Sen. Becca White

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes the Vermont Baby Bond Trust, a state-administered program that provides $3,200 in savings accounts to children born on or after July 1, 2024, who qualify for Medicaid or SCHIP coverage at birth. The funds are intended for eligible expenses including education, purchasing a home or property in Vermont, starting a business, or contributing to retirement or education savings accounts. The program requires beneficiaries to complete a financial literacy course before age 18 to access their funds, and they must claim the money by their 30th birthday if they are still Vermont residents. The bill also ensures that money in the trust is not counted as income or assets for determining eligibility for government assistance programs.

Maddy summaryThis bill is a House concurrent resolution that formally congratulates the 2023 Thetford Academy Panthers' Division III baseball championship team. It recognizes the team's achievement of winning their first baseball title in 37 years with a 6-0 victory over the White River Valley School Wildcats. The resolution names the individual players and coaches who contributed to the team's success and directs the Secretary of State to send a copy of the resolution to Thetford Academy.

Maddy summaryThis bill defines emergency management personnel to include a broad range of state, county, and local government and nongovernmental workers such as firefighters, law enforcement, emergency medical personnel, and public health staff. It requires local emergency management organizations and planning committees to incorporate information about how these personnel are utilized into their emergency management plans. The legislation also establishes regional emergency management committees with voting members from local governments and nonvoting representatives from various emergency service organizations. Additionally, it mandates that local emergency planning committees include representatives from fire departments, emergency medical services, law enforcement, hospitals, and other relevant entities to coordinate emergency response efforts.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes adopting the Uniform Family Law Arbitration Act in Vermont to provide families with an alternative way to resolve divorce and family law disputes. It would allow parties to settle matters like child custody, support, and property division through arbitration with a neutral third party instead of waiting for court proceedings. Arbitration decisions would be reviewed by the court, with special attention given to ensure child-related awards serve the best interests of the child. The law would take effect on July 1, 2024, offering families a faster option to resolve important family matters.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes the Thermal Energy Network Act to bring thermal energy distribution systems under the oversight of Vermont's Public Utility Commission. It defines thermal energy networks as infrastructure that transfers heat from noncombustion sources to buildings for heating, cooling, and hot water, and grants the Commission authority to regulate companies operating these systems. The legislation requires a certificate of public good before any private provider can build a network serving more than 20 customers, while municipalities retain the ability to operate such networks without Commission approval. The Public Utility Commission must develop permitting rules by July 2025 that prioritize serving low and moderate-income customers, ensure simple and expeditious approval processes, and allow pilot projects.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires that nonprofit public transit systems in Vermont have a majority of their governing board members appointed by the legislative bodies of the municipalities they serve. It defines nonprofit public transit systems as domestic corporations where board membership is proportional to the population of served municipalities and includes the Secretary of Transportation as a nonvoting member. The legislation sets a July 31, 2024 deadline for existing transit systems to update their bylaws to comply with these requirements and mandates that the Agency of Transportation oversee compliance with state and federal laws.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a new review board and creates a $50,000 survivor benefit for family members of Vermont public works and emergency personnel who die in the line of duty or from an occupation-related illness. The Emergency and Public Works Personnel Survivors Benefit Review Board would be composed of state officials and two public members appointed by the Governor, with decisions requiring unanimous approval and a 60-day timeline for claims. The bill expands the definition of "line of duty" to include specific hazardous work conditions for public works employees and clarifies that domestic partners and civil union partners qualify as spouses for benefit purposes. A special fund would be created in the State Treasurer's office to finance these payments, funded through legislative appropriations and other contributions.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes changes to compensation and benefits for Vermont state legislators, including allowing them to participate in flexible spending accounts for health and dependent care expenses. It establishes specific salary amounts for leadership roles like the Speaker and Senate President Pro Tempore, ties future pay adjustments to the mean Vermont wage, and provides compensation for up to 20 days of work during legislative adjournments. The legislation also expands leave of absence rules to permit members to take time off from any job, creates a working group to review legislative staffing and session length, and offers orientation stipends for newly elected members.

Maddy summaryThis bill authorizes Vermont municipalities to require public transit amenities, such as bus stops and shelters, to be included in zoning regulations and site plan reviews for new developments. It amends state zoning laws to allow local governments to mandate connections to existing transit infrastructure and to include public transit facilities in official maps and transportation master plans. The legislation applies to municipalities reviewing development projects beyond single-family homes and aims to integrate transit planning into local land-use decisions. The changes take effect on July 1, 2024, and give communities more tools to ensure new developments support public transportation access.

Maddy summaryThis bill modifies Vermont's public utility commission rules for approving new gas and electric facilities by narrowing the criteria that adjoining landowners can use to challenge projects. Under the proposed changes, neighbors living near proposed facilities would only be allowed to intervene in public hearings if they can prove the project would negatively impact public health and safety or traffic, removing their ability to raise concerns about aesthetics. The legislation also eliminates aesthetics as a formal criterion for the commission's final decision on whether a facility serves the public good, while retaining protections for public health, safety, traffic, and environmental factors. These amendments would take effect on July 1, 2024, and apply to all new energy purchases, investments, and facility constructions in the state.