With Town Meeting upon us once again, the Vermont Legislature is rapidly approaching “Crossover”, when Senate and House bills need to be finished and approved before passing over to the other body. Since this is the second year of the 2013-2014 biennium a Senate or House bill that doesn’t meet this deadline (expected to occur […]
It is unclear at this point if the House Ways & Means Committee will set the final property tax rates in time for Town Meeting. School budgets are still being set around the state so the statewide average is still in flux, but we are almost certain to see a rise in rates in the […]
H.62 aims to prohibit drivers from using cellphones in moving vehicles. As the bill was amended by the Transportation Committee this prohibition extended to the activation and deactivation of hands-free functionality while moving, without taking into consideration the fact that most smart phones allow for one-touch activation of hands-free functionality. I voted NO on the […]
On the first roll call vote of the year the House voted to approve S.82. To counter corporate and special interest money that can be donated anonymously to candidates through front organizations, the bill adjusts donation levels and allows political parties to donate unlimited amounts to candidates. This is a bad deal for Independents and […]
On February 6th, citizens came from far and wide to fill the well of the House and testify in support of H.112, a bill that I co-sponsored last year which would require that certain foods produced using genetic engineering be labeled in a simple and straightforward way. Vermont consumers, by an overwhelming consensus of approximately […]