 270,000-square-foot manufacturing plant at the Burlington International Airport that will employ up to 500 people, the company said Tuesday.
Beta, which is headquartered in a hangar near the main terminal, announced the expansion plan at the same time the company closed a $368 million fundraising round that attracted investment from Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, among others.
Proceeds will bankroll the new assembly facility for its Alia electric aircraft, according to a Beta press release. The company hopes to break ground this fall.
The total amount of new funding exceeded the $333 million Beta had sought to raise, according to SEC disclosures first reported by Seven Days last week in a cover story on the company. Beta founder and CEO Kyle Clark told Seven Days in an interview for that story that he hoped to continue expanding the startup, which has tripled in size over the last year to more than 230 employees, in his home state of Vermont.
Tags: Beta Technologies , Burlington International Airport , Burlington , South Burlington , Electric Aircraft , Vermont Business , Amazon Climate Fund , Web Only , Image
Monday, May 17, 2021
City councilors decided at a special meeting on Monday to postpone until June 7 a vote to rescind the city's masking order, effectively keeping the rule in place for another three weeks. Only independent councilors Ali Dieng (Ward 7) and Mark Barlow (North District) voted against postponing the action. Councilor Chip Mason (D-Ward 5) was absent from the virtual meeting.
Several councilors expressed concern that retail workers — many of whom are younger and were in the last group to sign up for a vaccine — won't be fully vaccinated until June.
"I don't understand why we're exposing people who haven't even had the chance to be fully vaccinated yet," Councilor Zoraya Hightower (P-Ward 1) said. "I don't feel like that is leading with our values."
Tags: mask mandate , masking , coronavirus , Burlington City Council , Mayor Miro Weinberger , Web Only , Image