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House Energy panel advances H.527, directs PUC to hold workshops on cell‑tower siting
Summary
The House Energy and Digital Infrastructure subcommittee voted to report H.527 (draft 5.1), which directs the Public Utility Commission to hold two public workshops on cell‑tower siting, extends the PUC deadline to Dec. 2027 and moves the bill sunset to 2030; the report passed 5–3–1.
The House Energy and Digital Infrastructure subcommittee on an unnamed date advanced H.527 (draft 5.1) and directed the Public Utility Commission to hold two public workshops examining rules and procedures for siting wireless infrastructure, the committee’s chair said.
The chair said the bill grew from five weeks of testimony about the Act 248 siting process and aims to balance the public benefit of expanded wireless coverage with residents’ and municipalities’ desire for meaningful input on where towers and antennas are placed. “The bill that we wound up developing, with input from a lot of people, will ... require the PUC to hold 2 public workshops on this issue and, make sure that not just the telecom, companies are there at these workshops, but also that most importantly, I think that the Vermont League of Cities and Towns is represented at the workshops,” the chair said.
The draft (5.1, dated February 6 at 08:44 a.m., unchanged from draft 4.1) directs the PUC to convene workshops that include telecom providers, regional planning commissions, Vermonters for a Clean Environment, the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, the Department of Public Service, the Department of Public Safety and the Agency of Natural Resources. Members said the workshops should examine advanced notice procedures, contested‑case procedures and other aspects of the siting and permitting process.
Because the committee assigned a substantial list of tasks to the PUC, the subcommittee extended the timeframe for the PUC to complete the work to December 2027 and rolled the bill’s sunset forward one year to 2030.
Rep. Sebelius was identified in committee as the member who will report the bill to the full chamber. A motion to report the bill as amended was moved on the record and the clerk called the roll. The roll call in the transcript records the following individual responses: Rep. Bailey (No); Rep. Campbell (Yes); Rep. Howland (No); Rep. Morrow (Yes); Rep. Spelian (Yes); Rep. Southwood (No); Rep. James (Yes). The committee announced a final tally of 5 yes, 3 no, 1 abstain; the transcript does not capture every individual vote to match each tallyed position, and the committee clerk recorded the official roll.
Not all members supported the approach. A member who opposed the motion said the bill does not sufficiently address problems with the current siting process and urged revisiting the statutory framework. “I believe there are issues with the siting process. I’m very concerned that if the monitors who just directly infection are being heard or unable to be heard. I’m not convinced that the current process will be enhanced by our recommendations in the bill. Revisiting the current statute to me is the correct answer, and that is why I voted no,” the member said.
The subcommittee chair said the bill’s journey is not finished and that the Senate may take a different approach; the work is intended to produce recommendations the PUC would return to the Legislature for consideration. The subcommittee adjourned and planned to reconvene at 03:30 to discuss data centers.
Votes at a glance: the committee reported H.527 (draft 5.1, as amended) to the full House with the clerk announcing a 5–3–1 result.
