Legislative
Update
Rep.
Anne Donahue
May
11, 2019
In
theory, the current legislative session ends on Friday, May 17. There’s healthy
skepticism about achieving that date, given that the major, “must pass” bills
are not yet or just coming out of the Senate and will still need to be
reconciled with the House versions.
These
include the budget bills (operating and capital), taxes and fees.
Most
of the other stated priorities for the session have not yet passed out of their
second body, let alone reached a conference committee to iron out any
differences between the two.
These
include minimum wage, paid family leave, regulation of marijuana sales, and a
gun purchase waiting period. They are not “must pass” in order for the session
to end, and could stay in play for next year instead.
***
School Merger
Delay
One
bill that appears completely stuck is the effort to allow towns who are under
forced merger orders (like Berlin) an extra year to work out the details of the
merger agreements. The House and Senate cannot agree on who should be permitted
a delay, and who should not.
If
no agreement occurs before the end of the session, the mergers will take effect
on July 1.
***
Clean Water
Everyone
wants water clean up (it is hard to even think of Vermont as a state with water
pollution problems), but the challenge has been to figure out how to pay for
it.
I
have agreed that we cannot get the funding by squeezing more money out of our
existing budget responsibilities, and this week I voted in support of the House
proposal to raise $7.7 million for this purpose.
I
have had big concerns about whether we are making effective use of the funding,
and the House bill does a lot of restructuring, hopefully to improve that
system.
There
are shifts being made in terms of which taxes go to which funds, but the area
that the new money is being drawn is a “cloud tax.” The language of our new
world – we’re taxing clouds?!
Only
a few years back, if you wanted a new program for your computer, you’d go buy
the CDs at the store to download it, and pay tax for that. Now you “buy” it by
getting access to it in the “cloud” of cyberspace, and that has been tax
exempt.
So
the intent is to recapture that sales tax revenue. The overall clean water
bill, including the tax, passed on a vote of 124-14.
This
major bill is now on its way back to the Senate, which will respond by agreeing
with our changes – unlikely – or asking for a conference committee – likely –
to try to achieve agreement.
***
Plastics Ban
The
other big bill last week was the proposed ban on single-use carryout plastic
bags and other plastics.
It’s
been at least a decade since I first co-sponsored a bill that would have placed
a fee on plastic carryout bags. The momentum never developed for that, and I
think it’s high time we started addressing our current throw-away society
habits that spread trash around the world.
This
bill bans bags at point-of-sale (so they are still permitted at the vegetable
bins or to wrap meats, for example.) It also bans sale of the plastic foam
containers that we use for takeout food and coffee, stirrer sticks, and plastic
straws (unless by direct request at a restaurant.)
For
many years I thought I was being eco-responsible by asking for “paper, please”
at the grocery store, but it turns out they aren’t much good either. While they
may biodegrade over time, production and transport is very resource-intensive. We
could do a lot better by bringing our own bags.
This
bill still allows them if they are from recycled products, but permits stores
to charge 10 cents apiece. Oddly, not less
than 10 cents.
That
price tag may push more stores to stay with giving them out for free, which
would be counter-productive to the intent, but the committee that proposed the
bill pushed back against proposals for a lower charge.
Despite
extended debate, the bill passed on a healthy 120-24 vote, and heads back to
the Senate for review of the House changes.
***
Abortion Access
Proposition
5, the so-called abortion rights amendment to the state constitution, passed on
a vote of 106-38. Under the rules for constitutional amendments, no change from
the Senate proposal was permitted, so that was the final step for this year.
It
must be passed again by the legislature in the 2021 session, and then be
adopted by a public referendum.
The
language appeared on the surface to be more balanced than the abortion rights
bill that passed earlier this session (and which has now also passed the
Senate.) That bill sets no limits at all, while the constitutional amendment
proposal allows for the state to act if “justified by a compelling State
interest,” similar to the Roe v. Wade balancing standard.
Our
constitution, however, makes the premise of rights based on the fact that “all
persons are born equally free and independent,” which may not allow for the
state to claim any interest in a child not yet fully born.
Of
greater concern is the language of the new right, which is a right to
“reproductive autonomy.” That’s a fairly new term of art that the presenter of
the bill said means abortion, contraception, sterilization, and the right to
bear a child.
It
isn’t defined anywhere, and once language is in the constitution, its
interpretation is fully in the hands of future courts. It is a term that could
take on a lot of meanings, whether intended or not.
This
could backfire even for proponents of unrestricted rights of women, since a
man’s right to reproductive autonomy would become co-equal. What happens if a
man does – or does not – want to become a father and has a different opinion
from that of a woman carrying his child?
I
think that in the rush to protect women’s rights (which are not currently under
any threat in Vermont), too little was done to carefully consider what the
wording for this proposal should actually be.
As
someone who believes we must continue to confront how to balance two important
issues in the abortion debate – both a woman’s bodily autonomy and the autonomy
of the genetically distinct life growing in her body – I could not have
supported it, regardless.
The
precise wording, as passed, states:
“That
the people are guaranteed the liberty and dignity to determine their own life’s
course. The right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty
protected by this Constitution and shall not be denied or infringed unless
justified by a compelling State interest achieved by the least restrictive
means.”
***
Medical Records
In
my last update, I discussed the issue of medical records privacy and our
state’s health information exchange, which allows health providers to access a
patient’s records from across the state through a single database.
The
issue was a change being proposed from our current consent system, which
requires your consent for your providers to use it, into a system where access
is automatic unless you specify that you do not want other providers to be able
to access it.
If
the legislature did not act this year, the change would have gone into effect
under criteria the Green Mountain Care Board decided upon. I felt strongly that
the legislature had a responsibility to make a decision of this significance.
My
committee did agree to tackle it. We started the discussion with widely
disparate views. Our discussion process was the kind we would all wish for when
tough decision-making is at hand. We heard all views. We really listened to one
another. We brainstormed options.
The
final result was an 11-0 vote to approve the change, but setting stringent
standards for a transition plan that will fully inform Vermonters of their
rights. If we decide the transition plan isn’t strong enough, we have a window
of time next year where we could pull the plug.
Our
proposal was adopted on the House floor this week, and the Senate has already
indicated informally that it supports the approach.
***
It
is truly an honor to represent you. Please contact me with your concerns and
thoughts; I’m best reached via email at adonahue@leg.state.vt.us. My past
legislative updates are available at representativeannedonahue.blogspot.com.
