VT
Vermont House Bill H0412

Vermont 2025-2026 Regular Session

Vermont House Bill H0412 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
OldNewDifferences
11 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
22 2025 Page 1 of 94
33
44
55 VT LEG #380410 v.1
66 H.412 1
77 Introduced by Representatives McCoy of Poultney, Bartley of Fairfax, 2
88 Charlton of Chester, and Dolgin of St. Johnsbury 3
99 Referred to Committee on 4
1010 Date: 5
1111 Subject: Conservation and development; land use; Act 250; regional planning; 6
1212 housing; tax increment financing 7
1313 Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to make multiple 8
1414 changes related to housing, including changes to land use planning, Act 250, 9
1515 municipal and regional planning, housing programs, and tax increment 10
1616 financing. 11
1717 An act relating to land use and housing development 12
1818 It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 13
1919 * * * Road Rule * * * 14
2020 Sec. 1. 10 V.S.A. § 6001 is amended to read: 15
2121 § 6001. DEFINITIONS 16
2222 As used in this chapter: 17
2323 * * * 18
2424 (3)(A) “Development” means each of the following: 19
2525 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
2626 2025 Page 2 of 94
2727
2828
2929 VT LEG #380410 v.1
3030 (xii) The construction of a road or roads and any associated 1
3131 driveways to provide access to or within a tract of land owned or controlled by 2
3232 a person. For the purposes of determining jurisdiction under this subdivision, 3
3333 any new development or subdivision on a parcel of land that will be provided 4
3434 access by the road and associated driveways is land involved in the 5
3535 construction of the road. 6
3636 (I) Jurisdiction under this subdivision shall not apply unless the 7
3737 length of any single road is greater than 800 feet, or the length of all roads and 8
3838 any associated driveways in combination is greater than 2,000 feet. 9
3939 (II) As used in this subdivision (xii), “roads” include any new 10
4040 road or improvement to a class 4 town highway by a person other than a 11
4141 municipality, including roads that will be transferred to or maintained by a 12
4242 municipality after their construction or improvement. Routine maintenance 13
4343 and minor repairs of a Class 4 highway shall not constitute an “improvement.” 14
4444 Routine maintenance shall include replacing a culvert or ditch, applying new 15
4545 stone, grading, or making repairs after adverse weather. Routine maintenance 16
4646 shall not include changing the size of the road, changing the location or layout 17
4747 of the road, or adding pavement. 18
4848 (III) For the purpose of determining the length of any road and 19
4949 associated driveways, the length of all other roads and driveways within the 20
5050 tract of land constructed after July 1, 2026 shall be included. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
5151 2025 Page 3 of 94
5252
5353
5454 VT LEG #380410 v.1
5555 (IV) This subdivision (xii) shall not apply to: 1
5656 (aa) a State or municipal road, a utility corridor of an 2
5757 electric transmission or distribution company, or a road used primarily for 3
5858 farming or forestry purposes; 4
5959 (bb) development within a Tier 1A area established in 5
6060 accordance with section 6034 of this title or a Tier 1B area established in 6
6161 accordance with section 6033 of this title; and 7
6262 (cc) improvements underway when this section takes effect 8
6363 to a Class 4 highway that will be transferred to the municipality. 9
6464 (V) The conversion of a road used for farming or forestry 10
6565 purposes that also meets the requirements of this subdivision (xii) shall 11
6666 constitute development. 12
6767 (VI) The intent of this subdivision (xii) is to encourage the 13
6868 design of clustered subdivisions and development that does not fragment Tier 2 14
6969 areas or Tier 3 areas. 15
7070 (xiii) The construction of improvements for commercial, 16
7171 industrial, or residential purposes in a Tier 3 area as determined by rules 17
7272 adopted by the Board. 18
7373 * * * 19
7474 (D) The word “development” does not include: 20
7575 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
7676 2025 Page 4 of 94
7777
7878
7979 VT LEG #380410 v.1
