Montpelier, Vt. - Governor Phil Scott today announced action on the following bills, passed by the General Assembly.

On May 4, Governor Scott signed a bill of the following title:   

• H.195, An act relating to use of facial recognition technology by law enforcement in cases involving sexual exploitation of children

On May 5, Governor Scott signed a bill of the following title:   

• H.128, An act relating to limiting criminal defenses based on victim identity

The Governor delivered remarks upon signing H.128, which can be viewed by clicking here and read below:

Today, I’m signing H.128, An Act Relating to Limiting Criminal Defenses Based on Victim Identity, into law.

With this legislation, Republicans, Democrats and Progressives alike sent a message to Vermonters, that your identity should never be an excuse for someone to cause you harm.

What this bill does is make sure a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity can’t be used to defend or justify a criminal act, or to lower a sentence.

I want to thank Representative Small and the other co-sponsors of the bill, as well as the House and Senate Judiciary Committees for your leadership on this issue.

I also want to recognize those at the LGBTQIA Alliance of Vermont and the members of the Pride Center of Vermont, who have been advocating for change and equality for years.

While this effort is a step in the right direction, we know there is still more work to do to ensure all Vermonters, regardless of identity, feel safe and protected in our state. I look forward to continuing our work together in the future.

To view a complete list of action on bills passed during the 2021 legislative session, click here.

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