Friday, April 3, 2020
The Senate Rules Committee unanimously backed a proposal Friday afternoon that would allow lawmakers to start approving legislation remotely as they continue to respond to the coronavirus crisis.
During a Friday morning virtual meeting with the full Senate, President Pro Tempore Tim Ashe (D/P-Chittenden) said he expected the in-person vote to occur on Wednesday and likely feature a quorum of at least 16 members.
"While we hope to not need 30 people there, it will be the same as last time," Ashe said, referring to when lawmakers returned to the Statehouse last week to pass several emergency relief measures. "Anyone who wishes will have the right to be there."
Tags: remote voting , senate , Tim Ashe , legislature , coronavirus , Web Only , Image
Thursday, April 2, 2020
Pranksters interrupted a video conference call of a Vermont Senate committee Thursday morning and showed pictures of graphic pornography to stunned lawmakers and state workers discussing school food programs.
“Oh, my God, it was horrible,” said Sen. Ruth Hardy (D-Addison). “I got off the call as soon as possible because I just didn’t want to see all that awful stuff.”
It’s the first time since the Vermont legislature began holding teleconference and video conference meetings three weeks ago that someone has intentionally hijacked a public meeting.
Tags: porn , senate agriculture committtee , zoom , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
Last week, Chief Superior Court Judge Brian Grearson recommended to the Senate Judiciary Committee that it allow courts — with the agreement of both prosecutors and defense attorneys — to "reduce or otherwise modify" sentences during or immediately after the coronavirus emergency declared by Gov. Phil Scott. Under current law, such modifications can typically be made only within 90 days of sentencing.
Criminal justice reform advocates have warned in recent weeks that an outbreak in the state's prison system could be especially deadly, and they have called for the courts and the Department of Corrections to release older and unwell prisoners.
The committee added Grearson's proposal to emergency legislation it's considering that would make several changes to the judicial system during the outbreak. But during a video meeting on Tuesday, senators decided to remove the provision because they worried it would become too controversial and bog down the underlying bill. They plan instead to append it to another bill, which is unlikely to move anytime soon.
Sen. Dick Sears (D-Bennington), who chairs the committee, said he was particularly concerned that those who committed "certain horrific crimes" might seek sentence reductions. "I just think you'd have this outcry in the public," he said.
Tags: Senate Judiciary Committee , Vermont Department of Corrections , Dick Sears , Brian Grearson , Matthew Valerio , Jim Baker , Phil Baruth , Falko Schilling , Web Only , Image
Monday, March 30, 2020
Senate President Pro Tempore Tim Ashe (D/P-Chittenden) said Monday his chamber is looking into remote voting methods as a way to ensure that the state’s 30 senators continue to work effectively during the coronavirus crisis.
“The next time we are in session, we will be taking up the remote voting question, and I am confident we will pass a rule that allows us to vote remotely,” Ashe said.
He said it’s not clear when that will take place, but he expected to see a draft of such a rule change this week. A quorum of the Senate — 16 members — would likely still have to return to the Statehouse to approve the change, Ashe said.
That will be easier — and safer — to pull off than it was for the 150-member House to vote on remote voting last week. Rep. Cynthia Browning (D-Arlington) insisted that a quorum be present, forcing more than 76 members to return to the Statehouse.
Browning has said she wanted the House to follow its own rules, but the parliamentary maneuver earned her opprobrium from her colleagues, who called it irresponsible. House Speaker Mitzi Johnson (D-South Hero) responded by stripping Browning of her post on the influential Ways and Means Committee.
The House still needs to hold a remote vote to approve the rule change, and Johnson said a date for that has not yet been set.
Johnson has said it is crucial for lawmakers to have the ability to vote remotely during the public health crisis in order to reduce the spread of the disease — but still pass important legislation.
The Senate has conducted much of its recent business over the video-conferencing service Zoom. Senators are getting used to the format, Ashe said, and "I think almost everyone is supportive of it as a tool."
"Debating is going to be the more tricky piece," Ashe said. "Whether it's 30 or 150, you want to make sure the debate is fair if you're voting remotely."
Tags: coronavirus , Vermont Senate , COVID-19 , remote voting , Web Only , Image
Saturday, March 28, 2020
That’s one of the many dilemmas lawmakers are weighing as they seek to help residents weather the economic storm caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Legislators are considering a statewide moratorium on evictions until two months after Gov. Phil Scott lifts the state of emergency that he declared on March 13.
The idea got close scrutiny in housing committees of both the House and Senate this week and is expected to move forward next week.
People should "stay put" during the public health crisis, Jean Murray, an attorney with Vermont Legal Aid, told the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee. “Just put a pause on the whole thing,” Murray said.
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Vermont House Speaker Mitzi Johnson (D-South Hero) punished and publicly chastised a fellow Democrat who demanded a quorum vote Wednesday that forced dozens of lawmakers to rush to the Statehouse to pass emergency legislation related to COVID-19.
Johnson announced Thursday she had removed Rep. Cynthia Browning (D-Arlington) from her post on the powerful Ways and Means Committee. She replaced her with Rep. Emilie Kornheiser (D-Brattleboro).
Johnson noted that Wednesday’s plan to vote on a package of bills without a quorum had been approved by the House Rules Committee, had overwhelming support in the chamber, and was pursued as a way to keep lawmakers and their constituents safe.
