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H.67 1
Introduced by Representatives Boyden of Cambridge, Waters Evans of 2
Charlotte, and Garofano of Essex 3
Referred to Committee on 4
Date: 5
Subject: Legislative operations; government accountability 6
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to create the 7
Joint Government Oversight and Accountability Committee. It proposes to 8
change the default submission date for periodic reports to the General 9
Assembly and to update the legislative reports database. 10
An act relating to legislative operations and government accountability 11
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 12
* * * Purpose and Findings * * * 13
Sec. 1. PURPOSE 14
(a) The purpose of this act is to actuate the principle of government 15
accountability by focusing on how evidence is used to inform policy, how our 16
State laws are carried out, and how legislation can best be formed to achieve its 17
intended outcomes. This act strives to systematize government accountability 18
efforts as much as possible with simple, clear, independent, objective, and fact-19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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based processes rather than to rely upon individual legislators or individual 1
committees to be effective. 2
(b) Government accountability means the principle of demanding that 3
legislation succeeds in achieving its stated policy goals through the provision 4
of means by which to measure whether the policy goals have been met. The 5
metrics for determining whether success has been achieved are as important as 6
the goals themselves. 7
(c) Government oversight means the mechanisms put into place to ensure 8
that the bodies of government tasked with executing legislative intent are 9
properly doing so. Oversight by the General Assembly is the examination of 10
the processes followed and the information produced by government officials 11
executing the law to determine whether those officials are properly and 12
adequately achieving the policy goals established by the General Assembly. 13
* * * Creation of the Joint Government Oversight and Accountability 14
Committee * * * 15
Sec. 2. 2 V.S.A. chapter 28 is added to read: 16
CHAPTER 28. JOINT GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT AND 17
ACCOUNTABILITY COMMITTEE 18
§ 971. CREATION OF COMMITTEE 19
(a) There is created the Joint Government Oversight and Accountability 20
Committee, whose membership shall be appointed each biennial session of the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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General Assembly. The Committee shall work independently and with other 1
legislative committees to assist with matters related to government oversight 2
and issues of significant public concern. 3
(b) The Committee shall be composed of eight members: four members of 4
the House of Representatives, not more than two of whom shall be from the 5
same party, appointed by the Speaker of the House; and four members of the 6
Senate, not more than two of whom shall be from the same party, appointed by 7
the Committee on Committees. In addition to two members-at-large appointed 8
from each chamber, one appointment shall be made from each of the House 9
Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs, the Senate 10
Committee on Government Operations, and the House and Senate Committees 11
on Appropriations. 12
(c) The Committee shall elect a chair, vice chair, and clerk from among its 13
members and shall adopt rules of procedure. The position of chair shall rotate 14
biennially between the House and the Senate members. The Committee shall 15
keep minutes of its meetings and maintain a file thereof. A quorum shall 16
consist of five members. 17
(d) The Committee shall meet as necessary for the prompt discharge of its 18
duties. 19
(e) For attendance at a meeting when the General Assembly is not in 20
session, members of the Committee shall be entitled to compensation for 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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services and reimbursement of expenses as provided under subsection 23(a) of 1
this title. 2
(f) The professional and clerical services of the Joint Fiscal Office, the 3
Office of Legislative Operations, and the Office of Legislative Counsel shall 4
be available to the Committee. 5
§ 972. DUTIES AND POWERS 6
(a) Duties. The Committee shall have duties as described in this section 7
and elsewhere in law. 8
(1)(A) The Committee shall exercise government oversight by 9
examining and investigating matters of significant public concern relating to 10
State government performance. The Committee shall examine the possible 11
reasons for any failure of government oversight and provide findings and 12
tangible recommendations to standing committees of jurisdiction to prevent 13
future failures. 14
(B) The Committee will select issues of significant public concern to 15
examine and investigate by a majority of the current Committee members who 16
have not recused themselves from the matter. The Committee shall consider 17
issues of significant public concern referred to the Committee pursuant to a 18
resolution adopted by either chamber of the General Assembly. 19
(C) As used in this section, an “issue of significant public concern” 20
means any issue that: 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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(i) affects the State as a whole; 1
(ii) affects a vulnerable population; 2
(iii) costs the State more than $100,000,000.00; 3
(iv) implicates a serious failure of State government oversight or 4
accountability; 5
(v) arises from previously enacted legislation; or 6
(vi) constitutes a failure to adequately respond to State or federal 7
audits. 8
(2) The Committee shall, with coordination from the Legislative 9
