(Host) Governor Jim Douglas assembled a group of developers to make the case for streamlining environmental review.
At his weekly news conference, Douglas urged lawmakers to approve changes to Act 250 as a way to boost the economy.
(Douglas) We can’t stand still. That’s just not an option. That’s why it’s so critical for us to get to work building our economy, growing jobs. But we can’t do it in our current environment. We’ve got to change how we allow business to work in our state. We’ve got to be more welcoming to those who want to grow in Vermont.
(Host) Chris Snyder is vice president of the Snyder Companies, a homebuilder in Essex Junction. He said environmental permitting is not a large part of total construction costs compared to the cost of labor, land or materials.
(Snyder) It is a small piece, but if we can alleviate the cost in every one of those pieces, then I think we can see housing go down.
(Host) But Snyder said another cost is the time it takes to win approval through the permit process. He said his company worked on one project in Williston for nine years.
The governor’s proposal says that permit appeals would be heard "on the record."
That means the environmental court would consider legal arguments and use a written transcript of the case. The court would not hear new evidence.
(Douglas) These and other ideas don’t weaken our environmental protections. They won’t result in over development. Instead, they’ll help Vermont emerge from this recession and position our state for future prosperity and economic success.
(Host) But Senate President Peter Shumlin said Act 250 has saved the state from speculative development that led to the national wave of home foreclosures.
Shumlin said Douglas should work to encourage jobs in renewable energy and green technology.
(Shumlin) He’s focusing on the wrong problem. The problem is that there’s huge potential to get a piece of the economic engine that will pull us out of this recession-depression. And the governor is focusing on old problems, old wars, old ideas and has no vision of where we need to go.
(Host) Environmentalists oppose many of the changes advanced by the Douglas Administration. They cite state statistics that show that 99 percent of all Act 250 permits were approved in 2007. The numbers also show that most permits were granted after just a few months of review.