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Leonine: Tax and regulate (not what you think)

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TAX AND REGULATE (NOT WHAT YOU THINK)

Leonine Public AffairsThe crossover deadline is only two weeks away. Around this time bills start to move more frequently and that was the case in the seventh week of the 2018 session. That movement resulted in several significant debates in the House and Senate this week.

On the House side there were debates and votes on a data broker bill, increasing the Universal Service Fund fee on telecommunications service and a bill that protects voter information from being turned over to the federal government. All three passed with significant support but all had moments of tension and contentious debate. This may be a sign of things to come for the remainder of the session.

On the Senate side the minimum wage bill and the chemical regulation bill were the hot button issues. Both bills were the subject of significant debate and several amendments were offered. Perhaps the most creative amendment so far this year was offered on the minimum wage bill when one Senator put forward a proposal to limit the minimum wage increase of $15 per hour to Chittenden County. The amendment failed and the bill was ultimately passed by a margin of 20-10.

Governor Scott was also deeply involved in politics this week.On Thursdaynight the governor signed an Executive Order on net neutrality in an attempt to preempt legislative action on the subject. He then appeared to be caught flat footed when asked about the Florida school shooting--the ninth worst mass shooting in our nation’s history. On the same day as the incident in Florida, a student in Fair Haven Vermont was arrested while planning a shooting at the local high school. Perhaps because he realized that his initial response to the Florida tragedy was inadequate the Governor held a press conference late on Friday to revisit the issue. He acknowledged that his steady demeanor can be interpreted as a lack of emotion and indicated that he is open to a discussion about gun safety, identifying and treating mental health issues, and the root causes for the high level of violence in American society.
NET NEUTRALITY EXECUTIVE ORDER
LateThursdayevening Governor Phil Scott signed anExecutive Orderrequiring the state to procure internet service only from providers who are “net neutral.” In taking this action he become the fifth governor in the U.S., and the first Republican governor, to do so. His decision comes just three weeks after the Vermont Senate passeda billrequiring Internet Service Providers (ISP) seeking to enter into contracts with the State of Vermont to first receive a certificate of Net Neutrality from the Secretary of Administration. However, unlike the Senate bill the governor’s Executive Order allows the administration to contract with a non-net neutral ISPs if need be (the Senate considered but rejected a similar waiver provision proposed by Senator Brock-R, Franklin County). House Speaker Mitzi Johnson and Senate Pro Tem Tim Ashe quickly issued aresponsewelcoming the Governor’s support for net neutrality. However, they called into question the effectiveness of the order and doubled down on the their commitment to pass their own version of a net neutrality bill by the end of the 2018 legislative session.
CHEMICAL REGULATION
The Senate amended and passed S.103, a bill that would give the Department of Health additional authority to regulate manufacturing and the sale of products in Vermont. S.103 lowers the scientific criteria required to classify chemicals as dangerous and allows the Commissioner of Health to unilaterally regulate or ban the sale of children’s products in Vermont. S.103 has already passed both the House and Senate, although the House still needs to approve the amendments made by the Senate. The House is expected to consider S.103 next week.
USF INCREASE
On Friday the House gave initial approval to a bill, H.582, raising the Universal Service Fund fee Vermonters pay on their telephone bill from 2.0% to 2.5%. Under the bill the resulting $1.6 million in new annual revenue will be directed to the Connectivity Fund, which funds the buildout of broadband internet infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas of the state. The bill was approved on a 109-27 roll call vote, with many Republicans voting in favor of it.
DATA BROKERS
On Thursdaythe data broker bill, H.764, came to the House floor for initial approval (second reading). Representative Cynthia Browning-D offered a floor amendment that would have modified the bill in a number of respects. She contended the bill was largely symbolic because, on the one hand, it did not apply to many businesses that license and sell data about Vermonters, while on the other hand attempts to regulate use of personal information that is readily available from public records and internet searches. She said the bill protects Vermonters as well as “a condom with a hole in it.” Her amendment was rejected on a 56-84 roll call vote. The bill then passed second reading on a 92-46 margin. The bill received final House approval on Friday on a voice vote and has now crossed over to the Senate.
SALIVA ROAD TEST
Last week the House Transportation Committee advancedH.237, which relates to testing a driver’s saliva for drugs. The bill allows a law enforcement officer who has reasonable grounds to believe a person is under the influence of a drug, or under the combined influence of alcohol and a drug, to presume the person is giving their consent to the taking of an evidentiary sample of saliva. The saliva test results cannot admitted into evidence in court. With the legalization of marijuana in Vermont this coming July, law enforcement officials claim the bill is needed to keep roads safe. The ACLU and Defender General strongly object to the bill and claim they will sue the state if it passes. This week, the bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee. The text of the bill as the House Transportation Committee advanced it is on the House calendar for 2/14.
FROM THELEONINEBLOG
New Frontiers Of The State/Federal Marijuana Showdown
Over the past decade, the legalization of marijuana – both medically and recreationally – has exploded across the country. Just this year, Vermont became theninth state, including the District of Columbia, to legalize the use of marijuana recreationally, while 29 total states now allow medical use of the plant and its derivatives.Click hereto read more.
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Source: Leonine Public Affairs, Montpelier, Week 7. 2.16.2018.leoninepublicaffairs.com.Through a special arrangement with Leonine, Vermont Business Magazine republishes Leonine's weekly legislative report on vermontbiz.com.leoninepublicaffairs.com