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Politics & Government
The
State of
Things: They're Back ...
Vermont's House & Senate Are In
Session
Well, it's a New Year, and there's
more than one calendar to keep an eye on.
...
A quick review of the goings-on at
the State House revealed the following:
-
As of this writing [Jan. 17th],
the House has introduced 81 Bills 7 House
Resolutions & 24 Joint Resolutions, while the
Senate has intro'd 19 Bills, 4 Resolutions & 9
Joint Resolutions. ...
Well ... We thought we'd celebrate the
work of the keepers of our democracy in Montpelier by
doling out a few awards.
§ Herewith, then, though not,
of course, as originally introduced, we at DownStreet
Magazine, by an addendum to a proposal for an
amendment to a resolution, hereby declare, decree, and
otherwise proclaim, for services rendered on behalf of
the citizenry of our fair State, whether with intent
or results of an exemplary, dubious, declamatory, or
just plain curious nature...
The 1st DownStreet
Vermont Legislative Awards
The Hit the Ground Running Award ... for
the earliest sign of legislative initiative, goes to:
Representative
Brooks of Montpelier for H.0001 The Use Of Alternating Flashing Headlamps On
Towing Vehicles;
and Senators Ide of Caledonia County and Sears of
Bennington County for S.0001
Diesel Tax Rate Reduction.
The
Gimme Shelter Award ... for further criminalizing
acts of Good Samaritans, goes to:
Senator
Sears of Bennington County for S.0009 Harboring A Runaway Child.
The
Different Than You & Me Award ... for
introducing legislation that ain't what it seems to be,
goes to:
Senator Leddy of Chittenden County for
S.0014
Child Labor, which, among other seeming
inconsistencies, exempts children under 16 years of
age from certain labor restrictions if the child is
"employed as an actor or performer in motion
pictures, theatrical productions, radio or television,
or employed as a baseball bat girl or bat boy."
The
Evidently Award ... for what apparently ought
to be self-evident but still requires new legislation,
goes to:
Representative
Kainen of Hartford for H.0012
Violation Of Probation
.
The
Exceedingly Award ... for placing all affected by
the legislation between a proverbial rock & a
metaphorical hard place, goes to:
Representative Johnson of Canaan for H.0038
Requiring That Children Under The Age Of 18 Shall Be
Required To Attend School.
The
No Second-Class Citizens Award ... for reminding us
why it shouldn't be only landed gentry who get to vote,
goes to:
Representatives
Hingtgen of Burlington, Obuchowski of Rockingham and
Severance of Colchester for H.0070 Homeless Voter Registration
The
In Vino Veritas Award ... for the legislation
of fermented taste, goes to:
Representatives Rusten of Halifax and
Hube of Londonderry for H.0023 Wine Tastings By Manufacturers Or Rectifiers In
Second Class License Establishments.
The
Junkyard Dog Award ... for reminding us that
sometimes good fences do make good neighbors, goes to:
Representative
Angell of Randolph for H.0009 Providing That Junkyards Shall Be Regulated By
The Secretary Of Natural Resources Instead Of The
Agency Of Transportation.
The
Very Large Purpose Award ... for the most
compellingly long statement of purpose attached to
legislation as introduced, also goes to:
Representative
Angell of Randolph for H.0011 Act 250 Jurisdiction Over Subdivisions, Public
Input, Appeals By Adjoiners, Hearings On The Record,
Weight To Local Permits, Cumulative Growth, And
Consistency In The Environmental Permitting Process.
The
Apparent Contradiction Award ... for seemingly
staking ground on either side of the same fence, also
goes to:
Representative
Angell of Randolph for H.0014 Repealing The Shelf Labeling Law That Applies To
The Retail Sale Of Hazardous Consumer Products
The
Steps in the Right Direction Award ... for
introducing legislation that's needed, even if somewhat
tinged with self-interest, goes to:
Senator Rivers of Windsor County and
Senator Doyle of Washington County for S.0015
Campaign Finance & S.0016 Public Financing Of Campaigns For State Senate
The Now That's More Like It Award ... for
introducing legislation that matters, pure and simple,
goes to:
Representative Koch of Barre Town for H.0031 Prescription Drug Cost Containment And
Affordable Access;
and
Representatives Obuchowski of Rockingham and Partridge
of Windham for H.0067 A Veterans' Preference and for H.0078 Cervical Cancer Screening; and
Senator Illuzzi of Essex-Orleans County for S.0002
Cervical Cancer Screening
Since
the Resolutions in both chambers had yet to be posted or
ascribed to their authors, we are unable to present our
awards to particular legislators in this category. However, that
has not deterred us from making the awards for the
following Resolutions:
The
Kittens in the Oven Award ... for the best
oxymoronic resolution, goes to:
JRS006 Designating Dr. William H. Bloom As An Honorary
Native Vermonter.
The
Whose House Is It Anyway Award ... for showing signs
of not knowing the difference between Montpelier &
Washington, D.C., goes to:
HR0007 In Support Of The Nomination Of John Ashcroft To
Be United States Attorney General.
The
Phhht, Kzzzz, Thüpft, Shhhshh Award ... for
punctuation above & beyond the call of duty, goes
to:
JRH002 In Memory Of Victor Borge.
And
finally {for now at any rate} ...
The
This Shouldn't Be Necessary Award ... for ... well,
it seems self-evident to us, goes to:
JRH013 Instruct The Vermont State Government To Abide
By Constitutional Restraints.
We'll
keep you posted. ...
.
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If you would like to
submit something for our Politics & Gov't section,
don't hesitate to let us know. Simply e-mail us at politics@downstreetmagazine.com.
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number where we can reach you. You may also send a
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If your piece is accepted, we will pay a small honorarium
for your interest & your time. [See Freelancers
Wanted for more details.]
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