Mixed testimonies continue to cast shadow over $15 minimum wage
A handful of experts appeared at the House Committee on General, Housing, and Military Affairs on Wednesday morning to weigh in on the proposal to bump the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Guy Page: Black market for marijuana flourishes in ‘tax and regulate’ states
These news stories all say the same thing: tax-and-regulate legal marijuana won’t reduce the black market. And, we already know it won’t raise revenue for anything more than its own regulatory maintenance.
Statehouse Headliners: House Judiciary chair gavels down silent waving of American flag
Rep. Grad reportedly told the shocked audience that the flags were “banners” and thus were unacceptable expressions of support for one side of the issue.
Statehouse Headliners: House honors military victims of suicide, their families
The Vermont House gave a long round of applause to families of Vermont military veterans who were victims of suicide, and to members of the military community who assist troubled veterans and their families.
Senators told: Vermont ‘gonna fail miserably’ on its weatherization goals
While the the Vermont House has doubled the fuel tax to fund ongoing weatherization projects across the state, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is figuring out what to do with all the money.
Statehouse Headliners: Marijuana ‘prevention tax’ could lead to lagging revenues
A marijuana “prevention tax” could mean lagging sales, insufficient revenue.
Study finds California’s background checks had no impact on gun violence
A study by Johns Hopkins University has determined that California’s background check law has had no measurable impact on gun violence or deaths in the state.
Statehouse Headliners: Weatherization already up by $850,000 this year, even without controversial fuel tax
Even before the Vermont House of Representatives voted this week to double the fuel tax to boost revenue for low-income weatherization, the House tax committee had already decided to raise next year’s weatherization revenue by $850,000.
House won’t allow alternative health insurance
On Thursday the House chamber voted in favor of H.524, the health insurance mandate, which in its current form does not have a financial penalty for not having insurance.
Anti-carbon tax activists blast Vermont legislators for conflicts of interest
Supporters of a new boycott against Vermont companies that support a carbon tax say three state legislators have conflicts of interest on energy policy because of their ties to SunCommon.
House Judiciary hears more on 24-hour handgun purchase waiting period
The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday heard more testimony on S.169, an act relating to firearms procedures that would impose a 24-hour waiting period on handgun purchases.
Statehouse Headliners: Marijuana hospitalization triples in legal Colorado; Weybridge woman describes omnipresent stench of pot in Denver
A medical study released this week finds that 9,973 marijuana-related emergency room visits occurred in Colorado from 2012-2016, more than triple the number that occurred prior to legalization.