S.325 in second day of conference committee talks
By Guy Page
At 1 PM today, the House/Senate conference committee for S.325 – the Act 250 reform bill removing the anti-development Road Rule and enhancing property rights for farmers – will meet for the second time this week to work out differences between the House and Senate versions.
While the conference committee works on the substance of rural property owners’ legal rights, the State House was all abuzz this morning about a letter circulated by House leaders of both parties condemning unspecified social media attacks and threats made against a committee chair seen as the chief obstacle to reducing the regulatory pressure on rural property owners.
The Vermont Speaker of the House Jill Krowinski and House Minority Leader Pattie McCoy Wednesday issued a statement condemning what they said were threats made against House Environment Chair Amy Sheldon (D-Middlebury), who is considered the strongest supporter of the Road Rule and other anti-development restrictions repealed from Act 181 by the House last week.
In a brief conversation with VDC this morning, a spokesman for Krowinski specifically cited comments on the Act 181 Facebook page, but offered no further details, other than to urge the reporter to look them up even though ‘they may have been deleted by now.’
The statement by Krowinski and McCoy reads in part:
“….We all heard from many Vermonters with deep concerns about the law and what it could mean for the use of their land. These concerns were valid and we’re responding with changes to the law. While many viewed this as a successful process — to listen, to respond, and to change course by amending Act 181 — others shifted the conversation to personal attacks and threats targeting the legislature, and specifically the Chair of the House Environment Committee.
“We have seen social media and email messages targeting Representative Amy Sheldon that are truly reprehensible. The Vermont Legislature is a ‘citizen legislature’ made up of Vermonters who work hard — on a part-time, seasonal schedule — to represent the voices and priorities of the people who elect them. These personal, threatening attacks are unacceptable anywhere, and especially in Vermont, where we have a long history of civil debate and respectful dialogue. Is this shift in discourse how we believe we should settle disagreement among neighbors — no matter how valid and important — when we’re trying to solve tough problems? Do we believe these attacks are acceptable because they happen behind a screen? It’s an alarming trend and we cannot let it become the norm.”
Likewise, Republicans in House leadership and on the committee say they’re in the dark about the specific nature of the alleged threats.
A Republican on House Environment today acknowledged the frustration experienced by landowners concerned about losing their property rights. cautioned Act 181 reform supporters to refrain from any personal attacks and stay constructively engaged. “We are actually getting somewhere this session,” he said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that the House would vote this week on a bill allowing more employee flex time. In fact, the flex time language had been stripped out of the bill sent to the House floor.
Secure facility for violent mentally ill bill stuck in committee – ‘Getting somewhere’ is exactly what is NOT happening with S.193, which would create a secure facility for mentally ill people awaiting trial for violent crimes, advocate Kelly Carroll told lawmakers in a letter this morning. The mother of a Bennington County murder victim is frustrated that one committee in particular – House Human Services – is holding up the bill:
“At this point, the repeated last-minute amendments and delays coming from House Human Services leadership feel less like policymaking and more like obstruction.
“Once again, HHS amendment language for S.193 was withheld until Wednesday, leaving almost no time for meaningful review or debate. The fact that none of the six HHS amendment authors could find any time to appear before House Judiciary yesterday to fully explain or answer questions about the proposal only added to the frustration and further delayed the process.
“This is now the third legislative cycle where the same pattern has repeated itself on this exact issue: delay, weaken, stall.”
On May 18-20, Governor Scott signed into law the following bills:
- H.270, confidentiality in peer support sessions for emergency service providers
- H.385, remedies and protections for victims of coerced debt
- H.46, the Rare Disease Advisory Council
- H.534, community action agencies
- H.582, adult protective services
- H.814, neurological rights and the use of artificial intelligence technology in health and human services
- S.89, expanding survivor benefits
- S.157, recovery residence certification
- S.255, establishing a pilot Law Enforcement Governance Council in Windham County
Gov. Scott also vetoed H.674, the creation of the Vermont Sister State Program | Letter
To view a complete list of action on bills passed during the 2026 legislative session, click here.