Vermont Legislature SmartTranscripts:

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Good afternoon and welcome into the Senate Committee on Government Operations Committee meeting of Wednesday, 02/11/2026. The first item of the day is the Vermont State Youth Council. Many of you, well, maybe not, some of you may have been here last year. Some of you were new faces maybe. And again, just Here's our final For purposes of being able to prove that you are here, should that become important somewhere down the road, we'll introduce ourselves. And then one by one, a few folks would introduce yourself. And then I think it's, Brianne that's gonna, take the chair, and you could move there now to free up one of those.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: Oh, no. I'm I'm just doing the Oh. Presentation.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Well, somebody else can sit in the chair.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: You know? Hop in when they're here to go.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: So the missing senator is Senator Morley from Orleans County, Essex County. And this is?

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Alison Clarkson, Windsor District. Brian Collamore, representing the Rutland District.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: Lynn Jakubovsky, Committee Assistant. Tanya Vyhovsky, representing the Chittenden Central District.

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: And I'm Becca White, and I'm the Windsor County State Senator.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: So if we could start Together. There and just go around the room.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: I'm Vince Durham. I'm from St. Louis, Vermont.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: My name is Hailey M. I'm from Williston, Vermont.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: Sorry. What's your percent? Hailey.

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: I'm Aileen Ottenden. I'm the chair of Vermont City Council, and I'm from Thompson, Vermont.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: I'm Elizabeth Daley. I'm from Johnson.

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: My name is Andre Tan. I'm a freshman from high school at Harvard.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: I'm Harvey Vyhovsky.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: I'm a junior at Harvard. I'm Nicole Zastra. I'm from Topsicle Monk. I'm Nicole Miller, the Executive Director of Vermont After School Research Program Council.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Okay, great.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: So, Brianne, welcome, and you could start.

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: Car. I'd like to thank you all for having us today to start out with. It's an honor to be back in State House advocating on behalf of our state. As I said, my name is Aidan Arvin, I'm from Thompson, Vermont, I'm

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: the chair of

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: Vermont State Youth Council. Founded in 2022 by Legislative Act 109, Vermont State Youth Council, its groups, now has 27 youth from all walks of life from ages 11 to 18. The council further consists of five subcommittees: Equity and Anti Racism, Climate Change, Youth Voice, Education, and Mental Health. Committees are tasked with the creation of recommendations related to their committee focus, which has been voted by the county in the composite. From there, the council is tasked with providing these recommendations to the Vermont Governor and the general assembly alongside recommendations in specific topics such as preservation of Vermont's traditions and the future of Vermont through character, activity, professions, as well as the participation of young persons in Vermont's economy and keeping young Vermonters in the state. Over the past few years, the council has held a public hearing, sent multiple surveys to Vermont youth, written and revised bylaws, and presented to the general assembly and the governor on two separate occasions. This year, we have moved forward with a new strategy of recommendation creation and presentation, which would better align with the legislative biennium. This strategy consists of presenting the recommendations at the start of the legislative biennium, leaving the latter half of that biennium as time to connect with legislators, write bills, and provide testimony. The council has also been wrapping up our outreach to youth constituents and are planning to hold several public hearings during and after the current legislative session. The Vermont City Council has been a key player in providing a platform for union voice in our government. It has allowed youth to have a real impact on each other and their futures as the leaders of tomorrow. The recommendations provided by the council are a reflection of the most pressing issues facing Vermont youth today. I will now pass it over to the education committees, and then I'll circle back to wrap up our testimony.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: Thank you. Well, look,

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Mark, he makes me ask the question.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: You certainly may. Budd Budd Otterman. Yes. That's my great grandfather.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: I served with Budd Otterman. Oh, lovely guy. Very special guy.

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: Oh, yes. Very.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: There are very few Ottomans from Thompson, so I figured you must be related.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: Yeah. Great. Thank you.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Well, great grandfather. And I certainly did. I was, of course, a very young very young,

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: an infant.

