Platform

 As approved by the 2008 Platform Convention, September 13, 2008

STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES

The Vermont Democratic Party believes the rights to health care, food, shelter, clean air and water, education, privacy, justice, peace and equality, to organize, and to speak freely are essential to a robust democracy. These rights are not negotiable. When any Vermonter lacks or is denied any of these basic essentials, the fabric of our community is torn and all of us are harmed.

We believe that all citizens have a responsibility to be informed, engaged participants in our democracy. As engaged citizens, we will work toward the establishment of economically and environmentally sustainable communities that regain and maintain the ecological health of our state and contribute to the health of our country and the planet.

We expect elected officials, their staffs and their appointees to govern compassionately, competently, and with fiscal integrity and transparency. We demand that all elected officials fully adhere to their oaths of office and defend the Constitutions of Vermont and of the United States at all times, using all lawful means available to them through their office. Based on the principles of the Vermont and U.S. Constitutions, we stand against torture, bigotry and discrimination, forced childbirth or sterilization, corruption, and the establishment of state-sponsored religion or religious doctrine.

We judge the success of a democratic society by how it treats its most vulnerable members. Therefore, in everything we do -- every policy, law, and regulation -- we must consider the effects of our actions on the lives and futures of our children and succeeding generations.

A. ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

Economic opportunity in Vermont should be available to all its citizens. The priority focus of economic growth and opportunity resides in Vermonter-owned and operated businesses where public and private investments in workforce, capital plant, and intellectual property remain in Vermont. Entrepreneurship and self-employment are vital components of Vermont's economic success because they create opportunity, meaningful work, and wealth. We are committed to a diversely developed and stable economy that supports a strong and vibrant middle class. Business, government, labor, and environmental groups must be jointly responsible for incorporating Vermont values in building economic opportunity for all.

1. Economic Development and Job Creation

1. We are committed to the timely establishment of state-of-the-art, locally controlled universal broadband telecommunications services statewide as a basic element of economic infrastructure.
2. Agriculture and forestry businesses are the historical, cultural, and economic foundation of Vermont. We support measures that encourage sustainable farms in diverse areas of agriculture to thrive as vital elements in the continued success of our economy.
3. We will pursue incentives to help small businesses committed and connected to Vermont, especially in the areas of the state where the local economy is struggling.
4. We encourage the development of jobs that provide workers with a livable wage, the right to organize and collectively bargain for wages and benefits and that improve the standard of living for Vermont workers.
5. Our economic development strategy will address the costs and provision of energy and energy savings measures, as well as the decoupling of health insurance from place of employment, and access to quality childcare and early education as part of workforce development, job creation, and job security for working parents.

2. Job Retention

We will work against the outsourcing and privatization of state and private-sector jobs to non-union workplaces and the off-shoring of jobs to other countries or to employers who ignore the rights of workers, because such practices adversely affect local economies, destroy community safety nets, and threaten the environment.

3. Regulatory Review

1. We will review economic development programs in order to assess their successful components, to ensure accountability, and to streamline their processes while preserving the right of public input and protecting the public good.
2. We will work to foster close working partnerships among state and private agencies in policy and economic development.
3. We will actively seek to identify and resolve conflicting regulations, which too often act as accidental barriers to the success of Vermont's small businesses.

4. Job Training

We are committed to public and private investment to prepare Vermonters to compete in the global economy and meet the need for emerging "green economy" jobs in Vermont.

5. Fair Taxation

1. We will work to reverse the negative impact of the federal tax cuts of the last eight years on Vermonters while challenging the policies that turned budget surpluses into debts for our children and grandchildren.
2. We are committed to returning to a policy of fiscal responsibility with taxation based on ability to pay, investment in infrastructure, and funding for programs that support working Vermonters and the vulnerable in our society.

B. ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP, INVESTMENT and CONSERVATION

A healthy environment is essential to overall public health, and therefore to Vermont's economy and quality of life. We recognize global climate change as the major challenge of our time. We have a moral obligation to do all that we can to protect and conserve our environment, for ourselves and for future generations. Therefore, we are committed to the rigorous, consistent, and equal enforcement of environmental laws and regulations.

