1 V.S.A. § 312 (b)(1) Right to attend
meetings of public agencies
Minutes shall be taken
of all meetings of public bodies. The minutes shall cover all topics and motions
that arise at the meeting and give a true indication of the business of the
meeting.
Minutes shall include
at least the following minimal information:
(A) All members of the
public body present;
(B) All other active participants
in the meeting;
(C) All motions, proposals
and resolutions made, offered and considered, and what disposition is made
of same; and
(D) The results of any
votes, with a record of the individual vote of each member if a roll call
is taken.
top of page
3 V.S.A. § 218. Agency/department
records management program
(a) The head of each state
agency or department shall establish, maintain and implement an active and
continuing program approved by the commissioner of buildings and general services
for the effective management, preservation and disposition of records for
which that head is responsible.
(b) For an agency or department
records program to be approved by the commissioner of buildings and general
services the head of each state agency or department shall:
(1) establish and maintain an accurate inventory of all records;
(2) develop justifiable retention periods for all records;
(3) dispose promptly of those records authorized for destruction
by the department of buildings and general services of the agency of administration;
(4) establish and maintain
accurate records indicating the identity and quantity of all records destroyed,
the savings in space and equipment, and any money savings resulting from the
disposal of such records;
(5) establish and maintain other records related to management
of the agency's or department's records as required by the director of public
records;
(6) provide for furnishing to the division of public records, such
special reports regarding the records of the agency or department as the department
of buildings and general services may deem necessary;
(7) process, store and preserve records kept by the agency or department
in an efficient and economical manner;
(8) where
practicable, consolidate or eliminate existing records of the agency or department
and control the creation of new records; and
(9) maintain the records of the agency or department in a manner
that permits the prompt and orderly removal of records authorized for destruction.
(c) The head of each state
agency or department shall designate a member of his staff as the records
officer for his agency or department and shall notify the department of buildings
and general services in writing of the name and title of the person designated.
top of page
8 V.S.A. §§ 11 (3), 11 (4) Department
(3) If the commissioner,
or any employee of the department or the spouse of any of them or the son
or daughter of any of them residing at their respective homes obtains a loan
from or holds an equity interest in any financial institution subject to supervision
or regulation by the department, the
fact of the loan or of the holding, together with the appropriate terms and
conditions, shall be disclosed immediately to the commissioner in writing
by the person obtaining the loan or holding.
(4) A record of the indebtedness
or holding described in subdivision (3) of this subsection shall be kept on
file in the department and shall be open to inspection by the public.
top of page
8 V.S.A. § 22 Confidentiality and information sharing agreements
(a) Except as expressly provided in subsection (b) of this section, all documents,
material or other information reported to, or developed or maintained by the
commissioner may be used by the commissioner in the furtherance of legal or
regulatory proceedings brought as a part of the commissioner's official duties.
(b) In order to assist in the performance of the commissioner's duties, the
commissioner:
(1) may share documents, materials or other information, including confidential
and privileged documents, materials or other information with other state,
federal, or international regulatory agencies, the National Association of
Insurance Commissioners, the North American Securities Administrators Association,
self-regulatory organizations organized under 15 U.S.C. §§ 78f, 78o-3 and
78q-1, other self-regulatory organizations and their affiliates or subsidiaries
and with state, federal, and international law enforcement authorities, provided
that the recipient agrees to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status
of the document, material, or other information;
(2) may receive documents, materials, or information, including otherwise
confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, from other
state, federal, and international regulatory agencies, the National Association
of Insurance Commissioners, the North American Securities Administrators Association,
self-regulatory organizations organized under 15 U.S.C. §§ 78f, 78o-3 and
78q-1, other self-regulatory organizations and their affiliates or subsidiaries
and from state, federal, and international law enforcement authorities, and
shall maintain as confidential or privileged any document, material, or information
received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential or privileged
under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the document, material,
or information;
(3) may enter into agreements governing sharing and use of information consistent
with this section; and
(4) shall determine, prior to sharing information about an individual pursuant
to subdivision (1) of this subsection, that sharing the information will substantially
further the performance of the regulatory or law enforcement duties of the
recipient.
(c) Any information furnished pursuant to
this subsection by or to the commissioner that has been designated confidential
by the furnisher of the information shall not be subject to public inspection
under Title 1, chapter 5, shall not be subject to subpoena, and shall not
be subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action.
(d) Neither the commissioner nor any person who received documents, material,
or information while acting under the authority of the commissioner shall
be permitted or required to testify in any private civil action concerning
any confidential documents, material, or information.
(e) No waiver of an existing
privilege or claim of confidentiality in the documents, materials, or information shall occur as a result of disclosure or sharing as authorized under
this section.
