An act relating to requiring the Secretary of State to include the year of passage in the number assigned to acts of the General Assembly

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Matt Birong and 10 co-sponsors

The bill would require the Secretary of State to include the year of passage in the official numeric designation of every General Assembly act.

Read first time and referred to the Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs

Overview

House Bill H.831 (Session 2025-2026, Vermont) seeks to require the Secretary of State to include the year of passage in the numeric designation assigned to acts of the General Assembly. The bill has a broad sponsoring slate and was read for the first time and referred to the Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs on January 29, 2026.

Purpose and intent

The central aim is to enhance clarity and traceability of enacted laws by ensuring that the year of passage is part of the act’s official numeric designation.

This change is intended to reduce confusion about when an act was enacted and assist in legal referencing, archival search, and public understanding of the legislature’s documents.

Key provisions and changes

Duty on the Secretary of State: The bill would mandate that the Secretary of State include the year of passage within the act number assigned to each General Assembly act.

Scope: Applies to acts of the General Assembly (both chambers’ enacted laws) as designated by the Secretary of State’s numbering system.

Implementation details (potentially implied, not enumerated in the summary): The bill would likely require a revision or standardization of current act numbers to incorporate the year, and may involve transition provisions for acts already in force or in the filing/record system.

Who/what would be affected

Government operations: The Vermont Secretary of State’s office would implement the change in how acts are numbered and cataloged.

Public and legal users: Legislators, attorneys, government agencies, and the public who reference acts would have a clearer identifier including the year of passage.

Archives and records: State archives and legislative records management would adjust indexing, search tools, and cross-referencing to accommodate year-inclusive act numbers.

Procedural and timeline aspects

Status: Read first time and referred to the Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs (as of 2026-01-29).

Next steps likely include committee review, potential amendments, and floor votes in the House, followed by consideration in the Senate and eventual governor’s signature (typical legislative process in Vermont).

Timelines beyond the referral are not specified in the provided information; any enacted version would specify effective dates or transition provisions if needed.

Potential impacts and considerations

Clarity and consistency: Including the year could reduce ambiguity in citations and improve archival searchability.

Reference tooling: Legislative databases, legal citation formats, and public-facing portals may require updates to reflect year-inclusive numbers.

Transitional considerations: If current acts already in force have existing numbers, there may need for transitional rules or retroactive labeling, though specifics are not provided here.

If you’d like, I can tailor this summary to emphasize public-facing versions (e.g., for a legislative brief or a news release) or expand on potential implementation steps based on typical state government practices.