Committee on Administrative Rules, evaluate executive entities directed to 10
adopt rules to ensure consistency and accountability in the rulemaking process. 11
(3) The Committee shall, on an annual basis, issue a report that includes: 12
(A) which issues of significant public concern the Committee has 13
examined and investigated, including relevant information and data; 14
(B) the Committee’s current objectives for review of issues of 15
significant public concern and which objectives, to date, have and have not 16
been met; 17
(C) the Committee’s objectives for review of issues of significant 18
public concern for the upcoming two years; and 19
(D) any additional resources required by the Committee to 20
adequately conduct its work. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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(b) Powers. The Committee shall have powers as described in this section 1
and elsewhere in law. The Committee may take or cause depositions to be 2
taken as needed in any investigation or hearing. 3
Sec. 3. FIRST ANNUAL REPORT OF THE JOINT GOVERNMENT 4
OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY COMMITTEE 5
The Joint Government Oversight and Accountability Committee shall 6
include in its first annual report required by 2 V.S.A. § 972(a)(3) an analysis of 7
whether the General Assembly should empower the Committee to issue 8
subpoenas and administer oaths in connection with its examination and 9
investigation of matters of government oversight and accountability related to 10
issues of significant public concern. The Committee shall also include in its 11
report a recommendation for whether the General Assembly should add a staff 12
member dedicated to supporting the Committee in its work. 13
* * * Chief Performance Officer Annual Report * * * 14
Sec. 4. 3 V.S.A. § 2311 is amended to read: 15
§ 2311. CHIEF PERFORMANCE OFFICER; ANNUAL STATE 16
OUTCOMES REPORT 17
* * * 18
(c) Approving population-level indicators. 19
(1) Annually, on or before March 1, a standing committee of the 20
General Assembly having jurisdiction over a population-level quality of life 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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outcome set forth in subsection (b) of this section or the Chief Performance 1
Officer may submit to the Joint Government Oversight and Accountability 2
Committee a request that any population-level indicator related to that outcome 3
be revised. 4
(2) If that request is approved by the Joint Government Oversight and 5
Accountability Committee, the Chief Performance Officer shall revise and 6
report on the population-level indicator in accordance with that approval and 7
this section. 8
(d) The report set forth in this section shall not be subject to the limitation 9
on the duration of agency reports set forth in 2 V.S.A. § 20(d). 10
* * * Auditor of Accounts Duties * * * 11
Sec. 5. 32 V.S.A. § 163 is amended to read: 12
§ 163. DUTIES OF THE AUDITOR OF ACCOUNTS 13
In addition to any other duties prescribed by law, the Auditor of Accounts 14
shall: 15
* * * 16
(6)(A) Provide the Joint Government Oversight and Accountability 17
Committee with a written summary of all audits completed by the Office of the 18
Auditor of Accounts. 19
(B) Upon the request of the Joint Government Oversight and 20
Accountability Committee, provide, at the mutual convenience of the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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Committee and Auditor, a presentation to the Committee of any completed 1
audit. 2
* * * 3
Sec. 6. ANNUAL AUDIT OF AGENCY PROGRAMS; PILOT 4
On or before November 15, in the years 2026, 2028, and 2030, the Auditor 5
of Accounts shall submit a written report to the Joint Government Oversight 6
and Accountability Committee concerning the periodic audit of administrative 7
programs operated by State agencies. The Auditor of Accounts shall select not 8
more than five programs to study during a given two-year reporting period and 9
shall examine the efficiency and outcomes of the selected programs, including 10
an analysis of the performance measures for each program and whether the 11
outcomes align with program objectives and goals. 12
* * * Periodic Reports * * * 13
Sec. 7. 2 V.S.A. § 20 is amended to read: 14
§ 20. LIMITATION ON DISTRIBUTION AND DURATION OF AGENCY 15
REPORTS 16
(a) Unless otherwise provided by law, whenever it is required by statute, 17
rule, or otherwise that an agency, department, or other entity submit an annual, 18
biennial, or other periodic report to the General Assembly, that requirement 19
shall be met by submission by January November 15 of copies of the report for 20
activities in the preceding fiscal year to the Clerk of the House, the Secretary 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.67
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of the Senate, the Office of Legislative Counsel Operations, chairs of 1
legislative standing committees of jurisdiction, and such individual members 2
of the General Assembly or committees that specifically request a copy of the 3
report. To the extent practicable, reports Reports shall also be placed 4
published on the agency’s Internet website. No general distribution or mailing 5
of such reports shall be made to members of the General Assembly. 6
* * * 7
(e) If it becomes apparent to any agency, department, or other entity 8
directed by the General Assembly to report on a matter that the agency, 9
department, or entity will be unable to do so within the required time, the 10
reporting agency, department, or entity shall inform, if applicable, the relevant 11
legislative committee’s current chair, the committee assistant, and the Office of 12
Legislative Operations of which report will be late, why, and when it will be 13
delivered. 14
* * * Effective Date * * * 15
Sec. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE 16
This act shall take effect on passage. 17