This bill expands access to Vermont state-funded education grants and tuition benefits for residents with certain immigration statuses. It removes the one-year residency requirement for Advancement Grants and creates a three-year exception for Incentive Grants, allowing eligible individuals to apply without meeting the standard residency timeline. Additionally, the legislation prevents state colleges and universities from discriminating against residents based solely on immigration status when determining in-state tuition eligibility, while requiring VSAC to update its application procedures and maintain confidentiality of collected information.
This bill updates Vermont's retail theft laws by modifying penalties based on the value of stolen goods and the number of prior offenses. It directly affects individuals accused of shoplifting or stealing merchandise from retail stores. The law establishes that taking merchandise without paying is a crime, with penalties ranging from fines up to $2,500 or imprisonment up to 10 years depending on the theft amount and offense history. Stolen items valued at $900 or less face graduated penalties for first, second, and subsequent offenses, while thefts exceeding $900 carry a maximum fine of $1,000 or up to 10 years in prison. The changes take effect immediately upon passage.
This bill updates Vermont's laws regarding unlawful trespass in motor vehicles and unauthorized vehicle operation without owner consent. It establishes specific penalties for entering another person's vehicle without permission, with fines up to $500 and up to three months in jail for first offenses, and up to one year in jail for repeat offenders. The law also clarifies definitions of abandoned property and sets a 60-day limit for starting prosecutions, while protecting law enforcement officers who enter property to serve legal documents. These changes take effect on July 1, 2024.
This bill amends Vermont's emergency medical services laws to update payment rates and improve system coordination. It changes how EMS providers are reimbursed by replacing a specific Medicare rate with a broader applicable Medicare rate. The legislation also requires the EMS Advisory Committee to incorporate nationally recognized best practices into statewide system design. Additionally, it mandates coordination between the EMS Advisory Committee, the Department of Health, and other task forces to align their recommendations and system designs. These changes directly affect emergency medical services providers and the state agencies responsible for overseeing the EMS system.
This bill directs state officials to study how other states handle sealing criminal history records and create a process for sealing records without requiring a formal petition. The Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee will review different states' rules about how long records must remain open before they can be sealed and who can access sealed records. A separate task force led by the Chief Superior Judge will examine petitionless sealing procedures and recommend a system for sealing records without court petitions. Both groups must submit their recommendations to the legislature by late 2024, and the bill takes effect immediately upon passage.
This bill requires health insurance plans and pharmacy benefit managers to limit step therapy requirements for prescription drugs, allowing exceptions when a medication is contraindicated, ineffective, or not in the patient's best interest. It also prohibits requiring documented medication trials before approving prescriptions for substance use disorder treatment and mandates coverage of at least one readily available asthma controller medication without prior authorization. Additionally, the law restricts prior authorization requirements for services ordered by primary care providers, with exceptions for prescription drugs and out-of-network care. The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation is tasked with enforcing these provisions.
This bill establishes Vermont's fiscal year 2025 Transportation Program and includes various amendments to transportation-related laws. It authorizes specific funding allocations for multiple transportation initiatives, including park-and-ride facilities, bike and pedestrian infrastructure, public transit services, and rail operations. The legislation defines key project categories such as candidate projects, development and evaluation projects, and front-of-book projects to guide how state funds are distributed. Additionally, it incorporates provisions for electric vehicle infrastructure, transportation alternatives, and greenhouse gas reduction efforts while setting up mechanisms to track project expenditures and funding sources.
This bill establishes a new Facilities Master Plan Grant Program to help Vermont's supervisory unions and independent career and technical education districts create comprehensive plans for their school buildings. The program provides grant funding to assist these districts in evaluating existing facilities, projecting enrollment needs, and identifying renovation or construction requirements to meet 21st-century educational goals. Grant awards are prioritized based on facility condition and poverty levels, with funds potentially used to hire consultants for plan development. Additionally, the bill creates a working group to study and recommend improvements to the statewide school construction aid program, including governance structures and eligibility criteria. The Facilities Master Plan Grant Program is set to expire on June 30, 2029, and the bill also requires the state to develop a list of prequalified architecture and engineering firms specializing in school design.
This bill makes several changes to Vermont's judicial procedures, including establishing formal training and equipment standards for court security officers, clarifying when judges must recuse themselves from cases, and adding juvenile tobacco violations to the jurisdiction of the Judicial Bureau. It also introduces legal recognition for blockchain records as self-authenticating evidence, sets a $50 security requirement for trustee process cases, and expands rights for sexual assault survivors to receive written notifications about evidence preservation and other services. Additionally, the bill updates treason penalties and repeals outdated sections related to capital punishment procedures.
This bill updates Vermont's agricultural laws to strengthen regulations on animals running at large and clarify definitions for hemp products. It gives towns and cities expanded authority to create local ordinances controlling livestock on public lands and private property without permission. The law also increases fines for allowing cattle, horses, sheep, goats, or swine to run loose in public areas, with penalties ranging from $50 to $100 per animal depending on the location. Additionally, the bill refines the definition of hemp products to exclude items containing more than 0.3 percent THC and clarifies that small cannabis cultivation facilities with fewer than 10 non-family employees do not count as public buildings. These changes take effect on July 1, 2024.
This bill establishes new policies and procedures for Vermont's public libraries and school libraries to ensure compliance with free speech principles, civil rights laws, and the state's diverse population. It requires library boards to adopt material selection and reconsideration policies that reflect diversity in race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, and political beliefs while protecting intellectual freedom. The legislation also clarifies confidentiality rules for library records, expands protections against criminal threats at public libraries, and updates the role of the Department of Libraries to include developing model policies and professional development programs for librarians.
This bill updates Vermont's financial disclosure requirements for candidates running for state and legislative office, requiring them to submit detailed information about their income, assets, and business interests to the State Ethics Commission. The law mandates disclosure of income sources, ownership stakes in companies, leases with state entities, and specific investment holdings valued at $25,000 or more, while allowing candidates to redact sensitive personal information like Social Security numbers from their tax returns. Candidates must also disclose if their spouse or domestic partner works as a lobbyist and provide full names of their spouses or domestic partners. Once filed, these disclosure forms and redacted tax returns are made publicly available on the Secretary of State's website until the next primary election cycle.