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: Well, As you know, I'm Ezra Tan. I'm 14 years old. I'm a freshman at Hercot High School at Harvard Law. I would first like to thank all of you for taking the time today to listen to these important recommendations from not only the education committees, but from all of the committees today. I am here today to give you some recommendations based on what the education committee thinks will benefit the youth of Vermont in a positive way. So the first recommendation is the Act 73, the Education Reform Bill. While we support certain aspects of Act 73, such as the funding formula, the council recommends that this law should not continue to be implemented in its current state without having reforms and edits made through. I now want to share a couple of the concerns we came up with, and these are not all of the concerns, just some of them. Number one, the stress on teachers, staff, administrators, special ed teachers, as well as many others. By consolidating schools, you make the big decision to change the lives of many of the people who hold those job stakes. Many of them will be laid off without a job and no chance of teaching improvising. And the ones who are still employed will be under tons of stress with new students, bigger classes, and possibly new areas of Vermont that they've never been to before, and that can weigh heavy on their mental health care. The other example I would like to present today is distance, more specifically bus rides. Two hours on a bus is too long for many reasons. One, it prohibits students from participating in after school activities because they already are thinking that they have to get home and have a two hour bus ride ahead of We think forty five minutes seems like a more reasonable time to spend on a bus, but even that is pushing it, and that is a really long time. The second recommendation we make today is that we recommend that financial literacy and life skills, home economics classes, be required in schools. Additionally, allowing all high school students access to alternative learning pathways, such as tech centers. With access to these classes and alternative learning pathways, you've opened up a world of possibilities for many students to transfer students who may not possess the skills in the classroom to show off their real talent and give them a sense of hope and a sense of belonging. Additionally, the life skills classes can be a game changer for a lot of students as it teaches them skills that are a necessity for living after high school. And the last recommendation we would like to make today is an increase in the number of specialized teachers, paraeducators, reading, writing, and math interventionists, certified teachers, equity scholars, counselors, clinicians, student assistance providers, translators, and many more in schools for lack of a need to be. Now, specialized teachers are necessities for schools everywhere, all over the world. And for many students, they can make the difference between effective learning and sitting in class staring blankly into space, not learning anything. The problem here is there isn't enough of these teachers in schools in Vermont, and it's not even close. One statistic I can give you is that there are less than 50 student assistance providers in schools in Vermont. Now a student assistance provider is a trusted adult in the community who is funded to do prevention with youth led coalition leaders. That means that an SAP is vital to the community when we talk about prevention. And since there are less than 50 in the state, many schools are sharing or are without an SAP altogether. Now this is concerning, because if there is no one to lead prevention in the community, there will be no prevention, period. And I use that as one example. And I can speak all day about how these special ed teachers have really helped, but I just don't have the time. So I would like to thank you guys one more time. Thank for your time to listen and engage with me. And on behalf of the Education Committee, we really do appreciate it. So thank you.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Senator Bugsy. Remind me, if you would, Ezra, what SAP stands for.

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: So an SAP is a student assistance provider.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: And they're not counselors. They're something different.

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: That is their job title. They are very similar to counselors.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: They're similar to counselors.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Yes. Because I believe we had one testified in Senate Economic Development the other day on the s one ninety eight prohibiting vaping flavor bill. Yeah. And I believe one of the few SAPs, and he was terrific. I mean, he was really and also among how few of them there are and how many are not. Absolutely.

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: We have a dedicated SAP in the Harvard School District in our middle school, and she does wonders for the school district and the community at Hartford. So specialized assistant? A student assistance provider. So much like counselors, they work with a specific type of student centered around substance, use, misuse, what they see in their lives.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Well, hence his involvement with vaping, The section of

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: the past team. Well, thank you guys so much. I'm gonna pass it over to Maggie. Okay.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: Hi, my name is I'm 17 years old.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Speak loudly so I can all hear you. My

