It’s the Economy…
Vermont is in decline.
It pains me to write that. I love Vermont. I moved here over 30 years ago; I started and grew a business here; I built my family and my life here. But the statistics speak for themselves.
Our population is slowly declining. In 2030, one in three of us will be over 65. We have the highest health care costs in the country and one of the highest costs of living. We are ranked 51st in economic momentum. For too many Vermonters at too many stages of life, it’s simply too hard to build a good life and provide for their families.
So how can Vermont ascend? Well… to quote a Democratic political legend “It’s the economy stupid.”
I strongly believe that economic development is the key to our future. With more residents, more businesses and more economic activity, we can raise revenue and address our deep overlapping challenges — in housing, health care, education, workforce, climate and demographics.
This session, I helped found a group of legislators called the Caucus for Vermont’s Economy. We are a nonpartisan group of Vermont legislators committed to advancing policies that strengthen Vermont’s economy and the well-being of its people. The caucus meets regularly to build coalitions, provide a public forum, generate ideas, set priorities and deepen lawmakers’ understanding of complex problems. We aim to:
Build and invest in what Vermont truly needs, including housing, renewable energy, and innovation.
Focus on prosperity: adopt policies that grow the economy and expand opportunity.
Reimagine government: examine how we can change outdated systems, be more nimble and make decisions informed by data.
Work together and overcome obstacles: Vermonters expect collaboration, not gridlock.
Be holistic: our problems are interconnected and we must have a systemic approach.
We have spent this session learning a lot about permit reform, technical assistance for small businesses and more. We made some progress this session, but there is a whole lot more to do.
If you have any ideas let me know. My email address is aduke@leg.state.vt.us
Abbey
Update on Amendment
An astute reader pointed out that I explained that I wouldn’t support an amendment that hadn’t been vetted by a committee, and now it is headed for committee. So… this post clarifies that.
If the Priestly/Cole amendment is thoroughly reviewed in committee and is voted out with strong support, I will vote for the amendment on the floor. If it is a solely partisan vote, I will carefully consider whether to support it or not, but I can’t guarantee that I will.
In my next blog post, I will dive into efforts at the state level to boost our economy. We are an aging, poor, rural state with a slowly declining population — We need to turn that around!
Stay tuned. Also, if you want to sign up for email updates, sign up on the contact tab. And please don’t hesitate to send me a note, ask a question, etc.
Activists And Public Servants
Why I do not support the Priestly/Cole Amendment
Passing bills in the legislature is difficult – and it should be.
Our job is to make decisions that deeply affect our fellow citizens: to levy taxes; to pass laws and regulations; and to fund the government. That is a serious job that takes an extraordinary amount of work and care.
We need to make sure that laws passed don’t do harm, and we need to be careful to understand all points of view, the potential impacts and the real world consequences.
Each legislator navigates a decision-making system that includes 181 people (150 representatives; 30 senators and 1 governor). We work to understand the policy, the politics involved and the human personalities.
I strive to understand and have empathy for all points of view with the goal of finding compromise and balance. I believe in building broad coalitions, collaborating and finding compromise.
Some legislators — from both the left and the right — have a more activist mindset. They see their role as advocating for their point of view and are much less focused on balance and compromise. Now, obviously, I am very much simplifying things, and each individual is unique and may have different approaches depending on the issue. Plus activism certainly has a place. But it is how I see some issues play out in the statehouse.
Last week, a bill came to the House floor that shows this dynamic. The bill had already gone through a comprehensive vetting process in committee and had bipartisan support. However, when it came to the floor it attracted a floor amendment – one that highlighted activist tactics as well as the influence of liberal lobbying groups.
Amendment on H.933: The Miscellaneous Tax Bill
H.933 is an excellent bill that the House Ways and Means Committee spent months working on. It includes a variety of tax policy updates, expands research and development tax credits for small businesses and aligns Vermont tax policy with federal tax policy.
However, there was a last minute floor amendment introduced that would have increased taxes on people who earn more than $500,000 a year. I understand why people like that idea. Our country has an appalling degree of wealth inequality, and the wealthiest people in our country do not pay their fair share of taxes. I very much support federal tax increases. For state income tax, I have a lot of questions and concerns.
