by Alison Despathy 

Complex telecommunications planning and review of the Clean Heat Standard await the House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee this year. 

Rep. Kathleen James, a Democrat from Manchester Center, last Friday openly discussed the work ahead of the newly formed committee.

Flanked by representatives more seasoned on these issues, Chair James expressed her gratitude for her Vice Chair Representative Campbell (D- Caledonia-Essex) and Ranking Member Representative Laura Sibilia (I-Windham). 

Campbell is passionate about climate change, often to an extent that some believe he never met an ‘environmental’ bill he did not like, regardless of actual cost and impact. It remains to be seen if Representative Campbell can strike balance while developing energy legislation.

Rep. Sibilia is a Ranking Member on this committee and very familiar and versed on both telecom and energy issues. She is well known as her committee’s reporter on the floor of the House  for the most controversial and contested bills from last session, including the Clean Heat Standard and the Renewable Energy Standard, both of which raise costs on heating fuel and electricity. Many believe that these bills, coupled with the massive climb in property taxes, led to the high influx of new Republicans legislators.

Telecommunications planning ahead

Vermonters will be keeping a close eye on this EDI committee as they work through the Telecommunications Plan, the Clean Heat Standard report from the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and the mandate for emission reductions as mapped out in the currently enacted Global Warming Solutions Act.

Recent VT Senator Irene Wrenner (D-Chittenden) was also in attendance Friday. She has been advocating for improved oversight, while Vermont is spending hundreds of millions of dollars on digital infrastructure.

Wrenner recently wrote an op-ed ($88 Million Boondoggle) about the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) project. Its cost estimates have since risen to more than $139 million of Vermont taxpayers’ money to spend via a handshake rather than a standard bid process, she said.

For nearly a year, Wrenner has encouraged leadership to form standing committees to oversee IT and related spending. As a member of the Joint Information Technology Oversight Committee (JITOC), she came to understand that meeting just four times annually was insufficient to provide oversight for 130 state systems.

Wrenner said she is pleased to see how the House has included a variety of technology-related topics within this newly formed committee.

Committee members must get up to speed on the laws that are being ignored by several agencies and departments. If they can overcome inertia and resist getting pulled into the weeds, Wrenner said, perhaps members of this House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee can provide oversight and accountability, as Vermont continues to expand its digital footprint.

On December 12, Senator Wrenner submitted a detailed memo to JITOC outlining her concerns as well as possible solutions to the oversight issues that she has identified.

Amid technical difficulties with the live stream this past Friday, the EDI committee heard from the newly appointed Commissioner at the Department of Public Service Kerrick Johnson and Department of Public Service Telecommunications and Connectivity Director Hunter Thompson.

Telecommunications is a highly technical, complex, acronym-ridden subject. After their briefing, James said she wants new members (herself included) time to read the Vermont 10-Year Telecommunications Plan before diving into a deeper discussion.

Slowing it down 

The decision to ‘slow it down’ and ensure that all committee members had the opportunity to read this 365 page telecom plan and inform themselves resonated with members as well as those attending. 

It is often the case that these types of reports are not available to legislators in a timely fashion or not worked through properly due to time constraints thus interfering with legislators’ ability to grasp a deep understanding of the research related to their work.

A slow, deliberative process would be welcome by many lawmakers, with both legislators and observers saying seemingly impulsive, rushed legislation has become too common. Vermonters are currently contending with complex education, energy and healthcare funding problems.

This week’s agenda in the House Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure is posted here. In particular, Thursday will be a busy day with a Joint Hearing with Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee on the Affordable Heat Act (Act 18 of 2023).

Below are the names, towns, districts, parties and email addresses of Energy & Digital Infrastructure committee members.