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: name is Paige. I'm 17 years old and I live in Williston, Vermont. And I'm a junior at Campaign Valley Community School. I am the chair of the Equity and Anti Racism Committee, and we believe that all Vermont youth deserve to experience, prolong, and have the physical offices that offer hugu difference. We recommend that many Vermonters, largely those with marginalized identities, encounter systemic, cultural, and interpersonal barriers to access these rights. Our first recommendation was influenced by the DEI report presented by the Executive Director of Racial Equity for the Statement of the March on 01/15/2024. Do you want to reiterate a few of these recommendations that may have slipped through the cracks? Our first is requiring the Secretary of Education to work with the Ethics and Social Ethnology Standards in School Advisory Working Groups, to develop and maintain a model curriculum on teaching a guide to mean speech and reach school immigrant and symbolism, enabling students to recognize discrimination and to provide teaching materials, technical assistance, coordination to school districts and superintendents to implement. As a community, we recommend that schools be required to instate a curriculum that teaches these topics as a part of the required class. Another is tasking the ethics and social equity standards in school advisory work group, as mentioned previously, with a developed model curriculum on hate speech and hating pool imagery, and a model policy on racial equity. Another is requiring the school boards to adopt a policy on racial equity at least as an astringent to model policy to be developed by the Secretary for Education. Additionally, the council recommends the General Assembly adopt a statewide equity plan as recommended in the 2024 report of the executive director of racial equity to the general assumption. Our next recommendation is related to requiring schools to define and the appropriate response for any incidents of any level that occurs due to bias or prejudice using both disciplinary and restorative actions. These consequences should be suggested by individuals trained in diversity, equity, and inclusion. And this can include lessons, presentations, workshops, and restorative justice practices and dialogues related to the topic of discrimination. The council recommends the strong effort to change patterns of bias and prejudice actions without requiring victims to speak up with their youth. We also recommend passing legislation that requires schools to provide and maintain a feeling of comfort and obligation for students when reporting discrimination they experienced and witnessed, as well as require schools to provide an alternative way of reporting incidents other than verbally reporting to a teacher. Some examples of this are a box where students can write the reports and drop them in, as well as an email to a designated administrator or staff member. To conclude, we recommend that you please prioritize the marginalization of the committee when you make Thank legislative you again for your time. I will pass it to Ms. Penthol.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Thanks, Helen.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Thank you. Thank you.

[Claire Zanstra (Youth, Mental Health Committee Chair)]: Hello. As I've said, my name is Claire Zanstra. I'm 15 years old. I live at Thompson, Vermont, and I'm the chair of the Vermont State Youth Council's Youth Mental Health Committee. Thank you for having us. The Vermont State Youth Council's Youth Mental Health Committee's vision is to establish at least one inpatient eating disorder facility within our state. Our audience is teens 11 15 who have severe eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating. Due to the fact that there are currently no eating disorder facilities for people 15, and that the ones in the state have chronically long waiting lists, we on the Youth Mental Health Committee and Vermont State Youth Council as a whole recommend that the general assembly pass legislation to have an inpatient eating facility built within the state that accepts people from the ages of 11 to 17. Our first action point is we would like you to help fund the building of an inpatient eating disorder facility within the state, and if that is too much to ask for this biennium, we would strongly encourage you to help fund or build expansion of the comm center in Burlington, which is an outpatient eating disorder facility that's looking to have younger people admitted. Our second recommendation is on mental health days. Our vision is to instate three excused mental health days per semester for middle and high school students in the state of Vermont. Students who have a diagnosis from a certified clinician would have five mental health days per semester. In schools that have a trimester system, there would be two days for students without a diagnosis and three to four days for students that have a clinical diagnosis. Having mental health days would help Vermont students learn in a space where they feel safe and feel that they can get their needs met. If students don't have a home where they feel safe to be for a day, or if they don't have parents who accept that mental health days are important, the student should have the option to take the day at the principal or guidance counselor's office. Some opposers of this would say that kids who don't want to be in school would abuse this privilege. We, on the Vermont Segus Council, understand this concern, but we also know from the experience of being in schools ourselves that these people will skip anyway. Even if this gives people skipping a free getaway, it will also give a disproportionate amount of people the rest necessary to work hard at schools the rest of the time. A precaution for this worry would be that you couldn't take multiple mental health stays in a row. Depending on the student's teacher, they could be asked to make up the day's work as homework or during the day they are taking, but not as part of the class. Due to the thoughts and feelings you have placed before you today, and the fact that according to a study, seventy four percent parents think that students should have mental health days, and seventy seven percent of parents who have let their student have a mental health day said that it was beneficial, according to CBNC on mental health days. The Vermont State Youth Council recommends that the General Assembly pass legislation to allow students to take three excused mental health days per semester, two per trimester, and allow students with a clinical diagnosis to take five mental health days per semester, three to four per trimester. These mental health days would not turn over into the next semester or trimester and would not be allowed to be taken in a row. It would also be an option for students to take the day in the guidance counselorprincipal's office and students would be expected to make up work, but given extra time to save us a Verizon pay. Thank you for having us.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Why don't switch?