My colleagues and I received many emails from constituents urging us to support this amendment. Generally they were responding to action alerts from organizations that are part of the Fair Share Vermont Coalition. These action alerts frame the issue as black and white: you either support taxing wealthy people or you don’t. As I expect everyone can imagine, the issue is a whole lot more complicated than that.
To avoid a messy debate on the House floor, the sponsors of the amendment and the House leadership agreed to pull the amendment and it will be considered later in the session by the Ways and Means Committee.
I was planning to vote no on the amendment. I very much support progressive taxation, however, I will only support a proposal to raise taxes if:
The policy has been properly vetted by a committee to understand impacts. Only about 3,600 Vermont tax returns report an income of over $500,000. That is not very many people. What if just a small number of them move out of state as a result? What exactly are the tax proposals? What are intended and unintended consequences? If enacted, preliminary estimate are the amendment changes would raise an estimated $110 million. What would it be used for? Those are the types of issues that would be considered by the committee.
A broad coalition of stakeholders supports the policy. We know that many Vermonters support increasing taxes. But to be successful, the advocacy for this policy needs to come from a broader coalition. For example, Let’s Grow Kids led a successful coalition to fund systemic transformation of the childcare system in Vermont. With support of many Republicans and business leaders – as well as liberal organizations – we enacted a payroll tax to fund childcare. That process took coalition building, collaboration and compromise.
There is a political path of success. In other words, a majority of both chambers and the governor would (or even might) support it. Even if the wealth tax legislation passed both the House and the Senate (which is highly unlikely), no one thinks the Governor would sign it or the legislature could override a veto. There is an opportunity (and political) cost to pursuing legislation that we know will fail.
The reality is that the sponsors and advocates of this amendment pushed it forward as a political statement. They knew that it had no chance of success They sent out action alerts and got some news stories. They also lost some credibility from me.
Mid Session Report
We are half-way through the legislative session! The purpose of this update is to summarize the work being done right now on behalf of Vermonters in the House of Representatives. I am going to be posting updates weekly, about specific issues. And please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with comments or questions.
Committees is where the work happens!
House committees are where the detailed work of lawmaking happens. When a bill is introduced, it's assigned to one of 14 committees. The committee then gathers testimony from experts, agencies, and constituents, reviews data, and shapes legislation before sending it to the full House for a vote. Often a bill goes to more than one committee. All house members are on one committee. I am on the Commerce and Economic Development Committee.
Here is a mid session summary of work in each committee:
Agriculture, Food Resiliency & Forestry Vermont is considering several bills to strengthen food and environmental protections. H.536 requires regular testing of baby food and infant formula for heavy metals, with results made available to consumers. H.739 would ban paraquat, a toxic herbicide linked to Parkinson's disease that is already banned in the EU and China. H.537 would clarify when municipal regulations apply to farmers and residents who garden or raise small amounts of food.
Appropriations The committee completed the mid-year Budget Adjustment Act (BAA), which passed with a unanimous bipartisan vote. The most significant change: $5 million in state funds will protect Vermont's Section 8 housing vouchers from federal underfunding, keeping Vermonters in affordable housing.
For the FY27 budget, the committee faces real pressure — slower revenue growth, rising healthcare costs for state employees, and reduced federal funding. The focus is on funding core needs: food, housing, healthcare, infrastructure, and school reconstruction, while maintaining a fiscally balanced budget.
Commerce & Economic Development Several consumer protection bills are moving forward. H.211 updates Vermont's data-broker law with stronger enforcement and penalties. H.385 protects victims of coerced debt. H.512 caps resold event ticket markups at 10% and bans deceptive practices. H.205 restricts non-compete agreements in employment contracts. In addition H.674 creates a Sister State Program to build trade and cultural ties with other nations. And the committee is working to update the governance and funding of Career and Technical Education.
Corrections & Institutions Vermont is launching a Medicaid Re-entry Program to help incarcerated individuals transition back to their communities. H.635, which eliminates a supervisory fee charged to people leaving incarceration (which costs more to administer than it collects), passed unanimously and heads to the House floor.
