Committee reviews H.504 charter amendments including taxes for fire, police equipment and purchasing changes

The Vermont Senate Government Operations Committee on Wednesday reviewed draft language in H.504 that would amend a city charter to set new minimums for equipment taxes, change how ordinance fines are referenced, and alter several administrative provisions.

Legislative counsel Tucker Anderson told the committee the bill combines two charter amendments approved by voters into a single bill and would, among other changes, cross‑reference state law on ordinance penalties and raise or add fixed grand‑list taxes for equipment replacement. “Section 2 amends the city charter,” Anderson said, describing the package of changes the committee was considering.

Why it matters: The changes lock in a floor for dedicated grand‑list taxes for equipment replacement rather than leaving the baseline entirely to annual budgets. That shifts the mechanics of how the city guarantees funding for fire and police vehicle replacement, while still permitting voter approval of higher amounts.

The bill would replace a charterized, fixed fine with a cross‑reference to 24 V.S.A. § 1974, which Anderson said allows ordinance penalties up to $800. In the charter’s tax provisions, H.504 would raise the grand‑list tax for replacement fire equipment from a base of 0.0175 on the dollar to 0.0225. A new subdivision would create a separate tax for replacement police equipment, capped at 0.018 on the dollar unless a larger sum is later approved by voters in a meeting warrant.

Mayor Mike Dunches joined the hearing and explained the practical difference between the two equipment lines: “We have six fire trucks, and each one to replace at this point would cost a million dollars. We have eight police vehicles, and each one to replace would cost a million five thousand,” he said, describing why the proposed charter figures differ.

The committee also heard that H.504 removes a numeric dollar threshold that currently sits in the charter for when a municipal purchasing policy triggers formal bidding. Under the proposal, rather than a $3,000 charter trigger requiring bids, the charter would defer to the state’s purchasing policy for that threshold.

On governance details, the draft updates language for a city redevelopment authority. The proposed subdivision spells out membership (including the city treasurer, a mayor‑appointed city resident slate, and one property‑owner member who need not live in the city but must reside in the county) and establishes staggered three‑year terms with transitional language taking effect on a specified April 1. Anderson described those as transitional provisions intended to stage future staggered terms.

Committee members asked about the legal effect of setting tax floors in a charter rather than leaving those line items entirely to annual budgets. Anderson described the practical effect: the charter sets a base amount for those purposes (a floor), while higher budgeted amounts could still be approved through the normal budget and voter‑approval process.

No formal committee vote was taken during the session. Anderson said some technical drafting corrections remain and that the committee likely would not vote the bill out the same day. The bill components discussed were described as taking effect on passage unless otherwise noted.

Ending: Committee members signaled continued review on technical fixes and transitional language. Anderson and the city’s witnesses said they would return with any requested clarifications in subsequent consideration.