Vermont lawmakers and legislative staffers could be required to demonstrate proof of vaccination or weekly negative Covid-19 tests through the duration of the 2022 legislative session, according to a draft plan being considered by Statehouse leadership.

The Legislature’s Joint Rules Committee on Tuesday discussed the draft plan as well as other coronavirus mitigation measures necessary to hold at least some in-person activities in the new year.

Last year’s legislative session, which began before many Vermonters were able to receive their vaccines, was fully online and remote. Legislative procedures were livestreamed for the public and media online, and lawmakers called in from remote locations to fulfill their legislative duties.

According to the draft released Monday, all legislators and staffers for the 2022 session would be required to prove they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, or test negative for the virus on a weekly basis, to enter shared spaces on the Capitol complex in Montpelier. The policy would be effective beginning the first day of session in January and last until leadership agreed upon its end date.

If approved by leadership, the policy would apply to both the House and Senate chambers to remain consistent across the Capitol. It would also be in addition to an existing face mask requirement for anyone over the age of 2 who enters shared spaces in the Capitol complex, whether vaccinated or not.

The draft’s definition of “fully vaccinated” is that every applicable person has received their first and second doses of the Pfizer or Moderna two-dose vaccines, or their single dose of the Johnson & Johnson, at least two weeks prior. Booster shots would be “encouraged but are not required under this policy.”

Those who remain unvaccinated would need to take weekly Covid-19 tests, unless exempted. Proof of a negative test taken within the last 96 hours would need to be demonstrated on the first workday of every week. An unvaccinated lawmaker or staffer could be granted either a medical or religious exemption from weekly testing.

Besides lawmakers and staffers, though, many other people typically wander the Statehouse halls during the legislative session: journalists, lobbyists and members of the public, in particular. Lawmakers agreed at Tuesday’s meeting that safety measures for those individuals must be addressed before the session begins.