This is a printer friendly version of an article from www.rutlandherald.com
Article published Jan 11, 2010 Dumbo gets a bill
By Peter Hirschfeld VERMONT PRESS BUREAU
MONTPELIER – Want to import an elephant into Vermont for 30 days? There's a bill for that.
Think elderly hunters ought to have their own special moose lottery? There's a bill for that, too.
Debate on major issues like the budget, economic development and the future of Vermont Yankee will rightly dominate Statehouse discussion this year. But quirky pieces of aspiring statute will also vie for attention in committee rooms and on chamber floors. They won't steal the spotlight, lawmakers say, or forever alter the course of history. But these eyebrow-raising bills can often mean a lot to the small groups of constituents lobbying for their passage.
"It's not really earth-shattering until you understand the long-term impacts," says Richard Lawrence, the Lyndonville Republican responsible for introducing the elephant-importation bill.
Lawrence, who happens to serve as president of the Caledonia County Fair, says it's been years since the Legislature passed a law banning the transport of elephants across state borders. The prohibition, he says, has been a nightmare for fair organizers looking to put on a good show.
"A lot of children's barnyard acts include elephants," Lawrence says of the live animal exhibits that travel from fair to fair. "So if the elephant can't come, it prohibits them coming at all."
Lawrence, also a member of the Vermont Fair Association, attributes the ban to concerns from animal-advocacy groups about elephants' welfare, as well as fears over diseases they might bring with them. He says such issues can be resolved, ensuring no harm to either the elephants or people who come to see them.
"I just don't think the concerns were properly addressed," he says. "And I think it's time we take another look at this."
If lawmakers have time to ponder the pros and cons of pachyderms, then Sen. Kevin Mullin hopes there will be room for a debate over posting calorie contents on chain restaurant menus.
Given the physical dangers of obesity, not to mention its ballooning effect on health-care costs, the Rutland County Republican says residents ought to have a better sense of what that Big Mac might do to their waistlines.
"One thing is clear – we have a huge obesity problem and due to that problem today's youth may be the first with shorter lifespan than the previous generation," Mullin says. "Because of those projections, we have to try to do things to get people to eat healthier and do more physical activity."
Mullin, who says the measure has the support of both the American Heart Association and American Cancer Society, says he isn't looking to be the food police.
"It's not telling people what to do and it's not in any way trying to interfere with what people can or can't eat," he says. "But if you go into a store and have the ability to look on a package and see the nutritional contents, you should have that same ability when you go to a restaurant."
People look for all kinds of excuses to get out of jury duty, but Sen. Susan Bartlett says one very legitimate one isn't recognized by the state. She's introduced a bill that would exempt breastfeeding mothers from the civic duty, a problem she didn't know existed until a constituent ran into problems.
"She was pretty stunned she would not be exempt from jury duty," Bartlett says.
The Lamoille County Democrat says that bills like her breastfeeding legislation might not have the same kind of broad impacts as the major budget bills on which her appropriations committee will spend most of its time. That doesn't mean, Bartlett says, that items on elephant importation, nutritional values or breastfeeding exemptions aren't important.
"It's fine to laugh," Bartlett says. "But remember – what may seem silly to you might be really important to someone else," she says.
"It's important for democracy that there's time and respect given to folks' issues."
One issue on Sen. Harold Giard's plate this session is a bill that would give $4,000 to any industrious student who can graduate high school a year early. If they're going to save the state the $14,000 per-pupil it spends annually on public education, Giard says, they ought to get a piece.
"At least make it worth their time," Giard said of the proposed incentive. "What they do with the money I don't care. But what greater incentive than a little money?"
Sen. Richard McCormack, a Windsor County Democrat, wants restaurants to explain what happens to that "mandatory gratuity" tacked on to checks for parties of six or more. As a veteran of the hospitality industry (McCormack played guitar in bars and restaurants) he says he knows that the extra money doesn't always find its way to the pockets of diligent wait staff. If they're going to hit a customer up for 18 percent, McCormack says, then the person ought to know precisely where that money is going.
Another bill, sponsored by Chittenden County Sen. Ginny Lyons, would ban schools from starting the school year before Labor Day.
Information