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Legislative Update 02.16.24

Table of contents

FULL 02.16.24 WEEKLY AUDIO RECORDING (roughly 20 minutes)
(includes all sections of the legislative summary)

Pending Legislation - An Overview of Bills that are Moving & Not

Most notably, H.603 about the sale of uninspected poultry in parts passed the House and is now in the Senate Ag Committee. Other bills we are following closely have made some progress as well:

  • H.612 - A bill related to miscellaneous cannabis amendments; and H.549, a bill around outdoor cannabis production. Both bills had multiple hearings with the House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs; and testimony was heard in the Senate Committee on Agriculture related to both bills;

  • H.706 - On banning neonic treated seeds, had several hearings and attention in the House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resilience and Forestry, and got a lot of press this past week.  It will be important for representatives to hear from their constituents about the need to support this bill if it’s going to pass this session.

  • H.128 - Would ensure farms with Accessory On Farm Businesses (AOFB) wouldn’t need to go through Act 250 for any improvements associated with the AOFB and further specifies what constitutes an AOFB.  Specifically, it defines “featuring agricultural practices or qualifying products” as a host farm’s agricultural practices or products being a “substantial” or “integral” component of any educational, recreational, or social event the AOFB hosts. The bill had several hearings in the House Ag Committee but has not had any votes on it yet;

  • H.550 - An act relating to expanding eligibility under the local foods grant program. The House Agriculture Committee has had several hearings;

  • H.614 - Related to land improvement fraud and timber trespass was voted on in favor by the House Committee on Agriculture and is now in the House Committee on Judiciary.

Rural Vermont is also tracking PFAS/PFOS related bills, most of which have not had much legislative action by the Committees on Natural Resources yet. Rural Vermont and the Eco Sanitation Coalition launched a Call to Action in our last newsletter, and activists from the VT PFAS Coalition organized a successful Environmental Advocacy Event in front of the State House (WCAX, ORCA Media, My Champlain Valley) at the beginning of the month. The Senate Committee on Agriculture undertook some educational hearings on the issue (view recording here). Relevant bills are:

  • H.674 An act relating to regulation of septage and other materials containing PFAS/PFOS substances

  • H.163 An act relating to eco-sanitation systems

  • H.164 An act relating to the permitting of low-impact wastewater systems 

  • S.197 An act regarding procurement and distribution of PFAS/ PFOS related adverse health conditions attributed to PFAS/ PFOS

  • S.25 An act related to cosmetic and menstrual products containing PFAS/ PFOS

A few other bills of note that have had some action are H.626, an act relating to animal welfare the House Committee of Government Operations, which has held hearings (more info below), H.540, a bill that would ease the siting of tiny houses, and H.550, an act relating to expanding eligibility under the local foods grant program. In addition, NOFA-VT is seeking an appropriation of $478,500 in the state budget to support Crop Cash (Plus) and Farm Share.

Take Action!

  • View recordings of hearings that interest you on our website here

  • Follow the active bill links to read the language of bills that interest you and be in touch with caroline@ruralvermont.org and cc: info@ruralvermont.org if you have any questions 

  • Reach out to the committee members of the Senate and House Ag Committees directly to comment on pending legislation by email, find all of their contact information below and more info on the legislative website.

House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resilience and Forestry

Senate Committee on Agriculture

Neonic Bill Update

There has been significant testimony from a range of stakeholders taken on neonic bills over the last few weeks. The House Committee on Agriculture heard about the impacts neonics have on bees and birds. Some very impactful testimony from Margaret Fowle of Audubon Vermont (a member of the Protect Our Pollinators Coalition) said that if a bird eats a single corn kernel that has been treated with neonics, it can destroy the reproductive system of the bird and could also lead to the bird becoming paralyzed or even die. The House Agriculture Committee heard from a dairy farmer who planted neonic treated corn next to non neonic treated corn to see what the differences are, and found that the non-treated plants grow to be about the same size as the treated plants, though she was unable to track the yield of the separate plants. Studies in VT, NY, and around the world have repeatedly shown minimal differences in yield between treated and untreated plots - and we heard this again from farmers in Quebec who have already transitioned in the Quebec Farmer Panel.  Extensive research from Cornell University has found that corn, soybean, and other seed coatings—the largest source of neonic pollution in Vermont—provide no overall economic benefits to farmers using them; and yet they are applied to more 99.6% of corn seed planted across more than 90,000 acres in VT.  Maddie Kempner of NOFA VT also testified since our last update in support of the bill.  NOFA VT is also a member of the Protect our Pollinators Coalition. The Champlain Valley Farmers Coalition submitted written testimony - supporting the bill if it were to be amended to mimic the neonic bill recently passed in New York.  The committee heard from Steve Collier of the Agency of Agriculture a number of times.  Most recently he expressed the Agency’s opposition to this legislation, conflating a number of unrelated issues with the effort to transition away from neonics, and characterizing the bill as a simple fix to a complex issue.  Rural Vermont will testify on H.706 on Wednesday, February 21st.