Education The committee is working to implement Act 73, which aims to consolidate school districts, establish minimum class sizes, and slow the rise in property taxes. Vermont has seen significant K–12 enrollment decline while costs continue to rise. The committee is weighing different district restructuring models — including Supervisory Unions vs. School Districts — and exploring cooperative shared services as a cost-saving tool.
Energy & Digital Infrastructure Vermont's energy investments have kept electric rates among the lowest in New England, but rising costs from federal policy rollbacks, transmission upgrades, and AI-driven power demand threaten affordability. The House passed H.527 to streamline cell tower siting in rural areas, and H.710 to make it easier to expand solar on already-developed sites. H.727 would strengthen oversight of large data centers, given their significant power and water demands.
Environment H.778 requires emergency response plans for the 77 high-hazard, state-regulated dams in Vermont. A bottle redemption modernization bill would create a producer responsibility organization to improve redemption convenience, upgrade equipment, and ensure at least three redemption centers per county — without expanding eligible bottles or raising the five-cent deposit. H.723 updates land posting laws to reduce burdens on landowners, allowing purple paint markers, removing annual date requirements on signs, and protecting postings with minor imperfections.
General & Housing H.757 addresses manufactured homes, recognizing them as real property rather than personal property — improving access to financing, allowing placement in any residential zone, and eliminating sales tax at purchase. H.772 balances landlord and tenant rights, creates a good-cause eviction process, shortens the eviction timeline when necessary, and establishes a pilot program for positive rental-payment credit reporting.
Government Operations & Military Affairs H.67 creates a pilot legislative review panel to evaluate whether passed laws are being implemented as intended. A disaster relief bill would establish a microgrant fund for fire departments, search and rescue, and EMS — especially important following recent Northeast Kingdom floods that were denied FEMA assistance. Additional bills support Vermont veterans and military families, including free metered parking for disabled veterans and improved access to state jobs for military spouses.
Health Care A $230 million reduction in hospital drug charges helped keep education health insurance increases to single digits. Bills passed unanimously from committee include: H.577, launching a prescription drug discount card (ArrayRx) saving Vermonters an estimated millions annually; H.270, providing confidential peer support for first responders; H.34, allowing telehealth appointments to be recorded with consent; and H.558, consolidating Medicaid school-based services under the Agency of Human Services. The committee continues working on primary care access and long-term cost reduction strategies.
Human Services The House passed H.545, authorizing Vermont to develop its own immunization schedules rather than relying solely on CDC guidelines. The bill does not change vaccination requirements or access — Vermonters will continue to receive recommended immunizations at no cost. The committee is closely monitoring changes in federal health policy.
Judiciary H.541 creates new criminal protections for voters and election workers. H.578 updates and strengthens animal cruelty laws and streamlines the process for protecting abused animals. H.566 ensures that criminal records diverted out of formal court proceedings are sealed rather than expunged. H.572 will allow online public access to criminal case records, improving court transparency. H.626 updates Vermont's voyeurism laws for the digital age and creates a new criminal statute prohibiting sextortion.
Transportation Declining gas-tax revenue and a 60% rise in construction costs since 2020 are straining the Agency of Transportation (AOT). Without changes, roughly 60% of state roads could be in poor condition by 2030. To address this, AOT will begin reclaiming purchase-and-use fees previously directed to the Education Fund and will cut over $30 million from its FY27 budget, including 50+ positions. The committee is exploring ways to shore up revenue while meeting Vermont's climate goals.
Ways & Means The committee is managing the impact of federal tax changes, continuing work on property tax reform, and ensuring Vermont has adequate revenue for public services. Vermont's Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit were expanded last year — residents may be eligible for up to $400 back (without children) or $1,000 per child under seven. Free tax filing help is available at TaxCreditsVT.org.
Work continues on regional assessment districts (RADs) to ensure fair, consistent property appraisals statewide, and a higher property tax rate on second homes to reduce the burden on primary homesteads. The committee is also carefully evaluating which federal tax law changes Vermont should adopt or reject to protect state revenues.