7 Leg. Highlights of 2007
The Vermont legislature is wrapped up for another year. Rather than run down the several hundred votes we took, I'll just highlight seven from this year:
1. Thinking Big on Prison Reform
2. Fighting Global Warming
3. Education Spending (and killing the Governor's Caps)
4. Protecting Transgender Vermonters
5. Taking a Stand Against the Iraq War, and for Impeachment
6. e-Vermont
7. More Local Chicken Dinners (seriously)
Thinking Big on Prison Reform
Bold success may be around the corner for prison reform in Vermont. I'm talking about (a) making society safer, while (b) reducing the number of people incarcerated, and (c) freeing up our taxpayer dollars. Can it be done? I say YES, but only if we approach it in a non-partisan, non-political way. Impossible you say? Then I plan to prove your pessimism wrong. To back up my assertion is the fact that there is agreement from all three branches of government to address these goals. After much work behind the scenes, we assembled a meeting of our Republican Governor, Democratic leaders House Speaker Gaye Symington and Senate Leader Peter Shumlin, and Chief Justice Paul Reiber of the Vermont Supreme Court, along with 60 of their closest friends (myself included). This summer we will be meeting with the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments to create a plan achieve these three goals. The Justice Center found success in other states around the country, and now we've enlisted their help here in Vermont. This could be huge, and I'll continue to work closely on this project.
Fighting Global Warming
Mixed results here. First, we passed a strong forward-thinking bill to not only begin to address climate change / global warming, but also create jobs and save the Vermonters on their energy costs. Big kudos go to my district mate Rep. Rachel Weston for her work on this plan. The only catch? It's not free -- it requires an investment. To pay for it, we increased the fee akin to a property tax so that Vermont's nuclear energy company pays the same rate that wind turbines must pay. Fair's fair. The Governor threatens a veto on this bill, without offering an alternative funding source. What does it mean when people say that they're against global warming, but when push comes to shove, they're against funding the effort? Please let the Governor know your thoughts by calling him at 800-649-6825 or 802 828-3333. Urge him to sign this critical and inventive legislation. Or join VPIRG (www.vpirg.org).
Education Spending (and killing the Governor's Caps)
We passed an education spending reform bill that first and foremost kills the Governor's proposal to cap spending. I believe that those caps would have been terribly detrimental to Vermont's children, including here in Burlington. Instead, we passed a bill that puts into motion several critical studies so that we can get the information needed to address some of the cost drivers for education. With more knowledge, we can make better decisions. Plus, the studies should yield results before we enact a new system of voting in certain towns. That system will then put pressure on school boards who spend more than the statewide average to address their spending. This new system of voting will not affect Burlington, since our school district spends less than the statewide average.
Protecting Transgender Vermonters
By a whopping vote in the House of 118-28, we passed a bill outlawing discrimination based on gender identity, protecting Vermont's transgender communities. I worked hard on successfully signing up more than half of the House's Representatives to sponsor this bill. We ended up compromising slightly with the Governor on this bill (remember he vetoed a similar bill last year!), but frankly, the changes are minimal. This is a new law that we can all be proud of, and frankly, it's long overdue.
Taking a Stand Against the Iraq War, and for Impeachment
We didn't spend a lot of time making a statement on the national scene, but we had our voices heard. The Vermont legislature voted to tell Washington that we want our troops to come home starting now. We also had a debate on presidential impeachment, which I supported, but which didn't pass. Nevertheless, the debate on these contentious issues were respectful.
e-Vermont
Look for better internet coverage throughout the state, due to a tri-partisan bill that will help the more rural parts of our state. Who says Vermont doesn't mean business?!
More Local Chicken Dinners (seriously)
Rubber chicken jokes aside (for now), we passed bills promoting locally grown food, including teaching children more about agriculture, nutrition, and buying dinner close to home. The law also allows restaurants to serve locally grown chickens, bypassing certain meat inspection criteria. Sound risky? Well, it's no fowl move. According to the farmers, their procedures are a lot safer than some you'd see at a slaughter house. Vermont joins a flock of many other states in this movement. Cluck, cluck, cluck.
If you have questions about any specific bill or issue, or suggestions for next year, please let me know. We're back in session from January to May, give or take a couple of weeks. But even though it's summer, the political duties continue -- right now I'm working on a bill to address the concern over racial profiling (there was an article about it in yesterday's Burlington Free Press). More to come.
Best,
Jason
PS. This summer, besides continuing my work on prison reform, which includes meetings in Montpelier and elsewhere, I'll be performing my standup comedy, appearing in a play, making several films, and of course, spending lots of quality family time with Nat and Max (who is one year old as of today).
1. Thinking Big on Prison Reform
2. Fighting Global Warming
3. Education Spending (and killing the Governor's Caps)
4. Protecting Transgender Vermonters
5. Taking a Stand Against the Iraq War, and for Impeachment
6. e-Vermont
7. More Local Chicken Dinners (seriously)
Thinking Big on Prison Reform
Bold success may be around the corner for prison reform in Vermont. I'm talking about (a) making society safer, while (b) reducing the number of people incarcerated, and (c) freeing up our taxpayer dollars. Can it be done? I say YES, but only if we approach it in a non-partisan, non-political way. Impossible you say? Then I plan to prove your pessimism wrong. To back up my assertion is the fact that there is agreement from all three branches of government to address these goals. After much work behind the scenes, we assembled a meeting of our Republican Governor, Democratic leaders House Speaker Gaye Symington and Senate Leader Peter Shumlin, and Chief Justice Paul Reiber of the Vermont Supreme Court, along with 60 of their closest friends (myself included). This summer we will be meeting with the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments to create a plan achieve these three goals. The Justice Center found success in other states around the country, and now we've enlisted their help here in Vermont. This could be huge, and I'll continue to work closely on this project.
