Each year on the first day of July, a new slate of state laws kick in, timed to coincide with the start of the fiscal year. This latest batch of legislation makes financial aid accessible to undocumented students, requires salary ranges to be posted in job ads and provides for unpaid leave for victims of sexual assault.
Here are seven laws that could affect you.
Supporting food start-ups
Small scale, home-based food producers will have more flexibility to grow their businesses before applying for state permits under a new law that goes into effect on July 1. Lawmakers this year increased the annual income a food producer can make from $10,000 a year to $30,000, before requiring a state food safety permit.
The law will affect “cottage food” producers, who make products such as granola, baked goods, jams and jellies, or flavored vinegar, and sell them at places like farmers markets or local stores.
Lawmakers said they wanted to encourage small start-up food producers and enhance Vermont’s food resiliency by giving consumers more access to local food.
Tuition aid for immigrant students
Regardless of their immigration status, students will be able to qualify for in-state tuition at the University of Vermont and the Vermont State Colleges as of July 1 — as long as they otherwise meet the school’s residency requirements.
Students will also be eligible for need-based financial aid even if they are undocumented.
‘Safe leave’
A law passed earlier this year will allow employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid “safe leave” if they or a family member is the victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. It also broadens the definition of a caregiver in the state’s family leave act to include people in nontraditional family structures.
The legislation, which only applies to businesses with 10 or more employees, also allows employees to take up two weeks of unpaid bereavement leave. And it allows for unpaid leave related to a family member entering active military service.
Salaries in job ads
Job postings must include expected compensation for the role — or a salary range — starting July 1. The disclosure rule applies to companies with five or more employees when they are looking to fill a job located in Vermont.
The law, which passed last year, doesn’t prevent job applicants from negotiating above and beyond the listed salary range.
Lawmakers who pushed for the measure said it would help mitigate racial and gender wage disparities.
Library book policies
Public libraries and school libraries must adopt selection policies for books and other materials that are consistent with the First Amendment, the federal Civil Rights Act and state anti-discrimination laws. The policies must also “reflect Vermont’s diverse people and history, including diversity of race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation,” according to the law, passed in 2024.
Supporters of the legislation hope the policies will act as a bulwark against politically-motivated book bans, which have become increasingly common across the country.
Violence prevention at schools
As of July 1, Vermont schools must have “behavioral threat assessment” teams and policies about how to respond when a student shows threatening or alarming behavior.
The law seeks to address threats of violence effectively and fairly, avoiding discrimination against groups such as students with disabilities. The ACLU of Vermont opposed the requirement, which passed in 2023, arguing it could infringe on students’ rights.
Used car sales
Dealers of used cars and other vehicles are required to provide a written disclosure to buyers with information about the vehicle’s most recent state inspection, and the buyer’s right to get the vehicle inspected independently at their own expense.