You can find all recordings of recent hearings on our website here

Cannabis Update

Rural Vermont and the VT Cannabis Equity Coalition were able to bring some of its organizational representatives, and community stakeholders, into the Senate Committee on Agriculture for testimony on February 8th.  Our coalition submitted our priorities, Rural VT submitted written testimony, as did some of the community stakeholders who came with our coalition, such as Myra Adams of Hidden Leaf Homestead.  We focused on the need to address directly funding racial and social equity with money from the cannabis excise tax and how that relates to ag, land, housing, and food; the need to address market equity for producers and manufacturers related to direct sales of plants, seeds, and the products they produce; and a number of ways in which the committee could work to further institutionalize outdoor cultivation as agriculture in VT in order to support producers and address substantial barriers.  Last year, the Senate Agriculture Committee proved helpful in having some of our priorities related to agriculture included in legislation. 

H.612 and H.549 continue to be in the House Government Operations and Military Affairs Committee.  Rep. Suprenant was also invited into committee to review the bill she introduced last session which includes some of our priorities, H.426.  We are working to get into committee as a coalition - along with community stakeholders - in order to address our priorities, and to address other testimony that has been provided.  

It will take representatives hearing from you - their constituents - to have many of our priorities addressed this year.  In particular, issues like having a portion of the excise tax being committed to racial and social repair and community investment, providing direct market access for producers and manufacturers, public consumption, and full expungement will need more vocal popular support.

S.301 - Senate Miscellaneous Agriculture Bill

On January 26, The Senate Committee on Agriculture introduced a new bill: S. 301 - An act relating to miscellaneous agricultural subjects. The bill proposes to make multiple miscellaneous changes to agricultural statutes, including amending the requirements for the Vermont Seeding and Filter Strip Program, licensing requirements for agricultural warehouses and livestock dealers, and eligibility requirements for financial assistance from the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation (VACC). 

Check out the bill language here

H.420 - Regarding Year-Round Agricultural Practices

Introduced and referred to the House Ag Committee last session, H.420 was now talked about in committee for the first time early in February. It proposes that the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets establish a pilot program to provide financial assistance with the aim of establishing year-round agricultural practices across VT. Endorsed by numerous representatives, the bill was presented by Rep. Cina of Chittenden-15. Cina cited local food security, reduced transportation costs involved with transportation of out-of-state food, and future climate resilience as factors which should encourage the committee to consider the bill. In moving forward, he suggested that a focus on climate-adaptive crops and communal production facilities should be considered as possible aspects of the bill.

H.626 - Animal Welfare Bill

This bill proposes to establish a new Division of Animal Welfare at the Department of Public Safety to develop, implement, and administer a centralized program for investigating and enforcing animal welfare requirements on and off farms in the State. The bill would also amend  or establish best management standards for the operation of animal shelters and animal rescue organizations. In addition, the bill would amend or establish requirements for the importation or transportation of animals into the State. Similar legislation has been promoted by the Humane Society, the American Kennel Club and other organizations in the past (more info on VTDigger). Their hope is that H.626 could resolve the current shortcomings of the fragmented system so people would know better who to call about animal cruelty cases so that they can be dealt with in a more timely and effective manner. Its companion bill in the Senate, S. 292 is still “on the wall” and didn’t get any hearings yet in the assigned Senate Committee of Government Operations. Watch the bills first hearing here and this week's large hearing, including compelling youth testimony from Lark Thompson about how difficult it is for citizens to step up for animal welfare here.

H.687 - Related to community resilience and biodiversity protection through land use

H.687 would reform the name, functioning and composition of the Natural Resources Board (NRB) to review appeals to Act 250 permitting in the future as the Environmental Review Board. Any appeal to the Supreme Court would then accept the Board’s findings unless clearly erroneous. The new board would retain current duties of the NRB and also review applications of the planned growth area designations, review future land use maps or regional plans - including those that establish rural and working lands areas. Lawmakers also consider regulating development within critical resource areas, namely flood plains, wetlands, slopes, on bedrock, at high elevation, and a parcel of habitat connector. Critical Resource Areas would also include any amount of prime agricultural soils by definition of this bill. The Director of Policy and Planning (Billy Coster) at the Agency of Natural Resources admitted that the push back for regulating critical resource areas is expected to be much lower than towards regulating the land use of land outside of those areas. Mitigating land use conflicts is the big subject of this discourse. A change in the definition of ‘development’ suggests including the construction of commercial, residential or industrial buildings more than 500 feet from a State or town highway located in a rural and working lands area in the preview of Act 250 review. It would also add the review for construction projects within 25 feet of a critical resource area.

Rural Vermont Comment: This bill is not an alternative to the needed Conservation Plan that is being worked on as the Vermont Conservation Strategy Initiative from Act 59 (2023). The scarcity of arable land for food production is being recognized more and more and the state is wrestling with balancing all the different public interests at stake. That includes it being a question of what development of the working lands should be allowed in the future, how farmland needs to be protected from development but instead be made available to farmers, food production and enhanced conservation planning and practice. Act 250 permitting the concentric development of downtown centers will affect farmland and so will the expansion of flood zones, wetlands, eroded areas etc. so that a statewide look at what’s at stake is underway. Rural Vermont participates in the 30x30 or VCSI process. Read on for more information on the ongoing Vermont Conservation Strategy Initiative process later in this update. 

