Committee reviews H.398 rewrite of VEDA law; adds $2M disaster loan fund and housing coordination with VHFA

House Committee on Commerce & Economic Development members on an unspecified date reviewed H.398, a bill that would rewrite 10 V.S.A. chapter 12, which governs the Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA). The bill combines broad housekeeping edits with several substantive changes: expanding VEDA’s secured‑loan authority, extending some loan terms from 10 to 20 years, modernizing bond language, redesignating the Vermont Jobs Fund within the chapter, and creating a new disaster recovery revolving loan fund with a $2,000,000 appropriation.

“For the record, Cameron Wood, office of legislative counsel,” said Cameron Wood as he opened a line‑by‑line walkthrough of the draft bill. Wood and committee members identified three areas warranting particular attention: the housing language, a reference to the state’s sustainable jobs strategy, and a new disaster recovery loan fund.

The nut of H.398 is structural cleanup across the entire chapter, Wood said, removing outdated reporting requirements and neutralizing gendered language. The draft also makes several technical revisions recommended by bond counsel, including replacing some references to “digital” signatures with broader “electronic” signatures and aligning pledge and bond language with common conduit issuer practice.

Substantive changes discussed

- Housing: The bill would allow VEDA to finance certain multifamily rental housing, including employer‑sponsored or similar rental projects, but only after consultation and “deference to the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA)” for applications eligible for financing from both agencies. Committee members and VEDA staff discussed draft amendment language that would add a subsection enumerating…