House Appropriations panel approves routing $150,000 to Vermont Language Justice Project

The House Appropriations Committee approved S 243 on May 7, routing $150,000 to the Department of Health to support the Vermont Language Justice Project’s production of translated emergency public‑health and disaster materials.

Representative Ray Garifano, the bill sponsor, told the committee the project can produce short translated videos in as many as 18–22 languages with a 24‑hour turnaround, a capability he and other members said is critical in floods, disease outbreaks and other emergencies. “They have demonstrated that they can have a 24 hour turnaround,” Garifano said, describing the group as a unique state resource that previously relied on a CDC grant that ended about a year ago.

The bill’s House amendment (committee draft 2.1) removes an original statutory appropriation and instead creates a two‑step fiscal path: first revert available carryforward funds now held in the Office of Racial Equity (housed in the AOA) to the general fund, then appropriate $150,000 from the general fund to the Department of Health for a grant to the Vermont Language Justice Project. Katie, the committee staff presenter, described the amendment’s language changes, saying the draft swaps the Office of Racial Equity for the Department of Health as the contracting entity and adds a reversion section plus the FY27 appropriation.

Committee members and staff discussed procurement and access: witnesses and staff told the committee the Vermont Language Justice Project is not currently on the state’s approved contractor list, which would mean an RFP would normally be required before the state could hire it in an emergency. Committee members said the amendment and the contracting plan aim to allow the state to use the project’s services more quickly by clarifying which agency will hold and execute the contract.

Fiscal staff told the committee the Office of Racial Equity had previously received a one‑time appropriation to create a statewide language access plan and that carryforward balances—discussed in the hearing as roughly $1.7–$2.0 million depending on outstanding invoices—appear sufficient to support reverting $150,000 for this purpose. The amendment does not create new general‑fund spending beyond that reversion/appropriation sequence, staff said.

The committee first voted to approve the committee amendment (draft 2.1); the clerk’s roll call was recorded and the amendment passed (transcript reported a tally of "11 0 0 1"). The committee then voted to pass S 243 as amended; the clerk’s roll call for final passage was recorded (transcript reported "7 0 6") and the chair announced the bill passed in committee.

Garifano and other members noted the Project’s reach: witnesses at the hearing said the Project has more than 300,000 video views since its January 2025 launch, more than 2,000 subscribers and roughly 180 service‑provider partners who help disseminate materials. The committee asked staff and the sponsor to follow up on technical accessibility details—such as whether videos include English captions and target‑language captions—and on the contracting steps needed to make the Project an approved state contractor.

The chair closed the item and reminded members the committee will continue to process bills as they arrive and to review the green/red budget materials in their packet. The committee did not record additional conditions on implementation during the hearing; next procedural steps were the committee’s passage and normal transmission of the bill as amended.