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The 2026 Legislative Session is in full swing and it feels like we never left the building. Committees picked up where they left off taking testimony on the State’s most pressing issues while new proposed bills are being introduced for a few more weeks. Please feel free to reach out to your House Essex Representative (contact info below) anytime with questions, comments or needs for assistance. We are all proud to serve Essex and remain committed to bringing the voices and values of our city to the statehouse. You can follow all of the activity of the session at this link: https://legislature.vermont.gov/
BUDGET ADJUSTMENT UPDATE We are doing everything we can to lower property taxes this year. The governor proposed in the Budget Adjustment Act to use $75 million to buy down property taxes. We’re waiting until later in the session to make those decisions when we have all the information on proposed school budgets and understand the pressing budget needs in housing, health care, and the impact from federal cuts on Vermonters. EDUCATION UPDATE Legislative Counsel and the Joint Fiscal Office, non-partisan staff for all legislators, provided a refresher of Act 73, an act relating to transforming Vermont’s education governance, quality, and finance systems. The presentation can be viewed here. The House and Senate Education Committees picked up where they left off last year taking testimony on our education system. The Committees are hearing from Vermont superintendents, Vermont principals, Agency of Education, Redistricting Task Force, and Commission on the Future of Public Education. There is consensus to create a more affordable and equitable education system that increases opportunities for all Vermont students, the question remains how we get there. Testimony was heard from the Vermont Superintendents Association (VSA). The written testimony can be found here. In summary, the VSA supports Act 73 and believes the central challenge facing Vermont’s education system is scale. With declining enrollment, the state can no longer afford to operate so many small districts and under-enrolled schools without either raising taxes or reducing educational quality. While consolidation will require upfront investment, time, and careful planning, failing to address scale simply shifts inequities and costs onto local communities and students. VSA cautions that funding reforms like a foundation formula will not succeed on their own unless structural inefficiencies are addressed. On Friday the Secretary of Education presented three potential redistricting maps: regions established by Vermont School Boards Association, Regional High School Districts and a hybrid of the two. Secretary Sanders testimony can be found here. If you want to dive in even further, there is information here. The VSBA map would divide Chittenden County into two districts: Eastern Chittenden would include CVU, EWSD and Mt Mansfield. Western Chittenden County would include Burlington, Colchester, Milton, South Burlington, Winooski. The Regional High School Districts would divide Chittenden County into 3 districts and in the hybrid model Chittenden County would be three districts based on the regional high school maps. I want to be clear, everything is still on the table. These maps were presented by the Secretary and the committees will continue to dive into the policy and take relevant testimony. As the education committees continue to focus on the governance structure, our House Ways & Means committee is continuing the work of analyzing cost drivers and the tax policy that will move us towards a foundation formula. Broadly, the foundation formula will apply a base and weights, based on students’ characteristics, to a student population to determine funding to a school or district. Moving to a foundation formula will provide stability and predictability to school budgets and property tax rates. ESSEX HOUSE DELEGATION COMMUNITY CONVERSATION SERIES Your Essex House delegation is excited to invite you to "Community Conversations," a monthly forum for updates on bills, committee work, and caucus activities. These events are designed to provide an open, respectful space for questions, concerns, and dialogue. At each gathering, we'll share an overview of our priorities for the session and answer your questions. Sunday, February 15th 10-11:30am at Essex Teen Center Saturday, March 14th 9-10:30am via Zoom Saturday, April 11th 9-10:30am at Essex Town Office Saturday, May 16th 11am-12:30pm at Essex Teen Center Best Rep. Lori Houghton Chittenden 22: City of Essex Junction Karen Dolan, [email protected], 802.233.4434 Lori Houghton, [email protected], 802.373.0599
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