House committee revises H.125 to require statewide energy data reports, maps and gap analysis

The House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee reviewed a rewritten draft of H.125 on Feb. 28 that would require the Agency of Natural Resources to publish a report “on or before 12/15/2025 and annually thereafter” compiling data and indicators related to Vermont’s changing energy landscape and to map that information where relevant.

The report, as described to the committee by Legislative Counsel Michelle Jankowski, must be prepared “in consultation with relevant State agencies, including the Agency of Agriculture and Food and Markets, Department of Public Service, the Agency of Transportation, Department of Labor, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, and the Department of Taxes.” Jankowski said the draft merges language the committee previously discussed with language Secretary Moore submitted and adds maps and an annual cadence to the reporting requirement.

Committee members focused on three central issues: the geographic resolution of the data (county versus broader regions), whether the report should include analysis in addition to raw data, and the specific data elements to be collected. Representative Sebelia urged the committee not to accept a statewide-only response and asked the bill to require reporting “by region or county or explain why the data cannot be reported by geography,” saying statewide-only data would leave “places where we are flying completely blind.”

The draft specifies that the first report must include the prior five years of data, with subsequent annual reports adding the most recent year. Data items enumerated in the draft include current and forecasted electric rates; total megawatts of distributed solar (and active Certificate of Public Good applications); sellers and volumes of heating-fuel sales; the number of homes receiving incentivized weatherization services by income quintile; firms and workers in the thermal sector; transportation fuel sales; EV charging installations (both fast charging and Level 2); vehicle registrations broken out by light, medium and heavy duty and by fuel type; and fossil-fuel and electricity consumption per unit of economic output.

Members and staff discussed sources and measurement. Committee members said transportation-fuel volumes would come from Department of Motor Vehicles and tax records, while the number and location of retail outlets (gasoline and diesel) would be indicated by metered pumps—data the Agency of Agriculture and Food and Markets would help identify. On that point the committee agreed to add an explicit item listing “number and location of retail outlets as indicated by metered pumps” so the report captures both aggregate sales volume and physical retail locations.

Committee discussion also broadened the bill’s framing from “impacts of the clean energy transition” to a less prescriptive phrase reflecting the committee’s intent. Members proposed language such as “changing energy landscape” to capture a wider set of market, infrastructure and equity questions while preserving a focus on how transitions affect access and burdens across the state.

Several members asked whether the committee was asking only for data points or for analysis as well. The committee directed the draft to require an analysis of the compiled data, an assessment of additional data needed to illustrate geographic differences, identification of existing reports and indicators that could support future reporting, and recommendations for further reporting requirements. The draft also requires the report to consider equity and just-transition indicators to better understand distribution of benefits and burdens.

On data confidentiality and accuracy, a committee staffer noted the tax department sometimes withholds or aggregates data where disclosure would reveal proprietary information. A staff participant (identified in the meeting as Mr. Cotto) explained how tax reporting works for different fuel types: “When it comes to heating fuel, it's just retail fuel delivered in bulk, to Vermont. So if I'm a heating fuel company in Bellis Falls and I sell 5,000,000 gallons of heating oil and I sell 2,000,000 gallons in Vermont and 3,000,000 gallons in New Hampshire, only the 2,000,000 gallons that I sell in Vermont will I'll pay the 2¢ fee for weatherization that will be collected.” That exchange was used to clarify which sales are captured in state tax records versus sales that cross state lines.

The committee settled on several drafting choices: require maps and graphic displays “by location when relevant and available,” keep the initial report to five years of historical data with annual updates thereafter, and include explicit agency consultation and source expectations (tax records, DMV, agency datasets). Members also asked the drafter to add a purpose/intent statement to the bill text to make the committee’s goals clear to other chambers.

Timing and next steps: the committee asked Legislative Counsel to circulate a revised draft around March 10–11. The committee scheduled a final markup for Wednesday, March 12 at 9 a.m., with a possible committee vote set for Thursday, March 13 at 9 a.m. If approved, the bill will direct the Agency of Natural Resources to deliver the first substantive report by Dec. 15, 2025, and annually thereafter.

The discussion did not include a formal vote on the bill during this meeting; members focused on drafting language, data definitions and the work plan for a revised draft and final markup.