Recap Flood Recovery Hearing

The Senate Committee on Agriculture met February 6th to discuss flood recovery and relief efforts in the state, particularly focusing on the impact on agriculture. Douglas Farnham, the Chief Recovery Officer, provided updates on the status of recovery efforts, including funds available from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. He highlighted the importance of water system investments, in supporting farmworker housing and mentioned programs aimed at climate resilience for farmers. Discussions also centered around FEMA assistance for hazard mitigation projects, including buyouts and elevations, and the challenges faced by smaller communities in accessing federal programs. The committee explored options for mitigating flood risks while maintaining agricultural landscapes, including land conservation and floodplain restoration. The potential for collaboration with conservation districts to address runoff issues and gravel accumulation in rivers was also discussed. Members expressed concerns about the limitations of FEMA assistance and the need to address debris removal in rivers. They also highlighted the importance of considering traditional approaches like dredging and involving experienced individuals in decision-making processes. 

Watch the full hearing here.

More facts about agricultural land loss

Last week, the Agricultural Working Group of the Vermont Conservation Strategy Initiative (VCSI) considered a presentation by Ryan Patch, Agriculture Climate and Land Use Policy Manager at the Agency of Ag, covering land use in agriculture in Vermont from 1840 - 2024. Since the peak of agriculture in Vermont in 1880, when there were over 35K farms representing 84% of the entire VT landmass, ag production in the state has consolidated into 12% of the total land use today. In a business as usual scenario, makers of Act 250 project that 39% of the current agricultural land will produce less or no food due to being impacted as a “critical resource area,” namely river corridor, wetland, high elevation or as slope or soils with shallow bedrock. American Farmland Trust estimates that Vermont will lose between 41K to 61,800 acres by 2040 to development. The remaining 61% are under high pressure for development. How will the group decide about the question of which farmland should be protected from development for food production in the future? In our last update we shared that New England Feeding New England projects a need for an additional 989,000 acres across the North East U.S. to produce only 30% of food consumed in VT by 2030.

See Ryan Patch, Agriculture Climate and Land Use Policy Manager at VAAFM presentation recording (starting 1 hour into the meeting) here (Passcode: +smc28x^) 

View Slides of Ryan’s presentation on agricultural land use in Vermont 1840-2024 here

What’s going on? Raise your voice in the discussion around farmland conservation and land use planning in Vermont’s 30x30 process

Rural Vermont celebrates a successful push for transparency in the relevant public engagement process to find recommendations for land use in Vermont through conservation planning that’s underway until the end of 2025: All meeting recordings of all groups of the Vermont Conservation Strategy Initiative will be made available online! 

If you:

  • Want better farmland access for farmers

  • Want agricultural land to be protected from corporate land grabs and 

  • Want agricultural land to be protected from emission trading and net-zero scams

  • Want agricultural land to be protected from development

  • Have ideas around how to incentivize more sustainable land management 

  • Have ideas around how to increase biodiversity on farms 

Then please comment on this work! 

Comment by emailing Stacy Cibula, Facilitator of the Agricultural Working Group of the VCSI with your comments and concerns at s.cibula@vhcb.org subject: comment on VCSI work & consider to cc: caroline@ruralvermont.org 

To learn more about Rural Vermont’s engagement with the 30x30 process, please visit our website here

Find meeting recordings and more information on the VCSI website here

Farm to Plate 2023 Annual Report

VT Farm to Plate’s Annual Report yielded statistics signaling an increase in retailers of local food. Since 2018, the level of Vermonters purchasing local food at convenience stores and corner markets has increased from 41.9 to 86.9%. For rural areas that rely on corner markets and convenience more, this is great news. The report also included a figure announcing that 68.9% of Vermonters grow some their own food. For a State that is still over 90% import dependent (see NEFNE VT State Brief), this may indicate good ground for the further development of local self-reliance in food. Emma Hilleman, Director of the Vermont Food Center in Rutland, celebrating the 10th year of their organization, affirmed the organization’s impact in Rutland county and the necessity of similar organizations. Emma explained: “In 2022, our data did show that 75% of our participants were considered food insecure and that the average household income was only between $10,000 and $26,000 dollars, which is in the county low. A lot of these folks are already having trouble feeding themselves, let alone feeding themselves with local food and local healthy food. So our programs really have an impact on those folks.” Emma reported that, according to 2022 data, through the five programs affiliated with her organization that work on food-as-medicine and CSAs, 26 farms from across the state participated in selling over $119,000 of product. These programs, Emma said, reached close to 2000 people that year. Annie Harlow, who runs her own consulting business that helps bring VT products to retailers, reported an increase from 715 to 825 retailers selling local food from 2018. She emphasized the importance of developing relationships across the supply-chain to ensure that opportunities for the sale of VT food continues to increase.

Check out the Farm to Plate 2023 Annual Report here

Rural VermontPES, Neonics, cannabis
Protect Our Soils Coalition Comments on Depack Permit Renewal

Securing decentralized waste streams of strictly source separated organics of food residuals is a central goal of the Protect Our Soils Coalition (POSC). Through submitting public comments as a coalition on the draft permit renewal for the depackaging facility in Williston Vermont, Rural Vermont advocates for depack to only be used for heavily packaged materials that have not been source separated. Valuable clean organic resources should instead be managed in agricultural use or in available and existing community composting systems!

Read POSC comments here.

See draft permit here.


Rural VermontPES
2022 End of Session Legislative Recap

Bill statuses updated 6/9/22.

