Another Campaign Year!

Below, I'm incorporating the bulleted items on my campaign info-card, with more commentary on the details. These are things I'd love to speak with you about in a face-to-face meeting, but I think by having them here as well, you can read at your leisure . You can always contact me by phone or email if you have questions.

I welcome the opportunity to meet wih you or a group of your neighbors a any time. If you'd like to schedule a house meeting or somehing larger, just let me know. I've worked diligently over the past four years, and enjoyed my terms as "your voice in Montpelier."

           Thank you!

Now, I ask for your support once again, to return me to the Vermont House to continue my work on your behalf. Absentee ballots are available for any who are not certain about getting to the polls on November 2. They can be picked up at your Town Office or mailed to you, and returned in person or mailed back (be sure to allow time).

Volunteers! If you'd like to help out, give me a call or write, and if you'd like to donate to help defray campaign expenses, that would be most gratefully received. Donations can be mailed to: Stevens for House, c/o Marthe Fisher,Treas.; 138 Delong Lane, Bridport, VT 05734.

 

Note: The URLs referenced in the bullets are collected below for easier access.

Working for Agriculture

• Active member of the House Agriculture CommitteeThe House Agriculture Committee consists of Representatives: Carolyn Partridge of Windham, Chair, Richard Lawrence of Lyndon, Vice Chair, John Malcolm of Pawlet, Ranking Member, David Ainsworth of Royalton, Chris Bray of New Haven, Clerk, Chip Conquest of Newbury, Norm McAllister of Highgate, Jim McNeil of Rutland Town, Tess Taylor of Barre City, Kitty Toll of Danville, and me, Will Stevens, Shoreham.
  
  There are 6 Democrats, 4 Republicans and 1 Independent on the Committee. Underscoring the idea that agriculture is a non-partisan matter, nearly all of the bills voted out of our committee that went to the floor for consideration by the entire assembly were voted out unanimously.
• Working with the Agency of Agriculture on several initiatives designed to promote agricultural economic development• The Vermont Agricultural Development Corp. (VADC) grew out of the “Moving Vermont Agriculture Forward” initiative sponsored by the VAAFM and the John Merck Fund. The goal was to look for new opportunities to support agriculture and ag businesses in ways that don’t currently exist. Two Task Forces were created; Branding and Marketing, and Business Development. While I was asked to be on the Business Development Task Force, I also contributed to the Branding and Marketing efforts, which resulted in the establishment of the Culinary Tourism Council, a public and private partnership.
      The VADC will act as an investment vehicle for “slow money” investors who are willing to make long term, low-return investments in VT Ag businesses. It will be designed to aggregate money from multiple sources, and have the ability to distribute it as loans, with the eventual goal of being self supporting through administrative fees, interest payments, etc. Established Vermont businesses that are experiencing capital needs and rapid growth prospects are the principal targets for this type of loan program. The program will have the ability to assist through all aspects of the process from permitting to final operation.
  
  • Agricultural Development Board—established in Act 158 (2010) is designed to combine Ag and Economic Development interests so that Vermont will have viable farm and forest products sectors well into the 21st Century. The board is charged with presenting a statewide Ag development plan and policy recommendations to the Legislature, Administration, UVM, and others. (For the full text of the bill, go to: http://www.leg.state.vt.us/DOCS/2010/ACTS/ACT158.PDF)
  
  • Taste of Place Advisory Board—This board is exploring the applicability of “terroir” (essentially unique regional foods and flavors) and producer-originated production requirements for foods (such as the Agenvy of Commerce program for wine in France and a similar designation process in Quebec) to Vermont products. We have met with French and Quebec program administrators, producers, and academics in an effort to learn from their experiences in order to determine what might work for us here in Vermont. Maple syrup is one of the most obvious food products that may benefit from such a geographical indicator (GI) program. The goal is to support Vermont’s working landscape by creating new opportunities that ultimately will put more dollars directly into the hands of the producers, which of course, should provide incentives for new and existing farmers!
  
  • Seal of Quality—The State Agency of Agriculture placed a moratorium on the Seal of Quality Program due to the inability to administer quality standards for those products that used the Seal. The House Committee on Agriculture, on which I serve, has set a timeline of January for the Agency of Agriculture to evaluate the steps needed to include possible certification requirements for a Seal that could help to further strengthen the reputation of Vermont’s food products.
• Successfully fought for emergency funds for dairy farmersAct 2 (2007) appropriated 3.2 million dollars intended to help farmers struggling with low milk prices, debt service, poor quality feed, and weather-related problems. Find the full text of the bill at: http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT002.htm
• Created market and business opportunities for small-scale and alternative producers2007-08 Session:
  Act 38—1000-bird slaughter exemption for poultry producers (Sect. 7); establishment of Grape & Wine Council (Sect. 19) (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT038.htm);
  Act 101—establishment of new raw milk sales standards (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT101.htm);
  Act 212—Establishes hemp production and licensing procedures and policies—will require federal DEA action in order to become effective (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT212.htm)
  
  2009-10 Session:
  Act 62—further refines raw milk sales and quality standards; creates “two tier” regulations based on sales volume. (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/DOCS/2010/ACTS/ACT062.PDF)
  
  
• Developed an infrastructure grant programVermont has the most farmers’ markets per capita in the nation (with approximately 90 organized throughout the State), and sales over several million dollars. Besides playing a vital role in the local foods movement, they also serve as inexpensive incubator sites and research and development centers for small businesses and start-ups. Judy and I have been selling our produce at farmers’ markets since 1981, so I have close-up and first-hand knowledge about their organization, needs, and limitations. I put that knowledge to productive use in the following pieces of legislation:
  
