House Commerce Committee reviews S.117 draft; focuses on workers—comp payment penalties, insurer reporting and expedited VOSHA rulemaking

The Vermont House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development reviewed a draft of Senate Bill S.117 Friday, focusing on three areas: an expedited rulemaking option for VOSHA, removal of redundant subminimum-wage authority, and new penalties and reporting requirements for late workers' compensation payments. The committee did not take a formal vote and directed staff to refine language with agency and industry input.

Committee members began with an overview from Sophie Zidatni of the Office of Legislative Council, describing several technical edits and one substantive addition allowing the Vermont Occupational Safety and Health Administration to use an expedited rulemaking process "if the Vermont Occupational Safety and Health Administration is simply adopting verbatim a rule that's coming down from the federal, OSHA, with no changes. This is going to allow a sort of expedited, rule making process," she said, while noting the expedited path would still require notice to the committee chair and the Senate.

The bill also proposes removing a provision that previously allowed the Commissioner of Labor to recommend a subminimum wage for certain groups. Zidatni said the draft deletes language that applied to apprentices and individuals with disabilities because existing law already covers those groups; the Department of Labor asked…