[L]ast month, Gov. Phil Scott sent legislators a memo targeting 15 bills that he said he’d veto over proposed taxes and fees. “Let’s work together to find ways for many of the proposals to advance, while respecting the need to provide Vermonters with another year of relief,” he wrote.
Now, with the end of the session weeks away, the leaders of both chambers of the Legislature are considering their options for policies they want to advance in spite of the governor’s pledge.
“The governor believes he has a non-negotiable position,” Senate President Tim Ashe said in an interview this week. “The Legislature has non-negotiable positions. Usually, what you do is negotiate out those non-negotiable positions to get to a compromise, so everyone can move on to the next battle.”
Ashe has made minimum wage legislation — one of the bills on the governor’s list — a top priority for this year. House Speaker Mitzi Johnson wants to see clean water legislation, which Scott has threatened to veto over “the design of a fee,” signed into law.
Both leaders also believe broad improvements to the state’s education finance system merit serious consideration. But the possibility of a budget veto is not off the table yet.
On this week’s podcast, Ashe and Johnson talk to VTDigger’s Anne Galloway and Colin Meyn about the Legislature’s end-of-session strategy.
Subscribe to the Deeper Dig on Apple Podcasts or Google Play.