1. Investment in Sustainability

1. We support sustainable business principles, and will continue to encourage local businesses that keep profits circulating within the local community, the county and the state.
2. We support private and public investment in conservation through an all-fuels efficiency utility and other energy-efficiency measures to achieve energy independence and reduce basic heating and electricity costs for Vermonters.
3. We are committed to sustainable energy investment, and the investment of labor and money in new technologies that harness renewable energy resources such as, but not limited to: solar, geothermal, biomass, and wind. Such investment preserves a healthy environment and supports the creation of good jobs for Vermonters.

2. Conservation and Environmental Protection

1. We respect private property rights and support regulations and laws that: discourage pollution and wasteful land consumption; promote conservation of Vermont's working landscape of farm and forest lands; and protect endangered species. We support the goals of Vermont's land-use planning laws and other foundations of environmental law such as the Endangered Species Act.
2. We will research and promote new methods and technologies that reconcile habitat-loss prevention and preservation of a sustainable environment with the conversion of farms and forestland to homes and business and retail development.
3. We must establish systems to control or mitigate problematic runoff from all sources to create cleaner watersheds. We will equitably and rigorously enforce all applicable laws for sewage treatment and storm water runoff.

3. Transportation

Investment in transportation infrastructure will produce a stronger economy. We will restore and maintain the integrity and safety of our transportation network. We will seek to preserve highways, decrease carbon emissions, and lower transportation costs by shifting freight traffic to a modernized rail system wherever possible, while expanding alternative and public transportation.

C. GOVERNMENT

Democrats understand that "we, the people of Vermont" are "the government." We stand for the separation of powers among the Legislative, Executive and Judicial branches of government as defined in the Constitution, held to account by voters informed by a free press. The work of our government must be conducted with transparency, fairness, responsibility, and accountability at all levels.

1. Sound Fiscal Policy

1. Because sound fiscal policy is vital to the beneficial operation of government, we support responsible spending, proportional taxation, and the creation of protections against revenue shortfalls.
2. We support ongoing and timely investment in current and future infrastructure, children's health, education, and green technologies as a hallmark of good government and sound fiscal policy that will reduce future costs.
3. Government officeholders and their appointees must be accountable to taxpayers for their ethical and fiscal actions.

2. Managing State Government

1. We are committed to consistent, fair enforcement of regulations and to improvement in coordination among state agencies in accordance with best practices to preserve civil rights.
2. Decision-making on improvements in government services -- in efficiency, cost effectiveness, and in coordination -- must involve front-line state employees, management, and those who receive services and interact with state agencies, including local government bodies.
3. We demand adherence to all open meeting and open records laws.

3. Campaign Finance Reform and Public Financing

We are committed to substantive campaign finance reforms, including public financing, that will withstand court challenges.

4. Voting

1. We support measures to educate and encourage all citizens to exercise their right and fulfill their responsibility to vote, including same-day voter registration.
2. We are committed to changing the Vermont Constitution to promptly accomplish the election of statewide officers so as to fairly reflect the will of the electorate when no candidate receives over 50 percent of the votes cast.
3. We will hold free and fair elections with accountability for all electoral votes via clear paper trails to verify voter choices.

D. EQUALITY

We support individual liberty and the community of citizens caring for and about each other. Laws and regulations must be administered so that all Vermonters are treated equally.

1. Equality Before the Law

1. We will act promptly and unapologetically to address inequalities, including monitoring the actions of law enforcement and other powerful economic entities for conscious or unconscious bias.
2. We support the addition of equal rights amendments to the United States and Vermont Constitutions and the protection of all citizens, regardless of race, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, military service, or creed.
3. We continue to support full and equal rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender individuals and couples at state and national levels.
4. We will ensure that all agencies and officers of state government act with respect for the dignity, individuality, and cultural distinctiveness of Vermont's Native American peoples. We support the formal recognition of Abenaki tribal status.

2. Workers' Rights

1. We believe that government must ensure the rights of employees to organize a union, bargain collectively, and to work free from discrimination in a safe, healthy and fair environment.
2. We support the enforcement of all federal, state, county and municipal laws that protect workers.

