The Vermont House Transportation Committee voted Friday, May 16, to include language from the Senate clarifying municipal authority over "legal trails" in a miscellaneous Department of Motor Vehicles bill and to add an intent section explaining the legislature’s rationale.

The change updates definitions in 19 V.S.A. chapter 3, aligns municipal terminology ("legislative body"/"select board") with current municipal law, and revises the definition of "trail" to emphasize that a trail is a public right of way that is not a highway. The committee also approved language stating a municipality "shall have the authority to maintain trails, but shall not be required to maintain trails" and that municipalities would not be responsible for maintenance, "including culverts and bridges."

Committee staff summarized the provisions as Senate language that "amends 19 VSA chapter 3" and noted that much of the statutory wording in question dates back to 1986. Staff said the intent language is intended to explain why the General Assembly is clarifying municipal authority and to give future legislatures and courts context, but that findings and intent clauses carry no independent legal power.

Representative Pausz moved to "include both the, to keep the senate language, and to add the intent section as we've seen." The motion passed by unanimous voice vote in committee; members recorded the result as unanimous but did not request a roll-call tally during the meeting. The committee did not set a separate effective date for the trails section; staff noted the default effective date for the act would be July 1 unless language specifying otherwise is added.

Committee discussion addressed whether the findings should use the phrasing "trails may require regular maintenance" rather than asserting maintenance as a categorical fact; the committee agreed to the softer phrasing. Committee members also discussed that the maintenance language clarifies authority to maintain (exclusive or cooperative) without imposing an obligation on municipalities.

Damien, committee staff, said he would prepare a bill summary and a side-by-side comparison for conference committee and deliver that to the committee by next week. Committee leadership indicated the bill would likely be placed on the calendar and could be presented to the full House late next week for further action.

The committee’s action adds the Senate’s technical and definitional changes into the House DMV bill and records legislative intent to clarify municipal authority over legal trails under 19 V.S.A. chapter 3.