By Guy Page

Big bills like school funding and the annual budget and more ‘niche’ bills about geoengineering and masks in schools, and much more, are scheduled to be discussed this week by Vermont House and Senate committees. 

The list of bills cited below is not meant to be inclusive of all legislation under discussion this week. For a current list of all bills in committee this week, see the Standing Committee Meetings on the legislative website. For more information about specific bills, go to the search engine on the Legislature’s website. 

Budget and Appropriations

This is a significant focus, with both the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Appropriations, dedicating time to the FY26 Budget. The House Committee on Corrections and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Institutions are reviewing the Governor’s Recommended FY26-FY27 Capital Budget. 

The House Committee on Transportation will discuss updates from the House Committee on Appropriations, and the Senate Committee on Transportation will cover the Agency of Transportation (AOT) Municipal Assistance Programs FY26 Budget Overview and the AOT Rail Program FY26 Budget.

Education

Transforming Vermont’s education system is a major topic. The House Committee on Education is extensively working on H. 454 – transforming Vermont’s education governance, quality, and finance systems. The Senate Committee on Education will discuss Career and Technical Education Governance. 

The House Committee on Ways and Means will focus on the Governor’s Education Transformation, statewide property assessment related to education funding (25-0152), property classification (25-0153), the Foundation Formula, the State guarantee and excess spending, and the Property Tax Credit and House Site Exemption. 

The Senate Committee on Finance will discuss School Districts and School Unions, District Spending Analysis, and the State Guarantee. The House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development will consider one statewide career and technical education school district (25-0915).

Agriculture

The House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry has a packed agenda including bills on implementing the Vermont Agriculture and Food System Strategic Plan (H. 423), establishing the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters Grant (H. 167), establishing an equitable pricing system for milk production (H. 475), forest management harvests on State Forest lands (H. 477), requiring compostable price look-up stickers on produce (H. 478), and the donation to the State of managed forestland enrolled in current use (H. 424). They will also have Small Farm Action Day. 

The Senate Committee on Agriculture will also host the Rural Vermont Annual Small Farm Action Day. The Senate Committee on Judiciary will hear testimony on S. 45 – protection from nuisance suits for agricultural activities. The Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy will discuss S. 124 – miscellaneous agricultural subjects.

Environment and energy

The House Committee on Environment will discuss bills related to establishing the Chloride Contamination Reduction Program (H. 86 and S. 29), a Reintroduction of Cougars Feasibility Study, inclusion of use value appraisal land in the conserved land inventory (H. 70), events at accessory on-farm businesses (H. 94), prohibiting geoengineering (H. 217), the use of septage, sludge, and biosolids (H. 303), requiring covenants on conservation lands (H. 434), and Beverage Container Redemption. 

The House Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure will cover topics like Resilience Implementation Strategy, affordable climate initiatives (H. 289), Act 148 of 2024: Recommendations to the General Assembly Regarding a Cap-and-Invest Program, the Vermont Climate Action Plan, increasing the size of solar net metering projects (S. 50), and Act 154 of 2022: Vermont Environmental Justice Law. 

The Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy will discuss changes to Vermont’s air pollution and renewable energy laws (S. 110), stormwater management (S. 24 and H. 481), and miscellaneous environmental subjects (H. 319). Senate Committee on Health and Welfare will consider H. 238 – the phaseout of consumer products containing added perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Housing

The House Committee on General and Housing will discuss H. 106 – selling real property within a FEMA mapped flood hazard area and will review S. 127 – housing and housing development47 . The Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs will also discuss S. 127and S. 34 – lowering the rate of increase for mobile home lot rents. They also have a session on Planning and Development Review.

Health Care and Human Services

The House Committee on Health Care will discuss Private Equity in the health care sector and will have a session on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Advocacy Day. 

The Senate Committee on Health and Welfare will also participate in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Advocacy Day and will consider bills such as H. 96 – increasing the monetary thresholds for certificates of need, H. 266 – the 340B prescription drug pricing program, H. 482 – Green Mountain Care Board authority, H. 80 – the Office of the Health Care Advocate, H. 259 – preventing workplace violence in hospitals, and H. 237 – prescribing by doctoral-level psychologists. 

The House Committee on Human Services has a significant agenda including bills related to supplemental child care grants (H. 248), assistance for room and board for students served by foster or kinship care (H. 15), establishing a community health center pilot program (H. 184), the Rare Disease Advisory Council (H. 46), federal benefits of youth in State custody (H. 269), the Vermont Commission on Aging (H. 414), a long-term care trust fund (H. 120), universal basic income payments for homeless and runaway youth (H. 195), implementing the Restaurant Meals Program (H. 151), establishing a support service program for individuals who are DeafBlind (H. 143), and health equity data reporting (H. 293) and the repeal of authorization of overdose prevention centers (H. 39).

Government Operations and Elections

The House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs will discuss H. 474 – miscellaneous changes to election law and H. 233 – requirements for State-funded grants. The Senate Committee on Government Operations will consider S. 81 – prohibiting municipal regulation of the use of hygienic face masks, S. 119 – the licensure of early childhood educators., H. 1 – accepting and referring complaints by the State Ethics Commission, S. 84 – State contracting standards for advertising , and S. 111 – language access and emergency response.

Judiciary and Criminal Justice: 

Several legal and criminal justice topics are on the agendas. The House Committee on Judiciary will discuss S. 9 – after-hours access to orders against sexual assault, S. 45 – protection from nuisance suits for agricultural activities, H. 410 – the calculation of recidivism and other related criminology measures, H. 342 – protecting the personal information of certain public servants, and S. 87 – extradition procedures. 

The Senate Committee on Judiciary will consider H. 118 – expanding the scope of hate-motivated crimes, H. 44 – miscellaneous amendments to the laws governing impaired driving, H. 98 – confirmatory adoptions, H. 21 – service of writs of possession, and H. 41 – abuse of the dead body of a person.

Commerce and Economic Development 

The House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development will discuss H. 342 – protecting the personal information of certain public servants and 25-0915 – one statewide career and technical education school district. 

The Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs will cover S. 16 – infant changing stations in restrooms and S. 71 – consumer data privacy and online surveillance. They will also have updates on Regional Development Corporations and the Public Assets Institute’s “State of Working Vermont”, as well as discuss Career Pathways.

Transportation 

The House Committee on Transportation will be discussing H.488 Mileage Based User Fee Review and will receive updates from the House Committee on Appropriations. They will also work on S. 123 – miscellaneous changes to laws related to motor vehicles and have discussions on Welcome Centers and Advanced Clean Trucks. The Senate Committee on Transportation will have Agency of Transportation Updates on various topics including municipal assistance programs, public transit, the mileage-based user fee, and the rail program. They will also discuss S. 46 – the taxation of vehicles used for forestry operations.

Corrections and Institutions: 

Besides the budget, the Senate Committee on Institutions may be visiting the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility.

Ethics and Rules: 

The House Rules Committee will discuss H.R. 6 – House resolution amending House Rules relating to the House Ethics Panel.

A post-meeting summary and transcript of every committee meeting is available almost immediately on www.goldendomevt.com.