Statement from Senate Natural Resources & Energy Chair Anne Watson and Senate Majority Leader Kesha Ram Hinsdale on S.325:
“We were glad to reach unanimous agreement in the Senate Natural Resources & Energy Committee on S.325. This bill keeps the work of Act 181 moving forward, but recognizes something we knew from the start — this is a big change to how we create opportunities to build homes, grow businesses, and use our land in Vermont, and it’s going to take time to get it right.
"As the initial draft maps have come out, we’ve heard loud and clear from Vermonters — especially in our rural communities — who are worried about what this could mean for their land, their livelihoods, and their towns. Those concerns are real, and we take them seriously.
"What we’ve heard again and again is pretty straightforward: we need to protect Vermont’s natural resources, but we also need to respect people’s basic right to use and enjoy their own land — and make sure there’s a real future here for working families. That means being able to farm, log, hunt, build a home, or run a small business. It means making sure young people can afford to stay, and that older Vermonters can age in place, close to their families and the communities they’ve built their lives in.
"S.325 reflects that balance. It slows this whole process down and gives us a few more years to work through the maps, the Tier 3 rules, and the road rule the right way — with input from the people who are actually affected. We’re taking the time to listen, make adjustments, and make sure we don’t put something in place that limits opportunity or just plain doesn’t work on the ground.
"At the same time, the bill keeps common sense housing exemptions in place so communities can keep building needed homes — in our downtowns and village centers, but also in the places where people already live and want to remain.
"Bottom line: this is about taking a breath, listening to Vermonters, and getting this right — protecting the land we all care about while making sure people can build a life here, in the communities they choose, for generations to come.”
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