  2009-10 Session:
  Act 109—created statutory definitions for farmers’ markets in Vermont (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/DOCS/2010/ACTS/ACT109.PDF);
  Act 161 (the Capital Bill)—designated $25,000 for infrastructure improvements at farmers' markets, which is intended to help them grow their member and sales numbers (page 13 of the Act). (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/DOCS/2010/ACTS/ACT161.PDF)
  Act 51Also related to Farmers’ Markets—appropriated $35,000 for the purpose of expanding the use of electronic benefit machines to more Vermont farmers’ markets, as a way to reach out to, and serve, a greater number of 3Squares Vermont (formerly known as food stamps) customers. that will support the growth of Vermont’s farmers’ markets
• Active participant in the VT Sustainable Jobs Fund’s Farm-to-Plate InitiativeThe Vermont Farm-to-Plate Initiative came about as a response to the successful, decentralized local food system efforts that have been springing up all over the State. It is intended to create a strategic plan for agricultural development that both strengthens our local food system and stimulates economic development in Vermont’s farm and food sector.
       I am a member of the 15-member planning Process Team, which was created to provide the F2P project managers with perspective, insight, and guidance. For more information, go to: http://www.vsjf.org/project-details/5/farm-to-plate-initiative.
• Fought successfully for funding of the Farm-to-School Program 2007-08 Session:
  Act 24—made the Farm to School mini-grant program permanent in 2007. (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT024.htm). Unfortunately, funding for the program through the Ag Agency’s budget has been zeroed out every year since. Subsequently, each year I led the effort (with Rep. Chris Bray and other House Ag Committee members) to find the funds that would keep the program alive. The grant funds we raised totaled $140,000 (2007), $100,000 (2008), $85,000 (2009) and $75,000 (2010).
  The importance of this program to me is that creates both an awareness and an appreciation of Vermont-raised food by elementary school children that will serve the State well into the future. For more information about Vermont’s Farm to School Program, go to: http://www.vtfeed.org/
• Working member Sustainable Agriculture CouncilI was appointed to the Council in 2007 by VAAFM Secretary Allbee. The council's legislative mandate is to "encourage the development and use of economically and ecologically sound sustainable agriculture practices" by identifying areas of research that will promote sustainable farming practices. Local foods and on-farm energy are two recent areas of focused attention.

                   For additional information on the above, click on any of these links.

Act 24 Farm-to-School Program,  Farm-to-Plate Initiative,  "Capital Bill" Act 161 (PDF),  Farmers' Markets (PDF),  Act 62 Raw Milk Sales and Standards,  Hemp Production, Act 212,  Act 101, Raw Milk,  Agriculture Viability Act,  Milk Pricing Support, Act 2,  Act 158, Ag Development Board (PDF)

Working for YOU !

• Protected property-owner and town interestsServed as liaison between between the Agency of Transportation and (variously): individual lakeshore land owners in Orwell and Shoreham, the Fort Ti Ferry owners, and the Selectboards from Orwell and Shoreham as the Agency investigated a number of potential solutions to help keep cross-lake travel going between New York and Vermont. during the October 2009 Crown Point Bridge crisis.
• Helped constituents successfully navigate the permitting processI helped a Shoreham business owner satisfactorily resolve an issue with the Dept. of Labor and Industry that had the potential to delay or greatly increase the cost of an expansion project.
  
  I worked with a Benson businessman who needed some intervention help with the Agency of Natural Resources, which resulted in a favorable change to an interpretation of a specific regulation. in order to expand their businesses.
• Worked with leaders from all four towns to develop a response to the Current Use situationConvened a meeting of Listers, Selectboard members, and others in October, 2009, in an effort to address the Legislative directive to find $1.6 million in savings or increased revenues from the Current Use program as part of the FY 2010 budget. A group of organizations, including Rural Vermont, the VT Farm Bureau, the VT Land Trust, the Audubon Society, and others, had been meeting regularly throughout the summer and had presented a draft plan that I used as a basis for our discussion. It was a lively and informative meeting, and the recommendation of this group ended up closely resembling the bill that was eventually passed by the General Assembly and vetoed by the Governor. (Find the full text of the bill (H.485)at: http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/2010/bills/Passed/H-485.pdf.
• Helped constituentsFor reasons of confidentiality (since I don’t have their permission to identify them), I will only say that these were constituents from Benson and Whiting. resolve tax and permitting issues with state agencies.
• Convened a panel of law enforcement experts in response to community concernsLt. Gary Genova, Trooper Phil Wagner, (from the VT State Police) and State’s Attorney David Fenster came to Shoreham on August 19 to listen to and address about 60 citizens who had concerns about a recent uptick in property crimes in town. about crime.
• Helped groups and individuals secure state grant fundingI helped the community groups who applied for, and received, Community Facilities Grants for the Whiting playground and Shoreham’s tennis courts.
  
  Although technically not a “state” grant, I successfully intervened on behalf of a homeowner who received USDA grant money for a much needed roof repair. for projects in their communities.
• Communicate regularly with local town officialsI meet with Selectboard and School Board members (informally or formally) in each of the four towns at least once a year, and am in close contact with the four Town Clerks as needs arise. Specifically, I’ve worked on: Whiting’s CLA issue; developing a co-ordinated response between Orwell and Shoreham to VTrans’s proposed solutions to the Crown Point Bridge closure; safety issues on Route 22A; and attempts to procure FEMA emergency funds for the August, 2008, East Road wash-out in Benson. I also fought for full allocation of highway fund payments from the state to the towns in early 2009. on various issues of importance to our towns.

 

H.485—Current Use (PDF)