Dozens of beekeepers, students, conservationists, environmental advocates, and pollinator enthusiasts of all sorts gathered at the State House to make the case for providing greater protections for bees and other pollinators. A key legislative committee took up the bill (H.706) with hopes of passing it, but at the end of the day the vote was …
Popular legislation to modernize the Bottle Bill will have to wait another year. The Vermont state Senate fell short today in its attempt to override the governor’s veto of popular legislation that would have modernized the state’s 52-year-old Bottle Bill program. Seventeen senators voted to override and twenty were required in order to achieve the …
The Vermont House of Representatives made quick work today of overriding Gov. Phil Scott’s veto of legislation designed to modernize the state’s popular Bottle Bill program. Even with five members who had supported the bill absent today, the vote was 112-32, an extraordinary margin for an override. Supporters included Democrats, Republicans, Progressives, and independents. Every …
Vermont House Easily Overrides Veto of Bottle Bill Legislation Read More »
The Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG) today announced the results of the organization’s “Mock Ranked Choice Voting Republican Presidential Primary Election” for the Republican Presidential Primary. VPIRG held the mock primary over a two-week period coinciding with much attention around the first official debate of the presidential primary season. The organization is one of …
At the close of the 2023 legislative session, the Vermont Legislature overrode Governor Scott’s veto of the Affordable Heat Act (S.5), capping a 2 year effort with a victory for Vermonters and the climate. S.5 requires the Public Utility Commission to design a program to require fossil fuel importers to offer Vermonters incentives and up-front …
Polling Shows Vermonters Overwhelmingly Support Affordable Heat Read More »
Governor Phil Scott has vetoed legislation designed to update and substantially expand the scope of the state’s popular beverage redemption program, commonly known as the Bottle Bill. The proposed legislation passed last Tuesday when the House of Representatives concurred with a version of the bill approved by the Senate last month. The House action came …
Gov. Scott Vetoes Vermont’s Popular Bottle Bill Update Read More »
The Vermont Legislature gave final approval to legislation that would update and substantially expand the scope of the state’s popular beverage redemption program, commonly known as the Bottle Bill. The House of Representatives concurred on Tuesday with a version of the bill passed by the Senate last month. The House action came during a special …
Modernizing Vermont’s Popular Bottle Bill Is Now Up To Gov. Scott Read More »
Environmental leaders launched a new campaign today to hold the largest corporate climate polluters accountable for the tremendous damage their product has caused in Vermont. The Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG) led the effort – called “Make Big Oil Pay” – in a campaign kick-off event just outside City Hall in Burlington. The event …
New Campaign Aims To “Make Big Oil Pay” For Climate Damage in Vermont Read More »
Today, Vermont’s Governor signed into law S.137, a bill that gives municipal utility Burlington Electric Department the power to create new incentives to help high-volume gasoline users switch to electric vehicles. This is the first law in the country designed specifically to help low- and moderate-income drivers using extreme amounts of gasoline – more than …
The 2023 Vermont legislative session has come to a close, marking the halfway point of the 2023-2024 biennium. The VPIRG team secured a number of significant legislative victories – shepherding some landmark public interest policies into law, while making important progress on other bills that will need to brought across the finish line in 2024. …
