State budget heading to Senate

The Ottauquechee River is shown in Woodstock, Vermont. (Gareth Henderson Photo)

After the House passed it last week, the $7.1 billion Vermont state budget plan is on its way to the Senate.

The proposal, which covers the last three quarters of the current fiscal year, includes $23.8 million in bridge funding to keep the Vermont State Colleges system functioning this year through the fiscal challenges of the pandemic. The Legislature passed a first-quarter budget in June.

Rep. Charlie Kimbell, representing Woodstock, Reading and Plymouth, said the House's budget includes much of the governor's initial proposal, with several exceptions. Overall, the House proposal includes $100 million in new grants and incentives to aid the economy. Additionally, the plan makes more sole proprietors eligible for economic recovery grants, Kimbell added. It also leaves major social assistance programs intact. 

The $7.1 billion plan is inflated over last year's budget because it includes federal COVID-19 relief money, Kimbell said. In the proposal, the House spends the remainder of the CARES Act funding, about $200 million. Kimbell said some voters have asked him about funding for the state colleges for the following year, fiscal year 2022. 

"We don't have that answer at all yet," he said. In total, the state colleges system is getting over $98 million in the budget, including the $23.8 million in bridge funding and also $29.8 million for the colleges' annual general fund appropriation.

A statewide committee which includes some legislators is discussing the long-term future of the college system. Kimbell pointed out that Southern New Hampshire University, for example, is laser-focused on its remote learning program. SNHU has unveiled a plan to revamp on-campus learning to a model that would cost students $10,000 per year.

"This (situation) could permanently change how people think of higher education," Kimbell said. 

Maintaining the funding for the college system is a top priority for Windsor County Sen. Alison Clarkson, of Woodstock. The main struggle is how to spend the remaining federal relief money, she said, adding there are many businesses, organizations and programs in great need of funding.

"They're all areas that we care about," Clarkson said. "That's very hard when the slice of the pie is not very big." 

She lamented the fact that the U.S. Congress hadn't been able to agree on a second stimulus package. 

"Need is not a partisan thing," Clarkson said. "Every state has municipal needs, health care needs, educational needs, business needs, individual needs."  

On a positive note, Clarkson pointed out that the federal relief money has allowed the state to fund some permanent housing, which is crucial because of the housing situation in Vermont. The pandemic's financial strain has exacerbated the already-challenging issues of homelessness and low-income housing. And winter is just around the corner.

"We need 10,000 new housing units tomorrow, but ... every permanent unit is a blessing," Clarkson said. "That's a good example of taking CARES Act money and using it for maximum long-term benefit." 

After the state Senate creates and approves its version of the budget bill, it's back to the House to reconcile the two proposals. Then, the finalized budget bill will head to the governor's desk. The process might be a more rapid one than usual. The House Appropriations Committee spent under three weeks reviewing the governor's proposal. As Kimbell noted, that's usually a two-month process. 

— Gareth Henderson