NITKA’S NOTES FROM THE STATE HOUSE

By Senator Alice Nitka, Windsor County, January 5, 2012  

The 2012 Legislature opened on January 3^rd without the pomp and circumstance that happened last year when it was the first year of the two year session. This year members were already sworn in, knew how to get through the gates, where to park, (provided they could find a spot), where the committee rooms were, how to introduce a bill and many of the rules from Mason’s Manual which govern protocol and  procedures. A somewhat comparable manual is Robert’s Rules of Order which is used in running VT’s Town Meetings. A new item to learn this year for the 5 Senate Government Operations Committee members is the use of an I-Pad to work on all the bills in their committee. This is a pilot project for two years which the same committee in the House of Representatives began last year. Potential cost savings will be analyzed to see if this would be a wise route for the full membership and would it additionally benefit the public by providing more transparency.

This past summer, Governor Shumlin vetoed the bill, S-77, “ An Act Relating to Testing of Private Water Wells” thus the question of an override of the veto or sustaining it was on the Senate Calendar for action immediately after the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and opening prayer. The bill which passed last year was a reaction to a child being poisoned by arsenic in the family’s water well. It is estimated that 40% of VT families obtain their drinking water from groundwater sources. The law would have required that all new wells to be used as a potable water supply be tested by a certified laboratory prior to use.  The governor in his veto statement mentioned the cost and burden to rural property owners if enacted and the fact that the vast majority of Vermont’s drinking water is safe and clean and that mandates need to balanced with reality. The Governor was sustained by a vote of 28 to 1 thus his veto held. It was surprising that previous supporters of the bill went along with the Governor. They do however have a new modified version of the bill brewing.

The Governor’s State of the State speech was given this week and an overflow crowd squeezed into the well of the House. Many who couldn’t fit stood outside the doors. These ranged from dignitaries, to the State Police working dogs “Oak” and “Freesia”,  to demonstrators. The Governor’s address focused on the tragedy and destruction from Tropical Storm Irene to the strength, commitment, sacrifice, generosity and hard work of Vermonters and so many others from outside our state who aided in the remarkable recovery effort which continues. It was an honor to have several construction people in attendance who did inordinate amounts of work to save and salvage communities.

Contact me at home at 228-8432, the State House at 1-800-322-5616 or at [email protected] or P.O. Box 136, Ludlow, VT 05149   Find schedules and bills at www.leg.state.vt.us.