Fighting Global Warming
Mixed results here. First, we passed a strong forward-thinking bill to not only begin to address climate change / global warming, but also create jobs and save the Vermonters on their energy costs. Big kudos go to my district mate Rep. Rachel Weston for her work on this plan. The only catch? It's not free -- it requires an investment. To pay for it, we increased the fee akin to a property tax so that Vermont's nuclear energy company pays the same rate that wind turbines must pay. Fair's fair. The Governor threatens a veto on this bill, without offering an alternative funding source. What does it mean when people say that they're against global warming, but when push comes to shove, they're against funding the effort? Please let the Governor know your thoughts by calling him at 800-649-6825 or 802 828-3333. Urge him to sign this critical and inventive legislation. Or join VPIRG (www.vpirg.org).
Education Spending (and killing the Governor's Caps)
We passed an education spending reform bill that first and foremost kills the Governor's proposal to cap spending. I believe that those caps would have been terribly detrimental to Vermont's children, including here in Burlington. Instead, we passed a bill that puts into motion several critical studies so that we can get the information needed to address some of the cost drivers for education. With more knowledge, we can make better decisions. Plus, the studies should yield results before we enact a new system of voting in certain towns. That system will then put pressure on school boards who spend more than the statewide average to address their spending. This new system of voting will not affect Burlington, since our school district spends less than the statewide average.
Protecting Transgender Vermonters
By a whopping vote in the House of 118-28, we passed a bill outlawing discrimination based on gender identity, protecting Vermont's transgender communities. I worked hard on successfully signing up more than half of the House's Representatives to sponsor this bill. We ended up compromising slightly with the Governor on this bill (remember he vetoed a similar bill last year!), but frankly, the changes are minimal. This is a new law that we can all be proud of, and frankly, it's long overdue.
Taking a Stand Against the Iraq War, and for Impeachment
We didn't spend a lot of time making a statement on the national scene, but we had our voices heard. The Vermont legislature voted to tell Washington that we want our troops to come home starting now. We also had a debate on presidential impeachment, which I supported, but which didn't pass. Nevertheless, the debate on these contentious issues were respectful.
e-Vermont
Look for better internet coverage throughout the state, due to a tri-partisan bill that will help the more rural parts of our state. Who says Vermont doesn't mean business?!
More Local Chicken Dinners (seriously)
Rubber chicken jokes aside (for now), we passed bills promoting locally grown food, including teaching children more about agriculture, nutrition, and buying dinner close to home. The law also allows restaurants to serve locally grown chickens, bypassing certain meat inspection criteria. Sound risky? Well, it's no fowl move. According to the farmers, their procedures are a lot safer than some you'd see at a slaughter house. Vermont joins a flock of many other states in this movement. Cluck, cluck, cluck.
If you have questions about any specific bill or issue, or suggestions for next year, please let me know. We're back in session from January to May, give or take a couple of weeks. But even though it's summer, the political duties continue -- right now I'm working on a bill to address the concern over racial profiling (there was an article about it in yesterday's Burlington Free Press). More to come.
Best,
Jason
PS. This summer, besides continuing my work on prison reform, which includes meetings in Montpelier and elsewhere, I'll be performing my standup comedy, appearing in a play, making several films, and of course, spending lots of quality family time with Nat and Max (who is one year old as of today).
posted by Unknown @ 7:40 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Here's a the partial Burlington Free Press article today, referenced above:
State's Attorney Begins Dialogue on Racial Profiling
by John Briggs
Free Press Staff Writer
May 24, 2007
Close to 50 people crowded into a small conference room at Burlington College on Wednesday evening to begin a dialogue on racial profiling in Burlington.
The meeting was called by Chittenden County State's Attorney T.J. Donovan, who described racial issues in Burlington and Vermont -- one of the country's two whitest state -- as "complex, emotional and sensitive. I don't have all the answers," he said. "I have to listen and learn."
The exchanges Wednesday, though sometimes angry, resembled a conversation more than a typical public meeting, and a central frustration emerged early and often: Few data exist in the city or state about how often blacks are stopped by the police, let alone whether those stops are justified.
"What is the barrier?" a woman asked.
Donovan and Burlington Police Lt. Kathy Stubbing answered that state law forbids the collection of such data.
City Council President Kurt Wright, R-Ward 4, who is a state representative, promptly promised to sponsor legislation to allow such data to be collected. He said he would work with Rep. Jason Lorber, D-Burlington, who also attended the meeting.
Mr. Lorber,
Thanks for your work as my representative in the State Legislature. I congratulate you for all the hard work both you and Rachel Weston have done. Your votes in the Legislature this session reflect a free and progressive-minded approach to the most important issues of the day, such as global warming and the non-binding resolution to impeach the president. That is a good job done and as a constituent of yours I'm satisfied by your work in the Legislature this year.
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