8080 (viii)(I) The construction of a priority housing project in a 1
8181 municipality with a population of 10,000 or more. 2
8282 (II) If the construction of a priority housing project in this 3
8383 subdivision (3)(D)(viii) involves demolition of one or more buildings that are 4
8484 listed or eligible to be listed on the State or National Register of Historic 5
8585 Places, this exemption shall not apply unless the Division for Historic 6
8686 Preservation has made the determination described in subdivision (A)(iv)(I)(ff) 7
8787 of this subdivision (3) and any imposed conditions are enforceable in the 8
8888 manner set forth in that subdivision. 9
8989 (III) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the 10
9090 contrary, and in addition to the provisions exemption subsection 6081(p) of 11
9191 this chapter, until January July 1, 2027 2035, the construction of a priority 12
9292 housing project or related subdivision located entirely within areas of a 13
9393 designated downtown development district, designated neighborhood 14
9494 development area, or a designated growth center or within one-half mile 15
9595 around such designated center with permanent zoning and subdivision bylaws 16
9696 served by public sewer or water services or soils that are adequate for 17
9797 wastewater disposal or extending to the terminus of the areas served by public 18
9898 sewer or water services if beyond the one-half mile area. Construction must be 19
9999 substantially completed by June 30, 2035. For purposes of this subdivision 20
100100 (III), in order for a parcel to qualify for the exemption, at least 51 percent of 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
101101 2025 Page 5 of 94
102102
103103
104104 VT LEG #380410 v.1
105105 the parcel shall be located within one-half mile of the designated center 1
106106 boundary. If the one-half mile around the designated center extends into an 2
107107 adjacent municipality, the legislative body of the adjacent municipal may 3
108108 inform the Board that it does not want the exemption to extend into that area. 4
109109 * * * 5
110110 (28) “Mixed use” means construction of both mixed income residential 6
111111 housing and construction of space for any combination of commercial and 7
112112 public purposes, including retail, office, services, artisan, and recreational, 8
113113 municipal, State, and community facilities, provided at least 40 percent of the 9
114114 gross floor area of the buildings involved is mixed income residential housing. 10
115115 “Mixed use” does not include industrial use. 11
116116 * * * 12
117117 (35) “Priority housing project” means a discrete project located on a 13
118118 single tract or multiple contiguous tracts of land that consists exclusively of 14
119119 mixed income housing or mixed use, or any combination thereof with mixed 15
120120 income housing, and is located entirely within a designated downtown 16
121121 development district, designated new town center, designated growth center, or 17
122122 designated neighborhood development area under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A or 18
123123 within a downtown or village center, village area, or planned growth area as 19
124124 defined in 24 V.S.A. chapter 139. 20
125125 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
126126 2025 Page 6 of 94
127127
128128
129129 VT LEG #380410 v.1
130130 (46) “Tier 3” means an area consisting of critical natural resources 1
131131 defined by the rules of the Board. The Board’s rules shall at a minimum 2
132132 determine whether and how to protect river corridors, headwater streams, 3
133133 habitat connectors of statewide significance, riparian areas, class A waters, 4
134134 natural communities, and other critical natural resources. [Repealed.] 5
135135 * * * 6
136136 (51) “Transit route” means a set route or network of routes on which a 7
137137 public transit service as defined in 24 V.S.A. § 5088 operates a regular 8
138138 schedule and as may be further defined by Board rule. 9
139139 (52) “Infill” or “infill development” means the use of vacant land or 10
140140 property within an existing settlement for further construction or development. 11
141141 * * * Repeal of Road Construction Rulemaking * * * 12
142142 Sec. 2. 2024 Acts and Resolves No. 181, Sec. 20 is amended to read: 13
