SHOW ME THE MONEY It was a whirlwind week in the Vermont legislature as committees worked diligently to vote bills out before Friday’s crossover deadline. Meanwhile, the budget adjustment bill was delivered to Governor Phil Scott on Tuesday. He has until Monday to act on the bill and there is much anticipation about whether he […]
By FOCUS, A Leonine Business The 2023 legislative session has been plagued by a barrage of anti-LGBTQ and anti-trans legislation introduced by republicans, who have recently focused their attention on the outright banning of drag performances. Nearly 50 bills have been introduced this year by Republican lawmakers attacking drag performances in Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, […]
TIME FOR A BREAK Vermont lawmakers hustled to finish work on priority legislation this week as the 2023 legislative session barreled toward the Town Meeting Week break. Legislative traffic control became increasingly tricky as policy committees worked to simultaneously pass legislation in time for crossover and approve their recommendations for the FY2024 budget. The House […]
THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS Policy committees in the House worked diligently this week to finalize their spending recommendations for the FY2023 Budget Adjustment Act (BAA). Each committee sent a letter to the House Appropriations committee outlining their BAA priorities. Many of these recommendations are in response to Governor Phil Scott’s proposals. Some are […]
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY The third week of the 2023 legislative session was all about the state budget. The week started with the January meeting of the Emergency Board (E-Board), which consists of the governor and the chairs of the Appropriations and Ways and Means committees in the House and the Appropriations and Finance committees in […]
By FOCUS, a Leonine Business Several new state laws will take effect this year banning products with “forever chemicals” in response to impetus nationwide to protect consumers from known toxins. Absent federal guidance, states have aimed to eliminate nonessential uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS. PFAS are found in many consumer products […]
FOUNDATION BUILDING Lawmakers settled into their new committees this week and began the process of familiarizing themselves with the areas of government they oversee. Administration officials from agencies and departments across state government provided the legislative committees with overviews of the work they do and started to lay the groundwork for Governor Phil Scott’s priorities, […]
OFF TO THE RACES The Vermont General Assembly convened on Wednesday for the 2023-2024 legislative biennium. For the first time since January 2020, the legislative session opened fully in-person, with families and friends accompanying newly elected lawmakers for the swearing-in ceremony. The House of Representatives elected Representative Jill Krowinski (D-Burlington) as Speaker of the House […]
