Climate & Energy

New Program Creates Cost- and Carbon-Cutting Opportunities for Vermont Municipalities

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The Legislature crafted and yesterday Governor Phil Scott signed H.518, the Municipal Energy Resilience Initiatives Bill into law, setting the stage for $45 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to support municipalities with technical assistance, energy assessments and municipal weatherization, fuel switching and other potential cost- and carbon-cutting …

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Community Leaders Hail Enactment of VT’s First Environmental Justice Law

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Will address environmental harms disproportionately affecting many communities A diverse coalition of environmental justice leaders celebrated the enactment of the state’s first-ever environmental justice law, which earned Vermont Governor Phil Scott’s signature on Tuesday. The bill, S.148, passed with strong tri-partisan supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature before arriving at his desk. This law …

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2022 VT Legislative Session Recap

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

We’ve recently wrapped up a busy, successful – and, in some cases, challenging – legislative session. VPIRG members helped win some exciting victories on environmental justice, getting mercury out of lighting in Vermont, a record-setting $200 million for climate action in the budget, and more! But we also faced some disappointments–falling just short in our …

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Don’t Let Gov. Scott Sink the Environmental Justice Bill

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We recently heard that Governor Phil Scott is considering vetoing the environmental justice bill, S.148, which passed with overwhelming tri-partisan support in both the Senate (28-1) and House (109-31). In this last week of the legislative session, and with reports that they will not hold a session where they could override his veto, he can enact …

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Governor Scott And A Minority Of Lawmakers Stymie Climate Progress

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A Win For Big Oil And Keeping Vermonters Tethered To Polluting & Costly Heating Systems After the Vermont House narrowly failed to override the Governor’s veto of the Clean Heat Standard (H.715) on a 99-51 vote,  Vermont has once again delayed essential climate progress. The Clean Heat Standard – a performance-based approach that would require …

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S.148 is Headed to the Governor’s Desk! 

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S.148, the environmental justice bill, is headed to the governor’s desk! After initially passing out of the State Senate in late March, the Senate has now concurred with the version of the bill passed resoundingly by the House just days ago. This legislative victory puts Vermont on track to enact its first environmental justice law, …

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Community Leaders & Lawmakers Call for Passage of Environmental Justice Bill

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Today, community leaders and legislators gathered in Montpelier to call for passage of the state’s first comprehensive Environmental Justice bill, S.148. Leaders discussed environmental justice issues in Vermont, and the actions being taken to remedy known inequities among impacted populations. Vermont is one of only a handful of states that lacks an environmental justice policy, …

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VT Senate advances environmental justice

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The State Senate just took a major step towards environmental justice (EJ) in Vermont. S.148, which would be the state’s first environmental justice law, passed Tuesday on an overwhelming, tri-partisan 28-1 vote.   We at VPIRG have joined dozens of groups supporting this bill because we see it as an essential step to bring more communities …

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