| 1 | 1 | | BILL AS INTRODUCED H.475 |
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| 2 | 2 | | 2025 Page 1 of 2 |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | VT LEG #381260 v.1 |
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| 6 | 6 | | H.475 1 |
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| 7 | 7 | | SHORT FORM 2 |
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| 8 | 8 | | Introduced by Representative O’Brien of Tunbridge 3 |
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| 9 | 9 | | Referred to Committee on 4 |
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| 10 | 10 | | Date: 5 |
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| 11 | 11 | | Subject: Agriculture; dairy; milk pricing; tiered pricing system; over order 6 |
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| 12 | 12 | | price enhancement 7 |
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| 13 | 13 | | Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to implement 8 |
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| 14 | 14 | | measures to revitalize the Vermont dairy industry. The bill would establish a 9 |
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| 15 | 15 | | tiered system to set an equitable minimum price that milk handlers shall pay to 10 |
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| 16 | 16 | | milk producers for milk processed and manufactured within the State. The 11 |
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| 17 | 17 | | tiered pricing shall be based on milk producers’ cost of production, including 12 |
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| 18 | 18 | | the costs of environmental compliance unique to Vermont milk producers. If 13 |
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| 19 | 19 | | market pricing under the Federal Milk Market Order 1 does not sufficiently 14 |
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| 20 | 20 | | cover the costs of production, the bill would require an over order price 15 |
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| 21 | 21 | | enhancement to be paid to Vermont milk producers. To ensure that the tiered 16 |
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| 22 | 22 | | pricing does not generate incentives to over produce, the bill would establish 17 |
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| 23 | 23 | | production tiers for small, medium, and large farms. In addition, to fund the 18 |
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| 24 | 24 | | tiered pricing system and the over order enhancements, a per gallon handling 19 |
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| 25 | 25 | | fee would be assessed on packaged milk sold in the State. The amount of the 20 |
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| 26 | 26 | | handling fee would be adjusted based on the market price paid to milk 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.475 |
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| 27 | 27 | | 2025 Page 2 of 2 |
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| 28 | 28 | | |
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| 29 | 29 | | |
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| 30 | 30 | | VT LEG #381260 v.1 |
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| 31 | 31 | | producers per hundredweight of milk. The handling fee would be paid into the 1 |
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| 32 | 32 | | General Fund for annual appropriation. The bill would require the Agency of 2 |
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| 33 | 33 | | Agriculture, Food and Markets’ annual budget request to include a request for 3 |
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| 34 | 34 | | funding to implement the tiered pricing and over order price enhancements. 4 |
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| 35 | 35 | | An act relating to establishing an equitable pricing system for the milk 5 |
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| 36 | 36 | | production 6 |
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| 37 | 37 | | It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 7 |
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| 38 | 38 | | (TEXT OMITTED IN SHORT-FORM BILLS) 8 |
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