An act relating to testing of schools in Vermont for polychlorinated biphenyls
H.542 would end the Agency of Natural Resources’ ongoing indoor air quality testing for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Vermont public schools and approved independent schools that were built or renovated before 1980. The bill would stop any scheduled or ongoing testing, but it preserves testing in cases where a school has already tested positive at a level that triggers continued testing under state or federal law, with that continued testing paid by the state.
The bill also shifts state responsibility toward cleanup. If ANR previously tested a school and found PCBs above state action levels, Vermont would be required to pay for investigation, remediation, and removal of the contamination. It further directs that any remaining funds previously appropriated for PCB testing be redirected to remediation work instead of additional testing. The bill includes an exception for PCB work that is already part of a planned renovation or construction project, except for the specific Burlington School District funding reservation referenced in prior law.
H.542 would also require the Secretary of Natural Resources to submit a long-term remediation plan by January 15, 2027, along with annual reports beginning that same date on the status of testing, remediation, remaining funds, and estimated additional funding needs. In addition, the Commissioner of Health would have to update the assessment of health impacts from airborne PCBs in schools. The bill takes effect on passage.
The bill’s impact on state law is to narrow the state’s active testing program while strengthening and clarifying the state’s obligation to fund cleanup at schools already identified as contaminated. It affects ANR, the Agency of Education, school districts, and independent schools, and it reorients appropriated funds from screening toward remediation and removal. It also creates ongoing reporting and planning duties for state agencies and legislative committees.
The available voting history suggests the bill faced substantial opposition in the House, where it failed on a roll call vote by a wide margin. That indicates limited legislative support for ending the testing program, even though the bill’s text reflects a policy compromise by preserving cleanup funding for schools already found to have elevated PCB levels. The main point of contention appears to be whether the state should continue broad testing of schools or focus resources on remediation of known contamination, with the bill favoring the latter approach.
H.542 would amend Vermont’s approach to school PCB response by ending most ongoing ANR indoor air quality testing in public and approved independent schools built or renovated before 1980, while preserving state-funded testing where prior results require continued monitoring. It would also require the state to pay for investigation, remediation, and removal at schools already found to have PCB levels above state action thresholds, redirect unused testing appropriations to cleanup, and impose reporting and planning obligations on ANR and the Department of Health. The bill would therefore reduce proactive testing obligations but expand and formalize state cleanup responsibilities for identified sites.
The bill appears to have generated weak support in the House, as reflected by the failed roll call vote (16 yeas, 117 nays, with the summary noting it needed 68 votes to pass). The text suggests an effort to shift policy from testing toward remediation, but the voting result indicates that most members were not persuaded by that approach. Overall, the sentiment in the available record is negative toward the bill’s core change of terminating the testing program.
The central dispute is whether Vermont should continue broad PCB testing in schools or stop testing and concentrate state resources on remediation of schools already known to be contaminated. Supporters of the bill appear to favor ending duplicative or open-ended testing and using funds for cleanup, while opponents likely prefer maintaining the testing program as a public health safeguard and as a way to identify additional contaminated schools. A secondary point of contention is the bill’s treatment of planned renovation or construction projects, which are excluded from the state cleanup funding mandate, and the extent to which the state should be financially responsible for interim measures and long-term remediation.