143143 Sec. 20. RULEMAKING; ROAD C ONSTRUCTION 14
144144 The Natural Resources Board may adopt rules after consulting with 15
145145 stakeholders, providing additional specificity to the necessary elements of 10 16
146146 V.S.A. § 6001(3)(A)(xii). It is the intent of the General Assembly that any 17
147147 rules encourage the design of clustered subdivisions and development that does 18
148148 not fragment Tier 2 areas or Tier 3 areas. [Repealed.] 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
149149 2025 Page 7 of 94
150150
151151
152152 VT LEG #380410 v.1
153153 * * * Jurisdictional Opinions * * * 1
154154 Sec. 3. 10 V.S.A. § 6007 is amended to read: 2
155155 § 6007. ACT 250 DISCLOSURE STATEMENT; JURISDICTIONAL 3
156156 DETERMINATION 4
157157 * * * 5
158158 (c) With respect to the partition or division of land, or with respect to an 6
159159 activity that might or might not constitute development, any person may 7
160160 submit to the district coordinator an “Act 250 Disclosure Statement” and other 8
161161 information required by the rules of the Board and may request a jurisdictional 9
162162 opinion from the district coordinator on behalf of the Board concerning the 10
163163 applicability of this chapter. A district coordinator’s decision made on behalf 11
164164 of the Board that a land use application is substantially incomplete shall be 12
165165 treated as a jurisdictional opinion. If a requestor wishes a final determination 13
166166 to be rendered on the question, the district coordinator, on behalf of the Board, 14
167167 at the expense of the requestor and in accordance with rules of the Board, shall 15
168168 publish notice of the issuance of the opinion in a local newspaper generally 16
169169 circulating in the area where the land that is the subject of the opinion is 17
170170 located and shall serve the opinion on all persons listed in subdivisions 18
171171 6085(c)(1)(A) through (D) of this title. In addition, the requestor who is 19
172172 seeking a final determination shall consult with the district coordinator, on 20
173173 behalf of the Board, and obtain approval of a subdivision 6085(c)(1)(E) list of 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
174174 2025 Page 8 of 94
175175
176176
177177 VT LEG #380410 v.1
178178 persons who shall be notified by the district coordinator because they are 1
179179 adjoining property owners or other persons who would be likely to be able to 2
180180 demonstrate a particularized interest protected by this chapter that may be 3
181181 affected by an act or decision by a District Commission. 4
182182 (d) Completeness. An application that is incomplete in substantial respects 5
183183 shall not be accepted for filing by the district coordinator and therefore shall 6
184184 not initiate the time and notice requirements of the chapter and the associated 7
185185 rules. A district coordinator’s decision that an application is substantially 8
186186 incomplete shall be treated as a jurisdictional opinion pursuant to this section. 9
187187 * * * Land Use Review Board * * * 10
188188 Sec. 4. 10 V.S.A. § 6021 is amended to read: 11
189189 § 6021. BOARD; VACANCY; REMOVAL 12
190190 (a) Board established. The Land Use Review Board is created. 13
191191 (1) The Board shall consist of five members appointed by the Governor 14
192192 after review and approval by the Land Use Review Board Nominating 15
193193 Committee in accordance with subdivision (2) of this subsection and 16
194194 confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate, so that one appointment 17
195195 expires in each year. The Chair and the other four members shall be full-time 18
196196 positions. In making these appointments, the Governor and the Senate shall 19
197197 give consideration to candidates who have experience, expertise, or skills 20
198198 relating to one or more of the following areas: environmental science; land use 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
199199 2025 Page 9 of 94
200200
201201
202202 VT LEG #380410 v.1
203203 law, policy, planning, and development; and community planning. All 1
204204 candidates shall have a commitment to environmental justice. 2
205205 (A) The Governor shall appoint a chair of the Board, a position that 3
206206 shall be a full-time position. The Governor shall ensure Board membership 4
