By Guy Page
Last Friday, S.5, the carbon credit/carbon tax bill, passed the House. What happens next is predictable. What happens after that is predictable, too. What happens then is a toss-up, and will decide whether S.5 becomes law or just the latest in a string of failed forced carbon emissions reduction bills.
Stop One: the Vermont Senate, where members will almost certainly agree to minor revisions made by the House.
Stop Two: Governor Phil Scott’s desk, where a veto is almost certain.
Gov. Phil Scott
Over the weekend, Scott telegraphed this in a press release: “Proponents of the bill have argued nothing will move forward without future legislative approval. They also say ‘this is essentially a study.’ Both of these statements are misleading.” Unless the Senate first responds with an overhaul that would have to return to a glowering House, a veto is likely.
Stop Three: an attempted veto override in the House and Senate. Needing 100 votes, House Speaker Jill Krowinski and her lieutenants suffered an embarrassing, one-vote defeat in their effort to override the Clean Heat Standard, a bill similar to S.5 in its ploy to replace fossil fuels with electricity as Vermont’s primary heating source. It happened because they failed to nail down enough face-to-face commitments from rank-and-filers to override the governor’s veto. A retiring centrist Democrat, Tom Bock of Chester, shocked the leadership by voting with the governor.
This epic fail reminded many State House insiders of previous Speaker Mitzi Johnson’s failure to secure enough votes for a proposed increase in the heating fuel tax. In both cases, fatal assumptions were made. It is highly likely that such assumptions will not be repeated in the coming veto override effort.
An override requires a ⅔ majority of the Legislature: 100 votes in the House, and 20 in the Senate. Both supporters and opponents of S.5 can find reasons for optimism in the House and Senate roll calls.
In the decisive Second Reading, the House voted 98-46 – two votes shy of 100, with six lawmakers not voting. In the Senate, S.5 passed 19-10 on Second Reading and 18-10 on the final and Third Reading.
Those totals make the prediction of a veto override too close to call.
Optimistic supporters of S.5 hope party loyalty will drive majority party members to keep in step, especially because the veto is by a governor of a rival party. They also take comfort in the pickup of a half-dozen seats by the super-majority in 2022.
Optimistic opponents of S.5 hope vocal citizen opposition will persuade lawmakers’ to endure leadership’s arm-twisting appeals to loyalty.
Today and in days to come, VDC will publish informed arguments pro and con to S.5. Citizens may contact lawmakers by calling the State House at 802-828-2228 or by emailing them on their official legislative email addresses.
Guy Page is publisher of the Vermont Daily Chronicle. Reprinted with permission.
This looks to me like one of the most significant, life changing situations in Governor Phil Scott’s term- it’s certainly a historic moment for Vermont.. that won’t be forgotten any time soon- either way.
If the congress won’t listen, this man had better.
His veto at this point may be only symbolic- but he’s got to at least attempt to stop this- as the voters have been so clear about.
If he doesn’t veto this, little else that he’s done will ever be remembered.
This Bill has the potential to really destroy a whole lot of lives and he’ll be known forever as the governor that let that pass if he makes no attempt to stand with the people with a Veto.
* Edit: I said congress, I meant the legislature in Montpelier.
Phil Scott is a nothing burger. He’s powerless. So what, he vetos a bill. Or he has others. WOW! HOW hard is it to veto a bill that is all uber Socialist Climate Progressive and ridiculous in the first place? humm? The climate bill he may veto is lunacy and even a conservative DEM would do so. So I am not on board with all this “Phil Worship” like he is some kind of God. After all, he VOTED for Biden and he is all on board with the hoax of climate change. That’s all you need to know about him…he’s just political-pablum…no real convictions and he uses a “wimp pulpit” instead of what VT needs….a “bully pulpit” to pound the table on Progressive idiocy….and the fiscal policy VT needs desperately before it collapses. Phil will NEVER USE a bully pulpit, because his whole persona is just that he wants to be “liked” and seen as a nice & non confrontational guy. That accomplishes NOTHINgG in the long run…BUT VT needs a bully…to focus in FISCAL issues of VT….not all the Climate , Social, DEI, CRT, BLM , EV;s, Gender, Sex, Trannies etc issues.
What your mini essay failed to note is that those progressives etc. were put in office by an electorate that bought their crap hook, line and sinker.
And Republican RINOs like Dick Sears persist in crossing party lines and voting for bills they know are not good for Vermont.
One-sided media allows and encourages the above to persist. Obtaining a balance would be a definite first step.
Dick Sears is a Democrat from Bennington. He’s been in the Legislature since 1993. Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee.
There are issues in Bennington County that will be revealed and their dirty politics is part and parcel. (VT Digger 2019: Rep. Chris Bates (D-Bennington) was convicted of aggravated DUI in 2012, according to McHenry County, Ill., court records . The charge stemmed from a 2010 arrest. It was his third DUI, making it a felony. Bates pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a lighter form of probation called conditional discharge. But the state sought to revoke the sentence in October 2013 because Bates missed a court date and failed to pay all fees. A judge issued a warrant for Bates’ arrest that remains active, though Vermont is not among the states from which he may be extradited.) The giant obelisk towering over the town is one clue as to why Bennington is a cesspool.
The issues of S.5 are part of a plan layed out decades ago. No amount of consistuent push back will stop them from doing what they are paid to do – they are not representatives. They are belligerent occupiers. The Governor is playing a role and he too is well compensated for his performances.
We have been permanent residents since 2020. If this bill goes through we are going to rethink this. We do not want to depend on electricity for our needs. What happens if/when the grid goes down? We lose our power frequently and are happy with our propane generator and our wood stove. What is wrong with S.5? Most everything..
The following is from philscott.org:
“Governor Phil Scott knows that climate change poses a significant threat to our planet. He’s taking action to help keep Vermont a leader on the issue, while preparing us for a greener economy.
Here are some of the many actions the Scott Administration has taken to combat climate change and preserve our environment:
Partnerships & Collaboration to Combat Climate Change
Joined the U.S. Climate Alliance to demonstrate continued support of the Paris Climate Agreement.
Created, through Executive Order, the Vermont Climate Action Commission to recommend tangible actions to reduce emissions.
Worked with Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) partner states to agree to lower the CO2 emission cap; Vermont is in the process of adopting the necessary regulations to achieve that result.
Worked with regional partners to update the Zero Emission Vehicle Action Plan to further the electrification of the transportation sector.
Joined the Vermont Climate Pledge Coalition, through which the state is helping track progress toward our emissions goals and encouraging those in Vermont to participate.”
We the people need to remember this for the next election cycle. Get rid of these crazy nutcase liberals that are destroying Vermont.
The problem here goes back to not enough Republicans and Independents being elected in the last election to sustain Governor Scott’s vetoes. There really needs to be a concerted effort to provide blockage to the ideologically driven impractical and damaging to Vermont legislation that the Democratic/Progressive majoroty keeps sending to the Governor.
Scott has vetoed more legislation than any other Governor in the history of Vermont. But, he cannot keep it from becoming law all on his own.
If he does not veto it, he will be inducted as a crew member on THE SHIP OF FOOLS
The captain.
TRUTH
Someone else will be the captain
aargh! Be the scuttlebutt “mutiny”?