Meetings
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[Speaker 0]: Will
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: the house please come to order and members kindly take their seats? Good afternoon. The devotional today will be led by representative Chris Morrow of Weston.
[Representative Mollie S. Burke]: Good
[Representative Christopher Morrow]: afternoon. Good I'd afternoon. Like to tell you a story about a farmer. I first heard this story decades ago and hadn't thought about it in quite a while, but last session, sitting out there and in committee room, I thought about it a number of times. This is the story of an old farmer who had a favorite a favorite draft horse, and one day his horse ran away. Upon hearing this news, his neighbors came to visit. Such bad luck, they said. Maybe, the farmer said. The next morning, the horse came back with three wild horses. The neighbors came back again and said, ah, such good luck. Maybe, the farmer said. The following day, his only son tried to ride one of tame one of the the wild horses, got thrown, broke his leg. Again, the neighbors came back and said, oh, that's terrible. Maybe, farmer said. The day after that, the military came to town drafting young men in the army. Seeing that his son's legs was broken, they passed him by. You know, the neighbors came by. All their sons were gone into the army. They said, you got so lucky. Maybe, farmer said. And this story could go on and on. But this story shows how we can never truly know how a situation is going to turn out. It is only what happened and how we can respond. One of the first Zen masters to come to The United States was named Suzuki Roshi. There's a famous book of his talks called Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind. And in it, he says, in the beginner's mind, there are many possibilities. In the expert's minds, there are few. Now we all know we need more experts in this building, and we are supremely grateful for the expertise of Ledge Council and Joint Fiscal. But I've always liked this quote because it reminds me to listen with a fresh mind. I have an app on my phone that sends me a quote each morning. And in a nod to synchronicity, this morning, it sent me a quote by a Polish poet, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1996. She says, whatever inspiration is, it's born from a continuous I don't know. Whatever inspiration is, it's born from a continuous I don't know. If you prefer a Christian viewpoint, we can turn to the fourteenth century text, the cloud of unknowing. The message of the cloud of un of unknowing is that god cannot be understood via reason or intellect. By love, may he be gotten and holden, but never through thought. To achieve this goal, the text recommends cultivating two mental states. One, the cloud of forgetting, which is temporarily setting aside one's knowledge and intellect. And two, the cloud of unknowing, where god dwells beyond human understanding and can be comprehended only through love. Why am I bringing all this up in a body of this charge with making decisions based on data and knowledge and reason and intellect? Because for me, it is a good reminder to be humble, to understand that our actions have unintended consequences, and that our rigid opinions and fixed mindsets might not be our best assets when we are trying to problem solve. Maybe openness, curiosity, and a beginner's mind are where what we should value. Thank you.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Thank you. Members, we have 15 house bills for introduction today. So with that, member from Hultney, can you please offer us a motion to suspend our rules to introduce bills by number only?
[Representative Patricia McCoy]: Madam speaker, I make a motion to suspend rules in order to introduce bills by number only.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Member from Pultely moves that we suspend our rules to introduce bills by number only. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. And you have suspended rules to introduce bills by number only. Please listen to the first reading of bills by number only.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven two seven.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To energy and digital infrastructure.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven two eight.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To judiciary.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven two nine.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To government operations and military affairs.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H 730.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To environment.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H 731.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To environment.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven thirty two. To ways and means. H seven thirty three.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To commerce and economic development.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven thirty four.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To government operations and military affairs.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven thirty five.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To government operations and military affairs.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H 736.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To health care.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H 737.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To environment. H seven thirty eight. To human services.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven thirty nine.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To agriculture, food resiliency and forestry.
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: H seven forty.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To energy and digital infrastructure. And
[BetsyAnn Wrask, House Clerk]: h seven forty one.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: To judiciary. Members at this time we have a joint senate resolution to take up. JRS 34 is a joint resolution relating to weaken adjournment on 01/23/2026. It was offered by senator Bartholomew was read and adopted on the part of the senate. Please listen to the reading of the resolution.
