Committee advances S.223 and orders ANR study on wetlands professional certification

A legislative committee voted 6-0 to sign and advance S.223, a study bill directing the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) to report on whether to establish a certification program for wetlands professionals.

Michael O'Grady, legislative council, told the committee the House made three principal changes to the bill: it revised study‑committee membership to require that legislative members not be all from one party and added three nonlegislative seats representing the Green Mountain Water Environment Association, the Metformagot Watershed Association, and the Lake Champlain Advisory Committee; it removed a Senate contingency that would have allowed the committee to proceed without appropriation but without compensating members; and it added a requirement that ANR report back on certifying wetlands professionals. "Generally, there were 3 major changes," O'Grady said.

The ANR report, as described to the committee, must analyze the benefits and disadvantages of a wetlands professional certification program, including whether certification could accelerate permitting, reduce the supply of wetland services, increase costs, or delay permitting because of changes in the number of qualified delineators. O'Grady said ANR should examine potential liability implications and proposed certification requirements and "include a description of the proposed program, the proposed requirements for certification, [and] a description of the activities that a professional would be authorized to conduct."

"Who's paying for that?" asked committee member David, raising constituent concerns about the cost of wetland work. O'Grady replied that the report will be produced within ANR's existing budget and staff, not as a separately funded appropriation. The committee also discussed that the House asked ANR to consult with current wetlands delineators and others familiar with permitting when preparing the report.

Members voiced concerns about membership balance on the study committee after the House additions. One lawmaker argued that adding three nonlegislative seats could make legislators "almost like an afterthought" and urged an adjustment in the number of legislative seats to preserve legislative participation.

At the end of the meeting the committee agreed on signature logistics to forward the paperwork and recorded a 6-0 vote in favor of signing and advancing the measure; the transcript does not specify a mover or seconder. Michael O'Grady explained that two members from each body may sign and that the first appointed person from the committee not from the bill's origin will take the document to the House clerk for notice.

The committee's action sends ANR a formal request to evaluate the practical and legal implications of certifying wetlands professionals; the transcript records the committee's direction to ANR but does not include a timetable for the agency's report, detailed certification criteria, or the names of the two signers.