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House refuses to concur on greenhouse gas registry changes, appoints conferees and messages action to Senate
Summary
Lawmakers debated H.740, a greenhouse gas inventory and registry bill that would authorize ANR rulemaking and include a $300,000 FY2027 appropriation; the House refused to concur in the Senate's amendments, appointed conferees and suspended rules to message its action to the Senate.
The House considered House Bill 740, an act establishing a comprehensive greenhouse gas emission reporting program under the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR). The member from Manchester, Representative James, told the chamber the goal is to help Vermonters, especially low- and moderate-income households, access affordable clean energy and to build a clearer baseline of Vermont's current emissions by fuel type and by the smallest practicable geographic unit.
Representative James described the Senate's strike-all amendment as making several substantive changes: it clarifies protections for consumer identities so fuel dealers would not be required to report individual customer addresses; it replaces the House's contingency-based rulemaking language with a $300,000 one-time FY2027 appropriation for ANR to begin the work; and it removes provisions tied to the clean heat standard by repealing 30 V.S.A. chapter 94 and related data-sharing requirements. He also noted the Public Utility Commission's January 2025 "check back" report had concluded the clean heat standard was not a good fit for Vermont at that time and that no legislative approval had followed.
After debate, the member from Manchester moved that the House refuse to concur in the Senate proposal of amendment and appoint a committee of conference. The member from Franklin asked for an interrogation, pressing on how collected data would be used and whether the effort risked being a "fishing expedition." Representative James responded that the intent is to create a reliable baseline to inform future policy and acknowledged the timeline: rulemaking authority in 2027, one year of data collection, and usable numbers by about 2029.
The House voted by voice to refuse to concur; the Speaker announced the motion carried and appointed House conferees for the matter: Representative James (Manchester), Representative Campbell (St. Johnsbury) and Representative Tory (Moore Town). The House then suspended its rules to message the action on H.740 to the Senate forthwith.
The transcript records the primary policy differences raised on the floor: data privacy protections, a specific appropriation to start the registry, and repeal of the previously contemplated clean heat standard. The House's refusal to concur and the appointment of conferees set the stage for interchamber negotiation on those differences.
