Appropriations committee removes funding language from emergency management bill, advances OPR staffing request

The House Appropriations Committee voted March 21 to adopt a committee amendment that removes appropriations and several program sections from the emergency management bill H397 and to report a separate bill, H472, that requests one-time general-fund support for a staffing position in the Office referenced in the bill.

Tucker Anderson, legislative counsel, told the committee, “You have in front of you draft 1.2 of the committee's amendment to H397,” and said the amendment removes three instances of appropriations language, including section 6 (positions added to the division of emergency management), section 9 (the Vermont community radio program), and the appropriations section from the committee’s report.

The committee chair moved adoption of draft 1.2 as the committee amendment to H397. The amendment passed in committee by a recorded tally of 7-0-0. Committee members then moved to report H397 as amended to the next stage of consideration; the committee voted to report the bill (vote tally not specified in the transcript).

Committee members and staff said the practice of removing appropriations language from individual…