E. BUILDING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES

We believe that education, health care, housing, and other essential human services are essential components of healthy Vermont communities.

1. Childcare

We are committed to supporting affordable, quality childcare as essential to our young children's development and a key to building our economy.

2. Education

1. We will ensure that all Vermonters have access to equal opportunities for a quality public education, including early childhood education, affordable and accessible higher education, and continuing education for adults.
2. We support the existing law that currently provides for public high school choice, as well as community-based public funding for non-sectarian schools in communities that do not have their own public schools.
3. We demand that the federal government fully fund all federal mandates for education. In particular, the special education needs of children with disabilities must be funded in the same spirit and to at least the same degree as other federal commitments to communities

3. Health Care

1. We believe that every human being must have access to appropriate, quality medical care.
2. We are committed to reducing costs and improving services within a system where every Vermonter, without regard to employment, has access to health care, required prescription drugs, and long-term care. The system must offer a choice of health care providers, who are accountable to the public for quality of service, and patient fees must be based on ability to pay.
3. We will ensure the right of Vermonters to medical privacy. All Vermonters have the right to seek and receive complete, accurate, and science-based information on family planning, pregnancy services, and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. We reaffirm the universal right of women to make decisions regarding abortion and other reproductive health issues, free from harassment and interference by government or other entities.
4. We will ensure the right of terminally ill Vermonters and their families to be informed of their end-of-life options and to have access to a careful, deliberate process in consultation with their medical professional, in choosing the circumstances and manner of their deaths.
5. We support meaningful disclosure and limitations on marketing and gifts to physicians and other prescribing medical providers by pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, in the interest of reducing the influence of pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers on physician practice.

4. Aging population

1. We must ensure that flexible job opportunities are available based on ability without regard to age.
2. We will strive to provide for Vermonters' health, security, and social well being throughout their life span.

5. Crime Prevention

1. Democrats believe that by focusing on the causes of crime and its prevention through education, drug treatment, and deterrence, and adequate funding of law enforcement agencies, including police, State's Attorneys, Victim Advocates, Corrections Department (including Probation and Parole staff) and courts at all levels, we can protect our citizens and communities and decrease the costs of incarceration.
2. Vermont Democrats decry the out-of-state warehousing of prisoners as detrimental to the safety of communities: it separates prisoners from family and community ties necessary to their successful and safe rehabilitation and reintegration into the Vermont communities in which they will be released.

6. Housing

1. We will work to promote home ownership and housing for all within existing town and city development zones through support for the construction of affordable housing and moderately priced homes as well as housing that is accessible to the elderly and people with disabilities. We will work to uphold minimum housing standards throughout the state.
2. We are committed to restoring funding for programs to subsidize low-income rental housing.
3. Because deteriorating lead paint in older housing causes permanent IQ loss in young children who ingest or inhale it, we will fund universal lead testing of one- and two-year-olds for early detection, and lead paint remediation assistance to homeowners and landlords.
4. The Vermont Democratic Party believes all Vermonters should have access to home heating products sufficient to heat their homes. The Party supports the following actions:
   1. Fully funding of low-income home heating assistance and weatherization programs.
   2. Increase Vermonters' awareness of where to seek assistance to pay for home heating products.
   3. Increase income eligibility for home heating and weatherization assistance.
   4. Support policies to restrict speculator control of oil futures contracts.

F. ENDING THE WAR IN IRAQ

The Bush Administration has used misrepresentations and faulty intelligence to lead the United States into a war of aggression against a country that posed no threat to the United States. This war has resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians, increased worldwide hostility to the United States and weakened our national defense. In Vermont, this war has caused a disproportionate burden of casualties and has diverted resources away from vital human needs. Therefore, the Vermont Democratic Party calls for the prompt withdrawal of U.S. forces from hostilities in Iraq and opposes the establishment of permanent military bases in Iraq and military incursions into Iran and Pakistan.

We hold these principles, goals and commitments in common as members of the Vermont Democratic Party and will work together and individually, to the best of our ability, to promote them as the guiding ideology of a just and fair government.

2008 Vermont Democratic Platform Committee
Judy Bevans, Chair