[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6345697,"mediaKeyId","2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b","parentId",2248689,"title","House accepts committee report, affirms certified winner in Bennington-1 contested election by 91-42 vote","audioSeconds",2341,"startMs",2525870,"endMs",4867360,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b&start=2525&end=4867","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b/thumbnail_2525870.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6345697/Vermont/House-accepts-committee-report-affirms-certified-winner-in-Bennington-1-contested-election-by-91-42-vote","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6345697-072a55cd157c4ea864557041ffd72f05/orig.mp4?Expires=1776090257&Signature=hXoN1cImhnhhtu~JjANqkqcyLtdqiM6C8M4UNUolZzRfjJVuxOEnUxbTrMnNAr1aXENtduyUszxVStsWZKI5hyRL1wQWwEDkhLOaWgcl8f9Dh6tCOPuimD5rFiPueHPXn3xyacVAiMWDOOgyFRkp6oCD-g9Zirl0h1QM6x4aUXoYG9W~QHbkMYKx2cGXyXgr6N0h3Oj-RxMys35Bq9Fh52SsdDp~kG~IjOZzcZFch9hvY6mQ7tttYKvuefUorWIzxnYQStWW~l5lfxU0OuqSzv6McCg3p3eOXZU6SVfoY6HPHNRo6yVIEm3EwqDEbTRjaTNykzeumEGVO3qXcBJ5SA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Vermont House of Representatives","date","2025-02-07T14:38:38Z","article","The House accepted the special report of the Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs and affirmed the certified election of Representative Jonathan Cooper of Bennington-1 by a roll-call vote of 91 yes to 42 no.

Committee review and recommendation: The committee reviewed testimony from the clerk of the House, legislative counsel, the Attorney General’s office, the Secretary of State, town clerks, counsel for parties, and other witnesses over approximately four weeks. The committee concluded that the House has the sole authority to judge the qualifications of its members and, after examining precedent and practice, recommended that the House affirm the certified election and find Representative Jonathan Cooper duly elected and qualified.

Contested facts and concerns: The petition by Bruce Busa asked the House to judge the election and qualification of the member in House District Bennington-1. The contested issue arose after some voters received incorrect ballots: the committee reported that approximately 56 mail ballots, give or take, were mailed with only an incorrect house race listed (a street bifurcation error). Testimony in committee indicated that a handful of voters who realized they had the wrong ballot wrote in the correct candidate and, according to the committee report, those write-in votes were counted.

Alternatives considered: The committee weighed options including affirming the certified election, ordering a revote for the district, or other remedial paths. The committee found no historical instance in which the House had ordered a revote in similar circumstances and determined that a revote could not recreate the original electoral context. The committee’s internal vote was reported as 9–1–1 in favor of affirming the certification.

Floor debate and vote: Members on the floor underscored the tension between preserving every voter’s right and the practical limits of reconstituting an election. Speakers noted that the Bennington-1 issue affected roughly 56 voters, while other districts (Bennington-5) also had smaller numbers (reported as about 14) of voters who received the wrong ballots. After debate, the House took a roll-call vote requested by a member and the clerk announced the tally: 91 yes, 42 no. The presiding officer announced that the ayes have it and that the House accepted the committee’s special report.

Procedure and next steps: The committee indicated it will review and recommend improvements for election procedures and district accuracy to reduce the risk of similar errors in future elections. Acceptance of the report affirms the current seating of Representative Jonathan Cooper; no revote was ordered.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Session: 2025-02-07-9:30 a.m.","oneSentenceSummary","After a four-week review, the House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs recommended affirming the certified election of Representative Jonathan Cooper in Bennington-1; the House accepted the committee’s special report 91–42 on a roll-call vote.","taxTitle","HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Committees, Legislative , Vermont","taxId",29454,"location","Vermont","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6345701,"House Judiciary committee’s strike-all amendment to H.118 approved; third reading ordered",815,1848490,2663860,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b&start=1848&end=2663","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b/thumbnail_1848490.jpg","/articles/6345701/Vermont/House-Judiciary-committees-strike-all-amendment-to-H118-approved-third-reading-ordered","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6345701-a51870fabcb5a5ff90bf2df9399df0c5/orig.mp4?Expires=1776090257&Signature=c3PBa94DbXMlrQ8KPkAL4jp7z2EzORMroDhT3oAmE3~dBYBFSAKsq8dUpyF~8jkFzmuDEaQhZlCCes572Fp8FiJ55VNddIqcKK3mNStZkW7EBc1MeztJM4COEp~jxBGVT3LzP9YlwZ6fn-eoxi2tVJIUE9CcUX~cQys2WG58yEX509CIIWex4CwVs8qaIfe5NVraBZ0bAjBznrK8SHyBRXG2Sa2GFQP9gYKJCLKYjmhpca9gbQwXip9v2AJMjuCPCY~h1briSGN-97DUkZna-j5jSUEeu-Lc2pX3-DTEV~403fCNsNVTnPDhpM7WT8h4EqZUY4w~C9TPqP-kWkH~Og__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House approved a Judiciary Committee strike-all amendment to H.118, an act relating to expanding the scope of hate-motivated crimes, and then ordered the bill read a third time.

