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Town_Meeting_presentation_3_1_2012.pptx2012 Session Summary
At the beginning of each legislative session I outline my priorities and goals in writing to give myself something to measure my accomplishments by at the end of the session. My primary goal is always to represent you and our community in Montpelier. It is my job to ensure that your voice is heard, your regularly informed and that our community is treated fairly. I take this job very seriously and have worked hard over the years to earn your support.... More >>
Thursday, May 10th, 2012
After a many long days and numerous starts and stops, the session finally came to an end on Saturday at around 6:30 PM with the final gavel of the session.... More >>
Thursday, May 3rd, 2012
It finally appears that the session is moving closer to adjournment. The floor debate begins in the morning and lasts long into the evening. Several bills come before us on a daily basis at this point in the session and it is very difficult to keep track of all information contained in each bill. Bills that have been modified and return from the Senate are especially difficult.... More >>
Thursday, April 26th, 2012
As we move toward adjournment the House continues to pass a multitude of bills while few seem to be returning from the Senate. The House took action on twenty-nine bills and twelve resolutions this week. I thought that bills H.761, H.777, S.237 and S.245 might be of interest to you and will discuss in this report.... More >>
Thursday, April 19th, 2012
On Tuesday, the House finished its work on reapportionment in a very positive manner and I am happy to report that I was able to support the final bill. As I previously reported the process had turned very political and this was meeting with much resistance from many members of the House including myself.... More >>
Thursday, April 12th, 2012
We were planning to finish legislative reapportionment this week. This grueling process to establish new legislative districts for the next decade in Vermont would finally be complete. However, due to the circumstances presented below the final action on the bill was postponed until next Tuesday.... More >>
Thursday, April 5th, 2012
Several Bills of importance passed the House this week. The three bills I have chosen to write about are the miscellaneous tax bill, a working landscape bill and a National Guard member coverage bill. As with all bills passed by the legislature, these three had some good points and some bad points. ... More >>
Thursday, March 29th, 2012
This was one of the busiest weeks I can ever recall having at the Statehouse. Upon our arrival on Tuesday we were faced with a calendar that had twenty-five bills up for action. Throughout the week the House passed a total of 34 bills which brings the total for the session up to 76 bills. The state transportation, appropriations, renewable energy and many other bills were passed by the house this week.... More >>
Thursday, March 22nd, 2012
Upon our return to the Statehouse this week we were faced with a flurry of activity. Several committees worked late into the evening on several days in an effort to get as many bills as possible completed by Friday. This deadline, referred to as crossover was established by leadership at the beginning of the session and is the drop dead date for many bills. If a proposed bill did not get voted out of committee by Friday it is not likely to be taken up for action this biennium. The only types of bills that can now be taken up for action are money, committee and Senate approved bills. This action signals that we are now entering the final stages of the session and proceeding toward adjournment.... More >>
Thursday, March 15th, 2012
As I prepare to return to the legislature this week I took some time to reflect on the importance of the legislative break during town meeting week. I have found over the years that this one week break at the approximate mid point of the session serves several very important purposes.... More >>
Thursday, March 8th, 2012
It is hard to believe that we are already nine weeks into the legislative session and have reached the Town Meeting break. This break usually indicates that the session is half over. Time has gone quickly here in Montpelier but, I am truly looking forward to staying in town and catching up on some of my other commitments. Here is a summary of a few important bills that have passed this session.... More >>
Thursday, March 1st, 2012
The House passed the fee and the healthcare reform bill this week. These two significant bills were both passed predominately on party lines. Each bill will have a direct impact on our daily lives and continue to raise the cost of living here in Vermont. As a result, I could not support passage of either bill.... More >>
Thursday, February 23rd, 2012
There was a fairly light work load on the House floor this week. H.558 the 2012 budget adjustment act came back from the Senate with some changes that the leadership didn't like. As a result the Speaker formed a committee of conference to attempt to resolve the differences between the legislative bodies. I didn't support the bill when it was voted out of the House a few weeks ago and unfortunately I don't see any hope of supporting it in the future.... More >>
Thursday, February 16th, 2012
Another week at the Statehouse has come to an end. I have spent a considerable amount of time organizing informational meetings for the caucus as we begin to get more bills out onto the floor for action. This is a very important part of my role as Minority Leader. Since most members of the caucus are working on specific issues within their assigned committee they are not always aware of what bills are being discussed or moving in other committees. It is my job to ensure that everyone in the caucus understands every bill that comes onto the floor for action. This has helped me get a much better and broader understanding of the proposed bills and its implications on you the taxpayer.... More >>
Thursday, February 9th, 2012
As I reported last week, the House Government Operations Committee voted out the House redistricting plan last Friday. I objected to that plan because it did not provide for fair representation to all Vermonters and divided some towns in Rutland County unnecessarily. On Monday, I was informed that the committee was reconsidering their plan and would be proposing an amendment to modify it on Tuesday. The committee did approve an amendment proposal on Tuesday that improved the original plan considerably. I voted to support the new plan on the floor accepting that it was not perfect but, it was probably the best that we were going to get based on the current make up of the Legislature.... More >>
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
Another pretty crazy week at the Statehouse has come to an end. We spent very little time on the floor debating bills this week. Although, there was plenty of activity elsewhere in the building. Several committees were discussing the rebuilding of the State Hospital and reapportionment finally took center stage this week.... More >>
Thursday, January 26th, 2012
The legislature debated the budget adjustment act (BAA) bill this week. This bill is done annually to ensure that the state ends its fiscal year with a balanced budget. The state's fiscal year runs from July 1st through June 30th of the following calendar year.... More >>
Thursday, January 19th, 2012
There has been a lot of activity in Montpelier this week culminating with the Governor's speech outlining his budget proposal for FY13. This is usually when things really start to get interesting in the session.... More >>
Thursday, May 12th, 2011
The legislative session came to an end at 5:38 PM on Friday night. It was a very busy week at the Statehouse since the leadership had planned to adjourn by May 7, 2011.
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Thursday, May 5th, 2011
As we move closer to adjournment the pace and stress level of the legislative process intensifies. Leaderships tolerance for questioning or opposition to their proposals adds to this anxiety. As the minority leader, I am definitely feeling much more pressure right now than I have ever felt in any previous session.... More >>
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