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And they double down GWSA’s “right to sue” provision.
by Rob Roper, as published in FYIVT.com
Thirteen of seventeen Senate Democrats joined every Republican in repealing Act 18, the Clean Heat Standard, in a significant moral victory for the GOP. (For those wondering the four colossally out of touch “no” votes came from Andrew Perchlik (D/P- Washington), Ann Cummings (D-Washington), Becca White (D-Windsor), and Tanya Vyhovsky (D/P -Chittenden C.) But it didn’t come without a two hour long parliamentary ping pong match of amendments, amendments to amendments, divisions and roll calls that are edge of the seat exciting to, well, only to weirdos like me. But here’s the gist of the story….
Senator Terry Williams (R-Rutland) put forward an amendment to H.740, the fuel dealer registry bill that is designed to capture the data necessary to implement some form of carbon tax on fossil fuels, to repeal Act 18. Senator Anne Watson (D/P-Washington) countered with a supposed compromise repealing the Clean Heat Standard but going forward with the fuel dealer registry – step one for bringing about Clean Heat Standard 2.0 (or more likely Cap & Invest). The move was designed to force Republicans into a corner: vote yes to kill the policy you promised your constituents you’d kill, Act 18, but you’re stuck voting yes and giving us cover on the policy we Democrats really want to move forward with, the registry. Check.
Obviously, that’s a bad bargain for the Republicans and happily they didn’t take it. Instead, Scott Beck (R-Caledonia) moved that the vote on the bill be split, forcing up or down votes on each policy separately. As such, Republicans were able to put their colleagues across the aisle cleanly on the record, in the first case betraying their climate warrior base, and in the second throwing their fossil fuel consuming constituents (that’s pretty much all of them) under the electric bus. Check and mate.
It was a delicious political battle won, but not the war, because the Democrats – during this debate – were plotting their next Carbon Tax move. Senator Perchlik was straight forward about it: “[Repealing the Clean Heat Standard] has no meaning other than symbolicness [not a word, Andy, but we get your point]…. It doesn’t change the legislature’s ability to do this in the future.” Yup. That’s true! It’s exactly what they plan to do, and thank you for reminding us all that the only real way to ensure a new Clean Heat Standard bill, or a Cap & Invest bill, or a straight up excise tax on gas, diesel, and home heating fuels doesn’t happen is to un-elect politicians who want to do these things, and elect politicians who don’t. And, in case anyone is unclear here, the 17 Democrats who voted for the fuel dealer registry – all of them — DO, and the thirteen Republicans – all of them — who voted against it DON’T.
Senate President Pro Tem Phil Baruth (D/P-Chittenden ) admitted, “The Democratic majority, post-election, is saying to you ‘here is the repeal you sought, the only thing we ask in return is that you allow us to gather some data so that we can make in the future some sensible moves on renewable energy [emphasis added].’” Um… no. Republicans weren’t elected to just act symbolicnessly (I’m rolling with it) regarding carbon taxes, they were elected to stop Democrats from imposing them at all, ever, period. Today proves they get that! And thank you!
Further evidence the Democrats most assuredly do not “get it” came next when Senator Williams put forward another amendment, this time to strip out the unimaginably stupid “anybody can sue the state if we fail to meet our unattainable greenhouse gas reduction goals” language from the Global Warming Solutions Act. This utterly idiotic provision leaves Vermont taxpayers on the hook for potentially millions of dollars in legal bills when – not if, when – we fail to lower our emissions to meet the impossible mandates.
This should go without say that any politician who votes to put you, their constituent, in legal and financial jeopardy is not a representative working on your behalf and with your best interests at heart. Note: every Democrat but one (Tom Chittenden, D-Chittenden SE) voted to double down and screw you on this point – again — and with the ignored benefit of hindsight.
As Chittenden explained, “It never seemed right to me yielding or abdicating our responsibilities to the judicial system…. This was passed before I joined the legislature and I said to people that I didn’t think it was good policy…. I don’t think this is the right thing for Vermont, and I do think it’s a bit of a distraction when we have to fend off or be afraid of lawsuits when we fail to meet objectives….”
That is the commonsense position held by just 1/17th of the Democrat majority in the state senate. Just so you know.
The fossil fuel registry did pass on party lines 17-13. We hope and expect Governor Scott will veto this if it gets to his desk. More importantly, the majority party showed us during this debate just how dangerous they will be if re-elected this November.
Rob Roper is a freelance writer with 25 years of experience in Vermont politics including three years’ service as chair of the Vermont Republican Party and nine years as President of the Ethan Allen Institute, Vermont’s free market think tank.
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Categories: News Analysis
Thank you for all who have waged war on this issue.
New Zealand was approached about being the first nation to reach net zero and Bonner of Stansberry Research and Lomborg, acclaimed as one of the top 100 global thinkers, who analyzed the efforts. The cost to attempt to cut in half their emissions would cost $19 billion each year until 2050 = to what their entire educational and health care budgets. To get the other half of the zero emission by 2050 would cost much more – more than their entire budget. AND the decrease on world temperature for all their hard efforts would be a mere decrease of 0.004 degrees F.
