Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Equity Inclusion topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Selectboard approves flying Transgender Pride flag amid a wider discussion about use of given names in town records
Summary
The Equity & Inclusion Advisory Committee's request to fly a Transgender Day of Visibility flag April 2–4 passed; the meeting also included a prolonged reading and discussion about the use of chosen names versus legal names in town business.
Peg Alden read statements from the Equity & Inclusion Advisory Committee supporting Transgender Day of Visibility and requested permission to fly a Transgender Pride flag; the board voted to fly the flag April 2–4, 2026 (motion by Peg Alden; second by Aileen Tulloch; motion passed).
Separately, Aileen Tulloch read at length into the record her perspective and personal experience about given-name usage in official town business, recounting the administrative and financial burdens of formal name changes and arguing that common-law usage of a chosen name is well established. She said, "There is nothing—and I did double check with VLCT on this— in Vermont State Statute that necessitates a public official, or a volunteer on a governmental advisory board, be referred to by a name other than the one they go by." The exchange included questions from Daniel Hartigan about flag dates and a comment from Laura Chapman urging acceptance; no further formal policy action was taken at the meeting on name protocol beyond the reading into the record and EIAC's statements.