“Yet one member unnecessarily required every other member to choose between their duty to Vermont and the health and safety of their communities, peers, and loved ones at home,” Johnson wrote in a searing letter to colleagues. “Being a legislator requires that we know the rules. True public service requires the wisdom to know when to use them. Yesterday’s quorum call was not wise.”
Just last month, Johnson praised Browning as someone with whom she doesn’t always agree but who has “honesty and integrity” and lets leadership know her concerns up front. She contrasted Browning with another representative, Linda Joy Sullivan (D-Dorset), whom she chastised for casting a surprise vote against overriding Gov. Phil Scott's veto of a paid family leave bill. The bill, one of the House's highest priorities, failed by one vote.
Johnson told Seven Days the vote was “not the first time that [Sullivan's] gotten squirrelly.” Sullivan and Browning are friends, and Browning didn’t take kindly to the remark. The following day, she lambasted the speaker from the floor. Browning’s disdain for Johnson was evident after her quorum vote. If Johnson was so concerned about lawmakers’ health, Browning argued, then Johnson should simply drop the resolution authorizing the House to hold a remote vote to approve remote voting.
"It is important to note that I did not call members into the House yesterday — she did," Browning said, after Johnson kicked her off the committee.
Browning called the bill flawed for its "circular reasoning" and argued that it wasn’t proper. She insisted House rules needed to be followed even during an emergency. She did not raise any objections about the actual practice of remote voting during a health emergency, just the way it was being approved.
Tags: Cynthia Browning , Linda Joy Sullivan , Mitzi Johnson , coronavirus , Vermont House , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, March 25, 2020
The parliamentary move forced dozens of legislators to rush to the Statehouse to pass bills House leadership had hoped — to reduce the risk of infection from the rapidly spreading coronavirus — a handful could address.
Ultimately, 94 House members drove to the Statehouse, filtered into the chamber and — many wearing masks, bandanas and scarves over their mouths — passed the bills nearly unanimously.
The irony of having more than 100 lawmakers, staff and media crowding into the House chamber to address a growing pandemic when Gov. Phil Scott had called for people to stay home and not gather in groups of more than 10 was plain.
Tags: Cynthia Browning , Vermont House , coronavirus , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Sen. Dick Sears (D-Bennington) walked through a back entrance of the Vermont Statehouse on Tuesday, his left hand covered in blue plastic.
"It's a poop bag," the veteran senator explained. "Trying to keep myself safe. I use it to open doors and such." He clarified: "It's an empty one."
Sears had journeyed north to Montpelier to take part in the most unusual session of his 28-year career — one marked by gravity, camaraderie and gallows humor. Eleven days earlier, the legislature had adjourned to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the cramped hallways of the Statehouse. Now, seven Vermonters were dead and 95 had tested positive for COVID-19.
To respond to the public health crisis and the economic meltdown it triggered, the Senate had returned to pass a series of emergency measures. The House was expected to follow suit on Wednesday.
Tags: Vermont Senate , coronavirus , COVID-19 , Tim Ashe , Becca Balint , Joe Benning , Randy Brock , Jeanette White , John Rodgers , John Bloomer , David Zuckerman , Web Only , Image
Monday, March 23, 2020
While the House expects to take action on significant legislation, Speaker Mitzi Johnson (D-South Hero) urged her colleagues during a conference call Monday to stay away, if possible, in order to prevent the further spread of coronavirus. She assured House members that only measures agreed to by leaders of each political party would be considered.
"The House will be in session. We will be conducting business," Johnson said. "I cannot restrict a legislator from being there because we are conducting business. For the sake of public health, we are encouraging people to not come so that we minimize the number of people in the room."
Though the House must technically maintain a quorum — more than half of its 150 members — to do its business, Johnson explained that the rule is only enforced when a legislator calls for a count. She heavily hinted during the conference call that House members should refrain from doing so. "This is a very delicate dance," she said.
Tags: coronavirus , Mitzi Johnson , Ginny Lyons , Michael Sirotkin , Jeanette White , Web Only , Image
Sunday, March 22, 2020
In the story, former education secretary Rebecca Holcombe criticized her opponent, Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman, for his past opposition to mandatory vaccination. "It's scary that anyone in public office or seeking public office would cast doubt about the value of vaccines," she said. "It's unbelievable this is even up for debate."
Zuckerman, meanwhile, slammed Holcombe for engaging in such a debate during a public health crisis. "The fact that any political campaign is trying to use this moment for political opportunism is unconscionable," he told Politico.
Precisely how Zuckerman's record came to Politico's attention is not clear. Holcombe and her campaign manager, Cameron Russell, told Seven Days that her team did not pitch it to the national news outlet. But since the story's publication, Russell has contacted multiple Vermont news organizations seeking follow-up coverage.
"Rebecca disagrees strongly with the Lt. Governor on this issue, and I wanted to be be sure you all were in the loop on this story," he wrote Seven Days on Saturday. "I've already spoken with Vermont Digger about likely coverage tomorrow, Sunday, March 22nd. Could you let me know if you or anyone else at 7Days would be interested in covering this story?"
Tags: David Zuckerman , Rebecca Holcombe , vaccines , philosophical exemption , Web Only , Image