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Friday, January 26th, 2007
Again this week, most of my time has been spent listening to testimony in committee with very little time on the floor of the house.
To date, one hundred fifty four bills have been introduced on the house floor and assigned to a committee. Most of these bills are introduced year after year and never go any further than the committee. Only two bills have been passed by the house and forwarded to the Senate. Both of these bills pertained to changes that a community wanted to make to their charter. I supported both bills. If you would like to review any of the bills or track the status of a particular bill, please go to the legislative section of the State of Vermont webpage. The information is posted as it happens on the floor.
On Tuesday, eighth grade student Danielle Hurley shadowed me for the day. I enjoyed showing her around the statehouse and introducing her to my colleagues and other dignitaries. The speaker allowed Danielle to sit on the floor with us during the Governor’s budget address. Overall, it was a busy day which I enjoyed very much.
Our committee received a copy of the capital budget proposal from the Governor’s administration immediately after the budget address. It lays out their capital construction priorities for the next fiscal year. Over the next few weeks, we will hear testimony on each of the proposed projects. In the end we will decide which projects get funded. We are permitted to add or delete projects as we see fit. Ultimately, there will be a compromise on which projects get funded between the house, senate and the Governor.
Again this week, global warming and climate change continue to be the buzz around the statehouse. These are important issues but, I am hopeful that property tax reform, health care costs and affordable housing do not get lost in this debate. The republican caucus held a press conference on Thursday in an effort to keep this issue in the spotlight.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, comments or concerns.
I can be reached here at the Statehouse by calling 1-800-322-5616 or by my cell 373-5960; My website address is Don Turner Jr.com or e-mail me at dturner@leg.state.vt.us. Thank you and have a great week.