H 674

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1H.674
2 Introduced by Representatives Graning of Jericho, Bosch of Clarendon, Carris
3Duncan of Whitingham, Cooper of Pownal, Duke of
4Burlington, Marcotte of Coventry, Micklus of Milton, Olson of
5Starksboro, Priestley of Bradford, and White of Bethel
6 Referred to Committee on
7 Date:
8 Subject: Executive; Agency of Commerce and Community Development;
9Sister State Program
10 Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to create the
11 Vermont Sister State Program to be overseen by a Sister State Program
12 Committee. The Committee, with the assistance of the Agency of Commerce
13 and Community Development, will review applications and recommend to the
14 Governor whether an official sister state relationship should be formalized.
15 This bill also repeals the Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission.
16    An act relating to the creation of the Vermont Sister State Program
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1 It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
2 Sec. 1. 3 V.S.A. § 2479 is added to read:
3 § 2479. VERMONT SISTER STATE PROGRAM
4   (a) Creation and purpose.
5      (1) The Vermont Sister State Program is created within the Agency of
6 Commerce and Community Development. The Agency shall provide support
7 to the Program and to the Sister State Program Committee as required.
8      (2) The purpose of the Program is to strengthen Vermont’s international
9 engagement and to foster mutually beneficial relationships with subnational
10 governments abroad, with a goal of promoting cultural exchange, economic
11 development, educational cooperation, and diplomatic collaboration.
12   (b) Program oversight.
13      (1) The Sister State Program Committee, composed of the following
14 members, shall oversee the Program:
15(A) the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development or
16 designee;
17(B) a member of the House of Representatives, appointed by the
18 Speaker of the House;
19(C) a member of the Senate, appointed by the Committee on
20 Committees;
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1(D) the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Vermont Council on
2 World Affairs or designee;
3(E) the Vermont Adjutant General or designee;
4(F) the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Vermont Arts Council
5 or designee; and
6(G) three members, as follows:
7(i) one member with expertise in cultural exchange or in Peace
8 Corps operations, appointed by the Governor;
9(ii) one member representing a private institution of higher
10 education, appointed by the Committee on Committees; and
11(iii) one member representing a public institution of higher
12 education, appointed by the Speaker.
13      (2) Members of the Committee shall serve two-year terms, provided that
14 members appointed pursuant to subdivision (1)(G) of this subsection shall
15 serve initial terms of three years each to establish staggered terms. Members
16 may be reappointed.
17      (3) The Committee shall elect a chair and vice chair from among its
18 members that shall each serve a two-year term.
19      (4) A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum.
20   (c) Meetings.
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1(1) All meetings shall be called by the Chair, but in the event that the
2 Committee does not have a chair, a meeting may be called by the Secretary of
3 Commerce and Community Development or designee.
4(2) The Committee shall meet:
5(A) at least once quarterly, for the purpose of:
6(i) evaluating current Program agreements;
7(ii) proposing new Program agreements;
8(iii) preparing its annual report; or
9(iv) discussing any other matter that the Committee deems
10 relevant to its work; and
11(B) to review and score an eligible Program application not later than
12 30 days after the Committee receives the application from the Agency,
13 pursuant to subdivision (d)(3) of this section.
14    (d) Program application, review, and approval procedures.
15(1) Development of application process. The Agency, in consultation
16 with the Committee, shall develop a process by which an entity can apply and
17 be considered for admission as a partner to the Program. This process shall
18 include the development of:
19(A) an official application to be in the Program;
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1(B) a confidential internal review procedure to be used by the
2 Agency to review Program applicants for sensitive political, legal, ethical, and
3 strategic factors;
4(C) minimum eligibility requirements to be considered for the
5 Program;
6(D) a fixed-scoring system, including a rubric, to be uniformly
7 applied by the Committee to evaluate all eligible applications; and
8(E) a memorandum of understanding template to be used and signed
9 by the State and an approved Program partner.
10(2) Agency initial verification.
