Lawmakers Hear Testimony on School Merger Process, Agency Budgets, Prescribing Psychologists and Cannabis Fee Structure
Members of multiple legislative committees met Tuesday to hear testimony and discuss a range of policy and budget matters, including school consolidation processes tied to Act 46, agency budget requests and special funds, a proposal to allow prescribing by doctoral-level psychologists, and adjustments to cannabis regulatory fees.
Education — House Education committee
The House Education Committee heard superintendents describe experiences with the Act 46 school district consolidation process and how it affected local tax rates, community engagement and study committees. Maple Run Unified School District superintendent Bill Kimball said the district’s merger had been motivated in part by tax incentives tied to the earlier consolidation process and reported stability in its education tax rate before the merger. Witnesses described a 5% voter threshold that can trigger a merger study and urged clarity about which governing body that 5% applies to when initiating a study.
Testimony emphasized differences between voluntary and contested mergers, the value of expert facilitators for study committees, and operational issues that arise during consolidation such as aligning financial software, curriculum and collective bargaining agreements. Committee members discussed mandating study committees while not mandating mergers, and debated appropriate timelines and resources for study committees to complete work and issue recommendations. The committee referenced Act 46 repeatedly in framing lessons learned from prior consolidation efforts.
Appropriations — Senate Appropriations committee
Agency budget and spending items were a central focus in the Senate Appropriations meeting. Multiple witnesses described recent and requested changes to base budgets and special fund authority.
Representatives of the Center for Crime Victim Services said they received a 3% increase to their base general fund budget, equivalent to $49,502.73, which matched the governor’s recommendation. They also sought an additional $100,000 to cover administrative costs tied to distributing more than $2 million in grants and program funds for which they currently receive no administrative support. The center noted federal reimbursement rates and suggested their requested increase was below amounts allowed under federal regulations.
Witnesses summarizing health-sector fiscal work highlighted ongoing system transformation under Act 167 and federal Rural Health Transformation funding. Appropriations staff described integration of positions and responsibilities arising from the prior year’s budget and Acts 68 and 168, noting new positions have been approved and hired.
Officials discussed special funds used for victim compensation and restitution, including a compensation fund reimbursed at 75% on the federal level; they said other special funds that rely on fines and fees have declined over time. Several speakers characterized compensation and restitution as state-mandated programs.
Finance — Senate Finance committee (H.237 and related items)
Finance committee sessions addressed H.237, a bill to allow prescribing by doctoral-level psychologists, and other fee and fiscal topics.
Legislative staff and Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) witnesses described H.237 as creating a new prescribing specialty for doctoral-level psychologists who meet specified training and examination requirements and operate in a collaborating relationship with psychiatrists. The bill would add definitions and provisions for issuance of a prescribing specialty, require a collaborating practitioner definition, and include discipline and suspension authorities. OPR said initial application fees for the specialty would be $100 and anticipated de minimis start-up costs possibly covered within existing funding; a startup cost estimate mentioned was as much as $4,000 and no appropriation was included in the bill.
Testimony noted an effective date and implementation timeline considerations and referenced required reporting. One witness said the bill requires a report back on or before November 15, 2032, on usage of the specialty, status of collaborating practitioners, and possible updates to qualifications.
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Finance members also took extensive testimony on cannabis-related fees and the cannabis regulatory structure. Witnesses discussed a Cannabis Control Board report examining permit and fee structures for growers and retailers. The committee heard that excise tax revenues from cannabis were forecast in the general fund — figures cited included FY27 excise tax forecast amounts of $23,600,000 rising to $24,300,000 in FY28 (a 3.2% increase). Testimony described how fee-setting directives aimed to balance covering board budgets while preserving market accessibility to small operators, and discussed alternatives for funding any reduction in special fund revenue tied to lower permit fees. Members described the control board’s budget request as composed of special funds and a remainder in general funds, with previously noted allocations such as 70%/30% splits cited in related discussion of excise tax flows.
Speakers representing small outdoor growers urged fee structures that align with production volume rather than physical size, noting outdoor growers typically harvest once per year and may be disadvantaged by high fixed fees. Discussion included possible adjustments to outdoor grow fees and comparisons to fees in other states.
Health Care — House Health Care committee
The House Health Care Committee reviewed an amended bill to establish a Vermont prescription drug discount card program. Legislative council and the treasurer’s office described an amendment that removes language allowing the treasurer to require fees to defray program costs and clarified how the program’s accounting and trust fund treatment would work.
Witnesses said the treasurer’s office requested an initial appropriation of $50,000 for implementation, primarily for program setup and marketing. Treasurers’ staff explained that fee revenue collected through the program would be handled by an interstate consortium’s steering committee, with Vermont receiving a proportional share of leftover revenue after the consortium budget is paid; Vermont’s share would be tracked in an existing special fund or accounted for separately within pooled accounts. Committee members took a straw poll on adopting the Ways and Means amendment to the bill.
Government Operations & Military Affairs — House committee (S.500 and other bills)
The Government Operations & Military Affairs committee reviewed amendments to S.500 and related fiscal and governance language. Staff described an amendment adding detail and guardrails to a public safety communications system provision and replacing a section to clarify prior appropriations and reserves. The committee also reported technical corrections and removals of duplicative appropriations language in related Treasury omnibus provisions, and discussed positions added to the treasurer’s unclaimed property division.
Senate Government Operations meetings addressed a multi-section bill with a range of regulatory and licensing changes. Testimony covered expanded OPR authorities, proposed registration requirements for certain establishments and professions, administrative rescission of licenses in limited circumstances, and proposals to require or adjust reporting and inspection authorities. Several sections would create or revise mandates, including registration and reporting duties, and would update unprofessional conduct provisions and fee structures for affected professions and establishments.
Transportation and Other Committees
The Senate Transportation Committee provided briefings on project funding and program delivery. Committee staff reported 37 town highway projects funded with 16 construction projects totaling approximately $30.3 million, noting that federal funding and eligibility changes drove recent delivery. Funding splits and program modeling approaches were reviewed, and differences between interstate, state highway and town program structures were noted in committee discussion.
Natural Resources & Energy and Corrections & Institutions committees held shorter sessions addressing rulemaking timelines, report delivery schedules and capital budget adjustments. The Natural Resources & Energy committee discussed amending timing and scope for rulemaking and reports. Corrections & Institutions members worked on capital bill adjustments and noted line-item changes and reallocations.
Conclusion
This report covers the March 24 committee meetings of the House Education, House Health Care, House Government Operations & Military Affairs, House Corrections & Institutions, Senate Appropriations, Senate Finance, Senate Transportation, Senate Natural Resources & Energy, and Senate Government Operations committees. Lawmakers heard testimony on school consolidation and Act 46 lessons, agency budget requests and special fund treatment, a bill to allow prescribing by doctoral-level psychologists, cannabis fee and excise tax issues, and the proposed prescription drug discount card program, among other fiscal and regulatory matters.
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