RANDOLPH CENTER, Vt. (WCAX) – A Vermont panel created this spring to come up with education finance reform options is holding its first public engagement session Monday night.
The Commission on the Future of Public Education was formed in the wake of this spring’s Town Meeting day property tax revolt, where nearly a third of Vermont towns rejected school budgets in the face of double-digit property tax increases.
The Legislature created the commission to explore solutions for cost containment while making sure every student receives an equitable, quality education.
Vermont for years has grappled with increasing education costs, a declining student population, and stagnant test scores. Lawmakers’ reform efforts have so far nibbled around the edges, from 2015′s Act 46 school consolidation effort, to talk of changing over to an income tax-based system. Now, the new panel is touring the state to hear what Vermonters have to say.
“We had last year 30 budgets failing. Costs are something I expect to come out for communities. I think they will also talk about how do we make sure things are equitable,” said Orange Southwest Supervisory Union Superintendent Michael Clark.
The commission is expected to present a preliminary report in December on ways to contain costs in the short term. Broader changes on how to fund schools could still be over a year away.