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: No, I went off, sorry. No. Disappeared. Yeah.

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: Well, thank you so much. I really appreciate the information about the eating disorder treatment. I think this actually came up. I think you told us about this last year as well. So thanks for that.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: I just want to

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: say my mom gave us two mental health days every school year as our personal household policy. Great. And we called out sick with the flu, but we were really experiencing a need to take a mental health day. And those were extraordinarily helpful for me all through school, and it's something I'm really grateful for that I had in my household. So I really appreciate that you brought this forward at the topic because I've used them, and they have made me a better person the next day after I got to take some time away. So thank you for bringing both of those points up.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: I'm just curious, did she suggest when they might be appropriate?

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: If they are appropriate. Yeah, I mean, we just took them. You know? I was like, I oh, did she say maybe you need a day? Yeah. That might have also been part of it.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: I'm curious. The council is made up 11 to to 18 year olds, but the eating disorder script said 11 to 17 year olds. I'm wondering

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: But what the difference Currently, in this state, there are places that will accept 18 year olds because they're legal adults.

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: Okay.

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: It was for people who are not legal adults but still need access.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: Gotcha. Awesome.

[Dennis Stern (Youth, Climate Change Committee)]: Thanks, Glenn. Hello. My name is Dennis Stern. I'm 15 years old. I live in St. Albans, Vermont. I'm here representing climate change. Human induced climate change affects all of us here in Vermont and across the globe, Though impacts vary by region, Vermont is already experiencing traumatic consequences of climate change. In July 2023, we had the warmest July ever recorded worldwide. And that same month, our state entered catastrophic flooding, showing how climate change related disasters are becoming more frequent and severe. These effects events affect our communities, wildlife ecosystem, and the natural landscape central to identity. As youth who will inherit this world, we believe we should take part in shaping solutions. Vermont may be small, but we have the capacity to lead through practical community driven action. The Vermont State Youth Council therefore recommends that the General Assembly offers tax incentives for co ops, government centers, and other outdoor businesses to accept compost for free and benefit from selling the result of the soil and providing residents with compost buckets and establishing a statewide online map of compost drop off locations. Also, to support and expand youth environmental stewardship opportunities, engaging, young Vermonters in trail work, forestry, conservation, and environmental monitoring. By advancing these actions, Vermont can reduce its negative environmental impact, protect the landscapes we cherish, and safeguard a resilient future for the next generation. The Youth Council looks forward to working with lawmakers to move these events forward respectfully to the Vermont City Council. Thank you. Senator

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: Morley. Thank you so much. I co chair the Climate Solutions Caucus for the senate side, so this is definitely a topic that comes up quite a bit. And we had Pastred, I think, who was last year, and she's now involved with the youth lobby as well. So there's certainly a really wonderful, I'd say, collective action movement on this topic. But I did have one question because you call out in a few places the trail system and supporting the trail system. I'm wondering if the youth council reviewed or looked at the proposal for the payment potentially as used did did you hear Yes. We did. Yeah. How did that

[Dennis Stern (Youth, Climate Change Committee)]: work? It was the trails committee. Right?

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Yeah.

[Dennis Stern (Youth, Climate Change Committee)]: Yeah. We looked at that, and in the transcript that we have more recommendations, we didn't I didn't provide I didn't read out. Okay. And one of them was to support the trails committee.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: Okay.

[Dennis Stern (Youth, Climate Change Committee)]: And look into definitely furthering that. Right. Okay. Thank you. Thanks, man. Thank you.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: That's a great one. I saw that. Love that. Well,

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: this is we haven't heard it yet.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Oh, the one I liked was the forestry one. Oh. That's what I was saying.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: I thought that's where we were. Hi. As previously mentioned, I'm Elizabeth Bailey. I'm 18 years old. I was born and raised in Johnson, Vermont, and I'm in my final year at Williams Heights Hall. This is my second year in Youth Council, and I now serve as Youth Voice Chair. I want to say on behalf of the Youth Voice Committee, thank you all so much for your time. Our first recommendation is for the General Assembly to pass a resolution allowing municipalities across the state to extend voting rights to 16 and or 17 year olds in local elections and town meetings. This resolution would provide youth with a direct voice and local government, giving way to a generation of youth with a stronger sense of civil responsibility. Our second recommendation is that the General Assembly adopt SA, has introduced to expand eligibility for coverage under the Doctor. Dinosaur Program to all Vermont residents 26 years age or below 312%

