Crossover — the deadline for bills to be passed out of committees in the Statehouse — is Friday, and that means lawmakers will be scrambling to nail down language for a large number of bills that are still in play.
In the Senate, the Finance Committee will review a jobs bill, while the Economic Development Committee considers new legislation that would require testing for toxic materials in consumer products.
A bill that would lift the net metering cap for local distribution of solar power will be on the Senate floor Thursday and Friday, and legislation that will expand the state’s medical marijuana dispensaries will be considered by the full Senate on Tuesday.
The House, meanwhile, will be digging in to the 2015 budget. Lawmakers in the House Appropriations Committee hope to spend less than the governor’s recommended budget proposal.
The minimum wage bill will get its start in the House where Reps. Chris Pearson and Paul Poirier and others have pressed for $12.50 to $15 per hour minimum wage levels. Gov. Peter Shumlin announced on Monday that he would like to see the minimum wage increase to $10.10 over the next three years as President Barack Obama has recommended.
The Education Governance proposal in the House still has a long way to go, but lawmakers have to pass something out of committee today if the plan has a chance of survival. The House canceled a hearing on the subject for Tuesday in the Statehouse.
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