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Committee debates membership and per‑diem language for convention center task force
Summary
Members discussed adding a regional planning commission representative and other membership changes to a convention center and performance media task force, and raised reimbursement concerns after per‑diem language was removed by Senate Appropriations.
The Vermont House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development on May 20, 2025 discussed Section 10 of S.122, which establishes a convention center and performance media task force and lists appointment authority and membership.
The discussion mattered because the task force’s composition determines which stakeholders advise any future convention‑center work and because removal of per‑diem language could affect member participation.
Rick Stadel, Office of Legislative Council, reviewed the task force language and said members could add a Regional Planning Commission (RPC) representative and possibly adjust executive‑branch membership to specify the commissioner of the Department of Economic Development (BED) or a designee. “You could add a seventh. You could change out one of the current members to add in,” Stadel said while reviewing membership options.
Committee members debated whether the group should include legislative members from both the House and the Senate if the task force is expected to make policy recommendations. Austin Davis, member of the committee, spoke about how RPCs are organized and suggested checking with RPC leadership on whether to appoint a chair or president of that body.
Members also noted that Senate Appropriations had stripped per‑diem language for the task force. Stadel warned, “you have this task force without any per diem language [which] could be troublesome with members on it,” and advised the committee to confirm how legislative members would be reimbursed. The committee discussed removing the contingent‑on‑funding language (Section 10a) and clarifying appointment language.
No formal membership amendments or votes were recorded in the transcript; staff were asked to draft updated language specifying membership changes and to confirm the practical effect of removing per‑diem language for appointed members.
