Last Friday and Saturday the Legislature worked late into the night and adjourned the 2007 session. As usual the last week was filled with speculation if all the Committee of Conferences could come to agreement and when we would finish. Many legislators attended meetings of the “big” bills as we waited for the work to finish but most of the discussion and guessing centered on two; the Education Cost Containment bill, H.526 and the energy bill, H.520. Both of these bills started in House committees but received major changes in the Senate, thus the need for extensive work by a Committee of Conference.
     The energy bill, H.526, “The Conservation of Energy and Increasing the Generation of Electricity within the State by Use of Renewable Resources” will expand the very successful Efficiency Vermont program. Currently Efficiency Vermont can only help Vermonters reduce their electrical energy use; H.526 will expand that to oil, propane and kerosene. To fund the startup of the expanded program the generation tax on Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee will be changed to the same amount that is charged for Wind Generation. A couple of questions I was asked: Does this break the deal made with Vermont Yankee two years ago? No, that deal was only for the storage of spent fuel in dry casks. Will this undermine negotiations to buy Yankee power after the current contract expires in 2012? This new rate expires when the contract expires and a new rate will be part of the new contract.
     “Education Quality and Cost Control”, H.520 had the Governor’s proposal of putting a cap on school budgets added in the Senate. I disagreed with the idea of an artificial cap and shared with many of you that I would not vote for it. But the bill had over 30 other very good sections to help control costs and improve quality. The cap was removed in favor of a method where high spending school districts (above the state average) whose per pupil budget increases more than the Benchmark amount (average of the previous year’s per pupil spending multiple by a customer price index) will have two articles for their budget vote. One article will be for the budget amount up to the Benchmark, the second for spending above the Benchmark. This will highlight to taxpayers when spending increases in their district are above statewide averages. It will take effect when we vote budgets for the 2009-10 school year. The potential savings from H.520 is projected at $14.8 million.
     A yearlong project for seventh graders at Browns River Middle School was to follow and lobby for the passage of a bill to limit school buses from idling while waiting for students at school. Students testified before Natural Resources & Energy and Education committees. Five students watched the House debate bill S.13 and students at BRMS listened to the debate via theVermont Public Radio website. The bill passed both the House and Senate and I have asked the Governor to come to BRMS to sign the bill. Watch for an announcement that he is coming.
     The session is over but feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss these or any other issues or if you need any help contacting State Government. Rep. Symington and I are writing an end of session report that will highlight many of the bills passed this session. If you would like a copy, either email or paper, contact me; Rep.BillFrank@verizon.net, 899-3136 or 19 Pokerhill Rd, Underhill 05489.