Rarely have we seen as many bills related to agriculture and forestry as in the 2022 session - we covered 19+ bills that were either directly related to our policy priorities, that we supported, provided testimony for, or monitored for you, our constituents, members and supporters. More importantly, these bills have not just been introduced, but the majority of them have made it through passage by the general assembly. Now they are on their way to the Governor's desk as we’re writing this end-of-session recap.

HIGHLIGHTS: 

With an interest in securing markets for clean streams of food residuals that have been separated from their packaging, our farmer stakeholder group initiated the Protect Our Soils Coalition that successfully advocated for a bill (Now H.446) that addresses the increasing consolidation and contamination of this valuable resource by launching a process for regulating depackaging technology. Regrettably, establishing meaningful agricultural access, racial justice, and economic equity in the emerging cannabis market, could not be achieved in the political landscape this biennium but our Vermont Cannabis Equity Coalition succeeded  in having farmers and other community voices heard in testimony on a number of occasions while educating legislators of their challenges and needs.  Emerging issues such as surface water regulations (H.466) were substantially affected by farmers and farming organizations in testimony and in outreach to their representatives, and arrived at a compromise agreeable to all of the agricultural and environmental parties present.

As this is also an election year, this was the last session with some of Vermont’s legislative icons. We say thank you and farewell to progressive leader Senator Anthony Pollina - who co-founded Rural Vermont and served as our very first Executive Director. With fellow Progressive Senator Chris Pearson also leaving the Senate, two of 5 seats of the Senate Agriculture Committee will be available.    Representative Carolyn Partridge is  retiring from her long term Chair position in the House Agriculture and Forestry Committee  - she was a significant supporter of raw milk and on-farm slaughter legislative improvements over the years. The House Agriculture and Forestry Committee will also likely be substantially different next year.

Bill updates:

On-Farm Slaughter Reporting Form Requirement Repeal

Why is this a Rural Vermont policy priority? We center our work on food sovereignty and have advanced the right to slaughter livestock and poultry in Vermont through legislation and grassroots organizing for over a decade. 

Advocacy priority: The goal to repeal the registration and report form requirements for farmers would have mirrored the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) policy shift to more responsibly engage livestock owners in on-farm slaughter while alleviating bureaucratic burdens for farmers. New VAAFM restrictions released via email in January to registered practitioners now require livestock owners to be “present” during on-farm slaughter and to organize hiring itinerant slaughterers and transporting the carcasses for further processing themselves. Farmers testified to the fact that these restrictions impair their status quo of how they engaged and built business models around the practice during the past decade, causing some of them to stop managing livestock.

Status update: Both agriculture committees had a hard time making sense of the new requirements, hearing testimonials from farmers, itinerant slaughterers, and advocacy organizations during our Small Farm Action Day, as well as the federal delegation and Vermont agency staff. Rural Vermont's ask to repeal the form requirements gained over 155 supporters but did not find specific consideration by legislators and was not included in a miscellaneous agriculture bill.

Addressing Contamination Issues with Food Residuals Management

Bill info & status update: H.446, relating to miscellaneous natural resources and development subjects now includes language on regulating depackaging technology from the original H.501. The bill includes a moratorium on further permitting of food depackaging facilities until rules have been adopted. This will not impair the existing facility in Williston Vermont but the expansion of capacity for this new industry. Rules will need to be informed by a collaborative stakeholder process that will recommend a role for depackagers in managing food waste as well as a study on microplastics and PFAS in food packaging and food waste. H.446 was signed into law by the Governor on June 2, 2022, and is now Act 170.

Why is this a Rural Vermont policy priority? We support compost foraging as an innovative agricultural practice where farmers import clean streams of food residuals onto their farms and allow their chickens access to compost piles to forage on while producing valuable soil amendments. The “zero sort” consolidation of waste streams of food residuals creates new resource concerns that the Universal Recycling Law was intended to solve while hindering market development for small scale composters.

Advocacy priorities: The introduction and passage of a pathway for regulating depackaging technology is a success of the Protect Our Soils Coalition that Rural Vermont is a founding member of. We will continue to advocate for regulating the industry with a goal to strictly implement the source separation requirement with a strategic plan, a ban of all non-packaged, easily unpackaged and post-consumer materials from being mixed with packaged materials at depackaging facilities as well as a land application ban from slurries from depackaging facilities.

Just and Equitable Cannabis Cultivation

Why is this a Rural Vermont policy priority? As part of the VT Cannabis Equity Coalition, Rural Vermont is advocating for a cannabis economy in Vermont which is racially just, economically equitable, agriculturally accessible, and environmentally sound. This includes core principles such as:  ongoing funding for the Cannabis Development Fund (which funds the State’s social equity programming related to cannabis), a percentage of the tax revenue from cannabis be allotted to reinvestment in communities disproportionately harmed by the criminalization of cannabis, scale appropriate regulations, all outdoor production be given agricultural status, market equity and direct market access for producers, nurseries and manufacturers for the very products and crops they produce, realistic home cultivation allowances.