207207 reflects, to the extent possible, the racial, ethnic, gender, and geographic 5
208208 diversity of the State. The Board shall not contain two members who reside in 6
209209 the same county. 7
210210 (B) Following initial appointments, the members shall be appointed 8
211211 for terms of five years. All terms after initial appointments shall begin on July 9
212212 February 1 and expire on June 30 January 31. A member may continue 10
213213 serving until a successor is appointed. The initial appointments shall be for 11
214214 staggered terms of one year, two years, three years, four years, and five years. 12
215215 * * * 13
216216 (d) Disqualified members. The Chair of the Board, upon request of the 14
217217 Chair of a District Commission, may appoint and assign former Commission 15
218218 members to sit on specific Commission cases matters when some or all of the 16
219219 regular members and alternates of the District Commission are disqualified or 17
220220 otherwise unable to serve. If necessary to achieve a quorum, the Chair of the 18
221221 Board may appoint a member of a District Commission who has not worked 19
222222 on the case matter to sit on a specific case matter before the Board. 20
223223 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
224224 2025 Page 10 of 94
225225
226226
227227 VT LEG #380410 v.1
228228 Sec. 5. 2024 Acts and Resolves No. 181, Sec. 11 is amended to read: 1
229229 Sec. 11. LAND USE REVIEW BOARD APPOINTMENTS; REVISION 2
230230 AUTHORITY 3
231231 * * * 4
232232 (d) The Land Use Review Board is the successor entity to the Natural 5
233233 Resources Board, and all rights, obligations, and authority of the Natural 6
234234 Resources Board are hereby transferred to the Land Use Review Board, 7
235235 including with respect to contracts, settlements, appeals, enforcement, policies, 8
236236 rulemaking, and guidance. This succession is retroactive to January 1, 2025. 9
237237 The rules of the Natural Resources Board in effect on December 31, 2024 shall 10
238238 become rules of the Land Use Review Board. In those rules, the Land Use 11
239239 Review Board is authorized to change all references to the Natural Resources 12
240240 Board so that they refer to the Land Use Review Board. Unless accompanied 13
241241 by one or more other revisions to the rules, such a change need not be made 14
242242 through the rulemaking process under the Administrative Procedure Act. 15
243243 * * * Tier 1B * * * 16
244244 Sec. 6. 10 V.S.A. § 6033 is amended to read: 17
245245 § 6033. REGIONAL PLAN FUTURE LAND USE MAP REVIEW 18
246246 * * * 19
247247 (c) To obtain a Tier 1B area status under this section the regional planning 20
248248 commission shall demonstrate to the Board that the municipalities with Tier 1B 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
249249 2025 Page 11 of 94
250250
251251
252252 VT LEG #380410 v.1
253253 areas meet the following requirements as included in subdivision 24 V.S.A. 1
254254 § 4348a(a)(12)(C): 2
255255 (1) The municipality has not requested to opt out to have the area 3
256256 mapped for Tier 1B. A municipality may request to opt out of Tier 1B area 4
257257 status by submitting a resolution passed by the municipality to the relevant 5
258258 regional planning commission and the Board. 6
259259 * * * 7
260260 (6) The municipality has municipal staff, municipal officials, or regional 8
261261 planning commission staff or other contracted capacity adequate to support 9
262262 development review and zoning administration in the Tier 1B area. 10
263263 * * * Tier 1A * * * 11
264264 Sec. 7. 10 V.S.A. § 6034 is amended to read: 12
265265 § 6034. TIER 1A AREA STATUS 13
266266 (a) Application and approval. 14
267267 (1) Beginning on January September 1, 2026, a municipality, by 15
268268 resolution of its legislative body, may shall be able to apply to the Land Use 16
269269 Review Board for Tier 1A status for the area of the municipality that is suitable 17
270270 for dense development and meets the requirements of subsection (b) of this 18
271271 section. A municipality may apply for multiple noncontiguous areas to be 19
272272 receive Tier 1A area status. Applications may be submitted at different times. 20
273273 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
