Vermont House Passes H.132: Vastly Amended Homeless Bill of Rights
Photo: Vermont State House, in Winter (taken by Morgan W. Brown; circa: Sunday, February 10, 2013)
Had read in Friday's vtdigger Final Reading column about how the Vermont House of Representatives recently passed H.132, a vastly amended version of the homeless bill of rights legislation (compared to what had been originally introduced), which is now in the hands of the state Senate (fourth item down page; related excerpts of column), here:[...]
As Vermont continues to struggle with rising rates of homelessness, lawmakers are trying to ensure that people without permanent shelter aren’t discriminated against because of their housing status.
On Friday, the House passed H.132, a bill that would essentially add homelessness as a protected class to the state’s various anti-discrimination laws, including Vermont’s Fair Housing Act and Fair Employment Practices Act.
Under the latter law, an employer can’t refuse to hire someone based on their race, for example, or their sexual orientation. If passed, H.132, which goes to the Senate next week, would also make it illegal to refuse someone employment simply because they’re perceived to be homeless.
“This bill is about … Vermonters who carry a stigma with them every minute of every day, who don’t often get a voice in this building, never mind in our laws, or the laws of the United States, or even in our federal constitution,” Rep. Thomas Stevens, D-Waterbury, told fellow representatives on Thursday.
— Habib Sabet
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Photo: Vermont State House, in Winter (taken by Morgan W. Brown; circa: Sunday, February 10, 2013)
Afterwards, I had written to state Representative Tom Stevens, Chair of the House General and Housing Committee (formerly the House General, Housing and Military Affairs Committee), which had recently passed the bill out of its committee, and cc’d members of his committee as well as certain other members of the House as well as certain members of the state Senate to thank him as well as members of both the committee as well as certain members of the House for the passage of H.132 (view the text of the bill, as passed by the House, here; excerpted text of my email):
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Many years ago, as you might possibly recall, I had been among those who had testified before your committee, House General and Housing (formerly House General, Housing and Military Affairs), concerning the need of homeless bill of rights legislation and why it's passage was so very crucial as well as being sorely needed.
By the way, speaking of such and in case it is of interest, this is archived commentary of mine shared with your committee back in 2020 concerning homelessness and related matters (relating to bill H.492, at the time):
Forsaken and Forgotten: People Living Unhoused Deserve Better:
It is really good to learn that your committee had finally passed H.132 out of committee and that the full House passed it as well.
This is to convey my deep appreciation and sincere gratitude to you, the committee and the full House for its passage. Thank you very much.
It is my hope that the state Senate will also pass the bill as well and that the Governor will sign it into law.
Although I have since retired from my thirty plus years of volunteer activism and advocacy work concerning these and other matters (e.g., homelessness, affordable housing and mental health), as someone who had formerly lived unhoused (aka homeless) for years and years, please be assured that I will of course be doing my part to urge the state Senate to pass the bill and for the Governor to sign it into law this year.
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For those who would like to have this bill passed and become law, please consider urging members of the state Senate to pass H.132 and, then, also urge Governor Phil Scott to sign the bill into law.
Although it goes without saying that the passage and the signing of this particular bill into law would be but merely one relatively small – yet crucial – step on behalf of those living unhoused within Vermont, in my opinion, it would still be an important and vital step taken.
Here is to the hope that other equally crucial, important and vital steps will continue to be taken to actually address the very real and most urgent needs of people living unhoused and ending homelessness within the state (e.g., safe, permanent and affordable housing as well as offering various supportive services on a voluntary basis), sooner rather than later.
To help ensure that this hope will become a reality down the road, however, please urge members of the state Legislature as well as the Governor to do so, sooner rather than later.
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