By Guy Page

A ‘miscellaneous judiciary’ bill passed by the Vermont House this morning, Tuesday May 20 will proceed to final reading tomorrow and (if approved) will then be sent to Gov. Phil Scott for his signature. Among other changes, the bill lifts the ban on possessing and selling switchblades.

Repealing the switchblade ban has long been the goal of Sen. Pat Brennan (R-Colchester/Grand Isle), who introduced (unsuccessfully) similar legislation as a member of the House of Representatives.

Brennan said the term switchblade not only refers to stiletto weapons, but also to a spring-operated cutting tool used often by tradesmen to strip wires and cut whatever needs cutting.

“It’s not the Sharks and the Jets,” Brennan told VDC today, invoking the famous feud of ‘West Side Story.’

One brief section in the 20-page S.109, sponsored by Senate Judiciary Chair Nader Hashim, cuts out the switchblade language from current law that states “A person who possesses, sells, or offers for sale a weapon commonly known as a “zip” gun, or a weapon commonly known as a switchblade knife, the blade of which is three inches or more in length, shall be imprisoned not more than 90 days or fined not more than $100, or both. The court shall order the expungement of criminal history records of convictions for possessing, selling, or offering for sale a switchblade knife that occurred prior to July 1, 2025.” The ban on zip guns remains in the law.

S. 109 also requires adult post-charge diversion in all counties, lets the Legislature determine the number of Superior Court judges (now 34), and punishes lying about your age to buy tobacco with a ‘civil penalty’ [a ticket] of no more than $50 rather than a fine.

The bill gives all state judges and magistrates a $10K (more or less) raise:

• Chief Justice of Supreme Court, $225,581
• Associate Justice, $215,294
• Administrative Chief Superior Judge, $215,294
• Superior Judge, $204,671
• Magistrate, $154,319.

S.109 also:

• Repeals the current ban on police immediately incarcerating people drunk in public. 
• Convenes a Firearm Surrender Order Compliance Working Group to develop a uniform process to ensure compliance with court orders to surrender firearms, with a study due this November.
• Makes changes to language regarding trusts, guardianship, and other civil law. 

In other weapons-related legislation, the Vermont House Government Operations and Military Affairs Committee this afternoon will take its first look at S.131, the Burlington charter change that would ban possession of guns in bars and restaurants. The bill is not scheduled for further review later this week, and Chair Matt Birong (D-Vergennes) told VDC this morning he doesn’t know if the bill will be discussed further this session.