Senate advances S.243, adding amendment to direct up to $150,000 to Vermont Language Justice Project if funds are appropriated

At a Senate session, lawmakers voted to pass S.243 as amended, a bill to support the Vermont Language Justice Project with a conditional $150,000 distribution through the Department of Health. The motion, presented "on the motion of Senator Watson," passed after members accepted an instant amendment that replaces the bill's original appropriation language with a conditional distribution tied to available funds.

The bill sponsor (Bill Sponsor (Senator) - Speaker 3) told the panel the Vermont Language Justice Project began during the COVID-19 pandemic and produces health-education videos in roughly 10 to 21 languages to reach people who may not be able to access written English materials or who have low literacy. "This is a bill, that is in support of the Vermont language justice project," the sponsor said, describing the organization as…