Week 18: May 2nd to May 5th
Down to the Wire
Last Friday morning when I fired up my laptop I was greeted with at least 75 emails; all with the same subject line: "Please Oppose H.230." All had the same message opposing the passage of H.230 which implements mechanisms to reduce suicide. Those "mechanisms" are described later on this page.
At any rate someone, somewhere, clicked a computer mouse button and sent hundreds of emails out to every member of the House.
Most of the emails did not give the address or phone number of the sender. Is this from a constituent? Is this from someone in Vermont?
Everyone I spoke with agreed that such flooding of emails just antagonizes the receiver and does nothing to promote the cause. I voted "yes" on H.230.
End Games
May 12th remains the target end-of-session date. With one week left, rumors are starting to fly. There is already talk of the Governor possibly vetoing the Budget. That would considerably complicate the ending of the session.
Committees of Conference
There are now three Committees of Conference:
H.494 - The Big Bill - That's the State budget appropriating over eight billion in state and federal dollars. Here's the video of their first meeting.
H.479 - The Transportation Bill - A sixty-six-page bill with all kinds of small miscellaneous changes. Here's a video of the committee's meeting last week.
S.14 - A bill relating to a report on criminal justice-related investments and trends
Next week these committees should come out with the results of their negotiations. Then the House and Senate will have one more chance to either accept or reject the bill. If it is accepted, it goes to the Governor for his review. If it is rejected, another Committee of Conference can be set up.
Other remaining work
There are several bills waiting in the wings. Some might be bargaining chips. If the House knows that the Senate is particularly interested in getting a certain bill over the finish line this session, the House might hold that bill in committee and tell the Senate it's not coming out until the Senate gives up something that is of particular interest to the House. Both bodies play this game.
Paid Family Medical Leave Insurance (PFMLI - H.66) is in the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs. They took some testimony last week, but it doesn't look like this is coming out this session.
Online Sports Betting (H.127) may be up for a final vote in the Senate this coming week.
The Bottle Bill (H.158) is in the Senate Finance committee. There appears to be some amendments so it may come back to the House next week.
Universal School Meals (H.165) - is up for third and final reading next week in the Senate. There have been amendments, so it too will be back in the House.
Property valuation and reappraisals (H.480) is on the Senate Finance committee's agenda for this coming Tuesday with a possible vote out of committee. If it passes the Senate, it will have to come back to the House.
The Yield Bill (H.492) - The bill that sets the property tax rates is up for third reading in the Senate this coming Monday. It has been amended, so will come back to the House.
School Construction (H.486) is in the Senate Education committee. It has been discussed but may not come out this session.
Independent Schools (H.483) is also in Senate Education and is slated to be discussed there next Tuesday. It's possible there will be no amendments and can be voted on this coming week.
The Capital Bill (H.493) is up for a vote in the Senate early next week. It will come back to the House.
What happens during the last week?
Several of the bills described above are "must pass" bills. We have to pass a budget, a capital bill, and a yield bill before the end of the session. Without a budget in place by July 1st when the State's fiscal year starts, we can't fund the government. Without a capital bill, $60 million or so in capital projects cannot move forward. And without a Yield Bill we cannot set property tax rates.
Usually, when a bill passes one or the other bodies, there is a day's wait before the bill is taken up by the other body. But we don't have time for that, so we vote to suspend rules and rush the bill over to the Senate immediately. Usually when a bill first comes to the other body it is posted on the Notice Calendar for the next day, but when we're in a hurry we vote to suspend rules and take the bill up on the same day it was rushed over. And usually, a bill must go through several stages of passage: first, second and third reading, but if we're in a hurry we vote to suspend rules and move the bill through all that in one day.
You can see that if we want to get out of Montpelier by next Friday, we will have to suspend rules a bunch of times. That takes a three-fourth's vote of the members present which means all political parties need to agree to move the bill. If one party does not like a bill, they may not have enough votes to vote it down, but they do have enough votes to slow it down and gum up the end-of-session. It's all part of the end-of-session posturing, negotiating, twisting rules, and getting the job done.
Suicide Prevention and Firearm Safety
H.230 passed the House last week on a vote of 106 to 34. We agreed to the changes the Senate made to the bill. The Senate vote was 19 to 9. The bill hopes to reduce Vermont's suicide rate by making firearms a little less accessible. The bill does this two ways:
A 72 hour waiting period when purchasing a gun. This "cooling off" period gives a person time to reconsider their purchase and possible use of the gun.
Safe storage of firearms. With the goal of reducing the number of times children play with guns, or adults react in anger, the bill requires that if you know someone is likely to use the gun for a crime you must "keep the firearm in a locked container or equipped with a tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety device." If you don't, and that gun is used in a crime, then you can be fined up to $5,000 and/or imprisoned for up to five years. There are exceptions.
There were also small changes to the Extreme Risk Protection (ERP or Red Flag) statute. A family or household member can initiate the ERP procedure.
The Governor's Veto of S.5 - Affordable Heating Standard
Last week Governor Scott vetoed S.5. Here's his reasons. Because this bill originated in the Senate, the Senate will be first to attempt an override. That vote is scheduled for Monday, but may be delayed. It takes two-thirds of the members present to override a veto. If it passes the Senate, the same is needed in the House.
The previous votes on the bill in both the House and Senate showed enough support to override, but . . . you never know.