§ 116a. State boards and commissions registry

(a)(1) The Vermont State Archives and Records Administration shall maintain and make available on its website a registry of State boards and commissions and shall update that registry when changes are made that affect the information provided in the registry.

(2)(A) The registry shall include the names of the members of each State board and commission, their term length and expiration, and their appointing authority.

(B) Each State board and commission shall be responsible for providing to the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration this registry information and any updates to it in a manner prescribed by the State Archivist.

(3) The registry shall track the dates of the initial creation of State boards and commissions created by State law and of any amendments to those laws for the purpose of the intended five-year expiration of those State boards and commissions described in subsection (b) of this section.

(b)(1) It is the intent of the General Assembly that, except for State boards and commissions required by interstate compact and except as otherwise provided by law, a State board or commission created by State law shall cease to exist after five years from the date of its initial creation, five years from the last date that the statutory or session law containing the State board or commission was amended, or on January 1, 2025, whichever date is latest.

(2)(A) In each biennial session beginning in the year 2025, the Office of Legislative Counsel, in consultation with the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration and based on the registry’s date tracking described in subdivision (a)(3) of this section, shall prepare for the General Assembly’s review a list of the State boards and commissions subject to expiration under this subsection.

(B) A State board or commission shall only expire pursuant to legislative enactment.

(c) As used in this section, “State board or commission” means a professional or occupational licensing board or commission, advisory board or commission, appeals board, promotional board, interstate board, supervisory board or council, or any other similar entity that:

(1) is created by State law;

(2) is established as or is attached to an Executive Branch entity;

(3) has statewide jurisdiction or carries out a State function; and

(4) is not composed of members appointed exclusively by regional, county, or municipal entities. (Added 2018, No. 2 (Sp. Sess.), § 12, eff. Jan. 1, 2019; amended 2019, No. 61, § 1; 2023, No. 53, § 3, eff. June 8, 2023.)