The Miracle of Spring
Over the period of just a few miraculous days each spring, billions, if not trillions, of tiny leaves burst forth all around us, quickly becoming full-grown and clothing the naked winter trees in green splendor, all perfectly designed to drink in that necessary life-giving plant food called carbon dioxide. In Vermont, with nearly ¾ of our state covered in forest, we are thankful to participate in that intricate balance of creation that brings such awe at each passing season.
With leaves springing, your state government is on the home-stretch to close out the 2025 legislative season, hopefully by the end of May. We enjoyed a bit more balance in the legislature this year than we’ve had in recent biennia, thus are able to accomplish some good, but there is still a lot more we need to do to achieve the affordability and public safety goals that the November voters clearly sent us to Montpelier to achieve. Here is a list of some of the highlights and remaining battles before we close out this session.
Of the 13 bills passed by both chambers of legislature and signed by Gov. Scott so far, a couple highlights include: H.2 which delayed implementation of the “raise the age law” by two years. Had this bill not passed, in April, Vermont would have become the only state in the nation to treat 19 year olds as minors in criminal proceedings. Republicans pushed for a repeal of this law, but compromised on a 2 year delay. Also passed are several small bills related to reducing health insurance costs and improving healthcare access with such bills as H.35 which will reduce insurance premiums on small businesses, and H.80 which provides healthcare advocates to help folks through the labyrinthian healthcare processes. Twice, the Governor has vetoed the Budget Adjustment Act because of hotel/motel policy changes the majority party was trying to push through. With his minority party having slightly more than ⅓ of House members to prevent a veto override, an override attempt has not been made. The complete list of all bills passed and vetoed can be found HERE.
A broad battle that continues is the fight to repeal the Clean Heat Standard (CHS), electric cars and trucks mandates, and the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA). All of these pose significant cost increases and sent Vermonters to the polls in droves in November. Several attempts to repeal or curtail these existing laws have been blocked by the majority party in both the House and the Senate. This past week, my attempt to repeal the Clean Heat Standard using an amendment to a Solar Power bill was declared “not germane” while the repeal bill itself, H.16, remains stuck to the wall in the House Energy Committee because the majority leadership won’t entertain it. The next day, Rep. Jim Harrison attempted to amend the same Solar Power bill with the Governor’s proposal to change the Renewable Energy Standard into the Clean Energy Standard which allows more hydro and nuclear electric power to be considered, but that too was declared “not germane” by the Speaker. Later the same week, Senator Scott Beck attempted a similar tactic with a double amendment to the Budget Bill for both repealing the CHS and reducing the mandates to goals in the GWSA. This was brought to a roll-call vote in the Senate and lost along party lines 13-17. Read the complete saga HERE and HERE.
Another more focused fight regards the taxation of military retirees. H.43, which eliminated VT state tax on all military retiree pensions, was originally proposed by Rep. William Canfield and co-sponsored by half the House but has remained stuck to the wall in the Ways and Means committee. There is hope that negotiations to include a slimmed down version of this in a broader tax relief bill may be palatable to the majority leadership. This would be a big win for all involved! Stay tuned.
Lastly, the biggest remaining battle rages around the Education and Property Tax system reform. The House took the Governor’s proposal, completely revamped it and passed that to the Senate. The Senate completely revamped what the House provided and on Friday passed that back to the House for review. The Senate version is closer to what the Governor proposed. I need to review the new Senate proposal to determine its effects on the State and our Addison County schools. You can track the Education bill H.454 through all its gyrations HERE.
My colleagues and I continue to fight for you and the reasons you sent us to Montpelier.
I remain honored to be your Representative,
Rob North
www.NorthForVTHouse.com
Addison, Ferrisburgh, New Haven, Panton, Vergennes, and Waltham