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: of the federal poverty level. Will sponsor this one. Yes.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: This expansion will provide a safety net towards those who may not have access to employer sponsored insurance or those transitioning through different educational and professional stages, ensuring their continuity of care during an informative stage of personal and professional development. Lastly, the council recommends that the General Assembly refrain from pushing back the implementation of the Raise the Age initiative and to follow through with the 07/01/2027 date outlined in Act four. Thank you for following that. The Raise the Age initiative acknowledges that the human brain is not fully developed at the age of 18. I can speak for that personally. And that poor decision making on the part of young adults should not be met with punitive, often harsh punishments that follow them for the rest of their lives. Furthermore, it promotes restorative justice practices, a form of justice that is is oftentimes more effective in dealing with low stake instances of water.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Thank you, Elizabeth. Senator Miyalski.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: I really appreciate that.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: Restorative justice is also actually quite effective at dealing with higher instances of law breaking use as well, as we've seen that expand into the domestic violence space and all of the international research actually supports restorative justice doesn't need to be limited. I think it's really important to think about that as a globally better response. So I really appreciate you following with this. They're here.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Thank you.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: Thank you.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Is that everyone that, oh, Harmony.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: Good afternoon. My name is Harmony Valdevo, and I'm Vice Chair of the State Youth Council, and I'm on the Equity and Anti Racism Committee. Each year, the council is required to present recommendations on youth in Vermont's economy and keeping youth in the state. Our first recommendation for this is we request that the council's federal funding be replaced by an appropriation of $140,000 in state funds for fiscal year 2027 to ensure youth council members have the right to fully express their identity and experiences without federal limits, so they can surely represent the diversity and perspectives of younger monsters. The total includes $47,000 in youth stipends, as well as venue expenses and mileage reimbursement for in person meetings and costs associated with the administrative and technical assistance of Vermont After School in support of the council. The council also recommends the general assembly create a state fund for affordable housing in the state. To support this fund, the general assembly should consider installing an inheritance tax of 5% to be applied to Vermont during receiving an inheritance of $250,000 or more. Another consideration would be to use revenue from the already existing estate tax for the affordable housing fund. This tax money will go into state funds for affordable housing using different strategies, such as utilizing abandoned buildings and dorms when emptied or building up instead of houses. Us hold Vermont's tradition of being a direct democracy at the town level. We also recommend Vermont public schools be required to educate students on the history and importance of town meeting day in the days and weeks leading up to it. I strongly encourage students to attend. To improve the health and food security of Vermont youth and to support Vermont's farming tradition, the council recommends that Vermont's public schools are to be required and assisted, provide preschool meals to all K-twelve students, and to use a certain amount of food from local farms in school. As you reflect on our recommendations in order to incorporate them into your policy making, we ask you to please notice if there are any recommendations that you could do any of the following with at this time of the legislative session. We introduce it as a short form bill, if the committee could take a bill off the wall and ask what the recommendation is, or if there's a bill you will in committee that this language could fit into, or if it as an amendment to any related bills. If your committee is unable to do this, please let legislators of other committees know. If so, please reach out to any of us if it was and if it would be useful, we would be happy to work on incorporating our recommendations into a bill with legislators. We'd also be happy to look at any bills you want or committee or any feedback or support on or endorse it and come in and testify for We're planning to share our recommendation to legislators before the session begins going forward in order to find champions to introduce bills based on our recommendations and then advocate testify and lobbying for them during the legislative session. And I'll pass it to Council Chair Aiden Ottenden to close this asking for.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: All right, thanks. Senator Wilson.

