Press release on legislative priorities for the 2023-2024 biennium

Vermont Progressive House Caucus and State Senator hold Press Conference in the Vermont State House announcing their priorities for the 2023-2024 biennium

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 17, 2023

Contacts: Rep. Emma Mulvaney-Stanak/ Rep. Taylor Small

Phone: 802-448-0838/802-391-0569

Email: EMulvaneyStanak@leg.state.vt.us/TSmall@leg.state.vt.us

MONTPELIER: On Tuesday, the Progressive House Caucus and State Senator (Rep. Emma Mulvaney Stanak, Rep. Taylor Small, Rep. Brian Cina, Rep. Troy Headrick, Rep. Kate Logan and Senator Tanya Vyhovsky) held a press conference in the Cedar Creek Room at Vermont’s State House announcing their priorities for the biennium. The priorities are as follows and, linked here, is the full platform:  

Public Education:

In 2021, the House Progressive Caucus led the fight for improved working conditions for educators, raising funding for the education system and protecting teachers’ pensions. 

This biennium, Progressives’ will work to continue to protect and invest in our public employees, especially educators, fully fund public pensions by holding the state accountable to its promise to public employees, and to ensure that the challenges to hire educators and support staff is addressed in the legislature’s ongoing efforts to address workforce needs. 

Community Safety and Equity: 

In 2021, Progressives introduced and successfully passed the LGBTQ+ panic defense bill into law, as well as the Health Equity Advisory Commission. Additionally, Progressives passed the BIPOC-led Land Access and Opportunity Act as well as artificial intelligence bills ensuring more transparency and oversight as AI grows. Policing and criminalization have failed to actually keep communities safe. This biennium, Progressives will support and introduce legislation to address disparities in the criminal justice system, to create community oversight of police, and to replace the corrections system with a new approach that reduces recidivism and promotes recovery. Progressives will also advocate for stronger protections for marginalized community members, the decriminalization of sex work, and much more. 

Economic Dignity:

In 2021, Progressives worked tirelessly to address the broken unemployment system, fund the 2022 Worker Covid Relief Fund, and invest in BIPOC owned businesses as well as remove antiquated and racist work requirements, and to pass Just Cause Eviction, which was ultimately vetoed. This biennium, progressives hope to minimize growing wealth inequality in our state by fighting for workplace protections and workers rights, wages that reflect the cost of living in Vermont, housing policy that does not leave tenants and low to moderate income homeowners struggling to keep up, and real, universal paid family leave that is funded and accessible to all.

Climate justice:

We know that another crisis that threatens all of us is well underway. To maintain life on Earth as we know it, humanity will need to radically change how we relate to our environment. This biennium, critical work on climate includes expanding public transit to reduce car dependency and ensure equitable transportation options for all Vermonters, as well as increasing bike and walkability in our towns. The legislature needs to pass climate legislation with legitimate definitions of clean energy (i.e. not including biofuels and natural gas), that prioritizes energy independence and phases out the use of carbon credits. The Affordable Heating Act, a new version of last session's Clean Heat Standard, could be just this if amended as Progressives and groups like 350 VT have advocated for. It is critical that we fund our local farms and advocate for adequate funding from Congress when the Federal Farm Bill is reinstated this year. We must work every step of the way to ensure a just transition away from fossil fuels for marginalized Vermonters.

Access to Government and Democracy:

In 2021, Progressives led the work to allow ballot curing designed to fix errors made in early voting to protect a voter’s right to have their ballot fixed and counted. Progressives also led the effort, through charter changes, to advance ranked choice voting and all-resident voting  in local elections. This biennium, Progressives will advocate for meaningful campaign finance reform, ranked choice voting beyond Burlington, expanding all-resident voting, and addressing an antiquated, inequitable compensation system for Vermont state legislators.

Collaboration:

We won’t be able to build a sustainable future for Vermont if we continue to believe the false narrative of zero sum thinking. Vermonters deserve big, bold policy changes that acknowledge the interconnectedness of the many critical policy issues facing us. Issues should not be pitted against one another and forced to compete for resources or space on a political agenda. Instead, we must dismantle silos and think of interconnected solutions. Vermonters are counting on us.