SmartTranscript of House Session: 2025-01-17-9:30 a.m.

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[Chair ]: Will the house please come to order and members kindly take their seats. Good morning. The devotional today will be led by Jeff Hewitt, who is a poet from Calais. [24 seconds of silence] [Jeff Hewitt ]: People these parts talk like this, at least some of them, Vermaeters. Seems we Flatlanders found refuge, comfort in their values, plus the landscape. Why, we could grow our own food. Not sure we were welcome at first, fast talking from somewhere or drive too fast, but we were the ones whose cars they rescued from snowbanks refusing compensation, maybe telling the story later with a laugh. Vermont can be tough when your pipes freeze that first winter here, and a fool crawls under the sink with a handheld propane torch, and manages not to start a fire and not to thaw the pipes, and thus a lesson is learned. Hell, it worked last time. If not from mistakes, maybe we learn from the what ifs of memory. Knowledge too late that one was a joke on a ladder leaned against the house all three stories, hoisted cinder blocks and mortar for a chimney. Oh, and forgot to mix sand with the mortar, so the thing kind of weaved. Wendell Savage was born in that house, squinted up at the chimney, touched his chin. I never saw smoke that wouldn't bend. Thank you. [Chair ]: Members on this Friday, we honor two former members of the House who have passed away since our last Friday memoriam. Will you please rise as we remember members of the House we lost this past week? Representative Kenneth Ken Atkins of Winooski was born in nineteen forty, served in the house from nineteen ninety nine through twenty twelve, and passed away on January eleventh, twenty twenty five. And before he was Governor Salmon, he was representative Thomas p Salmon of Rockingham. He was born in nineteen thirty two, served in the house from nineteen sixty five through nineteen seventy, and passed away on January fourteenth twenty twenty five. Please join me in a moment of silence in memory of these house members. Members, we have four bills for introduction today. House Bill forty is an act relating to licensure of freestanding birth centers introduced by Representative Chapin of East Montpelier and others. Please listen to the first reading of the bill. [Speaker 2 ]: H forty, an act relating to licensure of freestanding birth centers. [Chair ]: Now the bill has been read the first time and is referred to the committee on health care. House bill forty one is an act relating to the creating to creating a felony penalty for abuse of a corpse introduced by representatives Burdett of West Windsor and Demar of Enosburg. Please listen to the first reading of the bill. [Speaker 2 ]: H. Forty one, an act relating to creating a felony penalty for abuse of a corpse. [Chair ]: Now the bill has been read the first time, and is referred to the committee on judiciary. House Bill forty two is an act relating to the creation of the Housing Board of appeals introduced by Representative Stevens of Waterbury and others. Please listen to the first reading of the bill. [Speaker 2 ]: H forty two, an act relating to the creation of the Housing Board of Appeals. [Chair ]: Now the bill has been read the first time and is referred to the Committee on General and Housing. Finally, House Bill forty three is an act relating to exempting military retirement and survivor benefit income from Vermont income tax introduced by Representative Canfield of Fairhaven and others. Please listen to the first reading of the bill. [Speaker 2 ]: Age forty three, an act relating to exempting military retirement and survivor benefit income from Vermont income tax. [Chair ]: Now the bill has been read the first time and is referred to the committee on ways and means. Next, pursuant to four VSA Section six zero one, the House is required to elect three representatives to serve on the judicial nominating board. And the chair nominates the following three members to serve on the board the member from Essex, Representative Garifano, the member from Northfield, Representative Gosland, and the member from Burlington, Representative Rachelson. The chair recognizes the member from Hultany. [Speaker 3 ]: Madam Speaker, I make a motion that House elect to the judicial nominating board, Representative Garifano from Essex, Representative Rachelson from Burlington, and Representative Goslant from North Northfield as nominated. [Chair ]: You have heard the motion. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. Ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. And those three members are elected to the judicial nominating board. Members, that completes the orders That completes our business for today. Are there any announcements? Member from Berkshire. [Speaker 4 ]: Thank you. The National Guard and Veterans Affairs Caucus will be holding our first meeting on Tuesday, January twenty first at eight AM in room two sixty seven of the Pavilion. And all members' email will be in your inbox that includes a Zoom link if you're unable to be there in person. We welcome everyone. And if you have any questions, please see me or send me an email. [Chair ]: Member from Poltenay. [Speaker 3 ]: Madam speaker, we often take our green jacket men and women, our doorkeepers for granted. And it's my distinct pleasure to recognize a former doorkeeper and head doorkeeper at that, Cornelius Reed, who served for twenty five years here in the house. So I, it's my pleasure to introduce to you and through you to the body, Cornelius Reed. [Chair ]: Will the guest of the member from Poltenay please rise and be recognized? Member