Vt. bill eyes growing school construction needs
The American flag moves in a summer breeze at Woodstock Union High School & Middle School. (Gareth Henderson File Photo)
School construction needs in Vermont are adding up fast, and a current bill moving through the Legislature seeks to assess the situation.
The Vermont House of Representatives has passed a $2.5 million bill that calls for a statewide assessment of public education facilities, and this legislation is now in the Senate. The point is to get a full understanding of the condition of these buildings and determine which projects are most urgent, according to State Rep. Charlie Kimbell, representing Woodstock, Reading and Plymouth.
A state program used to be in place to help fund school construction projects, but that ended in 2007. Statewide, school districts have identified $560 million worth of needed building projects, involving either new buildings or major renovations, Kimbell said. Eventually, the hope is to prioritize those projects and figure out how to fund them. State-based funding methods for school building projects vary, like in Massachusetts, which Kimbell said uses a “straight allocation of its sales tax,” while other states take the money right out of their General Fund.
“We’re going to have to figure out what the right mechanism is, because it’s a lot of money,” Kimbell said.
However, the first step is the assessment, which is the main function of the bill the House just passed, bill H. 426. Specifically, the bill allocates the $2.5 million and authorizes the state to put out a request for proposals for the assessment. The bill also directs the Agency of Education to update school construction facility standards, and requires each school have a school facilities manager.
Many of the Vermont school building projects being considered today involve schools originally built in the 1950s and 60s. One of those projects is a proposed $73.3 million project for a new Woodstock Union High School & Middle School building. Federal, state, local and private sources will be explored to raise some of the funding for the project, and a Fundraising Working Group is currently being formed. A bond vote is targeted at some point within the time range of 2022-2024.
It’s unclear whether the Woodstock project would be able to use whatever funding mechanism the state may eventually implement. If the bill gets final legislative approval, the state is expecting a January 2023 report that will include a recommendation on funding, Kimbell said.
Once completed, the Senate version of the bill H. 426 is likely to come back to the House for amendments.
— Gareth Henderson