(f) The provisions of this section shall apply to information relating to
persons that engage in activities that are financial in nature,
or incidental or complementary to such financial activity within the meaning of
12 U.S.C. § 1843(k) and to credit unions; provided, however, this section
shall apply to captives formed or licensed under the provisions of chapter
141 or 142 of this title only to the extent contemplated by 15 U.S.C. § 6716.
top of page
21 V.S.A. § 1314 Reports and records
(a) The commissioner may require any employing
unit to keep such true and accurate records and make such reports covering
persons employed by it respecting employment, wages, hours, unemployment and
related matters as the commissioner deems reasonably necessary for the effective
administration of this chapter. Such records shall be open to inspection and
subject to being copied by the commissioner or his authorized representatives
at any reasonable time and as often as may be necessary.
(b) On request of the commissioner, an employing unit shall report, within
ten days of the mailing or personal delivery of the request, employment and
separation information with respect to a claimant and the wages paid to a
claimant.
(c) If an employing unit fails to comply with the provisions of subsection
(b) above, and/or after October 1, 1986, section 1314(a) of this title,
the commissioner shall determine the benefit rights of a claimant upon such
information as is available. Prompt notice in writing of the determination
shall be given to the employing unit. The determination shall be final with
respect to a noncomplying employer as to any charges against its experience-
rating record for benefits paid to the claimant and its experience-rating
record shall not be relieved of those charges unless, within 30 days after
notice thereof, the employer files an appeal from the determination and the
determination is ultimately reversed, or unless the amount of benefits is
recovered from the claimant, or unless the commissioner determines that failure
to comply was due to unavoidable accident or mistake.
(d)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this
chapter, information obtained from any employing unit or individual in the
administration of this chapter, and determinations as to the benefit rights
of any individual shall be held confidential and shall not be disclosed or
open to public inspection in any manner revealing the individual's or employing
unit's identity, nor be admissible in evidence in any action or proceeding
other than one arising out of this chapter. An individual or his duly authorized
agent may be supplied with information from those records to the extent necessary
for the proper presentation of his claims for benefits or to inform him of
his existing or prospective rights to benefits; an employing unit may be furnished
with such information as may be deemed proper, within the discretion of the
commissioner, to enable it to fully discharge its obligations and safeguard
its rights under this chapter.
(2) Automatic data processing services and
systems and programming services within the department of employment and training
shall be the responsibility and under the direct control of the commissioner
in the administration of this chapter and chapter 15 of this title.
(3) Notwithstanding the
provisions in subdivision (2) of this section, the department of employment
and training shall, at the request of the agency of administration, perform
such services for other departments and agencies of the state as are within
the capacity of its data processing equipment and personnel, provided that
such services can be accomplished without undue interference with the designated
work of the department of employment and training.
(e)(1) Subject to such
restrictions as the board may by regulation prescribe, information from unemployment
insurance records may be made available to any public officer or public agency
of this or any other state or the federal government dealing with the administration
of relief, public assistance, unemployment compensation, a system of public
employment offices, wages and hours of employment, or a public works program
for purposes appropriate to the necessary
operation of those offices or agencies. The commissioner may also make information available
to colleges, universities and public agencies of the state, for use in connection
with research projects of a public service nature; but no person associated
with those institutions or agencies may disclose that information in any manner
which would reveal the identity of any individual or employing unit from or
concerning whom the information was obtained by the commissioner.
(A) The department of employment and training shall participate in the income
and eligibility verification procedures under Federal Public Law 98-369 (The
Deficit Reduction Act of 1984) which provides for the exchange of information
among state agencies administering federally assisted programs for AFDC, Medicaid,
Food Stamps, SSI, Unemployment Compensation and any other state program under
a plan approved under Title I, X, XIV, or XVI of the Social Security Act.
(B) The department of employment and training is designated as the Vermont agency for the collection of wage
records on workers covered under this chapter, as required by PL 98-369.
(2)(A) The department of employment and training shall disclose, upon request,
to officers or employees of any state or local child support enforcement agency,
any wage information or other information material to the location of an individual,
the individual's assets, or the individual's place of employment or other
source of income contained in the department's unemployment compensation claim
records with respect to an identified individual which is contained in those
records.
(i) The term "state or local child support
enforcement agency" means any agency of a state or political subdivision
thereof operating pursuant to a plan described in section 454 of the Social
Security Act, which has been approved by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services under part D, Title IV of the Social Security Act.
(B) The requesting agency shall agree that
information provided under this subsection is to be used only for the following
purposes:
(i) establishing and collecting child support obligations
from, and locating, individuals owing such obligations which are being enforced
pursuant to a plan described in section 454 of the Social Security Act which
has been approved by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under part
D, Title IV of the Social Security Act; and
(ii) establishing parentage and expediting procedures relating to establishing
parentage pursuant to section 466(c)(1) of the Social Security Act as added
by section 325(a)(2) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law
104 as made application for unemployment compensation and the amount of any compensation being received
or to be received by such individual;
(iii) the current or most recent home address of the individual; and
(iv) whether the individual has refused an offer of employment, and if so,
a description of the employment offered and the terms, conditions and rate
of pay therefor.
