Final 2023 Legislative Update 05.08.23
End-of-Session Action Alerts
There is a strong push from the legislature to end the legislative session this week, and there are a number of bills which we are monitoring, testifying on, submitting language for, and mobilizing around as the session comes to a close. This is a time when your voice can have a potentially significant influence on the outcomes of these bills, and issues such as childcare, funding for agricultural grants and programs in the budget (e.g. Working Lands Enterprise Fund, Land Access and Opportunity Board, Small Farm Diversification and Resilience, etc.), agricultural access and social equity in cannabis, and more. This is also a time when we are assessing the likelihood of vetoes from the Governor’s Office - and in the case of Universal School Meals, which has just passed the House and Senate and is moving to the Governor’s desk, this is a time to contact his office urging him to support this bill. In the Vermont legislature, it remains true that the voices of a relatively small number of constituents reaching out are able to at times make a critical difference.
It takes just 3 steps to pass along your voice on any of these bills and issues!
1. Determine the appropriate policy maker to contact by going HERE:
If it’s your Representatives and Senator(s), dial the Sergeant at Arms office at 802-828-2228, and / or find and directly contact your representative by email or phone (directory available here).
If it’s the Governor, call his office at 802-828-3333.
2. Leave a message with your name, town, and a short and direct message about the bill and issue which you are speaking to.
3. Provide information as prompted.
eg. “I am a constituent of Representative(s) ____________ and Senator(s) ____________ and I would like to leave them the following message: Please pass a ____________ bill this year which (preserves, supports, encourages) _____________. Vermonters are counting on you to pass this bill NOW.”
S.56 - An Act Relating to Child Care and Early Childhood Education
Act now to ensure this important legislation passes!
Update: S.56 is a bill which will make substantial investments in VT's childcare system for providers, workers, and parents - but its passage is hung up in disagreements over how to fund it. S. 56, was on the Notice Calendar of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, 5/10, (starting at page 3446, and 3499) with a proposed amendment from the House Committee on Human Services and the House Committee on Appropriations. The House will vote Thursday (May 11, 10am) on these proposed amendments and will then vote on whether or not to move the bill back to the Senate to concur to their final version of the bill. The disagreement is over how to fund the additional $120M annual costs of this bill, and the Senate continued their push for financing through an increased payroll tax by adding language to H. 217. The political pressure to adjourn on Friday without additional delay and expenditures is high, so efforts to get S. 56 through this year have been gearing up all week.
Action: Your voice can literally make a difference on this bill right now. Tell your representatives that we must pass this bill, and that we must protect the child tax credit of $1,000 per child in disputes over how to fund S.56. This credit is uniquely important to agricultural and rural families who meet their childcare needs in ways adapted to their livelihoods, and in ways which may not meet criteria for other means of financial support.
H. 270 - Miscellaneous Cannabis Bill
Aspects of Ag Status for Outdoor Cultivators - act for Social Equity!
Update: H.270 has been voted out of the Senate Committee on Finance, after taking testimony from the Vermont Cannabis Equity Coalition (reps from Rural VT and the VT Growers’ Association), and it currently includes the aspects of agricultural status for outdoor cultivators which we have been advocating for. These inclusions will result in significant positive impacts for farmers and outdoor cultivators, and will provide needed clarity for towns and licensees in areas such as municipal regulation and the jurisdiction of Act 250. In addition, it includes a one-time $500,000 appropriation to the Cannabis Business Development Fund (devoted to supporting Social Equity Licensees) - which falls far short of the base funding from the excise tax which the VT Cannabis Equity Coalition has been pushing for. Our advocacy for the propagation license to include the sale of immature plants beyond only licensed cultivators and to the general public was not successful - direct sales outside of seed remain entirely centralized to the retail licensees. A number of medical conditions which the CCB and our coalition requested be added to the registration of eligible conditions were also struck from the original bill.
Status Update: In response to our coalition’s ask for a portion of the excise tax to fund reinvestment in communities disproportionately impacted by, and individuals impacted by, the criminalization of cannabis - we were asked for data and information clarifying who these communities and individuals are, and what types of impacts and reinvestment may be needed. We are currently working with Sen. Vihovsky and other members of the Senate to have language included in the bill which would ask for research and a report from the Racial Disparities in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice System Advisory Panel which would deliver responses to these questions by January, 2024.
Action: Contact your representatives now using the 3 steps outlined above and ask them to support H.270 and the proposed amendment calling for a report about how the criminalization of cannabis impacted communities and individuals in VT and how to address repairing these harms.
H. 165 - Universal School Meals
Senate added 29M in funds back into the bill, House concurred - let the Governor know you support this bill!
