Bill addresses records release

A Vermont bill heading for the desk of Gov. Peter Shumlin would hold municipalities harmless for revealing property tax information that the state Supreme Court now says should have been kept private.

The House and Senate both have passed the bill, which says that town and city clerks were relying on advice from the Tax Department and attorney general saying the information was public.

In a case arising out of Manchester, the high court found that records of homeowners’ property tax breaks under state income sensitivity provisions should not be made public.

The court found that the information could be used to compute a property owner’s income, and said that information historically has been kept private.