Vermont Legislature SmartTranscripts:

[Speaker 0]: We are back live Wednesday afternoon, eighteenth, and we're back still working on the t bill. We were last looking at, I think, the language of private electric piece and also finishing on the discussion about the mileage based user fees that will start to be collected on the 01/01/2027. So I would try to see where we're back at in terms of that mileage based seizure fee. There was a discussion with JFO and some pieces where we had been meeting and seeing how much that might be. So I would say, Patricia, want take it away from that?

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: Yeah, so based on the conversation I had with JFO, I think it's really hard to pin down a number on the mBuff because there's just so many options that are available for users starting in January. So it's going to be hard to lock in a number. So based off of that, it's going to be hard to, you know, set a number and say it's going to go towards towns. So I guess I'll be making a motion to reconsider what we approved a short while ago with the pilot fund monies of February, and readjust that based on the conversation with the joint fiscal, and I'll make a motion to drop that down to 192. And then the other 100,000 would go towards balancing our budget because of the $10,000,000 that the governor originally built his budget on. With the Ways and Means amendment, it's going down to 9.9. So we have to make that whole. So that'd be like the first $100,000 for the money that's sitting on the bottom line would go to balance our budget, and then the excess of 192 would go towards drive electric. And then as far as trying to get money towards towns, is that even though that you can't really pin down a number, I recommend that we just have general language directing any funds that are generated between January to June 30 be directed towards Town Highway And hopefully it'll be significant, but could be a dollar apparently, or less than a dollar. So that's my mindset to sort of move things forward and get us to sort of include our, I think one of our last sections of the T Bill. So with that, I guess I make a motion to reconsider our actions on the use of the 292,000

[Speaker 0]: final fund. Seconded. Any comments?

[Unidentified Committee Member]: I think this is a fair compromise all the way around. And we can't count on the mBuff. And at some, I mean, by July 1, that mBuff's going to the TFOC. So this is reasonable.

[Speaker 0]: Any other comments? All those in favor? Vice chair's motion, double thumbs up.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: Great. So that amounts I give you the instructions you need? Well, let me be clear. So a 192,000 is the sum now. Right? Correct. Yeah. And then you mentioned other language that you would like.

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: It is yeah. So the 100,000 towards balancing our budget, you know, how you do that.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: But that just will Okay. So I'll just wash. Yeah.

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: So and then and then the the second piece is any excess or any revenue generated from the Milespace user fee shall be deposited in the Town Highway program. So

[Speaker 0]: at the end of the fiscal year? Yeah, fiscal year.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: You want that to be like, an intent statement. It's the intent of the general assembly that any amounts generated by the mileage based user fee in fiscal year twenty seven be allocated to fiscal year 'twenty eight Town Highway 8, in addition to over and above any amounts are Everybody provided

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: said separate from each tenant, because the tenant language is my mind. Okay. Mine. So shall, or however you want to do it, get it towards the times.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: Let me draw something and I'll let you look at it.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: 9.9? Is that are we getting that? Yes. Yeah, I go get it.

[Speaker 0]: Short of the 10,000,000, which is why we're throwing this extra.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: No, I understand that. Was just I was just curious if we were gonna get it in the first place because I talked to a few different people in the building. They say, fat chance. And it's like,

[Speaker 0]: that's what we hear. And I gotta tell you, it hasn't passed. Well, that's what I'm saying. Let's say it's got a problem. You're right. It's in

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: a bill.

[Speaker 0]: It's in it's in our it's in the It's in the big bill. It's in the big bill, like you heard from William yesterday, but it has not passed. I can't say

[Unidentified Committee Member]: It's not the way we originally were Ways and Means is doing kind of gymnastics with It's how not the way we originally thought it was going to come to us, but it is coming to It's

[Unidentified Committee Member]: not bad when you ask for 10,000,000, you get 9.9.

[Speaker 0]: Turn around and you go, Thanks very much.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: Good point.

