HCR 134

R-158  Page 1 of 1
2025
No. R-158. House concurrent resolution honoring Cassandra Polhemus for her
exemplary leadership of the Vermont Economic Development Authority.
                                        (H.C.R.134)
   Offered by Representatives Marcotte of Coventry, Durfee of Shaftsbury, Bos-Lun of
Westminster, Bosch of Clarendon, Boutin of Barre City, Carris-Duncan of Whitingham,
Cooper of Pownal, Duke of Burlington, Graning of Jericho, Lipsky of Stowe, Micklus of
Milton, Morgan, L. of Milton, Nelson of Derby, O'Brien of Tunbridge, Olson of
Starksboro, Priestley of Bradford, and White of Bethel
   Whereas, in 1974, the General Assembly established the Vermont Economic
Development Authority (VEDA) “to contribute to Vermont’s economic vitality by
providing a broad array of financing programs to eligible businesses that create jobs,” and
   Whereas, since 2019, Cassie Polhemus, an economics graduate of Williams College,
has served as VEDA’s extraordinary chief executive officer, overseeing the
organization’s increase in lending commitments from $2.5 to $2.8 billion, and
   Whereas, Cassie Polhemus’s record of achievement at VEDA predates her current
role, as she joined the staff in 2013 as a commercial lender, and this talented employee
rose through the ranks, being named director of operations in 2014, selected as chief
operating officer in 2017, and in 2019, appointed as chief executive officer, and
   Whereas, when the pandemic struck in the late winter of 2020, Cassie Polhemus
immediately and effectively oversaw VEDA’s seamless transition to a paperless/hybrid
work environment, and she responded to this unanticipated crisis in a manner that
ensured entrepreneurial economic continuity and revitalization in as short a time frame as
possible, and
   Whereas, VEDA’s notable pandemic-related accomplishments under her outstanding
supervision were, in 2020, rolling out a $2.3 million farm operating loan program; in
2020–2021, closing 1,040 Paycheck Protection Program loans worth $45.4 million; in
2023, assisting over 200 small businesses and farmers to move closer to their pre-
pandemic financial status with $19 million from the Short Term Forgivable Loan
Program and accessing $58 million worth of American Rescue Plan funding to
reauthorize the State Small Business Credit Initiative; and post-pandemic, in 2024, Cassie
Polhemus oversaw VEDA’s creation of the new Forestry Loan Program, and
   Whereas, in 2025, Cassie Polhemus, who is concluding her VEDA leadership role on
June 30 and is highly respected among her professional colleagues, was the deserved
recipient of the federal Small Business Administration’s Financial Services Champion
Award, now therefore be it
   Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives:
   That the General Assembly honors Cassandra Polhemus for her exemplary leadership
of the Vermont Economic Development Authority, and be it further
  Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a copy of this resolution to
Cassie Polhemus.
                                                                            VT LEG #383701 v.1