Update: The legislature approves indefinite Universal School Meals as worked out by the House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resilience and Forestry that would provide free breakfast and lunch to all students at Vermont public schools that are meeting standards for assistance under the National School Lunch Act. Independent schools are encouraged to opt into the program as well. Without many changes along the way, the Senate proposed in its final stages to include the appropriation of 29M from the Education Fund for the program explicitly back into the bill directly (it was in the budget). The same amount had been approved in 2022 with Act 151 (JFO Report from Feb 1, 2023). The money from the Education Fund comes from a variety of sources, including from lottery, property tax, sales and use tax, meals and rooms tax, and medicaid reimbursement funds. A large percentage of the total funding will come from property tax payers in a rate that might be adjusted within the mechanisms of the Education fund. Representative Rice referenced a figure that approximately 3 percent property tax increase might be needed to fully fund Universal School Meals. It would pay for the significant increase in students that will become eligible for free and reduced price school meals. The Joint Fiscal Office stated during a hearing with the House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resilience and Forestry earlier this week that there’s approximately surplus of 64M dollars currently not allocated already in the Education Fund so that it’s unclear exactly how much the property taxes might increase. In November 2022, 40% of students were eating breakfast and 60% were eating lunch at school - the highest rate of participation ever documented in Vermont - according to Hunger Free Vermont. In addition, federal funding of up to 6M dollars is likely going to expand free after school and summer meal programs. Hunger Free Vermont gave credit to the positive trajectory the development of the state's program is taking and called it “an opportunity to really eliminate child hunger in every county in Vermont.”
Status: VTDigger reported that the Governor opposes the permanent installment of Universal School Meals and that Phil Scott “remains concerned that the bill would increase property tax pressure, and therefore potentially rents. [...] This approach could disproportionately impact lower income Vermonters in order to essentially provide affluent families support that they do not need.” The buzz in the State House predicts that he will veto this bill so that the final say will likely be spoken at a veto session.
More info: see the latest JFO Report on Possible Revenue Sources from February 1, 2023; VT Digger from May 5, 2023
Action: Contact the Governor!
1. Dial the Governor’s office at 802 828-3333
2. Leave a message for Governor Phil Scott urging him to allow the Universal School Meals bill to pass into law.
3. Provide information as prompted.
eg. “I am ____________ and I would like to leave Governor Scott the following message: Please allow Universal School Meals to pass into law and end child hunger in every county in Vermont. Vermonters are counting on you to approve of this bill NOW.”
H. 66 Paid Leave Bill
Legislature aims to postpone the comprehensive paid leave bill
Update: The Vermont General Assembly has decided to postpone the work of passing H. 66, the Paid Leave bill, onto 2024. Senators had expressed concerns about passing a comprehensive paid family leave bill alongside the childcare reforms included in S. 56 in the same year. As you know, bills that have been introduced in the first year of a biennium are still able to be acted on in the second year of a biennium.That means the paid leave bill H. 66 will not need to be reintroduced or to have the whole process started from scratch.
More info: bill website here; more political background on pending legislation at VTDigger most recently here and previously here; VPR here. VTDigger article about a voluntary paid family and medical leave plan created by the Scott administration here.
H. 205 - Small Farmer Diversification and Transition Program
Update: The bill that aims to support small producers to transition and diversify their operation got further reduced in its one-time funding for VAAFM to pilot a Small Farm Diversification program from 350K to 150K.
Status: This bill is still in Senate Appropriations, it has not been voted out of committee and is not on the notice calendar to hit the Senate floor for second and third reading this week. With that, chances diminished to see this new program pass into law this year.
More info: bill website here
H. 126 - Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection
Status Update: The 30x30/ 50x50 conservation legislation passed in concurrence with Senate Proposal of Amendment. This bill is also likely going to be vetoed by the Governor like similar legislation did in the previous year. Stay tuned for our End-of-Session recap that’s coming out soon for more details on the latest changes in the final version of the bill.
Action: Contact the Governor!
1. Dial the Governor’s office at 802 828-3333
2. Leave a message for Governor Phil Scott urging him to allow the Universal School Meals bill to pass into law
3. Provide information as prompted.
eg. “I am ____________ and I would like to leave Governor Scott the following message: Please allow the Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection bill to pass into law and advance important conservation goals in Vermont. Vermonters are counting on you to approve of this bill NOW.”
H. 81 - Right to Repair
Status Update: A positive signal is that H. 81 got passed by the House and was referred to the Senate Committee on Rules. This bill will not pass this year but has good chances to pass within the biennium.
More info: legislative website here
Budget Items
Status Update: A Committee of Conference met since last week to mitigate House and Senate versions of the Big Bill, the FY 2024 Budget of H. 494. Today marks the last chance to voice your concerns before the legislature probably adjourns on Friday about any of the recent changes on relevant budget items (e.g. Working Lands Enterprise Fund, Land Access and Opportunity Board, Small Farm Diversification and Resilience, etc.). All budget items relevant to agriculture have been unchanged or reduced rather than increased as proposed by legislators, the administration or advocates earlier this session. Positive is that the Organic Dairy Relief had been included in the budget. Find instructions on how to send a message to your legislator in the intro at the top.
The documentation of the Committee of Conference is hard to follow online and we had some issues piecing together all the pieces. Here’s an itemized summary of the latest of what we know (not final):
One time Working Lands: 1M stayed unchanged
New Ag Development Program (Meat/Maple/Produce): reduced by Senate to 2,3M vs 5M that passed the House and the 10M proposed by administration
Land Access and Opportunity Board: Senate added Section E.811 (p. 241 here) that would charge a report to assess for the LAOB to be attached to the VHCB or another entity for administrative purposes in the future. We are unclear about the latest status of the LAOB funding request that previously had been included at base funding of $1.2M.
Conservation Districts: One-time 1M got reduced to 250K and moved to be a base funding item
Organic Dairy Relief: One-time 6.9M included in Senate version
Small Farm Diversification: One-time VAAFM funding reduced from 350K to 150K