Bills & status update: About six bills on cannabis have been introduced this session and our coalition has  largely been focused on one remaining bill the last few weeks, S.188 - related to the outdoor cultivation of cannabis.  After a few back and forths between the House and Senate at the tail end, we are left with a bill which still offers very little agricultural or economic equity that our coalition and members directly advocated for. The current bill includes minimal gains and some losses:

  • Smallest tier of outdoor cultivation license will enjoy the same benefits of agriculture as relates to a number of things: access to current use status (if already enrolled), exemption from municipal bylaw, exemption from Act 250 and similar development laws, exemption from tax retail sales.

  • Cultivators given allowance to sell seeds and live plants to other cultivators (but not directly to consumers)

  • Wholesalers are also given allowance to sell seeds and live plants to cultivators (which we are not in support of)

The final bill also included last minute controversial language leveraged by Rep. Gannon to avoid a committee of conference on particular issues in the miscellaneous cannabis bill , H.548, including THC caps on extracts which our organizational ally the Vermont Growers Association, as well as the Cannabis Control Board, have been in opposition to.  S.188 was signed into law by the Governor on May 31, 2022, and is now Act 158.

Advocacy priorities: Ultimately, we support the agricultural status gains for small cultivators - but feel they cannot be limited to only the smallest tier - and oppose a number of aspects of this bill from the allowances for Wholesalers to the inclusion of these agricultural status gains only for land already in current use (which may disproportionately impact particular farmers, and those without current access to land currently in agriculture).  The most important Social Equity goals of our coalition - and a recommendation of the CCB (Jan. 15th Report, Slide 25) - were disappointingly not addressed by legislators:  

  • bring 20% of excise tax revenue from this market to a “reinvestment fund” to invest in the needs of communities impacted, and disproportionately impacted, by the criminalization of cannabis

  • bring 5% of the excise tax to the Cannabis Development Fund (a fund established by the legislature to fund social equity initiatives largely within the industry, but which has no source of ongoing funding).  

Overall, The primary racial justice, agricultural access, and economic equity goals and proposals we were advocating for remain absent as we see this legislative session end, and the market roll-out begin.  The Vermont Cannabis Equity Coalition will continue to advocate, organize, and educate about the importance of these priorities.  Please be in touch throughout this first year of the regulated market to share your experiences.!

H.626 - Neonicotinoid Pesticides

What is this bill about? This bill has changed substantially from its initial proposal (which included a moratorium on the use of neonicotinoid treated seeds until rules and integrated pest management practices were developed) to its current form as passed by the House and Senate.  At this point, the bill allows the Agency of Agriculture to adopt by rule Best Management Practices (BMPs) and other protocols related to treated articles (seeds and other items treated with pesticides) as recommended by the Agricultural Innovation Board (AIB) - an authority which the Agency already has.  It also requires the Agency of Agriculture, in consultation with the AIB, to adopt by rule BMPs for the use of neonicotinoid treated seeds.  It requires the Sec. of Agriculture to, “work with farmers, seed companies, and other relevant parties to ensure that farmers have access to appropriate varieties and amounts of untreated seed or treated seed that are not neonicotinoid treated article seeds”.  It also now includes a program of monitoring managed pollinator health and developing benchmarks associated with it.  It requires the Agency and AIB submit their proposed rules to the Agriculture Committees and General Assembly in 2024; and in the case of BMPs for all treated article seed (as opposed to neonics alone) to the Ag Committees by February 15, 2023.  Lastly, it provides the Agency with 2 new positions split between different functions germaine and not germane to pesticides.

Rural Vermont position: We are conflicted in relationship to this bill.  Though we did not draft or know of this bill until after the legislative session began, our goal - and those whom we’ve been working most closely with (including NOFA VT) - has been to shape it towards ending the unregulated prophylactic use of neonicotinoid treated seeds (as has been done in many parts of the world based on significant scientific evidence of their detrimental impacts on pollinator and insect health) while providing the support farmers need to implement integrated pest management protocols, and source adequate varieties and amounts of seed not treated with neonicotinoid pesticides.  It is unclear to us if this bill will get us to this point - and based on the language of the bill it largely depends on the work of the Agency of Agriculture, the Agricultural Innovation Board, and the legislature.  A number of VT beekeepers provided compelling and devastating testimony throughout this process which the legislature has not responded to with the kind of support it has with other agricultural industries in crisis; as beekeepers noted to the committees.  It is unclear if the monitoring program in this bill is supported by VT’s apiaries, and particular beekeepers we’ve been in contact with have expressed their significant disappointment and frustrations with this bill.  

Status: H.626 has been signed into law by the Governor on May 27, 2022, and is now Act 145.

H. 466 - Surface Water

What is this bill about? This bill addresses regulation, reporting, and a future permitting process for surface water withdrawals and interbasin transfers in VT.  Currently, surface water withdrawals are governed by “riparian laws” (which allow those who own or have access to land directly adjacent to a surface water to withdraw from those waters) and “de minimis” withdrawal allowances in VT (a particular amount of water allowed to be withdrawn each day based on particular data related to streamflow - but which does not account for cumulative use); yet most States have implemented regulations similar to what H.466 now proposes.  The goal of this reporting is to develop a fairly comprehensive database and understanding of how, where, and for what purposes surface water is currently being used in the State in order to  address climate change, water resource supply, and equity concerns, and to inform a future rulemaking and permitting process.  This bill may affect you if you are a farm, business, or other entity using surface water.  Important features of the final bill for the farming community:

  • “[Beginning in 2023, any] person who withdrew 10,000 gallons or more of surface water within a 24-hour period in the preceding calendar year or 150,000 gallons or more of surface water over any 30-day period in the preceding calendar year shall file a report with the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets. The report shall be made on a form provided by the Secretary and shall include all of the following information: 

(1) an estimate of the total amount of water withdrawn in the preceding calendar year; 

(2) the location of the withdrawals;

(3) the daily maximum withdrawal for each month; 

(4) the date of each daily maximum withdrawal

(5) any other information related to surface water withdrawal required by the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets.