274274 2025 Page 12 of 94
275275
276276
277277 VT LEG #380410 v.1
278278 (b) Tier 1A area status requirements. 1
279279 (1) To obtain a Tier 1A area status under this section, a municipality 2
280280 shall demonstrate to the Board that it has each of the following: 3
281281 * * * 4
282282 (F) The Tier 1A area is compatible with the character of adjacent 5
283283 National Register Historic Districts, National or State Register Historic Sites, 6
284284 and other significant cultural and natural resources identified by local or State 7
285285 government. 8
286286 (G) The municipality has identified and planned for the maintenance 9
287287 of significant natural communities, rare, threatened, and endangered species 10
288288 located in the Tier 1A area or excluded those areas from the Tier 1A area. 11
289289 (H) Public water and wastewater systems or planned improvements 12
290290 have the capacity to support additional development within the Tier 1A area. 13
291291 (I)(G) Municipal or regional planning commission staff or other 14
292292 contracted capacity adequate to support coordinated comprehensive and capital 15
293293 planning, development review, and zoning administration in the Tier 1A area. 16
294294 * * * 17
295295 * * * Tier 1A Area Guidelines * * * 18
296296 Sec. 8. 2024 Acts and Resolves No. 181, Sec. 29 is amended to read: 19
297297 Sec. 29. TIER 1A AREA GUIDELINES 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
298298 2025 Page 13 of 94
299299
300300
301301 VT LEG #380410 v.1
302302 On or before January March 1, 2026, the Land Use Review Board shall 1
303303 publish guidelines to direct municipalities seeking to obtain the Tier 1A area 2
304304 status. The guidelines shall include how a municipality shall demonstrate that 3
305305 improvements are planned for a public water or wastewater system and at what 4
306306 stage in the process the improvements need to be to provide a reasonable 5
307307 expectation of completion. 6
308308 Sec. 9. 2024 Acts and Resolves No. 181, Sec. 22 is amended to read: 7
309309 Sec. 22. TIER 3 RULEMAKING CRITICAL ENVIRONMENTAL 8
310310 RESOURCES WORKING GROUP 9
311311 (a) The Land Use Review Board, in consultation with the Secretary of 10
312312 Natural Resources, shall adopt rules undertake a study to implement 11
313313 investigate the necessity of and requirements for the administration of 10 12
314314 V.S.A. § 6001(3)(A)(xiii) and 10 V.S.A. § 6001(46) and (19) an additional 13
315315 Tier or expanded criteria for Act 250 jurisdiction covering critical 14
316316 environmental resources. It is the intent of the General Assembly that these 15
317317 rules the study identify critical natural resources for protection. The Board 16
318318 shall review the a potential definition of Tier 3 area these areas; determine the 17
319319 critical natural resources that shall may be included in Tier 3, giving due 18
320320 consideration to river corridors, headwater streams, habitat connectors of 19
321321 statewide significance, riparian areas, class A waters, and natural communities; 20
322322 any additional critical natural resources that should may be added to the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
323323 2025 Page 14 of 94
324324
325325
326326 VT LEG #380410 v.1
327327 definition; measures to ensure that no municipality or region is 1
328328 disproportionately impacted by Tier 3 designation expanding protection of 2
329329 these areas that would limit reasonable opportunities for Tier 1 or Tier 2 3
330330 designations; and how to define the boundaries. Rules adopted by the Board 4
331331 The study shall include: 5
332332 (1) any necessary clarifications to how the Tier 3 definition is or 6
333333 additional criteria would be used in 10 V.S.A. chapter 151, including whether 7
334334 and how subdivisions would be covered under the jurisdiction of Tier 3; 8
335335 (2) any necessary changes to how 10 V.S.A. § 6001(3)(A)(xiii) 9
336336 construction of improvements for commercial, industrial, or residential 10
337337 purposes in the areas affected should be administered and when jurisdiction 11
338338 should be triggered to protect the functions and values of resources of critical 12
339339 natural resources; 13
340340 (3) the process for how Tier 3 these areas will be mapped or identified 14