The committee-reporter, the member from Williston, explained that the bill replaces language in the hate-motivated-crime statute that refers to “the victim's actual or perceived protected category” with language allowing an enhancement when the conduct is motivated by “another person or a group of persons’ actual or perceived membership in a protected category.” The amendment would broaden the operation of Vermont’s enhancement (which the reporter described as a penalty enhancement applied to an underlying offense rather than a stand-alone charge).

Committee explanation and examples: On the floor, the member from Williston used unlawful mischief as an example: if someone spray-paints an antisemitic symbol on a doorway causing less than $250 damage — ordinarily a misdemeanor-level unlawful mischief — the statute currently requires that the victim be a member of a protected class for the enhancement to apply. The amendment would permit prosecutors to seek the enhancement where the conduct is shown to be motivated by targeting another person or group in the location, even if the immediate victim is not a member of that protected class. The reporter noted that, with enhancement, penalties could increase from up to six months or a $500 fine to up to two years or a $2,000 fine.

Concerns raised: The member from Northfield asked whether the amendment’s broader language could lead to unintended outcomes in which a protected group is only a partial or tangential motivation for otherwise non-targeted criminal acts. The member described a hypothetical scenario where a defendant acted impulsively but had a partial motivation tied to frustration with a protected group; that member said the change could permit prosecutors to use enhancement in marginal cases. The reporter and committee members responded that prosecutorial discretion remains and that the committee intended to give prosecutors an additional tool.

Procedure and outcome: The floor acted on the committee recommendation; the House approved the amendment (voice vote announced by the presiding officer) and then ordered third reading by voice vote. No roll-call tally for the amendment or the third-reading order is recorded in the transcript.","The House approved the Judiciary Committee’s strike-all amendment to H.118, which would expand Vermont’s hate-motivated-crime penalty enhancement to cover conduct directed at other persons or groups; the chamber then ordered third reading.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6345707,"House passes H.141, fiscal year 2025 budget adjustments",283,1609930,1893520,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b&start=1609&end=1893","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2248689-edff2e3e9cfaa3a167c0174ac127e43b/thumbnail_1609930.jpg","/articles/6345707/Vermont/House-passes-H141-fiscal-year-2025-budget-adjustments","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6345707-0764844b37a85e91781ba4c71b973f07/orig.mp4?Expires=1776090257&Signature=jIxft5TdWan0Hww5bKSr6FNmpwoX8K-BHSDg~eNpyVvTmfcyDecJWFQxO6fwNzMXdl3ulJxTDPLr8gpdVHmmHKvgA9QDyMMG~2n27CVmb5tM6ZJRBSf7yfPKmthuPj7r3A8EP4rEy4yp1j~qZB75-tRyoFCqzt8uI916TCGj2XKoSP~~GK2rNTuZedRn196NfHjM08OpQBWRgsleZk8D9S5cQvi2nBtmE4EHzAiLjE-Js8RgbULBKa8tul1EPc6E0GZSFZZxQ4aqhWeuyNSWKCxx0Hjf8MamimT9chr-C0p3TjQ-ptkgGgnUqzHhmrOHepOg3Q94xeJWOLaAN9V0vw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House of Representatives passed H.141, an act relating to fiscal year 2025 budget adjustments, following third reading and a voice vote Thursday morning.

The measure, presented for third reading as H 141, was approved after a short floor comment from the member from Waterbury asking colleagues to consider the human stories behind homelessness and noting that the House Human Services Committee is working on follow-up legislation.

Committee and bill context: The House voted on H.141 under orders of the day and, after debate concluded, the presiding officer called the question. The ayes were taken by voice and the presiding officer announced that “the ayes do have it, and you have passed the bill.”

On the floor, the member from Waterbury recounted a constituent’s case to underline that homelessness is not a single, uniform experience and to remind the chamber that the Human Services Committee is drafting a bill to address shelter and related services. That member said the committee is drafting a bill similar to the emergency temporary shelter measure considered previously and urged colleagues to support forthcoming work from Human Services.

The member also contrasted the current approach with a prior, hasty change to winter shelter provisions that required a larger emergency appropriation that, according to the floor comment, was mostly unused. The speaker did not provide exact dollar figures on either the previous or current appropriations during the floor remarks; the transcript characterizes the comparison as “more than twice the amount” used previously but does not specify numeric amounts.

Procedure and next steps: The passage of H.141 was by voice vote; no roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript. The member from Waterbury asked members to await the Human Services Committee’s forthcoming bill on homelessness; no formal directive or amendment to H.141 was recorded on the floor in connection with that request.

The House moved on to other calendar items after the bill’s passage.","The Vermont House approved H.141, the fiscal year 2025 budget adjustments bill, after a brief floor comment on homelessness and ongoing Human Services Committee work on shelter policy.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

House accepts committee report, affirms certified winner in Bennington-1 contested election by 91-42 vote

House Judiciary committee’s strike-all amendment to H.118 approved; third reading ordered

House passes H.141, fiscal year 2025 budget adjustments