The Vermont Senate Committee on Government Operations on May 2 heard testimony on H.364, a bill that would alter the Village of Swanton’s boundaries to include a parcel at 124 First Street so the village can build a new electric department facility ahead of a May 6 bond vote.

Representative Lisa Hango, who represents Franklin-5, told the committee the parcel is town-owned and that both the village board of trustees and the town selectboard approved the proposed annexation in April 2025. She said the village charter requires legislative approval for annexation and that the village is seeking the legislature’s concurrence so voters can proceed with a bond referendum.

The annexation would allow the village to move its electric department into a new off-street complex and free space in the existing municipal building for an expanded police department and public works operations, village officials said. William “Bill” Sheets, Swanton’s village manager, described operational pressure at current facilities: “We currently, the Village of Swanton is often thought of as a little small municipality and we are but we have 42 full time employees … we're essentially bursting at the seams,” Sheets said, explaining the plan to move roughly 20 electric department employees to the new site.

Tucker Anderson, legislative counsel, explained that the village’s charter contains a provision — section 2, subsection e — that makes annexation of village-owned property contingent on concurrence by the General Assembly. Anderson said the bill functions like a municipal charter change for the purposes of legislative procedure and must be handled as a special act affecting one municipality.

Committee members asked for documentation of local approvals and vote counts. Hango and Sheets said the village trustees first authorized exploring annexation on Sept. 11, 2023, and reaffirmed authorization on April 14, 2025; the town selectboard also approved annexation in April 2025. Sheets said the village had a letter of support from the town on file and that the bond vote for the new electric facility is scheduled for May 6, which is driving the timeline for legislative action.

No committee vote on H.364 was recorded during the May 2 meeting. The committee chair said members would like to hear from the town’s representative and requested copies of the village trustee vote and the town selectboard letter for the committee and floor report. The committee agreed to place the bill on the agenda for its next meeting on Tuesday to allow submission of the requested documents and possible written testimony.

If the Senate approves the annexation and the village voters approve the bond, village officials said the move would allow the electric department to relocate, expand public safety space in the existing building and potentially increase police contracting capacity with the town.

The committee deferred a final decision pending receipt of the trustee vote records and the town’s letter of support; members flagged the need to confirm exact vote counts and requested any additional written testimony before acting.