Vermont was also approached about being the first state in the nation to reach net zero. That’s what got us into this mess. We also don’t want to become bankrupt to reach net zero and make an even less significant impact on Global Warming.
THANKS – Scott Beck for the check mate move and again to all who have endeavored to get rid of this nonsense.
Now it is time to get rid of some Democrats/Progressives/Socialists who brought this headache upon us.
I want to stress something in the first sentence of this article:
“Thirteen of seventeen Senate Democrats joined every Republican in repealing Act 18, the Clean Heat Standard…”
That means those Senate Democrats likely had Democratic voters who were also unhappy with the Clean Heat Standard and wanted it repealed. No wonder the repeal passed. This was not simply a GOP win. It was a win for Vermonters, because our Legislature did what it is supposed to do: listen and respond.
I am sure Republican Senators were happy to have a “win,” but they could not have pulled it off without the support of Democratic Senators.
The takeaway from this vote is not about setting up the next election. The takeaway is that there are issues where people on the left and the right can agree, and when they do, they can stand together on the same sliver of ground when facing the Legislature.
That is also what happened with Act 181 and the repeal of Tier 3 corridors and the road rule.
If Vermonters can keep finding those slivers of common ground, maybe we can shift Vermont back toward true representation — including representation for voiceless rural Vermonters who are working hard just to survive Vermont winters.
Thank you Retta for clarifying that point. Let’s hope it may continue with other issues.
As someone who has watched this issue closely, the Democrats DID NOT want to make this vote — Republicans forced the issue. Terry Williams first tried to use a parliamentary maneuver to relive his committee of the CHS repeal bill to get it a vote on the floor because Anne Watson refused to allow his repeal bill hearing. That failed on a party line vote with every Democrat voting no. It took this amendment on the floor, avoiding the Democrat controlled committee process, and the move by Beck to divide the question to get a clean vote on the issue. Yes, Democrats knew that their constituents did not approve of the CHS, but it must be recognized that every Democrat played every card they had to keep Act 18 on the books before Republicans forced their hand. This was not a case of seeing the light, but rather feeling the heat. And their ultimate policy preference is to implement a carbon tax on fossil motor and home heating fuels after the election, which is what the underlying bill, H.740 — and the Democrats passed THAT unanimously on a party line vote — is all about.
Looks like our Democrats didn’t get the memo from the UN, they said a couple of weeks ago that their Global Warming policy is ‘no longer supported by the science’, amazing after all these decades that passed.
It was never about Global Warming, it was all about control and money, they are still marxists to their core….and propaganda is still powerful in the slumbering green mountains, so they are just doing what marxists do…..steal, and plunder
The majority party showed us during this debate just how dangerous they will be if re-elected this November. Yes, they will reintroduce H. 740 next January when, in this session, the Republican Senators uphold Governor Scott’s veto.
If a Democrat Governor is elected in 2028 and any Republican Senators are defeated, the dam will collapse and Vermonters will be victims to the wealthy foundations, “save the planet” NGOs and the Dem/Prog cabal when he signs the full enactment of the entire Climate Council agenda.
The only defense Vermont’s heating fuels customers will have is to vote in three more Republican Senators. Their Majority will defeat those crazy and painful ideas and send to the House realistic bills written to help us lower our energy cost and particularly the renewable energy standard.
Praise to Senator Williams and the Senate Republican Caucus. Competence and sanity generally lie toward the ideological center of politics.
The cabal has issued their threat to raise the cost of heating your homes. Silence them by giving your trust to Republican Senators. You did it in 2024 by electing six new Republican Senators. Cross over voters made it possible to elect six new Republican Senators. Republican candidates must make an all out effort to appeal to them. Ask them to give their trust to you again.
Make it a Sweet Sixteen Republican Senate next year.
And truth be told, I am a Democrat.
Now they are trying to fix something that is no longer broken. Even though the Feds say that global warming is no longer a thing, Vermont legislature knows better???😂😂
Vermont continues to follow California… this has to stop. We are a tiny beautiful state. Lets do what’s best for Vermont and Vermonters. A carbon tax is not that. Taking away our power and heating options is not good for us. Put this to bed…say no!
And demonized by the climate hysterians, wood heat – radiant heat – is the best and only common sense way to get through our winters and damp springs.
Regulated and gas lighted to the recycle bin, we have forests begging to be properly managed for the good of the people of Vermont to beat heat costs.
There. I said it.
Go around. Fire up the stoves! Plenty of farmers would love your business for wood.
In there ever cleverness they are also working on taking our forests…
“You will own nothing and be happy”, was a serious tag line.
Totally out of touch and they get paid by Vermonters.
Ann Cummings (D-Washington)
Becca White (D-Windsor)
Tanya Vyhovsky (D/P -Chittenden C.)
Andrew Perchlik (D/P- Washington)
Democrats are Domestic Terrorists! The reason they want to give the right to sue so they can pocket money and embezzle taxpayers money. stop voting for these career criminals. Every Democrat in the state of Vermont is crooked and they don’t care about anybody in Vermont. They only care about their own pocket.
This “progress” is no progress at all, If the legislation is successful, the results will be higher prices, more regulation and more restrictions.