Legislative counsel briefs House Transportation Committee on how Vermont transportation law, T-bill and DMV rules work

Damien Leonard, legislative counsel for the Vermont Legislature, told the House Transportation Committee on Jan. 15 that understanding the structure of state and federal law is essential before drafting or amending transportation policy.

“The first thing I’m gonna talk about are just what are the forms of law we’re looking at,” Leonard said, opening a primer the committee scheduled ahead of the session’s bill-drafting period.

Leonard’s presentation outlined why the committee should consult different sources — the Vermont Statutes Annotated (the “green books”), the session laws compiled in the annual “white books,” agency rules, and federal law — and how those sources interact when the committee writes the annual transportation appropriations and policy bill (commonly called the T bill) or the miscellaneous motor-vehicle bill.

The nut graf: Committee members were urged to check more than the printed statutes when they draft or amend law because statutory supplements, session laws and agency rules can change how a provision takes effect and who has authority to implement it.

Leonard explained the distinction between codified law and session law, saying codified statutes appear in the green books while the white books collect the acts and resolves passed each year. He noted session law is useful for short-term measures — for example, one-year study panels or pilot programs — but is harder to find and harder to amend when a law needs to be permanent.

He described Title 23 (motor vehicles), Title 19 (highways) and Title 5 (aeronautics and surface transportation) as the core statutory locations the committee will consult most often, with Title 32 (taxes) appearing when vehicle taxes or fees are at issue. Leonard emphasized that Title 23 includes a cross-cutting definition section, 23 V.S.A. §4, that applies across the motor-vehicle title and can change how key terms are read in multiple chapters.

On federal law and preemption, Leonard reminded members that the U.S. Constitution and federal statutes or regulations can supersede state law where Congress intended to occupy the field. He gave examples — federal motor-carrier safety rules and federal railroad law have preemptive effect in certain areas — and said states retain control over many local matters such as municipal speed limits unless federal law speaks directly to the issue.

Leonard also discussed agency rulemaking and judicial deference. He told the committee that Vermont courts still give deference to agency interpretations unless legislative or rulemaking procedures were not followed, and that the Legislature’s Committee on Administrative Rules (LCAR) reviews proposed agency rules for consistency with statute and legislative intent.

The legislation-writing process for the committee’s annual transportation bill was reviewed in practical terms. Leonard said the bill is introduced as a committee bill that starts with Agency of Transportation proposals, is drafted by legislative counsel, and then is amended through the committee process with member proposals, technical corrections, and, in some cases, revisions required by DMV’s information-technology modernization work. He explained that the bill typically includes a copy of the transportation program for the upcoming fiscal year and that appropriations and policy language travel through committee, appropriations and sometimes Ways and Means before final passage.

Leonard called out several drafting mechanics the committee uses regularly: reader-assistance headings, underlining for new language, strike-throughs for deletions, ellipses to omit unchanged statutory text, and references to federal authorities such as the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) when statutes or regulations must be cited.

He warned the committee to track effective dates and sunsets carefully. Some items can take effect on passage, others can be delayed, and retroactive effective dates require special drafting and may be appropriate in limited circumstances (for example, tax changes or emergency actions). Leonard specifically mentioned an upcoming Work Zone traffic camera pilot and automated license-plate-recognition matters the committee will monitor; he said the pilot “starts this July” and that members should expect an initial report about six months after implementation.

Leonard closed by describing his role — and that of his colleague Anne Logan — as nonpartisan staff who will draft bills for members and for the committee. “Logan and I are nonpartisan staff. We serve all of you,” he said, adding that he will reformat member or agency language to legislative drafting style while retaining intent. He also offered to help members find resources, legislative history, or prior bills and noted that the committee will resume at 1 p.m. to hear from the commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles.

The committee did not take formal votes during this briefing; the session was informational and intended to prepare members for the biennial drafting and amendment schedule the legislative session will follow.

Ending: The Transportation Committee will reconvene at 1 p.m. to hear from the DMV commissioner; members were encouraged to follow up with Leonard or Logan for research or drafting questions.