Vermont seeks steady funding to expand international business recruitment beyond Quebec

Brett Long, deputy commissioner of the Vermont Department of Economic Development, told the Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs committee that the department has focused recruitment and trade work on Quebec and would like steady base funding to expand into other markets.

The department is asking the Legislature to convert one-time appropriations used for contractor-led lead generation into recurring base funding (department staff described a proposed base level of roughly $350,000) so Vermont can sustain in‑market representation, marketing and consultant support in additional international markets including parts of Asia and Northern Europe. "The principal area of attractiveness is Quebec," Long said, noting proximity and an existing corridor of aerospace and high‑tech firms.

Why it matters: committee members were told the state's past investments produced a measurable pipeline of opportunities and that continued funding would support lead generation, recruitment and eventual job creation. Department staff emphasized that in‑market agents and retained consultants shorten the path from first contact to a firm locating or expanding in Vermont.

What officials told the committee

- Long said the department has used a retained firm since about 2021 and received a second appropriation in 2024; staff characterized the multi‑year Quebec effort as having produced a significant funnel of leads. He described past appropriations as $300,000 in 2021 and additional money in 2024, and that the department would like a predictable annual appropriation rather than episodic one‑time sums.

- Tim Tierney, director of business recruitment and international trade, said Vermont’s in‑market representative work in Canada directly supported lead generation. "We have 68 Canadian owned companies, and they employ over 2,000 people here in our state," Tierney said, citing Canadian investment as a concrete result of the outreach program.

- Tierney described the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) administered with U.S. Small Business Administration funds, which provides awards of up to $20,000 per year to help Vermont exporters with brochures, translations and trade‑show participation. He said the department typically receives roughly $200,000–$250,000 in STEP funding and works with partners such as VMEC (a national manufacturing extension network) on export training.

Key constraints and opportunities discussed

- Facilities and real estate. Both Tierney and Long said the biggest practical constraint on converting leads into in‑state investment is suitable industrial or food‑grade space. The department and regional development corporations (RDCs) have noted a need for ready‑to‑occupy space or pre‑constructed speculative buildings that firms can immediately use rather than wait years for construction.

- Market diversification. Committee members and staff discussed expanding recruitment beyond Quebec to Taiwan, other parts of Asia, Northern Europe and countries with cultural or sector ties to Vermont (for example, in clean‑technology, agrifood and microelectronics). Tierney said Northern Europe and Scandinavia show affinity with Vermont because of similar social‑environmental values.

- Trade disruptions. Staff described past problems tied to federal trade policy and border enforcement. Long and Tierney said the department has occasionally helped firms resolve border, customs or immigration issues using outside customs brokers or immigration advisers and that tariffs and federal policy can affect Vermont firms and prospective investors.

Examples, pipeline and outcomes described

- Tierney and Long described a pipeline created through SelectUSA and Canadian outreach that has yielded multiple inquiries and a handful of firms recruited or expanded into Vermont, including firms in manufacturing, biomed and food processing. Tierney cited cases where Canadian firms chose Vermont locations because of short truck travel from Southern Quebec and existing cross‑border supply chains.

- Officials noted one instance of a foreign‑owned firm planning to create roughly 50 jobs in North Springfield after acquiring a local business and choosing to expand in Vermont rather than move operations elsewhere.

Committee priorities and next steps

Committee members asked for measurable accountability tied to any funding request; Long and Tierney agreed that legislative language should include return‑on‑investment reporting and that staff can provide narrative examples and metrics from prior appropriations. The department said it would supply draft language and ROI narratives promptly to support a recurring appropriation request.

Ending

No formal vote or appropriation was taken during the committee meeting. Officials left the committee with a request to consider converting prior one‑time appropriations into a recurring base appropriation to sustain in‑market representation and lead generation in Canada and new target regions.