by Timothy and Guy Page
A bill introduced into the Vermont House January 30, would provide incentives to Vermont Law School graduates who are willing to pledge their legal services to the State.
H.842 proposes to “create a forgivable loan incentive program for graduates of the Vermont Law School who commit to work as a lawyer for a governmental body in the State for at least three years.”
The bill has been sponsored by Rep. Martin LaLonde, a lawyer, Democrat from South Burlington, and chair of the House Judiciary Committee. It has been referred to the Committee on Commerce and Economic Development, where it will undergo further evaluation and consideration. H.842 is currently a ‘short form’ bill, offering few specifics and details about eligibility, compensation, and state spending.
Vermont Law School was founded in 1972 by Anthony Doria and held its first classes in the summer of 1973 with 113 students in what was then known as the old South Royalton schoolhouse, according to Wikipedia. The 2022 mission statement aims at “harnessing the momentum and intersectionality of environmentalism and justice reform to use law, policy, and leadership to make a difference.”
As written, H.842 would only offer loan forgiveness to lawyers. In addition to traditional legal degrees, Vermont Law School offers a diverse set of masters degrees, as described on the VLS website:
- Executive Master of Environmental Policy (EMEP)
- Master of Climate and Environmental Policy (MCEP), a “robust applied public policy degree dedicated to the environment. Degree-seekers will receive the tools needed to make change — especially finding and implementing solutions to the greatest challenges of our day at the intersection of climate change and environmental justice.”
- Master of Animal Protection Policy (MAPP). “Animal law and policy is a rapidly expanding field, with an increasing number of students and employers recognizing and focusing on the interconnection between human, environmental, and animal well-being,” VLS states.
- Master of Energy Regulation and Law (MERL), “focused on law and policy governing energy use, production, and transmission.”
Last year, the climate activist Maverick Lloyd Foundation gave $2.5 million to VLS and Graduate School. Foundation co-trustee Arthur Berndt co-founded of the Energy Action Network, one of the driving forces behind the passage of S.5, the ‘Affordable Heat Act.”
VLS also has been the scene of a long battle over removing an anti-slavery mural commissioned by the school in 1993 but in 2020 deemed to portray blacks in a demeaning light. A federal appeals court agreed last August that VLS has the right to remove the mural.
VLS news and press releases focus on the school’s racial ‘truth and reconciliation’ efforts, and progressive criminal justice reforms, and environmental advocacy. Former Windsor County prosecutor and drug legalization advocate Robert Sand of Woodstock is founder of the VLS Center for Justice Reform. In a column last month Sand stated, “Sending an individual convicted of a crime to prison isn’t an effective way to deter crime.”
From 1982-2011, VLS declined to receive federal funding linked to requiring the U.S. military to recruit on campus. It allowed recruiting and accepted the funding after the military lifted the ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ stance on gays serving in the military.
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Categories: Legislation
Instead of loan forgiveness for a school that teaches lawyers how to get away with legal theft, how about reparations for the descendants of the people enslaved by amerika.
How about we forgive the college loans for NFL players ?They provide valuable entertainment, and don’t infringe on citizen’s rights, or leech off of our wallets.
The NFL and the NBA are nothing more than the 2024 version of Mississippi cotton plantations.
You don’t understand sarcasm ????
Leftists who abhor capitalism like to use the term “forgiveness” for having public money paying off private loans. They apparently figure that WILLINGLY engaging in a private contract that obligates a person to pay for something constitutes some kind of grievous or shameful act. I can understand government paying the school expenses for someone training to perform an essential service like nursing or civil engineering, but more lawyers is something Vermont does NOT need…especially those working for government.
It’s like forgiving the loans for leech farmers.
lawyers//// bar/// what does bar mean///could you answer the bar question///
Absolutely the laugh for today! Once again mr. lalonde brings forth legislation to aid his coveted donor class and guarantee a labor pool for the state to further his socialist agenda. As the elitists glad-hand themselves for yet another way to ensure their grip on Vermont’s throat, I remember it’s again Groundhog Day….just more of the same. To think most of Vermont’s liberals actually enjoy this treatment.
Vermont’s liberals do enjoy this treatment, and vote for it at every opportunity…
be careful now/// i just put cream in my coffee/// i live in the middle of farm country/// the spreading of manure is perfume in my nose///
still waiting for answer to the b./// a./// r./// question///
This is not right. This is crony capitalism, buddies doing deals for each other, all at the expense of someone else’s tax money, which if they don’t pay will have wages garnished.
It’s really theft of taxpayer money.
…theft of taxpayer money, and using it to bribe people for voting a certain way. The US Supreme Court would not allow President Biden to do the same thing, but he still acts in violation of that ruling.
The World Economic Forum does the same thing, providing grants and scholarships for law students who obtain their law degrees and then go on to promote WEF interests and goals.
There is no coincidence……
nothing is ever free, somebody wants something, the cheese in the mouse trap, maybe free to the mouse, but the dining is short lived.
“create a forgivable loan incentive program for graduates of the Vermont Law School who commit to work as a lawyer for a governmental body in the State for at least three years.” When the State of Vermont has to bribe law students to stay and work for the State for three years (sign a binding labor contract?), what does that really mean? If there is no incentive other than bribery, the State has nothing to offer. Indentured servitude = slavery.
Unbelievable, the politicians are actually being corrupt right in our faces, out in public view. That is how ridiculous it has become. Just like a spoiled brat who has never been told no, it is high time these bozos are given a resounding no and shown the exit door at the State House. Enough is enough folks!
The last thing we need is more lawyers. How about supporting people that are doing jobs that benefit all of society.