Late last month, the Vermont Senate cleared the final hurdle to ensuring the Global Warming Solutions Act becomes law with the upper chamber’s 22-8 override of Gov. Phil Scott’s veto. I am thrilled to see the act pass, with both chambers of the General Assembly upholding overwhelming majorities in favor (the House vote was 103-47). …
For a few months now, we at VPIRG have been expanding some of our research, advocacy, and organizing to include issues related to criminal justice reform and public safety. And we’ve been following the shocking reporting of mismanagement coming out of the Mississippi prison that houses more than 200 incarcerated Vermonters. The prison is owned by CoreCivic, a private prison corporation. 84% of the Vermonters incarcerated there …
Stop Out of State and Private Prison Incarceration Read More »
Back in August, we joined the ACLU of Vermont, Justice for All, and over a dozen other organizations in proposing a 10-point platform for reimagining policing in Vermont. Now, Vermont has an opportunity to take an incremental but concrete step towards improving public safety with legislation governing police use of force statewide. This use of force bill, S.119, would promote peaceful, de-escalatory resolution while also providing clarity and uniformity around how and when police are authorized to use physical force in …
Improving Policing in VT – Vote Needed this Week Read More »
Update: You can find our take on Gov Scott’s veto below. As the House was preparing for its ultimately successful override vote on Thursday, however, the chair and vice chair of House Energy, Reps Tim Briglin (D-Norwich) and Laura Sibilia (I-Dover) spoke eloquently and in detail as to why, in their view, the Governor was …
Our Thoughts on Gov Scott’s Veto of The Solutions Act Read More »
Today, VPIRG joined the ACLU of Vermont, Justice for All, and more than a dozen other organizations in releasing a letter urging Vermont leaders to fundamentally reimagine the role of police in Vermont communities and to commit to the ten-point action plan below. Police reform is just one component of a much broader push to …
Two months ago, after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers, we told you that VPIRG “stands in solidarity with those demanding justice and working to address systemic racism.” Solidarity isn’t about making a statement – it’s about taking action. In launching our Racial Justice Program, we are committed to doing more than …
Today VPIRG joined with more than 40 Vermont businesses and organizations and over 600 individual Vermonters to deliver a letter to Vermont lawmakers thanking them for their work thus far to respond to the COVID-19 crisis in Vermont and for continuing to make action on the climate crisis a priority this year. Over the past …
Coalition Thanks Lawmakers for COVID Work; Continuing Climate Work Read More »
Over the past two plus months, the legislature has been hard at work addressing the immediate needs of Vermonters as the COVID-19 crisis has unfolded. Legislators have passed or dug into putting a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, directing hazard pay to essential workers, enabling safe elections during the pandemic, addressing financial strains on our …
The Transportation bill being debated in the VT legislature creates a program to help Vermonters who are low income repair cars’ emissions control systems, keeping pollution out of our air. Unfortunately, it also lets cars that fail emissions tests off the hook as long as they’re 15 years old or older, allowing them to pollute …
Old vehicle emissions: Fix them, don’t exempt them Read More »
In July 2017, Gov. Phil Scott established the Vermont Climate Action Commission, tasked with creating a plan for Vermont to meet our climate and energy commitments. The commission recently released its final report and, unfortunately, it’s a 119-page disappointment. The report fails for three reasons. First, Gov. Scott corrupted the process by allowing politics to trump policy, …
