
The bill sets almost $19 million aside to keep those currently in hotels there until May 31. After that, eligibility will narrow.
The bill sets almost $19 million aside to keep those currently in hotels there until May 31. After that, eligibility will narrow.
An analyst with the Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Office told lawmakers on Friday that preliminary estimates pegged the combined annual cost of paid leave and child care subsidies at about $190 million in 2025, which would be the first full year of operation.
A fragile coalition backing the Senate’s omnibus housing bill is beginning to fracture after a panel made new amendments Wednesday that would reduce the scope of proposed exemptions to Act 250.
The senator said her amendment would offer 12 weeks of paid leave for new parents, apply to all genders and be available in the case of both births and adoptions.
“One of the things that we heard in testimony is how if we took all the 4-year-olds out categorically right away, it would devastate child care facilities,” said Sen. Ginny Lyons, one of the bill’s sponsors.
With nowhere else to go — and even fewer rights than a typical renter — Vermonters relying on a state-run program for shelter have had little recourse when they’ve run into poor treatment or conditions.
Balint’s campaign manager did not respond to a list of questions sent by VTDigger, except to insist that the event was “not a fundraiser.”
Tenants and activists have argued that “just cause” rights are necessary protections against profit-driven or retaliatory evictions in a white-hot housing market. Some landlords have argued that troublesome tenants are already too difficult to evict.
The bill would prohibit someone from running in the general election as an independent if they’d lost a primary that election cycle.
Discussions about what to do in the short term about Vermont’s emergency housing program in hotels have been underway as part of the Legislature’s annual budget adjustment bill, or H.145, a spending plan passed early during each session to true-up the current fiscal year’s budget.