  • An “exception” from the future permitting process for: “surface water withdrawals for irrigation for farming, livestock watering, or other uses for farming, as the term “farming” is defined in 6 20 V.S.A. § 4802”

  • Springs are no longer included in the definition of surface water in this bill.

Rural Vermont position: This bill will affect many farms and agricultural businesses in the State.  lt benefited substantially from the organizing, testimony, and expertise of the VT Vegetable and Berry Growers’ Association and the farmers and farming organizations who testified.  In particular farmers such as Justin Rich and Joseph Dutton (among others) who came out to testify many times, organized on farming listservs, and made the time needed to substantially affect this bill.  The Senate Agriculture Committee also took important steps to work with farming and environmental groups to arrive at a compromise which all parties could agree to - including Rural VT.  

Status: H.466 was signed into law by the Governor on May 24, 2022, and is now Act 135.

S.258 - Senate Miscellaneous Ag Bill, including Right To Farm

What is this bill about? S.258 expands what will be covered under the right to farm law by including a new definition of “agricultural activities” in addition to what already has been protected as “farming”. The miscellaneous agricultural amendments in S.258 also include an across the board good standing requirement for recipients of VAAFM grants; the Secretary's approval prior to transporting non-sewage waste to farms; the extension of the task force to revitalize the dairy industry into 2023;  and some minor tweaks to existing programs. 

Status: S.258 was signed into law by the Governor on June 1, 2022, and is now Act 162.

S.148 - Environmental Justice Bill

What is this bill about? Introduced by Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale (D-Chittenden), S.148 will set into motion a series of mechanisms and new working groups so that the state government facilitates meaningful participation with its constituents on issues of environmental burdens and benefits in fulfillment of Title XI of the Civil Rights Act.  The goal of this piece of legislation is to ensure that no segment of the population “bear a disproportionate share of environmental burdens or be denied an equitable share of environmental benefits,” and “to provide the opportunity for the meaningful participation of all individuals, with particular attention to environmental justice focus populations, in the development, implementation, or enforcement of any law, regulation, or policy” (S.148, pgs. 8-9).  The bill tasks certain government agencies with reassessing their past investments and to identify where there has not been an equitable allocation of resources at the municipal or census-block level. This assessment would determine where there are communities that do not receive a proportionate amount of environmental benefits and would serve to inform the agencies’ subsequent investments.  Furthermore, S.148 establishes an Interagency Environmental Justice Committee as well as an Environmental Justice Advisory Council — the Interagency Committee would be composed of representatives from the agencies, including ANR and VAAFM, and the Advisory Council would include members of environmental justice populations to represent their community’s interests.  Finally, S.148 sets forth the creation of an environmental justice mapping tool which would assist in the implementation of the environmental justice policy by overlaying different criteria to help identify and depict populations that bear disproportionate environmental burdens.

Status: S. 148 was signed into law by the Governor on May 31, 2022, and is now Act 154.

More info: Much of the bill was informed through work by the R.E.J.O.I.C.E. Project—read more about that initiative here. Environmental Justice in the news on VTDigger here and here AND on VPR here.

BIPOC Land Access and Opportunity Bill

What is this bill about? H.273, An act relating to promoting racial and social equity in land access and property ownership, sought to address systemic barriers to property ownership by creating a fund and board that would, per the the bill’s language, “promote racial and social equity in land access and property ownership by creating grant programs, financial education, and other investments targeted to Vermonters who have historically suffered from discrimination and who have not had equal access to public or private economic benefits due to race, ethnicity, sex, geography, language preference, immigrant or citizen status, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, or disability status” (H.273 as introduced, pg. 1). While H.273 died in committee, the creation of the Land Access & Opportunity Board was included in an amendment to S.226, the VT housing bill, that passed the House last week. The Board would be composed of a diverse set of community members and representatives from racial equity organizations. The amendment included $200K in funds and administrative support by the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board (Sec. 22a, p. 36 et al.). It appears that the idea of establishing a fund was tabled for the newly created board to develop related programming in collaboration with VHCB instead.

Status: S. 226 was signed into law by the Governor on June 7, 2022.

More info: Lead organizers for H.273 were Seeding Power, a collective of multi-racial organizers working on systemic changes that center BIPOC self-determination and healing relationships with land and between people. Sign-up for updates from Seeding Power here.

