By Guy Page

The House Government Operations Committee has decided against a new election for the disputed Bennington-1 House seat and has declared Democrat Jonathan Cooper the winner. 

The committee report will be voted on by the full House tomorrow, according to today’s House calendar. 

At 3 PM this afternoon, the Vermont House of Representatives will convene to also consider a workforce leadership bill, the mid-year budget adjustment act, expansion of the definition of hate crimes, and recognize some outstanding Vermonters. Key legislative actions on today’s schedule:

Third (and final) Reading: The House will consider H.34, reorganizing the State of Vermont workforce leadership in Vermont.

Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Adjustments: H.141, an act related to fiscal year 2025 budget adjustments, is also up for a third reading. Representative Scheu of Middlebury, from the Committee on Appropriations, will speak on the bill, while Representative Kornheiser of Brattleboro, from the Committee on Ways and Means, recommends the bill’s passage. The committee vote was 7-3-1.

Hate-Motivated Crimes: H.118, which aims to expand the scope of hate-motivated crimes, is under consideration with a favorable amendment. The bill redefines the victim to be protected as a person or a group of persons. The protected categories are unchanged.

Representative Angela Arsenault of Williston, from the Committee on Judiciary, recommends the bill be amended. This bill amends state law specifying penalties for crimes motivated by a victim’s perceived membership in a protected category, such as race, religion, national origin, sex, ancestry, age, service in the U.S. Armed Forces, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. 

The bill outlines varying penalties depending on the severity of the underlying crime and clarifies that the protected category need not be the sole reason for the crime. The amendment was passed with a committee vote of 11-0-0 and is set to take effect on July 1, 2025.

Democrat named winner in Battle of Bennington-1 – According to a report on the agenda for today’s House session, the Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs affirmed by a 10-1-0 vote the November 5 election results for House District Bennington-1, finding that Representative and Democrat Jonathan Cooper was duly elected over Republican Bruce Busa.

The election was challenged by Busa after he found that 56 Bennington-1 voters in the extremely tight election (22 votes separating him and Cooper) were mistakenly given ballots for an adjacent district. The report will go to a full vote of the House tomorrow. A roll call vote is not unexpected. 

The committee decision follows weeks of taking testimony of both candidates and state and local officials. 

As the vote margin indicates, several Republicans voted in favor of seating Cooper. While concerned about the 56 mis-assigned ballots, the alternative of revoting either the 56 voters or the entire district in a special election could in practice discount legally cast general election ballots. In short it was a tough call. As one GOP lawmaker colorfully said – “it’s like being buried up to your shoulders in poop, and then having someone toss a bucket of snot at you – what do you, duck? There are no good options.”

“At the end of the day, I just feel like the will of 56 voters were not represented,” said Rep. Mike Morgan, the one dissenting vote on Gov Ops. 

Crossover Dates – The Joint Rules Committee has established crossover dates for bills. All Senate/House bills must be reported out of the last committee by March 14, 2025. Bills referred to the Committees on Appropriations and Finance/Ways and Means must be reported out by March 21, 2025, with exceptions for major money bills.

The resolutions adopted by the House include:

Noah Dines: Congratulating Vermonter Noah Dines for establishing a new one-year world vertical skiing record of 3,590,097 feet.

Hadestown: Honoring the Vermonters who created the Tony Award-winning musical “Hadestown” and Montpelier High School’s role in the Washington County teen performances.

School Board Recognition: Expressing appreciation for Vermont’s school board members and designating February as School Board Recognition Month in Vermont.

Farm to School and Child Awareness Day: Designating February 12, 2025, as Farm to School and Child Awareness Day at the State House.

Youth Mentoring Day: Designating February 13, 2025, as Youth Mentoring Day at the State House.

Vermont Outdoor Recreation Day: Designating February 12, 2025, as Vermont Outdoor Recreation Day at the State House.

Vermont 211: Recognizing the vital role of Vermont 211 on its 20th anniversary and recognizing February 11, 2025, as National 211 Day in Vermont.

Ilona Delsing Rosa Maher: Congratulating Ilona Delsing Rosa Maher on her 2024 Paris Olympics rugby sevens bronze medal.

Joan W. Coursier: Honoring Joan W. Coursier for her community service in devising and leading the Halifax senior meal program. 

Messages for representatives may be left at the State House at 802-828-2228.

This report is an edited, expanded version of the official House Calendar for Thursday, February 6.