Legislative update: Two bills pass in response to COVID-19

By Sen. Alison Clark

This week the Vermont Legislature passed three significant measures, embodied in two bills, H.742 and H.681, to improve life for Vermonters in response to the COVID-19 crisis. After a week of working remotely, 17 of the 30 Senators met on Tuesday, March 24, in the Statehouse, and with plenty of social distancing, passed these amended bills back to the House. The next day, the House, under more dramatic circumstances, passed the bills as well.

In H.742 we help Vermont to deal with the COVID-19 crisis by expanding: 1) the capabilities of our health care system to respond to our urgent needs, and 2) the unemployment insurance program to provide more benefits for employees and experience rating relief for businesses.

The health care provisions create flexibility in licensing requirements for nurses and doctors, expand telemedicine opportunities for coronavirus and other health concerns, extend prescriptions and create more flexibility for what pharmacists can prescribe during this crisis. It also provides for the creation of emergency hospital facilities for COVID-19 treatment and relaxes provider tax payment requirements for hospitals and doctors.

This bill also expands our unemployment insurance program to allow Vermonters who have been temporarily laid off, or those who have voluntarily left their jobs, to qualify for unemployment benefits if they leave: 1) to self-isolate or quarantine at the recommendation or directive of a healthcare provider, public health authority, or the governor because the person has been diagnosed with, symptomatic for, exposed to, or is in a high risk category with respect to, COVID-19; 2) due to an unreasonable risk that the individual could be exposed to or become infected with COVID-19 at work; 3) to care for a family member who is self-isolating or quarantining for similar reasons; or, 4) to care for a child under 18 years of age because the child’s school or child care has been closed or the child care provider is unavailable due to COVID-19. Normal work search requirements will be waived during this period and all layoffs and resignations related to COVID-19 will not adversely impact the employer’s experience rating.

The second bill, H.681, creates temporary provisions addressing elections, the open meeting law, and deadlines for municipal corporations. The elections provisions are designed to protect Vermonters’ health and safety while continuing to ensure the integrity of our democratic institutions. It eliminates the requirement to collect voter signatures to run for office in the primary or general election, or a local election, and shortens the time period to file candidate consent forms. Further, it permits flexibility in elections procedures to protect people’s health and welfare. And the bill allows the Secretary of State to authorize towns that don’t currently use Australian ballots to vote to do so during this crisis.

It also creates flexibility in our open meeting laws to allow for electronic meetings. During the COVID-19 crisis public bodies can meet electronically without designating a physical location for the meeting or requiring the presence of members or staff at a physical location. Ideally, School Board and Select Board meetings will be recorded. It also permits municipalities to extend deadlines for licenses, permits, programs and plans and it prohibits municipal corporations from disconnecting water or wastewater systems (similar to the prohibition for utilities).

This week also saw significant federal legislation enacted – the CARES Act. The Vermont Legislature is hard at work analyzing its provisions and coordinating our programs with its framework. Stay tuned.

Sen. Clarkson can be reached by email: aclarkson@leg.state.vt.us or by phone at 457-4627. To get more information on the Vermont Legislature, and the bills which have been proposed and passed, visit: legislature.vermont.gov.