Liability for Poor Workmanship at Utility Construction Worksites

What is this bill about? S.166 started as an effort to set stringent measures to prevent instances of poor workmanship at utility construction worksites where ingestion of debris can cause hardware disease or poisoning like it has occured at two farms in Tunbridge Vermont last year. Instead of setting an obligatory liability of contractors for their subcontractors into statute or requiring the Public Utility Commission (PUC) to issue an order to specify requirements, what remains is Sec. 23a in H.515 (p.98) that now requires the Department of Financial Regulation in consultation with the PUC: “to provide educational risk management guidance to broadband service providers engaged in broadband construction projects to reduce the risk  of harm or injury to Vermonters, generally. It is not the intent [...] to establish new or expand existing rights, obligations, or remedies.” Guidance documents are not legally binding and subject to change at the discretion of the issuing agency. The lack of accountability measures that would establish rights, obligations and remedies is disappointing - given the ongoing efforts to expand broadband in Vermont and the associated risks that surfaced for livestock specifically. 

Status: H. 515 was signed into law by the Governor on May 27, 2022, and is now Act 139.

More info: contact the Vermont Farm Bureau who took the lead on advancing this issue here.

Universal School Meals

What is this bill about? Campaign goal was to secure funding to provide free breakfast and lunch to every student in Vermont for another year. S.100 estimated the cost at $29 million that will be secured out of the state’s close to $100 million education surplus. The passage of S. 100 secures the continuation of the program that would otherwise have ended on June 30 due to limited federal funding. Equity is the core piece of this legislation - providing all kids with free meals to reduce stigmas. 

Status: S.100 was signed into law by the Governor on May 31, 2022, and is now Act 151.

More info: Learn more about this initiative from Hunger Free Vermont here. 

H. 709 - House Miscellaneous Ag Bill

What is this bill about? H.709, An act relating to miscellaneous agricultural subjects, is a miscellaneous bill that includes a number of provisions related to agriculture, with major discussions surrounding the provision about accessory on-farm businesses that resulted in  striking the word “principally” from the phrase “principally produced on the farm” in 24 V.S.A. § 4412’s description of what products are allowed to be sold at an AOFB.  Other provisions in H.709 include no longer requiring that owners or lessees of small farms notify the Agency of Agriculture about changes of ownership; changes to how high-THC hemp products are dealt with; incentives for prioritizing larvicide treatments in mosquito control districts; and granting the Agency of Agriculture the ability to consider of past permit or license violations or allegation when issuing a new permit of license. Furthermore, Section 11 includes a clarification to the Act 250 definition of farming after which “small farms” do not have to certify or meet the minimal numbers of animals like “certified small farms” - an important distinction for farmers that want to diversify into compost foraging and the commercial sales of composts derived from food residuals. A tier of the new emerging VAAFM rules privileges small farms that manage poultry to commercially sell all of their composts derived from food residuals without needing to land-apply the majority of those composts. Without the clarification in law, VAAFM interpreted farmers would need to keep at least 6,250 laying hens instead of only 100 laying hens in this on-farm composting category for poultry farmers.  

Status: H.709 was signed into law by the Governor on June 2, 2022, and is now Act 174.

Clean Heat Standard Bill

What is this bill about? The Clean Heat Standard bill aimed to realize emission reduction goals of the Climate Action Plan in the thermal sector.  We reported on H.715, with concerns regarding the bill's inclusion of biofuels and natural gas as clean heat measures (revisit our blog here). In third reading, Sen. Ram Hinsdale and Pollina offered an amendment (p.54) that would have included sustainability measures to cap and sunset the eligibility of biofuels and renewable gas for clean heat credits. The Senate did not agree to these amendments but the bill still failed due to the Governor's veto and subsequent failure of the House to override the same by one vote (read VTDigger report here). 

Status: Vetoed by Governor - override failed in roll call that needed 100 of 150 (Yeas = 99, Nays = 51).

Forestry & Working Lands Bills

  • S. 234 - An act relating to changes to Act 250

    What is this bill about? This bill functionally acts as a miscellaneous bill that contains a number of updates to Act 250.  The stated purpose of S.234 is to “encourage a municipality to plan for new and infill development in the area including and immediately encircling its designated downtown center [...] in order to provide needed housing and to further support the commercial establishments in the designated center.” (S.234, pg. 1) One of Vermont’s most consequential pieces of land use and development legislation, Act 250’s permitting process, can sometimes impede necessary development — S.234 tries to remedy that by making incentives available to municipalities seeking permits for infill development in their town centers. The bill was controversial because of allowing infill development in “flood hazard areas” provided that the developer institutes a comprehensive series of flood resilience measures.  Many Vemronters remember the consequences of tropical storm Irene well and question how this approach mitigates long term flood projections that are expected to occur with Climate Change. Critics of S.234 also feel the bill does not do enough to ensure that necessary housing projects come to fruition, or even that the bill would further complicate development efforts. 

    Commentary: Initiatives like this may also be seen as a soft version of what’s in geography known as the “central places theory” - a principle that originated in Germany where it is part of the federal building code that resulted in keeping the landscape free from development by prohibiting urban sprawl. Germany’s building code instead only allows for a development project in undesignated outlying areas when it serves agricultural or forestry activities; is for the public supply of electricity, gas, telecommunications services, heat and water or for sewerage, and a very few other permissible uses (see Sec. 35 German Building Code).

    Status:  Vetoed by the Governor on June 1, 2022, because “this bill makes Act 250 even more cumbersome than it is today and it will make it harder to build the housing we desperately need.” Read the Governor’s letter to the General Assembly here. VTDigger reported here.