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: A couple of questions The for round the box of the federal funding is what a lot of reasons I can imagine why that federal funding was as limited grant. Was that a cut from the current administration? Okay, I can wait. And then around the universal school meals, that something that we already have done in S100, and while

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: we didn't require a percentage of local food, incentivized it. Are you suggesting we make changes to that program? Yeah, we're saying that we should definitely keep what we already have for the free school meals and then make sure that some

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: local farm food is required to be. Okay, so you're actually suggesting that it be a requirement, not just incentivized. Okay, awesome, thanks. You. No, go away.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: Gosh.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Here, you may be so I'm very curious why you have no senate bills up there. Did you get stuck in the house somehow? Uh-huh. Or did you not fully review all the legislative proposals? And I would suggest you that as you look at senate at at third legislative bills, you may not have an answer for why you have no senate bills, but I'm just curious. We do produce them. I love all of them. Beginning this work at the beginning of the biennium is really, you're absolutely right, much more important. For example, the whole notion of building any kind of facility is a joke at this point and not biennium. However, at the beginning of the biennium, if you testified in senate and house institutions, they are the ones making those kinds of investments in buildings, in structures, adding on to facilities that already exist. That would be helpful, but that needs to be done in a really timely fashion. Also, partnering with your legislators on introducing bills really is the work you need to do before the biennium or before the session. And I think all of us are open to that and would be happy to provide that avenue for you to get your voice introduced actually in bills.

[Paige (Youth, Equity & Anti-Racism Committee Chair)]: Thank you.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Thanks, hon.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: And I welcome an answer on why there

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: are no extra bills. Well, I'm glad Harmony took the breath

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: because that's lack of mind. But, yeah, as we have up there, there's just some bill that we recently endorsed, which is includes h 30, h one ninety two, h five one one, and h six forty. I'm gonna close out by notifying,

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: well,

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: on some updates, I guess we have. One was what I spoke about in the beginning, how we're going to be setting up that biennium system of creating recommendations and then presenting that at the beginning of the biennium. We're also planning on holding several hearings in the coming months so that we can better represent you and get them out as soon as possible, these recommendations for the next biennium. And then also, we've also recently put out our first newsletter, and that was sent out to anyone on the website who went to the Stegad Council website and signed up to get the email, and it basically updates youth and people in general on what the council is doing, what we're looking at, events and everything from that. But yeah, I'd like to close-up by saying thank you again to the committee for having us today. We really look forward to continuing our work together for a better future for Vermont's youth.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Yes, Senator Clarkson.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: So, you have a ready audience. You have 180

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: legislators who you could send your newsletter to. Send it to the people who are going be making those decisions in addition to your youth lobby.

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: I mean Yeah. I think we were fine. We were trying to find a way recently That's not hard. Send

[Ezra Tan (Youth, Education Committee)]: it out.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: That that's Amy can tell you how to do that. That's that is so not difficult. Yeah. But I really also encourage all of you as one of your strategies is to meet with your legislators, your senators, and your house reps in your districts and really get to know them well because they are your voice here in the state house in addition to your testifying. But they're your steady voice in the state house. And they're the one who can actually introduce bills.

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: Yeah, thank you.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Thank you one and all. We really appreciate you taking time to come in today. And I'm gonna suggest that we take a two minute time out. I'm asking committee members don't move on. Say you can stay put because we're already beyond the where we needed to be for the next two. Alrighty. But thank you all very much, and we'll go off

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: for a

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: Thank you. So I'll let Nicole answer my question about the laws of federal funding. Because she was on the witness list, I thought she would be testified. Oh. Which I violated. Okay.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: I'm sorry. Happy to.

[Sen. Becca White (Member)]: For the record, I'm Nicole Miller.

[Nicole Miller (Executive Director, Vermont After School)]: I'm the executive director of the law after school. The council has not lost its funding yet, but we are concerned with all the federal changes happening with all of the things happening at the federal level, that those funds could go away at any moment and that there will be increasing regulations on what those funds can be used for and how the council would be able to talk openly about issues that concern them and wanting to make sure we're not censoring it. So no immediate funding issue right this moment, but it is something we're concerned about and we are watching If it was an opportunity to have the state funding, then we would know that we would be assured going forward that the council could continue to create one.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Do you know if the 140 ks was in the Governor's recommended budget?

[Sen. Alison Clarkson (Member)]: It is not.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Thank you.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: Oh, well, it would be in their federal funds. So, right?

[Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (Vice Chair)]: It's not in this general fund, it's only in this federal fund. Right.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Yeah, can not even Not even trust that.

[Elizabeth Bailey (Youth, Youth Voice Committee Chair)]: No, that's okay. I wasn't planning to. Okay. I'm sure.

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: Well, again, thank you very much, and enjoy the rest

[Aiden Ottenden (Chair, Vermont State Youth Council)]: of the day at your

[Sen. Brian Collamore (Chair)]: house, and