(B) The term "state food stamp agency" means any agency described
in section (3)(n)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977
which administers the food stamp program established under such act.
(C) The requesting agency shall agree that such information shall be used
only for purposes of determining the applicant's eligibility for benefits,
or the amount of benefits, under the food stamp program established under
the Food Stamp Act of 1977.
(D) The information shall not be released unless the requesting agency agrees
to reimburse the costs involved for furnishing such information.
(E) In addition to the requirements of this subdivision, all other requirements
with respect to confidentiality of information obtained in the administration
of this chapter and the sanctions imposed for improper disclosure of information
obtained in the administration of this chapter shall apply to the use of such
information by the officers and employees of any food stamp agency or the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
(4)(A) The department of employment and training shall disclose, upon request,
to officers or employees of any state or local agency charged with administering
AFDC, any wage information with respect to an identified individual which
is contained in its records, which is necessary for the purpose of determining
an individual's eligibility for aid or services or the amount of such aid
or services to needy families with children.
(i) The term "state or local agency charged
with administering AFDC" means any such agency administering a plan approved
under part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act.
(B) The information requested shall not be released unless the requesting
AFDC agency agrees to reimburse the department of employment and training
for the costs involved in furnishing such information.
(C) The requesting agency shall agree that the requested information shall
be used only for the purposes authorized in subdivision (e)(4)(A)
of this section.
(5)(A) The department of employment and training shall disclose to officers
or employees of the Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS) or National New
Hire Directory any employment, wage and unemployment compensation claim information
contained in its claim records which may be useful in locating an absent parent
or the parent's employer solely for purposes of administering the child support
enforcement provisions of Title IV of the Social Security Act.
(B) The requesting Federal Parent Locator Service shall agree that the requested
information shall
be used only for purposes authorized in section 303(h)(1) of the Social Security
Act.
(C) The information requested shall not be released unless the requesting
Federal Parent Locator Service agrees to reimburse the department of employment
and training for the costs involved in furnishing the requested information.
(6)(A) The department of employment and training shall disclose, upon request,
to officers or employees of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
HUD and to representatives of a public housing agency any wage information
and unemployment compensation benefit information which is contained in its records with respect to an identified individual
applying for or participating in any housing assistance program administered
by HUD which is necessary for the purposes of determining the individual's
eligibility for benefits or the amount of benefits under a HUD housing assistance
program. For the purposes of this subdivision, the term "public housing
agency" means any agency described in section 3(b)(6) of the United States
Housing Act of 1937 which is authorized to engage in or assist in the development
or operation of low income housing.
(B) HUD or the requesting public housing agency shall agree
that the requested information shall be used only for purposes of determining
individual's eligibility for benefits or the amount of benefits under a HUD
housing assistance program and that it will comply with the provisions of
20 C.F.R. section 603.7 and the limitations on the use of the information
set forth in section 904(c)(2) of P.L. 100-628.
(C) The information requested shall not be released unless the individual
about whom the requested information relates has signed a consent form, approved
by the secretary of HUD, which permits the release of the requested information.
(D) The information requested shall not be released unless HUD or the requested
public housing agency agrees to reimburse the department of employment and
training for the costs involved in furnishing the requested information.
(f) Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to interfere with the
disclosure of certain information obtained under this chapter as provided
in sections 1315, 1316 and 1317 of this title or to interfere with disclosure
to the internal revenue service of the United States department of the treasury
or to any state for purposes of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act or for the
purposes of taxation of unemployment compensation benefits paid to individuals
by this department. Information may be exchanged with the Vermont department of taxes for the purpose of
establishing liability of employers for unemployment compensation purposes
or identifying employers affected by Vermont tax laws. Information reported to the
department of employment and training may be provided to the Vermont department of
taxes for the purposes of assessment and collection of Vermont taxes, including but not limited to identifying
nonfilers of state tax locating and identifying
persons in debt to the department of taxes; and verifying property tax rebate
eligibility.
(g) All written, or oral reports, or other communications, from an employer
or his workers to each other, or to the commissioner or any of his agents,
representatives, or employees, made in connection with the requirements and
administration of this chapter or the regulations thereunder, shall be absolutely
privileged and shall not be made the subject matter or basis for any suit
for slander or libel in any court of this state, unless they are false in
fact and malicious in intent.
(h) Any employing unit which fails to report employment and
separation information with respect to a claimant and wages paid to a claimant
required under subsection (b) of this section shall be subject to a penalty
of $35.00 for each such report not received by the prescribed due date, which
penalty shall be collected in the manner provided for the collection of contributions
in section 1329 of this title and shall be paid into the contingent fund provided
in section 1365 of this title. If the
employing unit demonstrates that its failure was due to a reasonable cause,
the commissioner may, in his or her discretion, waive the penalty.
top of page
