Merit Institute Merit

The Vermont Government Transparency & Performance Act (VT-GT&P)

Vermont state companion to GT&P. Strengthens the Vermont Public Records Act, inspector-general independence, and extends state-law whistleblower rewards under the Vermont False Claims Act (32 V.S.A. § 630 et seq.).

THE VERMONT GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY & PERFORMANCE ACT (VT-GT&P)

Vehicle: State passage. Vermont General Assembly, regular session. Primary referral to House / Senate Government Operations / Judiciary.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “Vermont Government Transparency & Performance Act (VT-GT&P).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The General Assembly finds that the Vermont Public Records Act operates under 1 V.S.A. Chapter 5; that the State Auditor operates under 32 V.S.A. Chapter 7; and that the Vermont False Claims Act, 32 V.S.A. §630 et seq., authorizes qui tam relators. This Act extends these frameworks consistent with collective bargaining and merit-system protections.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH VERMONT LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “Vermont Public Records Act” means 1 V.S.A. Chapter 5.
  2. (b) “VTFCA” means the Vermont False Claims Act, 32 V.S.A. §630 et seq.
  3. (c) “State performance data” means outcome measures published by State agencies.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing Vermont Law

  1. (a) Consistent with:
  • 1 V.S.A. Chapter 5 (public records).
  • 32 V.S.A. §630 et seq. (VTFCA).
  • 21 V.S.A. §507 (whistleblower / retaliation protections under state labor law).
  • Collective bargaining under 3 V.S.A. Chapter 27 and 21 V.S.A.

TITLE II — STATE PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD

Sec. 201. Dashboard

  1. (a) The Agency of Administration shall publish a Vermont Performance Dashboard in machine-readable form, updated at least quarterly, crosswalked to Federal FPD.

TITLE III — OPEN RECORDS

Sec. 301. Public Records Strengthening

  1. (a) Reduce response time to 3 business days for acknowledgment and 10 business days for production absent extraordinary circumstances under 1 V.S.A. §318.
  2. (b) Mandatory fee waivers for public-interest requesters.
  3. (c) Attorney General Public Records enforcement strengthened.

TITLE IV — INSPECTOR-GENERAL INDEPENDENCE

Sec. 401. Inspector-General Protections

  1. (a) Removal for cause only; findings reported to Presiding Officers.
  2. (b) Budgetary and staffing independence for the Office of the State Auditor and agency inspectors general.

TITLE V — WHISTLEBLOWER AND QUI TAM

Sec. 501. VTFCA Strengthening

  1. (a) Amendments to 32 V.S.A. §630 et seq. to (i) confirm relator share ranges, (ii) strengthen retaliation remedies, (iii) clarify public-disclosure bar.
  2. (b) Full collective-bargaining protections preserved under 3 V.S.A. Chapter 27 and 21 V.S.A.

TITLE VI — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 601. Severability

If any provision is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 602. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect on July 1 of the year following enactment.

Canonical federal version: GT&P. Other Vermont bills: VT-ACSA, VT-MEWRA, VT-AI-Workforce.