"Yes" on school bills H.483 and H.486

2023-03-30

Dear friend,

Your Windham-6 representative started his official day at 8:30 a.m. with a House Corrections & Institutions Committee hearing on J.R.S. 19 - Joint resolution relating to State lands transactions in Jamaica State Park and Coolidge State Forest.

This resolution offers long-term protection and access to a portion of the West River Trail that was on private land. The other protects permanent public access to the summit of Old Baldy Mountain.

House floor gaveled in just after 1 p.m. Here are some highlights since then.

H.276 - An act relating to creating a rental housing registry.

I voted No.

This bill aims to create a mandatory rental housing registry for all Vermont, with building owners paying $35/unit/year to participate.

Many parts of Vermont government are paid for in all or part by user fees. Examples include the motor vehicles fees that help pay for our roads, and user fees in our state parks.

Multiple residents have written in to challenge me to vote "No" when the consequences of a bill are unclear. One resident wrote, "A 'NO' vote would be a good back-up plan."

I voted against H.276 because I did not hear a case made about what useful function this registry would serve. Why does it make sense to build this registry on user fees whose cost will be born by renters?

I had just cast my "No" vote on H.276 and informed this resident that I thought it fit this mold. The bill needs a more clear benefit, and would certainly add costs for building owners and renters.

However, H.276 passed on a voice vote (see Bills Passed by the House) and will go to the Senate without my vote. It was reduced at the last minute to a study of the cost of creating the registry -- not moving forward with the registry itself.

H.486 - An act relating to school construction

Despite the resident's advice to keep that "No" in my back pocket, I believe that it is the job of your Legislature to move forward when we can.

Vermont previously had a school construction program in which the State paid 30% of qualified costs. The State paused that program years ago and has not funded new school construction in years.

H.486 will establish a School Construction Aid Task Force to study the creation of a new school funding program.

I voted "Yes." As our schools age, it is time that we look again at offering state aid to renovate, upgrade, and replace outdated buildings.

H.483 - Accountability and oversight of approved independent schools

I followed the development of H.483 closely, as reported on here (see most recently, You have to vote.)

I am against H.258 and other bills that restrict school choice.

H.483 is a bill to enact standards such as non-discrimination. It simply asks institutions that accept public dollars to accept public accountability.

I took it back to public schools and private independent schools in our region who would be affected by it. The feedback I heard was that the schools can work with the requirements in this bill.

Our Vermont and U.S. Constitutions require us to run a public education system that accepts us all as we are, and that is funded by citizens of every hill and hollow. H.483 is a vote of confidence for what is working for students who can choose from school options.

Alright, that's all for now. It's 8:30 p.m., and I'm going to turn back to the House floor as we review H.494, a.k.a. the "Big Bill," our FY24 state budget.

Thank you for reading! Please keep the comments coming.