[House Reading Clerk]: Resolved by the senate and house of representatives that when the two houses adjourn on Friday, 01/23/2026, be to meet again no later than Tuesday, 01/27/2026.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Now you've heard the reading of the resolution, and the question is, shall the house adopt the resolution in concurrence? Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it, and the resolution is adopted in concurrence. Members, we do not have an action calendar today, so this will be our only set of announcements. Are there any announcements? Member from Burlington.
[Representative Brian Cina]: Tonight is Farmers Night, doors at seven, show at 07:30. Really, really cool event tonight. Bob Wagner, who's a Burlington or well, he lives in Burlington, but he's Vermont native, singer songwriter, guitar player. He's played with fish, with Cat Wright, bunch of cool people, and it's pretty awesome that y'all get to see him play for free tonight, 07:30. If you wanna reserve your seat, put a little sign on your desk before you leave the chamber.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Member from Waterbury.
[Representative Theresa Wood]: Madam speaker, house human services, moves that it be relieved of h seven twenty four, an act relating to administration of involuntary psychiatric medication in emergency circumstances and that the same be, assigned to house health care.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: The member from Waterbury moves that the committee on human services be relieved of house bill seven twenty four, which is an act relating to the administration of involuntary psychiatric medication in emergency circumstances and that the same be committed to the committee on healthcare. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor please say aye. Aye. All those opposed please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. And you have relieved the committee on human services of house bill seven twenty four and committed the same to the committee on healthcare. Member from Berkshire.
[Representative Lisa Hango]: The Lake Carmi Campers Association and Franklin Watershed Committee is going to be in the cafeteria today at 04:00. Please join them for ice cream and an opportunity to discuss efforts to help our state's only designated lake in crisis.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Member from Callis.
[Representative Marc Mihaly]: Madam speaker, I move that the committee on general and housing be relieved of House Bill six sixty one, which is an act relating to workers' compensation coverage for firefighters with cancer, and that the same be committed to the committee on commerce and economic development.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: The member from CALS moves that the committee on general and housing be relieved of house bill six sixty one, which is an act relating to workers' compensation cover coverage for firefighters with cancer and that the same be committed to the committee on commerce and economic development. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. And you have relieved the committee on general and housing of house bill six sixty one and committed the same to the committee on commerce and economic development. Member from Brattleboro.
[Representative Mollie S. Burke]: Thank you, madam speaker. The climate solutions caucus will meet tomorrow at noon in Room 10. We will have a presentation on the environmental the common environmental agenda, and we will have pizza. So please join us. Thank you.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Member from Bradford.
[Speaker 0]: Madam speaker, I have a guest in the gallery. Michelle Nie is a tech and AI policy researcher at the Center for a New American Security. Could the body please help me welcome her to the people's house?
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Will the guest member from Bradford please rise and be recognized? Member from Guilford.
[Unknown member from Guilford]: Madam speaker, I've wondered if this would happen, and it did today. I walked into the into the chamber, and there's a friend here sitting in the gallery that I was totally not expecting. I'd like to welcome her to the to the room here. Mary Thome from Halifax, next town over from Guilford, was one of my wife's caregivers at the end of her life. So I'd like to welcome her here today. She's been visiting a representative from Halifax and attending meetings and so forth today. So she's here.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Will the guest, the member from Guilford, please rise and be recognized? Are there any further announcements? Member from Colchester.
[Unknown member from Colchester]: Yes, thank you. I would like to wish my roommate and dearest friend a happy birthday today. I won't mention her name but she's sitting right next to me.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: Happy birthday member. Are there any further announcements? Seeing none, member from Pultely, can you please offer us a motion to adjourn until Thursday, January 22 at 3PM?
[Representative Patricia McCoy]: Madam speaker, I make a motion this body stand in adjournment until Thursday, 01/22/2026 at 3PM.
[Speaker Jill Krowinski]: You have heard the motion. Are you ready for the question? If so, all those in favor, please say aye. Aye. All those opposed, please say nay. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it, and this body stands in a