11(A) When a Program application has been received by the Agency
12 pursuant to this section, the Agency shall, before the Committee may meet to
13 review the application:
14(i) verify that the application meets the Program’s minimum
15 eligibility requirements; and
16(ii) conduct a confidential internal review of the applicant.
17(B) Not later than 10 days after completion of the Agency’s initial
18 verification and review of an application pursuant to subdivision (A) of this
19 subdivision (2), the Agency shall send the Committee a copy of the application
20 along with a summary of the Agency’s analysis.
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1(C) The confidential internal review process conducted in
2 subdivision (A)(ii) of this subdivision (2), along with any and all documents
3 reviewed during that process, shall be exempt from public inspection and
4 copying.
5(3) Committee review and recommendation.
6(A) The Committee, upon receiving an application that has received
7 preliminary approval from the Agency, shall meet to review the application
8 pursuant to subdivision (c)(2)(B) of this section not later than 30 days after
9 receipt of the application from the Agency.
10(B) The Committee shall, not later than 30 days after completing its
11 review of an application pursuant to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3),
12 submit its final recommendation to the Governor along with a copy of the
13 application.
14(C) The final recommendation pursuant to subdivision (B) of this
15 subdivision (3) shall either be that the Committee recommends the application
16 be approved or that the Committee recommends the application be
17 disapproved.
18(4) Governor’s review.
19(A) The Governor shall have the sole authority to issue final
20 approval or disapproval of a Sister State Program application that the
21 Committee recommended be approved. The Governor shall not review or
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1 approve of a Program application that the Committee recommended be
2 disapproved. The Governor shall send written notice of the Governor’s
3 decision to the Agency not later than 10 days after the Governor’s decision.
4(B) If the Governor disapproves a Program application, the
5 Governor’s notice in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (4) shall include a
6 written explanation of why the Governor did not follow the recommendation
7 of the Committee.
8(C) Upon the Agency’s receipt of the Governor’s decision pursuant
9 to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (4), the Agency shall notify the applicant
10 of the Governor’s decision not later than 30 days after the Agency receives
11 notice of the Governor’s decision.
12(D) If the application is approved by the Governor, the Agency shall
13 finalize a memorandum of understanding between the State and the Sister
14 State Program applicant.
15    (e) Reporting. The Committee shall submit an annual report not later than
16 January 15 of each year to the Governor and to the House Committee on
17 Commerce and Economic Development and the Senate Committee on
18 Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs that includes the
19 following:
20(1) an executive summary of key development and outcomes of the
21 Program;
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1(2) a description of Committee activities, including a summary of
2 attendance and decisions at its meetings;
3(3) updates on the Program, including an evaluation of sister state
4 applications, new partners, significant developments, metrics of success, and
5 challenges;
6(4) recommendations for new sister state agreements, along with the
7 rationale for the recommendations and how they align with Vermont’s strategic
8 interests and capacity;
9(5) a description of stakeholder engagement with the Program;
10(6) a financial overview, including a summary of funding sources and
11 expenditures; and
12(7) an outlook for the Program, which shall include strategic objectives,
13 potential new agreements, and growth opportunities for the next year.
14    (f) Compensation and reimbursement.
15(1) For attendance at meetings during adjournment of the General
16 Assembly, a legislative member of the Committee serving in the member’s
17 capacity as a legislator shall be entitled to per diem compensation and
18 reimbursement of expenses pursuant to 2 V.S.A. § 23 for not more than eight
19 meetings per year.
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1(2) Other members of the Committee shall be entitled to per diem
2 compensation and reimbursement of expenses as permitted under 32 V.S.A.
3 § 1010 for not more than eight meetings per year.
4(3) Payments to members of the Committee authorized under this
5 subsection shall be made from monies appropriated to the Agency of
6 Commerce and Community Development.
7 Sec. 2. REPEAL
8    2025 Acts and Resolves No. 65, Secs. 4 (9 V.S.A. chapter 111B), 5 (initial
9 appointment deadline for Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission), and 6 (repeal;
10 Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission) are repealed.
11 Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE
12    This act shall take effect on passage.
 Sec. 1. 3 V.S.A. § 2479 is added to read:
 § 2479. VERMONT SISTER STATE PROGRAM
    (a) Creation and purpose.
