This bill requires Vermont State Colleges and the University of Vermont to give admission preference to in-state students who have completed career technical education programs in fields that the institutions offer. The law applies to eligible residents who have finished relevant CTE training and seeks to create a direct pathway for these students into postsecondary programs aligned with their technical background. The preference would be implemented starting July 1, 2023, and applies specifically to both the state college system and the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College.
This bill establishes new regulations for search warrants in Vermont, primarily affecting law enforcement officers and property owners. It prohibits no-knock warrants unless there is verified evidence that announcing the officer's presence would create an imminent danger to life, and requires officers to knock, announce their presence, and wait at least 30 seconds before entering a premises. The legislation also mandates that warrants be executed between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. unless there is reasonable cause to believe a felony will be committed or danger exists, requires officers to wear uniforms with visible identification, mandates the use of body cameras during warrant execution, and requires law enforcement agencies to reimburse property owners for damages caused during warrant execution unless the occupant is convicted of a related crime.
This bill establishes a two-year pilot program in Vermont to provide monthly $1,000 cash transfers to youth leaving the foster care system. The program is voluntary, and participants must complete annual surveys to assess their progress in finances, health, employment, housing, and education. The cash transfers are designed to be tax-free and will not count toward eligibility for other state and federal benefits like SNAP, medical assistance, or financial aid. Funding of $650,000 is allocated for the 2024 fiscal year, and the Department for Children and Families must submit a final report by November 2025 with findings and recommendations.
This bill establishes new structures and funding to support suicide prevention efforts in Vermont, including a special fund for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and a Crisis Response Commission to oversee its operation. It creates a Suicide Fatality Review Team to investigate suicide deaths and identify ways to prevent future incidents, while also requiring crisis phone numbers on student ID cards and mandating suicide awareness training for faculty and staff. The legislation raises a small fee on universal service charges to help fund the 988 Lifeline and directs the Department of Mental Health to submit reports on call diversion and other suicide prevention activities.
This bill updates Vermont state law to consistently use the term "hard cider" instead of "cider" when referring to alcoholic apple or pear beverages. The change affects definitions, licensing rules for serving samples, festival permit requirements, and tax classifications for these drinks. By standardizing the terminology, the bill clarifies which beverages are subject to specific alcohol regulations and tax rates based on their alcohol content. The law applies to businesses that package, sell, or serve alcoholic cider and takes effect on July 1, 2023.
This bill officially approves the Town of South Hero's charter and authorizes the town to collect a local option tax on meals and alcoholic beverages. The tax, which was already approved by town voters in March 2022, would add a 1% surcharge to these items. The revenue generated from this tax must be used specifically for municipal recreation and park facilities and town structures. Once passed, the bill takes effect immediately and adds the town's charter provisions to the state's legal code.
This bill restricts how candidates can use campaign funds by prohibiting their use for personal expenses like rent, utilities, household items, and personal living costs. It defines personal use broadly to include expenses for the candidate and their household members, such as mortgage payments, car purchases, and entertainment, unless directly tied to campaign activities. The legislation creates an exception that allows candidates for statewide office to receive a salary from their campaign funds under specific conditions. These conditions include salary limits based on the candidate's previous year's income, requirements for tax compliance, and rules ensuring salary payments are pro-rated based on the time spent campaigning. The law takes effect on July 1, 2023, and applies to candidates running for statewide positions in Vermont elections.
This bill creates a Rural Business Technical Assistance Exchange to help small and mid-sized businesses in rural Vermont access professional and technical support. The program would be run by regional development corporations and offer services through in-house Business Navigators, partnerships with organizations serving historically underserved populations, and grants to private providers for assistance in areas like financial management, digital strategies, and technology consulting. To qualify, businesses must be for-profit entities located in rural Vermont with at least $5,000 in average annual revenue, and grants for professional services are capped at $5,000 per business with a 50 percent match required if the owner's income exceeds the federal labor market area average. The regional development corporations must also maintain a directory of qualified technical assistance providers and publish annual reports on the Exchange's activities and performance.
This bill creates the Rural Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment Grant Program to provide funding for electric vehicle charging stations in underserved Vermont communities. The program, administered by the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, will offer financial incentives to property owners and municipalities for installing direct current fast chargers, with a focus on rural areas that score at or above the 75th percentile on the state's underserved communities index. Funding of $4 million is allocated to ensure at least 25 new charging locations are established, each at least 25 miles apart and within five miles of a state highway or interstate, while also allowing for level 1 and 2 chargers if paired with fast charging ports.
This bill requires Vermont's Agency of Education to work with the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets to create a statewide curriculum covering food cultivation, farming practices, and nutrition for elementary and secondary schools. It also mandates that the State Board of Education and supervisory unions include agriculture and nutrition education in their quality standards and union-wide curricula. Additionally, the bill adds agriculture and nutrition education to the list of required natural sciences fields in the state's minimum course of study. These changes would affect all public schools in Vermont starting July 1, 2023.
This bill allows manufacturers of spirits and fortified wines to obtain a license for shipping their products directly to consumers in Vermont. It requires license holders to register each product, sell at state-set retail prices, and limit shipments to 12 cases of fortified wine or four cases of spirits per resident annually. The legislation also creates a special fund to offset revenue losses for the state liquor department and requires quarterly reporting from license holders.
This bill requires out-of-state breweries to meet a reciprocity condition to obtain a consumer shipping license in Vermont. Specifically, it mandates that any brewery located outside Vermont must be able to ship malt beverages to consumers in its home state for Vermont brewers to do the same. The law applies to manufacturers of malt, vinous, or ready-to-drink spirits beverages operating in the United States and directly affects their ability to sell directly to Vermont consumers. By establishing this mutual licensing requirement, the bill ensures that out-of-state brewers operate under similar consumer shipping rules as Vermont-based brewers. The changes take effect on July 1, 2023.
