Week Six with Six Weeks Until Crossover
The Legislature is now in week six and there are six weeks to go until crossover, when House bills need to be passed over to the Senate and Senate bills over to the House. With it being the second year of the biennium, the pressure is on. Bills that do not make crossover or find their way into another vehicle will cease to exist after the Legislature adjourns in May.
Within the House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs, I have been working closely with other members and subject matter experts to bring forward two committee bills.
The first relates to miscellaneous amendments to the laws governing alcoholic beverages. This bill updates statutes involving licenses, permits and liability insurance in ways that accommodate Vermont’s alcoholic beverage businesses.
The second relates to establishing a joint legislative government oversight and accountability committee to examine and investigate matters of government oversight and accountability related to issues of significant public concern. In particular, they will examine the possible reasons for any failure of government oversight and provide tangible recommendations to prevent future failures.
This bill would also direct the Joint Fiscal Office to adjust financial performance notes regarding proposed and enacted legislation that carries a large appropriation. This would be to ensure we are reviewing the goals and anticipated changes of enacted legislation, as well as ensuring we are checking all the boxes on proposed legislation.
Within the committee, we have also been diving into ethics at the state and municipal level. We have been considering how to make financial disclosures for those running for state office more transparent and to create a penalty structure for those who do not submit their financial disclosure form. On the municipal level, we have been considering what a uniform municipal code of ethics and conflict of interest would look like.
Recently, the committee had a joint hearing with the House health care committee to hear testimony about the Vermont Regional Emergency Medical Services Coordination Study report. The report, submitted by the Department of Health, highlighted a need to develop a refined vision of EMS care throughout the state, which includes developing regional coordination of care standards, training, and a comprehensive vision of what the future of EMS looks like in Vermont.
In the coming weeks, the committee can expect to receive some important bills from our colleagues in the Senate. S.55 relates to authorizing public bodies to meet electronically under Vermont’s open meeting law. Act 1 from last session extended the ability for public meetings to be held in-person, electronically, or both and is set to sunset in July. S.55 takes a further look at the open meeting law and sets a standard for accessibility through a combination of in-person and remote participation. Additionally, we expect to receive multiple flood recovery and resiliency bills that relate to a standard of how state government should respond during a natural disaster and how we define the start and end of a state of emergency.