       (1) The Vermont Sister State Program is created within the Agency of
 Commerce and Community Development. The Agency shall provide support to
 the Program and to the Sister State Program Committee as required.
       (2) The purpose of the Program is to strengthen Vermont’s international
 engagement and to foster mutually beneficial relationships with national and
 subnational governments abroad, with a goal of promoting cultural exchange,
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economic      development,   educational   cooperation,    and     diplomatic
collaboration.
 (2) The purpose of the Program is to strengthen Vermont’s international
engagement and to foster mutually beneficial relationships with national and
subnational governments abroad, with a goal of promoting cultural exchange,
economic development, and educational cooperation.
  (b) Program oversight.
 (1) The Sister State Program Committee, composed of the following
members, shall oversee the Program:
    (A)      the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development or
designee;
    (B) a member of the House of Representatives, appointed by the
Speaker of the House;
    (C)      a member of the Senate, appointed by the Committee on
Committees;
    (D) the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Vermont Council on
World Affairs or designee;
    (E) the Vermont Adjutant General or designee;
    (F) the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Vermont Arts Council or
designee; and
    (G) three members, as follows:
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       (i) one member with expertise in cultural exchange or in Peace
Corps operations, appointed by the Governor;
       (ii)    one member representing a private institution of higher
education, appointed by the Committee on Committees; and
       (iii)   one member representing a public institution of higher
education, appointed by the Speaker.
 (2) Members of the Committee shall serve two-year terms, provided that
members appointed pursuant to subdivision (1)(G) of this subsection shall
serve initial terms of three years each to establish staggered terms. Members
may be reappointed.
 (3) The Committee shall elect a chair and vice chair from among its
members that shall each serve a two-year term.
 (4) A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum.
  (c) Meetings.
 (1) All meetings shall be called by the Chair, but in the event that the
Committee does not have a chair, a meeting may be called by the Secretary of
Commerce and Community Development or designee.
 (2) The Committee shall meet:
    (A) at least once quarterly, for the purpose of:
       (i) evaluating current Program agreements;
       (ii) proposing new Program agreements;
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        (iii) preparing its annual report; or
        (iv)     discussing any other matter that the Committee deems
relevant to its work; and
     (B) to review and score an eligible Program application not later
than 30 days after the Committee receives the application from the Agency,
pursuant to subdivision (d)(3) of this section.
   (d) Program application, review, and approval procedures.
  (1) Development of application process. The Agency, in consultation
with the Committee, shall develop a process by which an entity can apply and
be considered for admission as a partner to the Program. This process shall
include the development of:
     (A) an official application to be in the Program;
     (B) a confidential internal review procedure to be used by the Agency
to review Program applicants for sensitive political, legal, ethical, and
strategic factors;
     (C)       minimum eligibility requirements to be considered for the
Program;
     (D)    a fixed-scoring system, including a rubric, to be uniformly
applied by the Committee to evaluate all eligible applications; and
     (E) a memorandum of understanding template to be used and signed
by the State and an approved Program partner.
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     (D)      a fixed-scoring system, including a rubric, to be uniformly
applied by the Committee to evaluate all eligible applications;
     (E) a memorandum of understanding template to be used and signed
by the State and an approved Program partner that shall include a termination
date; and
     (F) any other necessary Program parameters, including the length of
time for partner agreements to be in effect.
  (2) Agency initial verification.
     (A) When a Program application has been received by the Agency
pursuant to this section, the Agency shall, before the Committee may meet to
review the application:
        (i)    verify that the application meets the Program’s minimum
eligibility requirements; and
        (ii) conduct a confidential internal review of the applicant.
     (B) Not later than 10 days after completion of the Agency’s initial
verification and review of an application pursuant to subdivision (A) of this
subdivision (2), the Agency shall send the Committee a copy of the application
along with a summary of the Agency’s analysis.
     (C) The confidential internal review process conducted in subdivision
(A)(ii) of this subdivision (2), along with any and all documents reviewed
during that process, shall be exempt from public inspection and copying.
