December 23, 2025

Happy Holidays!

I hope you are finding some time to relax and enjoy our beautiful state.

I am gearing up for the start of the next legislative session, which begins on January 6th. As was the case with the last session, this session will be dominated by the education debate. You might have heard that as of now property taxes are slated to go up almost 12% next year. About half of this is due to education spending and the other half is because the legislature and the Governor “bought down” the rate last year with surplus funds. The Gov already has a proposal to do the same thing this year. This is political theater for short-term gain. I voted against it last year and likely will again – we need to buckle down and focus on long term solutions.

And on that front, the task force that was supposed to draw up new district/supervisory union boundary maps for the legislature to consider, as the next phase of implementing education reform, determined that the whole premise of Act 73 (ed reform) was faulty and wouldn’t save us any money! The most frustrating part of this debate is the lack of shared confidence in the data and in the “experts.” So, there will be a major battle over education right from the start of the session – in fact, it has already begun behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, the biggest crisis in the state is still health care. We made some good progress on this last session, but we need to do more. Brattleboro hospital is in bad shape financially, as are a number of other hospitals.  Vermonters spend a higher percentage of income on health insurance than residents of any other state, according to a report published this summer. Vermont residents spent 19.6% of their income on insurance premiums in 2025; in New Hampshire that number is the lowest in the country, at 4%. The national average is 7.9% of income. One effort to bring down costs is transparent pricing - this newly launched website, VT Affordable Care, offers a simple cost comparison for common medical procedures in different settings across Vermont. More here.

The legislature received our annual in-depth briefing on December 3^rd. It covered the state’s economic situation, but also had good presentations on health care, education and the transportation fund (which is in major deficit). If you are interested in any of these topics, the slides of the presentations are in pdf format here. The most interesting takeaway for me was this factoid: 50% of the country’s economic activity is generated by the top 10% of the population. Crazy inequity and imbalance.

I am not content with how the legislature (and state government) operates. There is too much entrenched thinking, ideological ax grinding and partisan bickering. We can do better. I have decided to join a few other legislators in creating a new caucus to help solve our problems. Here is our draft purpose statement:

The Caucus for Vermont’s Economy is a nonpartisan group of Vermont legislators committed to advancing policies that strengthen Vermont’s economy and the well-being of its people. The caucus will meet 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.

Here are examples of questions we aim to tackle: 

• How can we help Vermont’s employers grow, thrive and invest? 

• What are the next steps to decrease the cost of building housing? 

• How do we increase local capacity and regional collaboration?

• How can we systematically modernize our 50-year-old regulatory system to be faster, simpler, and more affordable — while improving results?

• What are the next steps to accelerate renewable energy development?

• How can we help government be more creative, innovative, and responsive?

• How can we advance proposals where outcomes, not process, are center stage?

• How can we take action that makes clear that improving the lives of Vermonters is our focus?

It will take some time and work to get this new caucus up and running, but we plan on being a force in Montpelier for creative, practical and much needed reform and problem solving.

Act 250 (181) tier 3, etc

https://act250.vermont.gov/new-land-use-review-framework-act-181#Act181ProjectsETC

Wetlands

Strategy for a Resilient Vermont: Videos and Summary The Resilience Implementation Strategy was introduced at public meetings this fall. It outlines steps state government and partners can take to strengthen Vermont communities as flooding, drought, wildfire smoke, and other climate pressures increase. View videos and materials: Resilience Implementation Strategy videos and summary