from Bethel. [Speaker 5 ]: Madam speaker. I have a guest in the balcony today. Her name is Helen Argrave. She's a, student at University of Vermont majoring in economics and French, and she is serving as the committee intern for house commerce. And I would like to invite the body to give her a hearty welcome to the team. [Chair ]: Will the guest of the member from Bethel please rise and be recognized? Member from Brigport. [Speaker 6 ]: Thank you, madam speaker. Today, it is my pleasure to welcome the Snelling Center's twenty twenty five early childhood leadership institute cohort. They're sitting in the back of the house, representing early childhood educators from all over Vermont in a various sectors of early childhood education, public, private, large, and small programs, special education, and nature based models. A wide representation of the many ways we support, care for, and educate our youngest Vermonters. With the impact of Act seventy six and the commitment of the early childhood educator workforce, these rising leaders are at the front edge of Vermont's shining example of the positive growth and momentum we've made in the early childhood ecosystem. Their leadership keeps us in the national spotlight of progress and positive change for children, families, and our communities. Legislative support and commitment over the several years has moved the needle, and every early childhood educator is so appreciative of the focus and interest. They've been here in Montpelier for this week learning about the legislative process and how that impacts their work. So you'll see them today around the building and I hope you'll say hi. You may see them in some of your committees. And as we do our work over the session, please call on any of them for information and with questions. And with that, I would like to introduce the cohort. We have Crystal Thompson Pollard of East Fairfield, Samantha Lyons of Fairfax, Courtney Hillhouse of Cavendish, Dale Sargent of Burlington, Christine Birong Smith of Lincoln, Emily Stewart of South Burlington, Hillary Braun of Morrisville, Danielle Hardy of Essex, Jackie Loomis of Hinesburg, Colleen Nearing of Chittenden, Colleen Chrisman of Hinesburg, Jennifer Olsen of Hinesburg, Melissa Wood of Fairfax, Deborah Sherman of Mendon, Tanya Havens of Troy, Cassandra Gaylord of Pollitt, Betsy Cena of Williston, Jill Buffum of Wells, Nikita Lenahan of Reading, Jacqueline Prime of Weybridge, that's my constituent, Kristen Isensmith of Burlington, Linden Linda Darlington of Wilmington, Janelle Hunter of Hoosick Falls, and Carrie Bullard of North North Hyde Park. And, of course, they are led by Sue White who was in the not so distance, past my preschool teacher and Reba Murphy. So madam speaker, I hope, the body can join me in welcoming welcoming them to the state house today. Thank you. [Chair ]: Will the guest of the member from Bridgeport please rise and be recognized? Are there any further announcements, member from Lowell? [Speaker 7 ]: Good morning, madam speaker. Madam speaker, I'd like to welcome the members of the Vermont retired state employees association, including president Shelley Martin, vice president Jerry Schwartz, and secretary Beth Tansman. Representing over two thousand three hundred members, the association is dedicated to the protecting and enhancing the pension and health care benefits of retired state employees and their beneficiaries. Their advocacy advocacy plays a vital role in supporting Vermont's retirees. Madam speaker, set up in the card room. It'd be great if folks stopped by and said hello and introduced themselves. Again, please join me in welcoming this distinguished group of state in the state house today. They're seated behind me in the gallery. Thank you. [Chair ]: Will the guest of the member from Lowell please rise and be recognized? Are there any further announcements, member from Burlington? [Speaker 8 ]: Thank you, madam speaker. Madam speaker, I'd like to welcome Margo Pechenik, who prefers they and them pronouns as one of two interns for the House Progressive Caucus. Margo moved to Vermont from Easton, Connecticut and is a third year student at the University of Vermont majoring in psychology and minoring in law and society. Margo will support the caucus with tracking bills, drafting detailed summaries, planning meetings, engaging with local media, and conducting policy research. They will be primarily focused on the committees on judiciary and government operations. Margo was primarily inspired to pursue a legal career through their mother's influence, growing up surrounded by their mother's law books and positive moral influence. Her mother began her legal career as a prosecutor in the Queen's District Attorney's Office. Margo [Speaker 3 ]: has a [Speaker 8 ]: strong interest in legal studies as a member of the Women in Law Club and the newly formed UVM Undergraduate Law Review. They hope to attend law school in Boston after graduating and plan to pursue a career in criminal prosecution. [Chair ]: Will the guest of the member from Burlington please rise and be recognized? Are there any further announcements? Seeing none, member from Poultney, can you please offer us a motion to adjourn until Thursday, January twenty first at ten AM? [Speaker 3 ]: Madam speaker, I make a motion this body stand and adjournment until Tuesday, January twenty first two thousand twenty five at ten AM. [Chair ]: The member from Poltenay moves that we adjourn until Tuesday, January twenty first at ten AM. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do
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Speaker IDs will improve once the 2025 committees start meeting,