  • H. 566 - Vermont Forest Future

    What is this bill about? H.566 was about a new initiative through the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund that would have served to “strengthen, promote, and protect the forest products industry of Vermont.” (H.566 as introduced, pg. 1) H.566 would have prompted the development of a Vermont Forest Future Action Plan, which would have identified funding opportunities, recommended measures to support and further develop the state’s forest enterprise workforce, and recommend ways to “maintain access by Vermont forest enterprises to forestland while maintaining the stewardship and conservation of Vermont’s forests as a whole.” (H.566, pg. 5)

    Status (updated 5.24.22): The Forest Future Strategic Roadmap passed the Senate and House through S.11, the workforce development bill (Sec 42-45 of the act, starting on pg 31: https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2022/Docs/BILLS/S-0011/S-0011%20House%20proposal%20of%20amendment%20Official.pdf). S. 11 was signed into law by the Governor on June 8.

  • H. 606 - An act relating to community resilience and biodiversity protection

    What is this bill about? This bill acknowledges the intrinsic value of biodiversity and the continuous rapid threats of extinction of one million species of plants and animals globally and locally. In consequence of the Climate Action Plan, this bill sets conservation targets of 30% of Vermont’s total land area being conserved by 2030 and 50% by 2050 through the development of a mix of ecological reserve, biodiversity conservation and natural resource management areas according to a conservation plan issued by the Secretary of Natural Resources by December 2023. 

    Status: H.606 was vetoed by the Governor on June 2, 2022, backing up the Agency of Natural Resources position stating: “the conservation goals established in H.606 are unnecessarily tied to - and unreasonably limited to - permanent protection. The Agency has repeatedly said that permanent preservation has not been, and cannot be, the state's exclusive conservation tool and this bill, intentional or not, would diminish the existing and successful conservation tools we have.” Read the Governor’s letter to the General Assembly here. VTDigger reported here.

  • H. 697 - An act relating to eligibility of reserve forestland for enrollment in the Use Value Appraisal

    What is this bill about? H.697 paves the way for landowners to enroll their reserve forestland into the Current Use program which assigns a property tax based on the forestry or agricultural production value rather than the market value.  Currently, privately-owned forestland accounts for 80% of Vermont’s total forests.  “Reserve forestland,” as defined in the bill, refers to “land that is managed for the purpose of attaining old forest values and functions in accordance with minimum acceptable standards for forest management.”  (H.697 as passed by the House, pg. 8) Landowners would need to submit a conservation management plan to the Department of Forests, Parks, & Recreation in order to apply for the Current Use Enrollment. 

    Status: H.697 was signed into law by the Governor on May 27, 2022, and is now Act 146.

  • S. 281 - An act relating to hunting coyotes with dogs

    What is this bill about? This bill intends to reduce conflicts between landowners and persons pursuing coyotes with the aid of dogs by reducing the frequency that hunters and their dogs enter onto land that is posted against hunting or where such hunting has not been authorized.

    Status: S. 281 was signed into law by the Governor on June 1, 2022, and is now Act 165.

Other Bills

  • FY23 Budget includes $1 M for development of Payment for Ecosystem Services program

    “$1,000,000 for the development of an agricultural Payment for Ecosystems Services Program to support the work of the Payment for Ecosystem Services and Soil Health Working Group (PES WG) – as authorized by 2019 Acts and Resolves No. 83, amended by 2020 Acts and Resolves No. 129 and 2021 Acts and Resolves No. 47 – to enable Payment for Ecosystem Services Program development to retain facilitation services, contract identified research needs, fund pilot program development, and deliver payments to farmers for quantified ecosystem services.”
    The PES WG continues to meet and is yet undecided about the cornerstones of a pilot program - register here and provide public comment during the May 17th mtg.

  • FY23 Budget includes $4.76 M to AAFM from ARPA funds for climate mitigation

    “$4,760,000 to the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets to provide farms in Vermont with financial assistance for the implementation of soil-based practices that improve soil quality and nutrient retention, increase crop production, minimize erosion potential, and reduce agricultural waste discharges. Assistance may take the form of programs that provide education, training, or instruction to farmers.”

  • H. 730 - An act relating to alcoholic beverages and the Department of Liquor and Lottery

    What is the bill about? A bipartisan effort to clarify the regulatory landscape for Ciders and other alcoholic beverages, H.730 includes a wide range of technical corrections. Among those, Cider will now have its own legal definition and will be taxed like beer when lower 7% ABV at 26 ½ cents per gallon and like wine when alcohol contents exceed 7% ABV.

    Status: H. 730 was signed into law by the Governor on June 7, 2022.

  • S. 285 - An act relating to health care reform initiatives, data collection, and access to home- and community-based services

    What is the bill about? This bill gives the Green Mountain Care Board $4 million+ to come up with a “patient-focused, community-inclusive plan” for setting hospital budgets. The bill falls drastically short of the reforms needed around overall healthcare costs, and provides an incremental step towards hospital budget reform.
    Status: Signed into law by the Governor on June 1, 2022. Read the signing letter here.

  • FY 23 budget includes $8.26M for VAAFM Ag Clean Water Fund Work (Both ARPA and CWF funding sources)

Rural VermontPES, OFS, cannabis, pesticides, healthcare, Healthcare, Cannabis