2024 VBSR Legislative Breakfast Recap
We recognized Vermont State Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale from Shelburne (Chittenden-Southeast District) with our 2024 VBSR Legislator of the Year Award, honoring her during the 2024 VBSR Legislative Breakfast on Wednesday, December 11 when we also announced our 2025 Advocacy Agenda.
Thank you to all who registered, attended and are preparing with us for the 2025 Vermont legislative session, which begins January 8, 2025. It was wonderful to connect, converse and collaborate over coffee and breakfast foods (including chocolates and cheese, of course!).
Photos from the event can be seen and shared on our various social channels:
Thanks for celebrating our VBSR Legislator of the Year, State Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale and engaging our featured speaker Secretary Sarah Copeland Hanzas.
Senator Ram Hinsdale encouraged us all to "Stay local, stay curious, and stay friends!" as we engage with each other and legislators this session. This is wise guidance as we move forward together.
We shared a top line review of 2024's progress and successes in Montpelier:
2024 Legislative Progress
- Financial Recovery for Flood Impacted Businesses: the FY25 budget allocates $5 million, on a contingency basis, to the BEGAP program.
- Renewable Energy Standard: reforms the former Renewable Energy Standard and will make Vermont the second state in the nation to mandate 100% renewable energy.
- Climate Change Superfund Act: holds the world's largest fossil fuel companies accountable for a fair share of the climate crisis and reduce the costs Vermonters pay in recovery and resiliency efforts.
- H.687 – Land Use Regulatory Reform: a land use regulatory reform bill that includes new revenue creation and spending on housing, services, and shelter.
- Passed H.883 – Expanding Medicare Savings Program (MSP): These changes are estimated to make an additional 12,000 Vermonters eligible for the Medicare Savings Program.
And, of course, we revealed our approach to what is ahead of us:
2025-2026 VBSR Advocacy Agenda
- Our Climate Future
- Care Economy
- Employee Basic Needs
- Our Climate Future:
- Climate Resilience: Champion business input as part of the update to Vermont’s Climate Action Plan and Resilience Implementation Strategy.
- Climate Mitigation: Defend bedrock climate legislation to reduce climate emissions in Vermont while advancing the Global Warming Solutions Act.
- 2025-2026 Goals:
- Support the implementation of Vermont’s Global Warming Solutions Act
- Support the development and passage of new state-level climate mitigation policy
- Support the development and passage of new state-level climate resilience policy
- Continue to offer VBSR’s ClimateReadyVT program
- Care Economy:
- Child Care: Support new legislation to establish standards and pathways to promote a well-trained early childhood educator workforce in Vermont.
- 2025-2026 Goals:
- Uphold the implementation of Act 76, Vermont’s historic child care legislation passed in 2023
- Support the development of a new child care bill building upon Act 76, including Early Childhood Educator workforce development
- Support the implementation Let’s Grow Kids’ continuity plan related to the organization’s sunset in December 2025
- Build momentum for a Paid Family and Medical Leave bill in 2026
- Employee Basic Needs
- Housing: Incentivize and support efforts to promote the development of affordable housing for low-and-middle-income Vermonters.
- Healthcare: Support legislative and administrative efforts in 2025 related to maintaining our existing emergency and maternity health services at rural hospitals.
- 2025-2026 Goals:
- Advocate for affordability of programs and services supporting employee basic needs
- Support legislation to incentivize affordable housing development in towns seeking development as a result of the Act 250 housing exemption implemented in 2024
- Pursue opportunities to support access to affordable healthcare, including preserving emergency and maternity care in our more rural communities, wherever possible
- Work toward our ultimate goal of decoupling health insurance from employment
Special thanks, again, to our sponsors of the 2024 VBSR Legislative Breakfast:
Host Sponsor: The Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center
Lead Sponsors: Paul Frank + Collins, Seventh Generation, Vermont Professionals of Color Network
Supporting Sponsors: Green Mountain Power, Scott and Partners, University of Vermont Health Network
Beverage Sponsor: Kestrel Coffee Roasters
Specialty Food Donors: Sweet Mountain Chocolate, Vermont Farmstead Cheese Company