Montpelier, News

Area Lawmakers Sit on Key Committees, Leave Some Unfilled

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MONTPELIER – House and Senate representatives in the area landed key positions chairing important committees, serving on others, but leaving quite a few standing committees unfilled by area lawmakers.

Second-term Calais Rep. Mark Mihaly, represents the Washington-6 District (Calais, Marshfield, Plainfield) in the Vermont House and will now chair the House committee on general and housing. That committee considers matters relating to housing, labor, equity and inclusion and all matters relating to subjects for which there is no other appropriate committee.

In the Senate, Andrew Perchlik (Washington County) is chairing the Senate Committee on Appropriations. That committee has jurisdiction over bills and resolutions appropriating money from the state treasury, which covers everything directly affecting the state budget.

Serving on that committee with Perchlik are Sen. Richard Westman (Lamoille County)

and Sen. Anne Watson (Washington County), giving the area representation on the committee after the retirement of long-time chair, Caledonia County’s Jane Kitchel.

Watson will chair the Senate committee on natural resources and energy, which deals with the conservation, development and planning of the state’s natural resources. That includes water quality, geology, forestry, parks and recreation and fish and wildlife; community and regional planning and development; and the conservation and planning of sources of energy.

Caledonia County’s Scott Beck, now serving as Senate minority leader, will serve on that committee with Watson.

Westman will chair the Senate committee on transportation with jurisdiction over matters relating to transportation facilities, including, principally, highways and bridges, the regulation of traffic thereon and the licensing of the users thereof; and matters relating to aviation and railroads.

Perchlik will serve with Westman on that committee.

Orleans County’s Sen. Sam Douglass, joining the legislature this year, will sit on the Senate committee on institutions, taking on matters relating to public buildings, lands in which the State has an interest and the Department of Corrections. It’s a spot he’d suggested interest in following the November election.

Douglass also has a seat on the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare, with oversight of matters relating to the preservation of health, old age assistance and social and economic security.

Cabot’s Rep. Greg Burtt (Cal-Wash: Cabot, Danville, Peaham) will serve on the House committee on agriculture, food resiliency and forestry with jurisdiction over matters relating to agriculture, food resiliency, climate change mitigation and adaptation, forestry and forest products, state parks and lands and other similar policies. Burtt is the owner of Burtt’s Apple Orchard and a 30,000-tap maple sugaring operation.

Long-time Hazen Union School English teacher, Rep. Leanne Harple of Glover (Orleans-4: Albany, Craftsbury, Greensboro, Glover) will be sitting on the House committee on education, which considers matters relating to education, libraries, literary and scientific subjects and other similar policies. It’s a committee she expressed interest in serving on following her election and one that’s likely to be the center of attention this session.

Wolcott’s Rep. Daniel Noyes (Lamoille-2: Belvidere, Hyde Park, Johnson, Wolcott) will continue on the House committee on human services, where he’s sat since 2016. The committee has responsibility for improving the well-being of individuals and families, including children, individuals with disabilities and older Vermonters; oversight of programs and services provided by the Vermont Departments for Children and Families, of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living and of Health; and other similar policies. His service there fits will with his career, where, for the past 15 years he has been employed by Central Vermont Council on Aging as Director of the RSVP program that engages older Vermonters in the service of others.

Rep. Mike Southworth of Walden (Caledonia-2: Hardwick, Stannard, Walden) joins the House committee on energy and digital infrastructure with oversight of energy, utilities, telecommunications, broadband, information technology, cybersecurity and other similar policies. He brings experience working in state government for both the corrections and motors vehicles agencies.

Rep. David Yacovone of Morrisville (Lamoille-Washington: Elmore, Morristown, Stowe, Woodbury, Worcester) has a seat on the House committee on appropriations with oversight of all activities appropriating money from the state treasury.

In the House, Rep. Saudia LaMont of Morrisville, (Lamoille-Washington: Elmore, Morristown, Stowe, Woodbury, Worcester) is on the House committee on general and housing with oversight of matters related to housing, labor, equity and inclusion and all matters relating to subjects for which there is no other appropriate committee.

No representatives from the Hardwick area were tapped to serve on committees for the environment, commerce and economic development, corrections and institutions. government operations and military affairs, health care, judiciary, rules, transportation or ways and means.

In the Senate, the area isn’t represented on agriculture, economic development, housing and general affairs, education, government operations or the Judiciary Committee.

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