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  (3) Committee review and recommendation.
     (A) The Committee, upon receiving an application that has received
preliminary approval from the Agency, shall meet to review the application
pursuant to subdivision (c)(2)(B) of this section not later than 30 days after
receipt of the application from the Agency.
     (B)   If the Committee recommends that an application reviewed
pursuant to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3) be approved, the Committee
shall submit its recommendation to the Governor along with a copy of the
application not later than 30 days after completing its review of the
application.
     (B)   If the Committee recommends that an application reviewed
pursuant to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3) be approved, the Committee
shall submit its recommendation to the Governor along with a copy of the
application not later than 30 days after completing its review of the
application. The Committee shall not send to the Governor an application that
the Committee does not recommend be approved.
  (4) Governor’s review.
     (A)   The Governor shall have the sole authority to issue final
approval or disapproval of a Sister State Program application that the
Committee recommended be approved.  The Governor shall not review or
approve of a Program application that the Committee recommended be
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disapproved.      The Governor shall send written notice of the Governor’s
decision to the Agency not later than 10 days after the Governor’s decision.
        (B)   If the Governor disapproves a Program application, the
Governor’s notice in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (4) shall include a
written explanation of why the Governor did not follow the recommendation of
the Committee.
        (C) Upon the Agency’s receipt of the Governor’s decision pursuant
to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (4), the Agency shall notify the applicant
of the Governor’s decision not later than 30 days after the Agency receives
notice of the Governor’s decision.
        (D) If the application is approved by the Governor, the Agency shall
finalize a memorandum of understanding between the State and the Sister State
Program applicant.
  (5)     Termination.   The Committee shall have the sole authority to
terminate an active Sister State Program partnership upon a majority vote of
Committee members at a Committee meeting.
   (e) Reporting. The Committee shall submit an annual report not later than
January 15 of each year to the Governor and to the House Committee on
Commerce and Economic Development and the Senate Committee on
Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs that includes the
following:
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 (1) an executive summary of key development and outcomes of the
Program;
 (2)      a description of Committee activities, including a summary of
attendance and decisions at its meetings;
 (3) updates on the Program, including an evaluation of sister state
applications, new partners, significant developments, metrics of success, and
challenges;
 (4) a description of stakeholder engagement with the Program;
 (5) a financial overview, including a summary of funding sources and
expenditures; and
 (6) an outlook for the Program, which shall include strategic objectives,
potential new agreements, and growth opportunities for the next year.
  (f) Compensation and reimbursement.
 (1)   For attendance at meetings during adjournment of the General
Assembly, a legislative member of the Committee serving in the member’s
capacity as a legislator shall be entitled to per diem compensation and
reimbursement of expenses pursuant to 2 V.S.A. § 23 for not more than eight
meetings per year.
 (2)   Other members of the Committee shall be entitled to per diem
compensation and reimbursement of expenses as permitted under 32 V.S.A.
§ 1010 for not more than eight meetings per year.
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 (3)   Payments to members of the Committee authorized under this
subsection shall be made from monies appropriated to the Agency of
Commerce and Community Development.
  (f) Compensation and reimbursement.
 (1)   For attendance at meetings during adjournment of the General
Assembly, a legislative member of the Committee serving in the member’s
capacity as a legislator shall be entitled to per diem compensation and
reimbursement of expenses pursuant to 2 V.S.A. § 23 for not more than eight
meetings per year. These payments shall be made from monies appropriated to
the General Assembly.
 (2)   Other members of the Committee shall be entitled to per diem
compensation and reimbursement of expenses as permitted under 32 V.S.A.
§ 1010 for not more than eight meetings per year. These payments shall be
made from monies appropriated to the Agency of Commerce and Community
Development.
Sec. 2. REPEAL
  2025 Acts and Resolves No. 65, Secs. 4 (9 V.S.A. chapter 111B), 5 (initial
appointment deadline for Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission), and 6 (repeal;
Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission) are repealed.
