IN MAY 19’S FINAL READING:
— Pro Tem Tim Ashe, D/P-Chittenden, said that he is in favor of requiring Vermonters to wear masks in retail stores. He said the Senate Health Committee in the coming days will be discussing whether to move forward with a legislative masking mandate.
As Gov. Phil Scott has allowed retail establishments to reopen on a limited scale this week, he is requiring that shop employees, but not customers, wear masks. Ashe said it’s “not ideal” for public health orders to come from the Legislature.
But in absence of action from Scott, Ashe said the Senate should “at least debate the question.”
“By requiring the employee to wear a mask it means we’re protecting the customer from something the employee might have. But by not requiring the customer to wear it, it means we’re saying that the employee’s health is left to the whims of customer choice,” Ashe said.
“And so, I feel like we would be doing everyone a favor by having one uniform policy,” he added. – Xander Landen
— Ashe also addressed the tiff over mail-in ballots between the secretary of state and the governor. Ashe said the Senate will decide by the end of week whether to move forward with a proposal to give Secretary of State Jim Condos the unilateral authority to enact Covid-19 elections changes.
Condos and Gov. Phil Scott are at odds about whether to provide a mail-in ballot to every registered voter in the state for the November election. Ashe, like Condos, supports moving to expand the mail-in ballot system now, but says that ideally the governor and secretary of state will reach an agreement on the matter in the coming days.
“But if they don’t we have to have clarity for people,” Ashe said. “We can’t have months of uncertainty about how the election’s going to be conducted at this point.” – Xander Landen
— Senators sparred over a miscellaneous judiciary procedure bill on the virtual Senate floor this morning. Sen. John Rodgers, D-Essex-Orleans, wanted to introduce an amendment to the bill that prohibits those accused of murder from inheriting any assets, if they are entitled to them, from the murdered person’s estate.
The limitation is personal to Rodgers — a family friend of his was allegedly murdered by her husband, and now her husband is renting out her property and selling her possessions from jail while he awaits trial, he explained on the floor.
Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Sears, D-Bennington, called for a point of order on the amendment and questioned its relevance. The bill Rodgers is advocating for has not been taken up by the committee yet this session and Sears said it was inappropriate to attach it to this emergency miscellaneous legislation.
“Mr. President, I’m disappointed in the comments from the senator from Essex-Orleans,” Sears said. “Mr. President,” Rodgers responded, “I’m disappointed in the senator from Bennington for calling a point of order on such an important piece of legislation.”
Lt.Gov. David Zuckerman, who presides over the Senate, upheld Sears’ objection. – Grace Elletson
— Senate Finance received a rundown on the Scott administration’s proposal requiring school districts to revote their budgets to adjust for Covid-19 related funding shortfalls. The plan sparked controversy, but Finance Commissioner Adam Greshin reiterated to senators today that the proposal is only an idea for districts to consider.
Mark Perrault, a senior fiscal analyst with the Joint Fiscal Office, told Senate Finance that even if districts did revote their budgets, the move likely wouldn’t save schools much money. That’s because 80% of district budgets are made up of teacher and staff salaries and benefits, which have already been negotiated.
“That leaves about 20% of spending for districts to look at,” Perrault said. “And a lot of those things would be very difficult to cut. Things like heating and transportation and costs like that.” – Grace Elletson
— About 200 rental units across the state have been identified by the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board for rehabilitation that could be used as transitional homeless housing units for those temporarily being housed by the state in hotels to abide by the governor’s stay home, stay safe order.
Gus Seelig, executive director of the board, told House General lawmakers that along with more clarity from the federal government about how CARES Act money can be spent, he also needs guidance from legislators about how to move forward.
He said the board would need about $22 million to acquire the units and about $10 million more to fund support services and rental assistance for tenants.
“We urgently need a signal that you want us to do that and negotiate these deals,” Seelig said, referring to the rental units which he said could be bought and renovated by the end of the year.
“The clock is ticking.” – Grace Elletson
— The House Education and Commerce and Economic Development committees jointly received testimony from the New England Board of Higher Education about recent efforts to reform public college systems in Connecticut, Maine and Georgia.
Stephanie Murphy, a policy analyst for NEHBE, noted Connecticut’s proposal was originally rejected by accreditors, who were worried the system was trying to do too much, too quickly, and with too few people.
“It is a long, long process. There is just no way around that,” Murphy said. “You need to brace yourself for the long haul.” – Lola Duffort
