Tomorrow, January 8th, will be the first day of the 2025/2026 Vermont Legislative Biennium. ABC NH/VT is prepared to work with elected officials to craft state policy to help build our workforce, build our opportunities and create an economy that is prosperous. This start date will be the latest beginning of the session due to the new year beginning halfway through the prior week. Usually the session begins as early as the 2nd or 3rd of January and being a new legislature the week lost is significant. Nonetheless, legislators are ready to dig in to their priorities. ABC NH/VT will report to our government affairs committee, board of directors and membership the progress we make as the session moves forward.

In a short three weeks from today the first fall of the gavel will occur at the Vermont State House signaling the start of the 2024/2025 legislative biennium. After a wild election season with national and state political shake ups voters are anxious to see what their newly elected leaders will accomplish, or not. The first couple weeks of the Vermont legislature are filled with ceremonial and educational traditions. Legislative committees will be assigned to members, and they will get to see where their desks will be for the next two years. The House of Representatives has 13 committees that meet each day, all day when the floor is not in session, and each has 7-10 members. The Senate has 11 committees that meet each day, but only for half the day. The Senate has only 30 members unlike the Houses 150, which requires Senators to participate in two committees to complete the workload. The members of the legislature will also spend time in either committees or on the floor of their respective chambers taking trainings. The trainings they receive range from ethics to sexual harassment to procedural education so that everyone is on the same page though the session. In committees, the chairs spend time bringing their members up to speed on their duties and perennial issues they tackle.