House Committee on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry

 

AGENDA

 

Room 49 and Zoom

February 3, 2026 - February 6, 2026

Last Updated 1/30/2026 4:49 PM

 

Unless otherwise noted, all meetings are livestreamed at

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

Tuesday, February 3, 2026

10:00 AM                   House Floor

Followed by Caucuses

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   Salvation Farms Update

Kelly Dolan, Director, Salvation Farms

 

1:40 PM                   Break

 

1:50 PM                   Working Lands Enterprise Initiative

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

Elizabeth Sipple, Working Lands Enterprise Initiative Program Staff, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Clare Salerno, Working Lands Enterprise Initiative Program Staff, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

Alisha Utter, Vice-Chair, Working Lands Enterprise Initiative

Oliver Pierson, State Forester and Director of the Forests Division, Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation

 

3:20 PM                   Break

 

3:30 PM                   Municipal regulation of agriculture

Committee discussion

Bradley Showman, Legislative Counsel, Office of Legislative Counsel

 

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

9:30 AM                   Committee Discussion

 

10:00 AM                   Wood Product Manufacturers report

Jamey Fidel, Vice President, Vermont, National Audubon Society/Audubon Vermont

 

10:30 AM                   Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation

Overview of FY2026 FPR budget

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

Steve Gomez, Chief Financial Officer, Agency of Natural Resources

 

11:30 AM                   Break

 

11:40 AM                   Benefit Assisters Proposal

Amy Shollenberger, Lobbyist, Action Circles, Vermont Community Action Partnership

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   Working Lands Coalition

Testimony of WLEI grantees

 

3:15 PM                   Break

 

3:30 PM                   House Floor

 

Thursday, February 5, 2026

9:30 AM                   Act 250

Criterion 9B and prime agricultural soils

Heather Darby, Associate Professor, UVM Extension

 

10:30 AM                   Break

 

10:40 AM                   Committee Bill

Miscellaneous House Agriculture Committee housekeeping bill

Bradley Showman, Legislative Counsel, Office of Legislative Counsel

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

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   3SquaresVT Awareness Day

Johanna Doren, Direct Markets and Local Food Access Program Director, NOFA-VT

 

1:30 PM                   FY27 Budget

Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets

Anson Tebbetts, Secretary, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

 

2:45 PM                   Break

 

3:00 PM                   Committee discussion

Wood Products Manufacturers report

 

3:30 PM                   House Floor

 

Friday, February 6, 2026

9:30 AM                   House Floor

 

11:00 AM                   Act 250

Criterion 9B and prime agricultural soils

Ari Rockland-Miller, Senior Agricultural Development Coordinator, Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

 

12:00 PM                   Lunch

 

1:00 PM                   Farm Service Agency Vermont

Updates

Wendy Wilton, State Executive Director, USDA Farm Service Agency

 

1:30 PM                   Animal Welfare

Daniel Batsie, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Public Safety

Lisa Milot, Director of Animal Welfare, Department of Public Safety

 

2:00 PM                   Committee Discussion

 

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.

 

Should you require accessibility services, please click here and note that requests should be made 48 hours in advance of testimony.

 

 

 

If you have any questions or comments, please contact

 Patricia Ruddy at Patricia.Ruddy@vtleg.gov