Vermont

All Things LGBTQ - News 02/20/2024

Provided by ORCA Media:

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Questioning Community presents local and national news. Recorded on February 20, 2024.

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Senate Committee on Finance - Testimony of S. 181 Community Media Public Benefit Bill 02/20/2024

Testimony of the Community Media Public Benefit Bill S.181 at the Senate Committee on Finance.

On Tuesday, Lauren-Glenn Davitian provided testimony at the request of the Senate Finance Committee, on the revenue gap that AMOs need to fill with a new revenue stream. LG presented on revenues and expenses, with charts showing the anticipated gap from 2024 to 2030, and said that $3 million would fill the average annual gap across that period of time.

S.181 as introduced:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/Docs/BILLS/S-0181/S-0181%20As%20Introduced.pdf

LG's Testimony:

https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/Senate%20Finance/Bills/S.181/Witness%20Documents/S.181~Lauren-Glenn%20Davitian~Vermont%20Access%20Network%20Revenue%20Needs~2-20-2024.pdf

Emerge Vermont's 3rd Annual Local Candidate Spotlight 02/20/2024

From Emerge Vermont:

This online event features Emerge Vermont alums who are running for selectboard and school board seats all over Vermont. They are joined by State Treasurer Mike Pieciak, Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas (Class of ’22), Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger, and former Middlebury Selectboard member and gubernatorial candidate Esther Charlestin (Class of ’22).

Please support these outstanding women as they step up as candidates for local office!

For more information visit: https://vt.emergeamerica.org/events/emerge-vermonts-3rd-annual-local-candidate-spotlight/

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Senate Committee on Government Operations - Testimony of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law 02/16/2024

Testimony of S.55 Update to Open Meeting Law at the Senate Committee on Government Operations.

On Friday, the committee continued testimony hearing from select board members and moderators from multiple towns. Most witnesses did not support the bill and cited issues with internet connectivity and the impracticality posed by requiring hybrid meetings. The committee will continue taking testimony on the bill next week ahead of any vote.

S.55, Draft 3.1:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/Senate%20Government%20Operations/Bills/S.55/Drafts,%20Amendments,%20and%20Legal%20Documents/S.55~Tucker%20Anderson~Draft%203.1,%20Strike%20All%20Amendment~2-13-2024.pdf

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont House Committee on Ways and Means - Discussion of H.657 Modernize Vermont’s Communications Taxes and Fees 02/15/2024

Discussion of H.657 a bill meant to modernize Vermont's communications taxes and fees at the House Committee on Ways and Means.

On Thursday, the committee reviewed all the sections of H.657 and discussed whether they would like to keep each section in or out for a next revision from Leg Counsel. After some spirited discussion, the Committee agreed to keep the PEG sections of the bill in for now.

Draft 1.3 H.657:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/House%20Ways%20and%20Means/Bills/H.657/W~Maria%20Royle~H.657%20Ways%20and%20Means%20Amendment,%20Draft%201.3~2-14-2024.pdf

Legislative Update with Audubon Vermont 02/15/2024

Conservation Biologist Margaret Fowle discusses with Meghan O'Rourke, host, the neonic bill and other things her team is working on at Audubon Vermont.

Audubon Vermont is headed to the Statehouse! Conservation Biologist Margaret Fowle talks about testifying to the House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry in support of H.706, a bill to ban the use of neonicotinoid-treated seeds in Vermont. These toxic pesticides threaten our ecosystems and native pollinators, including birds. Audubon Vermont, in partnership with the allied organization Protect Our Pollinators, supports legislation to phase out neonic use in favor of sustainable alternatives.

For more information visit: www.protectourpollinatorsvt.org

Kindness Connection: COTS in Burlington 02/15/2024

From Jan Riordan:

Host Jan Riordan interviews Jonathan Farrell. Jonathan is the Executive Director of COTS in Burlington. COTS advocates for long-term solutions to end homelessness and provides emergency shelter, services, and long-term housing for people who are experiencing homelessness or are marginally housed.

For more information visit: https://cotsonline.org/

League Of Women Voters - Redistricting 02/14/2024

For more information visit: lwvofvt.org | Questions: league@lwvofvt.org

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont Senate Committee on Finance - Discussion of S. 181 Community Media Public Benefit Bill 02/14/2024

Testimony of the Community Media Public Benefit Bill S.181 at the Senate Committee on Finance.

On Wednesday, the committee discussed the possibility of a streaming tax rather than a pole attachment tax, per the request of Senator Chittenden. They had legislative counsel in (Kirby Keeten). Senator Chittenden talked about the possibility of a 1% excise tax on streaming, but he didn’t know how much money that would raise. He expressed concern about more taxes for businesses, rather than on the consumers (confusing because the proposal is an excise tax). Senator Cummings talked about the franchise fees and their decline, and then this could be the alternative, but they don’t know how to do it.

S.181 as introduced:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/Docs/BILLS/S-0181/S-0181%20As%20Introduced.pdf

Community Media Public Benefit Bill: H.575 and S.181: Vermont House Committee on Ways and Means - Discussion of H.657 Modernize Vermont’s Communications Taxes and Fees 02/14/2024

Discussion of H.657 a bill meant to modernize Vermont's communications taxes and fees at the House Committee on Ways and Means.

On Wednesday, the committee went over a new draft of H.657. Maria Royle walked through the draft, and the changes were all in the non-PEG part of the bill (we did not take detailed notes on this part of the bill). Chair Kornheiser indicated that this committee needs to vote on this bill by the end of this week/early next week at the latest if the bill is going to move.

Draft 1.3 H.657:
https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/House%20Ways%20and%20Means/Bills/H.657/W~Maria%20Royle~H.657%20Ways%20and%20Means%20Amendment,%20Draft%201.3~2-14-2024.pdf

Featured Story

CCTV Receives NEH Grant to Support Community Archives

CCTV Center for Media & Democracy is pleased to announce receipt of a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Humanities Collections and Reference Resources grant alongside 32 peer archival institutions across the country. This $49,927 grant award will support efforts to preserve and expand access to audio/visual community history materials in the CCTV Archives. Read more about this opportunity here!