[Speaker 0]: Okay, so let me make sure I understand. And you're going to write this language, we're going to move it into, or we're adjusting it into T Bill, and then we should have a completely full T Bill with some finance, do we need financial adjustments here on anything that we have on the budget on the page or anything like that? Just the

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: one time electric, but you all have that, so I would put that on the page.

[Speaker 0]: Before we go to the for the floor. We don't need anything else. And then as requested, when we get to there, I don't know how long that'll be, everybody will have the final T bill and we will get at least your fifteen to twenty minutes. Now every section except the last one has been thumbed up. Okay, so there's not like we're getting a bill that we haven't read. It's not, we're not Congress, you're not getting a bill that you haven't seen before or read. That No, you deny it. Every piece of it you have thumbed up at one point or another. Whether it was back in February, there was February, there was again yesterday and today, every section that's in there, correct me if I'm wrong, in legislative council, every section in there has been reviewed and thumbed up at some point. Yes. And then we're going to go back make sure that it does say what we think, and then we're gonna vote on it. And I'm gonna we'll have Patty back from the floor to do that vote. We're trying to do it before we finish on the floor, and we will look for representative Wells to call in. How much time do you need before we bring everybody or they'll they'll be able to print their final versions? Give a

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: few minutes to finish drafting this, and then I will throw it up on the screen quickly so that you can review it. And then give it a thumbs up, and I'll send it to the editors. And while during that time, you all can review Okay. The draft. And then, hopefully, they'll send a clean copy that you can vote. Hopefully, you won't have changes. So I just need two minutes right now.

[Speaker 0]: We'll sit on live here for a couple of minutes and sing and practice our cabaret skit. Mike? You're happy. Alleged counsel is gonna bring up some language on the screen for us to look at, and then we're gonna make sure we're set.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: Alright. So this just provides that all net revenues generated by the mileage based user fee in state fiscal year 2027 shall be allocated to the appropriation for general state aid down highways in state fiscal year 2028. The amounts allocated shall be in addition to any amounts appropriated pursuant to the requirements of that statute. So this will be over and above what's in there.

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: We're

[Speaker 0]: gonna give the final bill a thumbs up, and then go to editing and print it, and then come back and vote. Okay. So what time do you want me back?

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: I have there's two more bills.

[Speaker 0]: We will try to vote at 05:10? Five. Five.

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: Five. Five minutes.

[Speaker 0]: Well, I've got to do it before the four ends. I don't know what two bills need. Two bills. Okay.

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: We're planning

[Speaker 0]: on voting between 05:10 and five 05:50.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: I'll ask the editors to have it back as Set enough time. As they can. I think so. I'll send it to them, and I can send I'll send everyone the draft for you to review while we're waiting. And as soon as we're back, hopefully, we'll be all set.

[Speaker 0]: There was is there another section that there's no other section Oh, the other Yeah. The other I don't know. That was

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: The 192,000. I didn't see that in it. It did not. I can show it to you quickly. It's still got a lot longer today.

[Speaker 0]: I don't know what you have do, what to avoid, there's a notify the clerk's office, there's a bill coming out, we only passed one year, so I don't even know how that process works. But I know our life counselling did the photo walk me through it one other time.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: So this is going to be a

[Speaker 0]: recording world too at 05:15.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: Yeah. This is a committee bill. So the final version, you will need to I will send a copy of it to drafting operations with you copied, and you as the chair will have to say, yes. The committee approved introduction of this bill. Please print it. Okay. They will have it printed for tomorrow. Okay. So alright. So there's the $192,000 number changed from $2.92. Looks good. Okay. I will send all of you a copy of the draft.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: Send it via email.

[Legislative Counsel (Office of Legislative Counsel)]: I will. To the whole committee and to Matt. You wanna go off live? I'm

[Speaker 0]: We're good with everything there? Wait a minute. Did we see the last of that part?

[Patricia McCoy (Member)]: Yeah, yeah. He drove

[Speaker 0]: the one. Are we thumbs up with the last of that language and everybody saying, Okay, thank you. Let's send it all officially out. And we will have we can go well, we will be back. The committee will vote at 05:15 on the final version of the t vote.