The House Education Committee reviewed H.820 on Thursday with Legislative Counsel.

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee met on Friday to hear testimonies regarding S.211, which intends to look at the health care reform and regulatory duties of the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB). The initial testimony was presented by Devon Green (VP of Government Relations, Vermont Association Hospitals and Health Systems). She initially addressed the Vermont Landscape of the Rural and Aging Population. There has been a population increase in the 65 to 79 age group during the last decade, with an increase of about 40,000 from 2010 to 2021. That increase is the largest of any age group and more than double the rate of the overall population. This has impacted hospital stays. In 2021 70 people were waiting for post-hospital placement and now 142 are awaiting placement.

The state's Emergency Board meet in the Governor’s Ceremonial office on Thursday to review the updated revenue forecast for FY2024 and updated projections for FY2025. The state economists noted that while inflation is high the state has not experienced a recession and the economy is still growing.

The Senate Education Committee took up the 2200 rule series, which deals with independent school oversight, with Jennifer Samuelson (Chair, Vermont State Board of Education) and Sarah Buxton (Special Counsel, State Board of Education) on Wednesday.

The Senate Natural Resources Committee reviewed S.252 on Wednesday, which was sponsored by four of the five Senators on the Committee. The bill would give the Public Utility Commission (PUC) authority to oversee the permitting, construction, and operation of “thermal energy” networks.

As a follow up to the joint meeting of House and Senate Judiciary Committees on January 10^th,  Jennifer Morrison and Barbara Neal co-chairs for the Public Safety Communications Task Force issued a Status Report on January 12^th. 

Jeff Dooley (Taxpayer Advocate, Department of Taxes) began his time with the House Ways & Means Committee on Wednesday with his “micro and macro level” roles on behalf of taxpayers and within the Tax Department. A statutory relief mechanism called “extraordinary relief” that can avail the Commissioner with requests for relief. These often deal with the property tax credit systems and affects lowest income persons.

Christina Sivret (Executive Director, Vermont State Ethics Commission) testified on two draft bills in the House Government Operations Committee on Tuesday.

The House General & Housing Committee met on Tuesday with Kathleen Berk (Executive Director, Vermont State Housing Authority) who had sent a letter to the Committee the week before.

The House Commerce Committee heard from a consulting group on Tuesday regarding the governance of the state's workforce development programs.

The goals of this report included:

1. Outline Vermont’s exiting workforce system and detailing the roles and reporting structure of each entity involved.
2. Report on the existing level of formal and informal coordination and integration across workforce programs.
3. Identify potential barriers to effective governance, administration, and integration.
4. Identify how and when participant and program level information is shared between system partners.