MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – Big budget decisions lie ahead for Vermont lawmakers in the next legislative session. They will face tough choices on the cost of schools and the cost of fighting climate change.
Gov Phil Scott used his weekly news briefing on Thursday to sound the alarm on these issues. The Clean Heat Standard and education finance reform are two big issues we’ve tracked for years and the governor says Vermonters can’t afford where we’re headed.
Vermont’s governor says a landmark thermal energy bill years in the making– which is yet to be voted on by lawmakers– is proving to be too complex and costly. Much like health care reform was a decade ago.
“From my perspective, this is starting to look a lot like single-payer,” said Gov. Phil Scott, R-Vermont.
Last year, lawmakers overrode Scott’s veto on the Clean Heat Standard, a program designed to ween Vermonters off fossil fuels and instead invest in more eco-friendly forms of home heating, like heat pumps and biofuels.
Questions about the cost to consumers for implementing the new program have sparked political acrimony. But we now have more clarity: according to a new study published by the Department of Public Service, a potential Clean Heat Standard designed to meet the requirements of the Global Warming Solutions Act over the next 25 years would take investments to the tune of just shy of $10 billion.
“There’s still many unanswered questions like who pays for what,” the governor said.
Scott and his team say a shortage of contractors to pull it off is another concern.
“Only three states are even thinking about this. Why does Vermont have to be first?” Vt. Public Service Commissioner June Tierney said.
But some say Scott’s concerns are misplaced because changing the way we heat our homes and businesses will be net positive to the economy.
“This study is saying the benefits of doing that– $12 billion in benefits– outweigh the costs by $3 billion over the next 25 years,” said Jared Duval, who serves on Vermont’s Climate Council and is with the Energy Action Network.
He says many aren’t focusing on the long-term savings of ditching fossil fuels, adding we still don’t know what that will do to the price of a gallon of fuel oil which will come in a study due in December.
“We have to have an honest fact-based conversation and not be distracted by numbers, by the fossil fuel industry and their lobbyists,” Duval said.
At the same time, the Scott administration is also raising red flags about the upcoming school budget season and another potential looming property education property tax spike. In a letter to school boards this week, Scott’s team estimates even if school districts keep spending flat, it’s estimated Vermont could see a 7% average property tax hike after this year’s 14% increase.
“We have to prepare ourselves for what’s going to happen in the not-too-distant future about another December first letter that will show another increase,” Scott said.
A key commission is expected to make recommendations on short- and long-term education cost containment strategies before the session in January.
These two big issues come down the pike in January when the Legislature reconvenes. But it remains to be seen whether there will be any shifts in the political leanings of the Legislature after voters go to the polls in November.
