House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry

 

AGENDA

 

Room 49 and Zoom

January 30, 2024 - February 2, 2024

Last Updated 2/8/2024 3:12 PM

 

Unless otherwise noted, all meetings are livestreamed at

https://legislature.vermont.gov/committee/streaming/house-agriculture-food-resiliency-and-forestry.

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

10:00 AM                   House Floor and Caucuses

 

After Caucus                       Committee Meeting

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

Provided by CSG East

 

1:00 PM                   Council of State Governments East Presentation

Tara Sad, Council of State Governments

Bob Haefner, Council of State Governments

 

2:00 PM                   FY25 Budget

Natural Resources Conservation Service Request

Sarah Damsell, District Manager, Orleans County Natural Resources Conservation Districts

Hilary Solomon, District Manager, Poultney Mettowee Natural Resources Conservation District

Emily Finnegan, District Manager, Caledonia County Natural Resources Conservation District

Jill Arace, Executive Director, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts

 

3:00 PM                   Break

 

3:15 PM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Kevin Komer, Director of Agronomy, The Club at Spruce Peak

 

4:00 PM                   Adjourn

 

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

9:00 AM                   Working Lands Enterprise Initiative

Joint Hearing with Senate Agriculture - FY23 Annual Report

Room 267, Pavilion

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3ogCBBT6D13zAYmsLI0Oiw/featured

Charlie Hancock, Chairman, Working Lands Enterprise Board

Elizabeth Sipple, Program Lead, Working Lands Enterprise Initiative

Abbey Willard, Director, Agricultural Development Division Director, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Clare Salerno, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Eric Skovsted, Joe's Brook Farm

Tucker Riggs, LSF Forest Products

Shawn Gingue, Dairy farmer, New England Grains

Sarah Gingue, Dairy farmer, New England Grains

Christopher Redder, Mud City Farm

Danielle Fitzko, Commissioner, Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation

 

11:00 AM                   Break

 

11:15 AM                   H. 128 - An act relating to removing regulatory barriers for working lands businesses

Walk-through

Ellen Czajkowski, Legislative Counsel, Office of Legislative Counsel

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   H. 673 - An act relating to Vermont’s outdoor recreation economy

Rebecca Washburn, Director, Lands Administration and Recreation, Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation

 

1:30 PM                   H. 673 - An act relating to Vermont’s outdoor recreation economy

Nick Bennette, Co-Chair, Vermont Trails and Greenways Council

Tommy O'Connor, Co-Chair, Vermont Trails and Greenways Council

Abigail Long, Executive Director, Kingdom Trails Association, East Burke

Matt Williams, Executive Director, Catamount Trail Association

Kelly Ault, Executive Director, Vermont Outdoor Business Alliance

Sharon Plumb, Program Manager, Vermont Trails and Greenways Council - Invited

 

3:00 PM                   House Floor

 

4:00 PM                   Adjourn

 

Thursday, February 8, 2024

9:00 AM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Maddie Kempner, Policy Director, NOFA VT

 

9:30 AM                   Break

 

9:45 AM                   Committee Meeting

 

10:30 AM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Vermont Dairy Producers Alliance

Larry Gervais, Gervais Family Farm, Vice Chair, Farmers Watershed Alliance

 

11:00 AM                   Local Food Incentive and Farm to School Grants

Betsy Rosenbluth, Farm to School Director, Shelburn Farms, Vermont FEED

Kayla Henry, Teacher, Crossett Brook Middle School

Individual Students, Crossett Brook Elementary School

Alyssa Pratt, Support Specialist, Spaulding Educational Alternatives

Tom Brewton , Food Hub Institutional Sales Associates, Food Connects

Angus Baldwin, Farmer, West Farm

Kayla Strom, Farm to School Programs Coordinator, The Northeast Organic Farming Association of VT

Gina Clithero, Farm to Institution Program Manager, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets - Invited

Jake Gallogly, Food Service Manager, Leland and Gray Union Middle and High Schools - Written

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Vermont Dairy Producers Alliance

Denna Benjamin, Riverview Farm, Franklin

 

1:30 PM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Steve Dwinell, Director, Public Health and Agricultural Resource Management, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

 

2:15 PM                   Break

 

2:30 PM                   Flood Recovery/Relief

Douglas Farnham, Chief Recovery Officer, Department of Finance & Management

 

3:00 PM                   House Floor

 

4:00 PM                   Adjourn

 

Friday, February 9, 2024

9:30 AM                   House Floor

 

10:30 AM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Kent McFarland, Senior Conservation Biologist, Vermont Center for Ecostudies

 

11:00 AM                   H. 128 - An act relating to removing regulatory barriers for working lands businesses

Steve Collier, General Counsel, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Ryan Patch, Agriculture Climate and Land Use Policy Manager, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Abbey Willard, Director, Agricultural Development Division Director, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   Forest Futures Roadmap

Danielle Fitzko, Commissioner, Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation

Allan Thompson, Vermont Woodlands Association

Chris Fife, Public Affairs Manager, Weyerhaeuser Company

Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director, Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund

Charlie Hancock, Chairman, Montgomery Selectboard

Abigail Long, Executive Director, Kingdom Trails Association, East Burke

 

2:00 PM                   Break

 

2:15 PM                   H. 128 - An act relating to removing regulatory barriers for working lands businesses

Sabina Haskell, Chair, Natural Resources Board

Peter Gill, Executive Director, Natural Resources Board

 

3:15 PM                   H. 706 - An act relating to banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides

Jon Gaeta, Director of State Affairs, Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment

Riley Titus, Director of Government Affairs, CropLife America

Gene Harrington, Director of Government Relations in the Northeast, Biotechnology Innovation Organization

 

4:15 PM                   Adjourn

 

ATTENTION WITNESSES

 

Please email handouts to the committee assistant at least 24 hours before your scheduled meeting time. With few exceptions, any documents you send to a committee assistant are open to the public and may be posted to the committee’s web page.

 

If you have any questions or comments, please contact

 Sydonia Axis Lary at slary@leg.state.vt.us