Senate committee moves to create centralized tracking after dozens of gubernatorial appointments surfaced late

The Committee chair of the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs committee said on May 15 that staff will create a centralized tracking system after the committee discovered appointment letters for dozens of governor-appointed board and commission members that were not previously recorded.

The change matters because the Vermont Legislature must confirm many gubernatorial appointments, and committee members said missing contact information and a lack of a chamber-wide tracking database have delayed consideration and floor reporting of nominees.

Committee members said they first knew of five appointees that arrived after the January session began and learned this week that an additional nine appointment letters had been discovered after staff scanned archives. Heidi, the committee assistant, was assigned to compile a list that will include each appointee’s full name, appointment date, contact information and hometown so the committee can assign reporters and move nominees forward. Melissa, a staff member in the secretary’s office, told members that the office did not have a single searchable database of appointment letters and scanned older appointment letters only after the committee requested them.

Committee members discussed specific follow-ups. David, a committee member, reported he has background materials for a nominee, Gary McQuarrie, but had not yet spoken by phone with him; the chair asked that staff try again and bring any unresponsive nominees back for discussion within a week. Members also noted they lack contact details for several nominees, including Kathy Keenan and Lindsay Curley, and said the governor’s nominations coordinator (previously Jason Malucci) could be asked to provide current contact information held by the governor’s office.

The transcript shows the committee identified at least one named appointee in the scanned letters: Rhonda Shippy, listed as a member of the Vermont Economic Development Authority and said to have been appointed last summer. Committee staff said some appointees already are serving on their respective bodies because their letters arrived before the committee could take formal steps.

No formal votes or confirmations occurred during the May 15 discussion. Committee members gave direction to staff — chiefly Heidi and Melissa — to finish compiling the roster, locate missing contact information (including by contacting the governor’s office and the speaker’s office), and return with a prepared list so the panel can assign reporters and, where ready, consider nominees at a future meeting. The committee planned to revisit the compiled list the following day.

The committee also previewed other agenda work — including a planned return to cannabis-related amendments later in the session — but offered no decisions on those items during the appointments discussion.