Issues

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The data center bill excuse you may be hearing — and why it doesn’t hold up

Climate & Energy, News and Updates / By

Last week, VPIRG asked its members to let the representatives who voted to sustain Governor Scott’s veto of the data center bill (H.727) know they were disappointed. Many did — thank you. It’s come to our attention that some of the representatives who voted with the governor are now offering a striking explanation for their vote: that …

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2026 Legislative Recap 

Bottle Bill, Climate & Energy, Consumer Protection, Elections and Government Reform, News and Updates, Toxics & Environmental Health, Zero Waste / By

CLIMATE & ENERGY Passing the nation’s strongest regulations on AI data center development VPIRG led the effort to strengthen and pass H.727, which Gov Scott ultimately vetoed despite hundreds of VPIRG members and other Vermonters urging him to side with Vermont ratepayers over Big Tech. The bill would have ensured Vermonters don’t wind up paying …

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Why is the Koch’s Dark Money Group Trying to Kill Vermont’s Data center bill?

Climate & Energy, News and Updates / By

Gov. Scott now has one of the strongest data center laws in the nation on his desk, and he has until Thursday night to sign or veto it. The bad news? Gov. Scott’s own staff have joined Americans for Prosperity (AFP), a core right-wing group in the Koch Brothers’ dark money network, to oppose it.1, 2 If …

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Governor Signs Paraquat Ban (H.739) into Law

News and Updates, Press Releases, Toxics & Environmental Health / By

Vermont Becomes the First State in the Nation to Ban Paraquat and Reduce Risk of Parkinson’s Disease Montpelier, VT — Governor Phil Scott signed landmark legislation into law today, making Vermont the first state in the nation to ban the toxic herbicide paraquat, which is linked to Parkinson’s disease. Health and environmental advocates celebrated the …

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Vermont’s legislature just passed one of the strongest data center laws in the country — now the ball’s in the Governor’s court.

Climate & Energy, News and Updates / By

Something remarkable just happened at the Vermont State House.  The Vermont legislature just passed H.727 — the bill to regulate any data centers proposed here — with an overwhelming, bipartisan supermajority: 26-3 in the Senate, and with just a smattering of “no’s” on a voice vote in the House. That kind of margin doesn’t happen …

Vermont’s legislature just passed one of the strongest data center laws in the country — now the ball’s in the Governor’s court. Read More »

Organized network server cables for efficient data management.

Vermont’s Data Center Bill Clears Senate Committee 5-0 — Here’s What’s in It 

Climate & Energy, News and Updates / By

Late this morning, the Senate Natural Resources & Energy Committee voted 5-0 — unanimously, with bipartisan support — to advance a far stronger version of H.727, the data center regulation bill, than passed the Vermont House earlier this year. The bill now heads to the full Senate floor.  VPIRG has been deep in this work for months. Here’s what …

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Organized network server cables for efficient data management.

No Free Rides For Data Centers.

Climate & Energy, Consumer Protection, News and Updates, Uncategorized / By

Today is Earth Day — and this year, one of the most important things you can do to protect Vermont’s climate future has nothing to do with Washington, D.C. – it’s happening right here, in the State House in Montpelier.  You’ve probably heard about the massive boom in data centers nationwide, driven by the rapid …

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Data Matters: Don’t Overlook GHG Reporting

Climate & Energy, News and Updates / By

There is an important but overlooked climate bill winding its way through the State House right now: H.740. It would create a new, robust statewide carbon pollution and fossil fuel reporting program. And thanks to the voices of Vermonters like you, H.740 passed the House of Representatives! But our work isn’t done, and the importance of …

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Legal Defense of the Climate Superfund Act: An Update

Climate & Energy, Climate Superfund Act, News and Updates / By

A week ago, I visited the federal courthouse in Rutland, where the office of Vermont’s Attorney General Charity Clark defended our state’s landmark Climate Superfund Act from attacks by the oil industry, Republican attorneys general from other states, and the Trump Administration. Here’s the update…  Climate change is hitting Vermont hard and is costing us …

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