Vermont News

Maryland Teens Rebuild Vermont Homes Destroyed by Irene

A group of Maryland teenagers is helping rebuild two Vermont homes nearly destroyed last year by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene. The group calls itself DreamBuilders, and the members came to the White River Junction area from churches and synagogues …

Report Card Ranks Vermont Best, Florida Worst States for Insurance

The R Street Institute published its first research project as an independent institution today, a report card of the insurance regulatory environments in each of the 50 states. The report card builds on a series of annual reports my colleague …

New Fund Created to Help Displaced Vermont Mobile-Home Owners

Glenn French and his wife lost their mobile home and much of its contents when floodwaters from Tropical Storm Irene ripped through Weston’s Mobile Home park in Berlin.They were lucky enough to find another trailer, a doublewide, not too far …

Vermont Companies Get Workplace Safety Awards

The state of Vermont is honoring several companies for their commitment to safety in the workplace. The Ben & Jerry’s plant in St. Albans and the H.P. Hood plant in Barre have won awards in the large business category. Chroma …

Vt. Police to Conduct Sobriety Checkpoints, Identify Impaired Drivers

Vermont State Police and other law enforcement agencies have begun conducting sobriety and vehicle safety checkpoints within Caledonia and Essex counties. Between Sunday, May 20, and June 3, an aggressive effort will be made to identify impaired drivers. Troopers, sheriff’s …

Vermont Motorist Texts While Driving, Crashes Into Police Cruiser

Vermont police say a 33-year-old motorist was distracted while writing a text message on his cellphone when he crashed into a police car. Vermont State Police say Jesse Clayton crashed into a Rutland police cruiser at about 1 a.m. last …

Vermont Governor Shumlin Signs Health ‘Exchange’ Bill

Gov. Peter Shumlin has signed into law the next step in a multi-year effort to revamp Vermont’s health care system and make it more like Canada’s. The bill Shumlin signed on Wednesday calls for setting up a regulated health care …

Vermont Becomes First State in U.S. to Ban Hydraulic Fracturing

Gov. Peter Shumlin on Wednesday signed into law the nation’s first ban on a hotly debated natural gas drilling technique that involves blasting chemical-laced water deep into the ground. The Democrat, surrounded at a Statehouse ceremony by environmentalists and Twinfield …

Vermont Licensed 8 New Captives in 2012 Q1; Strongest Start Since 2005

Vermont officials said its captive insurance industry is off to a strong start in 2012, with the state having licensed eight new captives during the first quarter. “We had a great first quarter with the licensing of eight new captives,” …

Vermont, FEMA Join Forces to Buy Out Flood-Prone Properties

Vermont and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are joining to put $19.8 million toward buying out properties that are prone to flooding. Gov. Peter Shumlin, U.S. Rep. Peter Welch and other officials traveled to Northfield on Wednesday to make the …