Vermont lawmakers to reform land development law Act 250

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - As the pandemic cools down, Vermont lawmakers are poised to take up Act 250 reform in person next legislative session.

The land development law referred to as Vermont’s DNA - is now over 50 years old - and doesn’t account for modern land use such as mountain biking trails and large developments.

Lawmakers have been trying to update and reform the landmark law for the past several sessions - but the pandemic has thrown their work off the rails. Governor Scott says reform is on his shortlist of priorities next session. Lawmakers say they plan to tackle it - by say the work has to be done carefully to allow for responsible growth.

“When we work on a bill like that we work with great care. There was not adequate time to take up in this session a careful look at Act 250,” says Sen. Chris Bray, D-Addison.

Leaders say they’ll pick back up on reform next session when they can have more nuanced conversations in person.

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