Feb. 18, 2020 Update from Rep. Johnson

Speaker of the House and Grand Isle County State Representative Mitzi Johnson (D)

It was terrific to see so many young people engaged in the workings of government this week. 
The 2019 class of Eagle Scouts were honored for their accomplishments with a resolution in the House. Congratulations to Islanders Nate Scandore, Francis Ellis-Monaghan, Dominick Wilder and to an Islander’s nephew, Ross Macy for their accomplishments Congratulations as well to their families, Scoutmaster Brian Allen, and scout leaders for getting them across the finish line!
High school students from around the state met with me and testified in House and Senate Education committees on proficiency-based standards and higher education costs. The Youth Climate Lobby had clear and well-informed questions for me, as well as members of the committees on Appropriations, Energy and Technology, Education and Natural Resources regarding efforts to curb climate emissions, spur a green economy, and protect Vermont’s natural resources for their generation and beyond. 
Lastly, we said goodbye to the first group of Legislative Pages, 8th graders who work in the statehouse for 6 weeks. Let me know if you might be interested in serving. Applications are due in September of your 8th grade year.  Here is an excerpt of my message to them:
“We hope that in your time with us, you’ve gained an appreciation for the care and feeding, the compassion and compromise, required to make a living democracy successful.  Our country’s founders dared to imagine a government whose power came from the governed- from the people. Collective decision-making, by and for people with wildly different experiences, priorities and values is messy. Done thoughtfully, it is hard. And done right, it is time-consuming.  I deeply believe it is well worth the nurturing and the investment. But the dream of our founders survives only as long as The People are informed, engaged, inclusive and civil.  On the national level, that conversation is playing out about who we are as people of these United States and how we want to define our future. Here in Montpelier, that work takes the form of debates- at times intense, at times tedious- about whether some provision should be permissive or required, around prioritizing individual rights or collective well-being, and which investments of the many requests are most likely to create a stronger, healthier future for our state. Every day in this building, we are reminded that making that vision a true reality is difficult and important work.”
Please reach out to us with your questions or concerns:   Speaker Mitzi Johnson at  802-363-4448 or  mjohnson@leg.state.vt.us  and Rep. Lee Morgan at 802-318-0227 or  lmorgan@leg.state.vt.us

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