As of this week, the Vermont House of Representatives has passed the following bills, according to the Campaign for Vermont:
- H.10 – permitted candidate expenditures
- Allows campaign funds to be used for the care of dependent family members of the candidate
- H.18 – sexual exploitation of children
- H.20 – pretrial risk assessments and pretrial services
- H.46 – miscellaneous provisions of mental health law
- H.87 – establishing a classification system for criminal offenses
- H.88 – certification of agricultural use for purposes of the use value appraisal program
- H.89 – limiting liability for agritourism
- Protects farmers from liability related injury or death from being near or around farm animals or equipment
- Requires signage near the entrance of facilities where agritourism takes place
- Requires participants in agritourism to sign a waiver
- H.101 – the implementation of 2018 Acts and Resolves No. 173 by providing grant funding to build systems-driven, sustainable literacy support for all students with measurable outcomes
- H.104 – considerations in facilitating the interstate practice of health care professionals using telehealth
- H.106 – equitable access to a high-quality education through community schools
- H.108 – Vermont standards for issuing a Clean Water Act section 401 certification
- H.122 – boards and commissions
- H.127 – approval of amendments to the charter of the Town of Barre
- H.128 – limiting criminal defenses based on victim identity
- H.133 – emergency relief from abuse orders and relinquishment of firearms
- Allows law enforcement to remove firearms from the possession of a defendant in the event that a relief from abuse order is issued
- H.135 – the State Ethics Commission
- Moves required disclosures for executive officers and commission members from every two year to every year.
- Staggers terms on the Ethics Commission so that no more than two seats expire in a given year.
- Allows the Executive Director to hire staff deemed necessary by the Commission.
- Limits who can request advisory opinions to just those persons covered by the code of ethics in order to avoid misuse.
- Prepares the Commission to introduce an official state code of ethics next year.
- H.145 – amending the standards for law enforcement use of force
- H.149 – modernizing statutes related to the Vermont National Guard
- H.151 – vital records, mausoleums and columbaria, and emergency health orders
- H.152 – education property tax
- Projects average homestead property tax rate at $1.523 (about a 1% decrease from current year)
- Projects average homestead income tax rate at 2.5% (even with current year)
- Sets statewide non-homestead property tax at $1.612 (about a 1% decrease from current year)
- H.153 – Medicaid reimbursement rates for home- and community-based service providers
- H.154 – the failure of municipal officers to accept office
- H.159 – community and economic development and workforce revitalization
- Creates Better Places program for community green spaces that can attract economic development
- Establishes a trade representative in Canada
- Increases state’s tourism marketing budget by $1.5M
- H.171 – the governance and financing of Vermont’s child care system
- H.177 – approval of an amendment to the charter of the City of Montpelier
- H.183 – sexual violence
- H.195 – use of facial recognition technology by law enforcement in cases involving sexual exploitation of children
- H.199 – validating legal instruments used in connection with the conveyance of real estate
- H.210 – addressing disparities and promoting equity in the health care system
- H.218 – the sale of unpasteurized raw milk
- H.289 – professions and occupations regulated by the Office of Professional Regulation
- H.313 – miscellaneous amendments to alcoholic beverage laws
- H.315 – COVID-19 relief
- “Prefunds” the state employees pension and other post-employment funds with an additional $20M.
- Re-allocates $15M in unallocated reserves for school air quality measures.
- Creates $10M in business grants administered by the Agency of Commerce and Community Development.
- Gives the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board an additional $10M to combat homelessness.
- Bolsters mental health services with an additional $5.3M.
- Offers New Americans, refugees, and immigrants $700k in translation, telehealth, Covid-19 testing, and vaccination programs.
- Appropriates an additional $1.3M for families in the Reach Up program.
- Adds an additional $1.4M in funding for the Vermont Food Bank.
- Puts an additional $2.2M towards the Covid-response line extension program and customer assistance programs for broadband.
- Other various program enhancements related to pandemic response totaling $13.3M.
- H.337 – the printing and distribution of State publications
- H.338 – reapportionment proposal deadlines
- H.360 – accelerated community broadband deployment
- Directs $200M in federal funds towards fiber broadband buildout
- Creates new oversight board to direct funds
- Establishes workforce training program for fiber infrastructure
- H.366 – 2021 technical corrections
- H.420 – miscellaneous agricultural subjects
- H.421 – animal cruelty investigation response and training
- H.426 – addressing the needs and conditions of public school facilities in the State
- Asks the Secretary of Education to produce recommendations for financing school construction and renovation
- Authorizes $2.5M for the initial scoping of some projects and upgrades related to Covid
- Creates a new temporary position in the Agency of Education to assist with construction projects
- H.428 – hate-motivated crimes and misconduct
- H.430 – expanding eligibility for Dr. Dynosaur to all income-eligible children and pregnant individuals regardless of immigration status
- H.431 – miscellaneous energy subjects
- H.433 – the Transportation Program and miscellaneous changes to laws related to transportation
- H.434 – establishing the Agricultural Innovation Board
- Creates a board responsible for agricultural practices
- Moves some responsibilities of the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets to this new board
- H.435 – miscellaneous Department of Corrections-related amendments
- H.436 – miscellaneous changes to Vermont’s tax laws
As of this week, these bills have passed both the House and the Senate:
- S.14 – deed restrictions and housing density
- H.138 – fiscal year 2021 budget adjustments
- S.9 – extending certain workers’ compensation amendments related to COVID-19
- Extends worker compensation to employees who contract Covid-19
- Makes frontline workers families eligible to compensation in the event of death
- H.48 – authorizing alternative procedures for 2021 annual municipal meetings in response to COVID-19
- H.81 – statewide public school employee health benefits
- S.110 – extending eligibility for Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation