By Sam Douglass

On Thursday this week in an uncommon move, the Vermont Senate reversed one of their previous votes and struck down an amendment to a bill that the same Senators had approved by high margins the day prior. 

The short amendment offered by Sen. Steve Heffernan (R-Addison) on H.657, would’ve added an advisor from the Middlebury Women’s Center to a working group of other advocates. In the bill, the working group is tasked to, “examine the Department for Children and Families current practice of using a pregnancy calendar to monitor and track certain pregnant individuals in Vermont,” and then provide recommendations for alternative systems.

The amendment was introduced on Wednesday in the Senate Health & Welfare committee where it was agreed to on a straw poll of its members with only one member of the committee in opposition. 

Heffernan explained that the Women’s Center in Middlebury empowers and advocates for individuals to make informed choices about their pregnancies. This includes pregnancy confirmation with ultrasound, pregnancy wellness, childbirth education, parent education, healthy relationships, life skill education, and assistance after birth. 

In an interview with VDC Thursday night, he explained that the motives for his amendment were simple. He wanted more voices at the table, and facilities like the one he is familiar with in Middlebury have experience working with mothers through pregnancy and beyond. He also approached multiple similar facilities across the state but had yet to hear back. 

“I believe that having more perspectives is important and that’s what I wanted,” Heffernan said.

On the Senate floor, Sen. Virginia Lyons (D-Chittenden Southeast) spoke in favor of the amendment and explained the results of her committee’s straw poll. 

“It is important that full support be given during pregnancy and post pregnancy or pre abortion or post abortion,” said Lyons.

Heffernan’s amendment passed with little opposition and almost zero questions or debate, however, the following day it was reversed when Senator Lyons asked to reconsider the vote on his amendment. 

While the move to reconsider a vote is uncommon, it is entirely proper to do so in light of new information or feedback from constituents or advocates. During debate, some Senators mentioned that they received new information in the time since approving the amendment the day prior. 

“Actually, there is new information…in going back and reviewing the working group and looking at the bill in total and understanding the testimony both in the house and in the senate, it became very clear that the working group has quite a different perspective and goal from what was expressed on the floor yesterday when the presenter [Heffernan] defended the amendment,” said Lyons.

Committee work and testimony on H.657 began in late February this year over a total of 23 days. According to statehouse records, the Middlebury Women’s Center did not offer any testimony.

There were multiple arguments offered against the amendment. Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale (D-Chittenden Southeast) argued that the Middlebury Women’s Center did not offer any new perspective to the working group not already included in the existing list of advocates in the bill. 

“I do thank my colleague, having not answered my question about matters of opinion that need to be represented and having not directly answered my question about this individual’s expertise that makes them a valuable member of a working group, a working group which we tend to financially support, to look to for guidance, for policy, and to, generally want to bring some expertise in healthcare and social and emotional well-being to the table,” said Ram Hinsdale.

Sen. Lyons argued similarly to her seatmate in the Chittenden Southeast district. 

“The bill has nothing to do with abortion or prenatal services provided,” said Lyons. “There’s no need for a pregnancy resource center to be within the group…And I will say that the reason that Planned Parenthood had been put on the working group is because of the work that they’ve done with advocacy for people who are pregnant.”

Sen. Ruth Hardy (D-Addison) argued that the inclusion of the Women’s Center was inappropriate and described it as “harmful.”

“They are not a licensed health care provider organization. They do not provide licensed health care to women during pregnancy or during prenatal care or pre pregnancy or after pregnancy. They are not a health care provider. They may sound like a health care provider, but they are not health care providers. They are not a licensed organization with expertise in pregnancy care. And they are not an appropriate organization to be on a working group of this kind,” said Hardy.

The vote fell along party lines and the amendment was struck down. 

Heffernan said that he was disheartened but wasn’t surprised by the action taken by his colleagues on Thursday, as he referenced another Senator who allegedly approached him and said after his amendment passed on Wednesday, “this won’t go far.”

“It was all political and it wasn’t right,” said Heffernan. “It’s concerning when a committee vets your work, they agree to it, then a majority of the Senate agrees to it, and then it gets torn down because of outside influence working against it.”