Vermont S 267: An act relating to housing and land use

Bill Text

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VT LEG #385846 v.2
S.267 1
Introduced by Senators Beck, Brennan, Brock, Collamore, Heffernan, Mattos, 2
Weeks and Williams 3
Referred to Committee on 4
Date: 5
Subject: Conservation and development; land use; housing; Act 250; 6
municipal zoning; Downtown and Village Center Tax Credits; 7
Downpayment Assistance Program 8
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to make multiple 9
changes to the State land use and development law and the municipal zoning 10
laws related to residential housing construction. 11
An act relating to housing and land use 12
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 13
* * * Road Rule Repeal * * * 14
Sec. 1. 10 V.S.A. § 6001(3)(A) is amended to read: 15
(3)(A) “Development” means each of the following: 16
* * * 17
(xii) The construction of a road or roads and any associated 18
driveways to provide access to or within a tract of land owned or controlled by 19
a person. For the purposes of determining jurisdiction under this subdivision, 20

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VT LEG #385846 v.2
any new development or subdivision on a parcel of land that will be provided 1
access by the road and associated driveways is land involved in the 2
construction of the road. 3
(I) Jurisdiction under this subdivision shall not apply unless the 4
length of any single road is greater than 800 feet, or the length of all roads and 5
any associated driveways in combination is greater than 2,000 feet. 6
(II) As used in this subdivision (xii), “roads” include any new 7
road or improvement to a class 4 town highway by a person other than a 8
municipality, including roads that will be transferred to or maintained by a 9
municipality after their construction or improvement. Routine maintenance and 10
minor repairs of a Class 4 highway shall not constitute an “improvement.” 11
Routine maintenance shall include replacing a culvert or ditch, applying new 12
stone, grading, or making repairs after adverse weather. Routine maintenance 13
shall not include changing the size of the road, changing the location or layout 14
of the road, or adding pavement. 15
(III) For the purpose of determining the length of any road and 16
associated driveways, the length of all other roads and driveways within the 17
tract of land constructed after July 1, 2026 shall be included. 18
(IV) This subdivision (xii) shall not apply to: 19

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(aa) a State or municipal road, a utility corridor of an electric 1
transmission or distribution company, or a road used primarily for farming or 2
forestry purposes; 3
(bb) development within a Tier 1A area established in 4
accordance with section 6034 of this title or a Tier 1B area established in 5
accordance with section 6033 of this title; and 6
(cc) improvements underway when this section takes effect 7
to a Class 4 highway that will be transferred to the municipality. 8
(V) The conversion of a road used for farming or forestry 9
purposes that also meets the requirements of this subdivision (xii) shall 10
constitute development. 11
(VI) The intent of this subdivision (xii) is to encourage the 12
design of clustered subdivisions and development that does not fragment Tier 2 13
areas or Tier 3 areas. [Repealed.] 14
* * * 15
* * * Interim Exemption Extension * * * 16
Sec. 2. 10 V.S.A. § 6001 (3)(D) is amended to read: 17
(D) The word “development” does not include: 18
* * * 19
(viii)(I) The construction of a priority housing project in a 20
municipality with a population of 10,000 or more. 21

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* * * 1
(III) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the 2
contrary, until January July 1, 2027 2030, the construction of a priority 3
housing project or related subdivision located entirely within areas of a 4
designated downtown development district, designated neighborhood 5
development area, or a designated growth center or within one-half mile 6
around such designated center with permanent zoning and subdivision bylaws 7
served by public sewer or water services or soils that are adequate for 8
wastewater disposal. For purposes of this subdivision (III), in order for a 9
parcel to qualify for the exemption, at least 51 percent of the parcel shall be 10
located within one-half mile of the designated center boundary. If the one-half 11
mile around the designated center extends into an adjacent municipality, the 12
legislative body of the adjacent municipal may inform the Board that it does 13
not want the exemption to extend into that area. 14
Sec. 3. 10 V.S.A. § 6081 is amended to read: 15
§ 6081. PERMITS REQUIRED; EXEMPTIONS 16
* * * 17
(bb) Until July 1, 2028 2030, no permit or permit amendment is required 18
for the construction of improvements for one accessory dwelling unit 19
constructed within or appurtenant to a single-family dwelling. Units 20

BILL AS INTRODUC