Sec. 2. 9 V.S.A. chapter 111B is amended to read:
             CHAPTER 111B. TRADE COMMISSIONS
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§ 4129. VERMONT-IRELAND TRADE COMMISSION
   (a) The Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission is established within the State
Treasurer’s office to advance bilateral trade and investment between Vermont
and Ireland. The Commission shall consist of seven nine members as follows:
    (1) two members, appointed by the Governor;
    (2) two members, appointed by the Speaker of the House;
    (3) two members, appointed by the Senate Committee on Committees;
and
    (4) the State Treasurer or designee;
    (5) the Commissioner of Economic Development or designee; and
    (6) the President of the University of Vermont or designee.
                                   ***
   (c) The members of the Commission, except for the State Treasurer or
designee, appointed pursuant to subdivisions (a)(1)–(3) of this section:
    (1) shall be appointed for terms of four years each and shall continue to
serve until their successors are appointed, except that in order to achieve
staggered terms, the two members appointed by the Governor shall serve
initial terms of two years each and the two members appointed by the Speaker
of the House shall serve initial terms of three years each.;
    (2) Members may be reappointed. upon the expiration of the member’s
term;
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  (3) A member serves serve at the pleasure of the member’s appointing
authority.; and
  (4) Not shall consist of not more than two members serving on the
Commission may be members of the General Assembly.
                                   ***
   (f) The Commission, in coordination with the State Treasurer’s office, shall
submit a written report with its findings, results, and recommendations to the
Governor and the General Assembly within one year of following its initial
organizational meeting and on or before December 1 of each succeeding year
for the activities of the current calendar year. The report shall also include a:
  (1)     disclosure listing any in-kind contributions received by specific
members of the Commission through their work in the Commission in the
current calendar year; and
  (2) detailed accounting from the State Treasurer’s office of the:
        (A) administrative expenses that have been paid with funds raised by
the Commission, pursuant to subsection (g) of this section; and
        (B)   funds raised and donations, grants, and bequests received
through the Commission including the name, country of residence, and amount
donated of each contributor.
   (g)(1) The Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission is authorized to raise funds,
through direct solicitation or other fundraising events, alone or with other
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groups, and accept donations, grants, and bequests from individuals,
corporations, foundations, governmental agencies, and public and private
organizations and institutions, to defray the Commission’s administrative
expenses and to carry out its purposes as set forth in this chapter.
  (2) The funds, donations, grants, or bequests received pursuant to this
chapter subdivision (1) of this subsection shall be deposited in a bank account
and allocated annually by the State Treasurer’s office to defray the
Commission’s administrative expenses and carry out its purposes. Any monies
so withdrawn shall not be used for any purpose other than the payment of
administrative expenses under incurred pursuant to this chapter section and
shall be itemized and tracked for reporting purposes by the State Treasurer’s
office. Interest earned shall remain in the bank account. The State Treasurer
shall include the balance of the account in the annual reporting required
pursuant to subsection (f) of this section.
  (3) For purposes of this section, “administrative expenses” does not
include any:
     (A) expenses related to:
        (i) campaign or election activity; or
        (ii) food or beverages provided at official Commission meetings;
or
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       (B) other expense that is not specific to the administrative functions
of the Commission.
  (h) Members of the Commission shall not receive any compensation or be
entitled to reimbursement of expenses by the State of Vermont or from the fund
managed by the State Treasurer pursuant to subsection (g) of this section for
their service on the Commission.
Sec. 2a. REPORT ON THE FUTURE OF THE VERMONT-IRELAND
       TRADE COMMISSION
  On or before December 1, 2029, the Vermont-Ireland Trade Commission
shall submit a written report to the House Committee on Commerce and
Economic Development and to the Senate Committee on Economic
Development, Housing and General Affairs with the following information:
 (1) a summary of the accomplishments of the Commission since its
inception;
 (2)     a detailed analysis as to how the Commission has served its
legislative purposes pursuant to 9 V.S.A. § 4129(b); and
 (3) an accounting on funds raised and details on gifts received pursuant
to 9 V.S.A. § 4129(g) since the Commission’s inception.
Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE
  This act shall take effect on passage.