341341 by the Agency of Natural Resources and the Board; and 15
342342 (4) other policies or programs that shall may be developed to review 16
343343 development impacts to Tier 3 these areas if they are not included in 10 V.S.A. 17
344344 § 6001(46); and 18
345345 (5) if a critical natural resource area is not recommended for protection 19
346346 under Tier 3, it shall be identified in the rule, and a rationale shall be provided 20
347347 as to why the critical resource was not selected for Tier 3 protection. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
348348 2025 Page 15 of 94
349349
350350
351351 VT LEG #380410 v.1
352352 (b) On or before January 1, 2025, the Board shall convene a working group 1
353353 of stakeholders to provide input to the rule prior to prefiling with the 2
354354 Interagency Committee on Administrative Rules study prior to submission to 3
355355 the General Assembly. The working group As part of the study, the Board 4
356356 shall include hear from representation from regional planning commissions; 5
357357 environmental groups; science and ecological research organizations; 6
358358 woodland or forestry organizations; the Vermont Housing and Conservation 7
359359 Board; the Vermont Chamber of Commerce; the League of Cities of Towns; 8
360360 the Land Access and Opportunity Board; the State Natural Resources 9
361361 Conservation Council; and other stakeholders, such as the Vermont Ski Areas 10
362362 Association, the Department of Taxes, Division of Property Valuation and 11
363363 Review, the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, the Department of 12
364364 Environmental Conservation, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the 13
365365 Vermont Woodlands Association, and the Professional Logging Contractors of 14
366366 the Northeast. 15
367367 (c) The Board shall file a final proposed rule with the Secretary of State 16
368368 and Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules the study with the House 17
369369 Committee on Environment and the Senate Committee on Natural Resources 18
370370 and Energy on or before February 1, 2026. After the Land Use Review Board 19
371371 files the rule with Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules, it shall 20
372372 submit a report describing the rules and the issues reviewed under this section 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
373373 2025 Page 16 of 94
374374
375375
376376 VT LEG #380410 v.1
377377 to the House Committee on Environment and Energy and the Senate 1
378378 Committee on Natural Resources and Energy. 2
379379 (d) During the rule development study, the stakeholder group established 3
380380 under subsection (b) of this section shall solicit participation from 4
381381 representatives of municipalities and landowners that host Tier 3 potential 5
382382 critical resource areas on their properties to determine the responsibilities and 6
383383 education needed to understand, manage, and interact with the resources. 7
384384 Sec. 10. REPEAL. 8
385385 2024 Acts and Resolves No. 181, Sec. 14. (criterion 8(C) rulemaking) is 9
386386 repealed. 10
387387 * * * Act 250 Exemptions * * * 11
388388 Sec. 11. 10 V.S.A. § 6081 is amended to read: 12
389389 § 6081. PERMITS REQUIRED; EXEMPTIONS 13
390390 * * * 14
391391 (p) No permit or permit amendment is required for a priority housing 15
392392 project or related subdivision in a designated center if the project remains 16
393393 below any applicable jurisdictional threshold specified in subdivision 17
394394 6001(3)(A)(iv)(I) of this title. 18
395395 * * * 19
396396 (y) Until December 31, 2030 July 1, 2035, no permit or permit amendment 20
397397 is required for a retail electric distribution utility’s rebuilding of existing 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
398398 2025 Page 17 of 94
399399
400400
401401 VT LEG #380410 v.1
402402 electrical distribution lines and related facilities to improve reliability and 1
403403 service to existing customers, through overhead or underground lines in an 2
404404 existing corridor, road, or State or town road right-of-way. Nothing in this 3
405405 section shall be interpreted to exempt projects under this subsection from other 4
406406 required permits or the conditions on lands subject to existing permits required 5
407407 by this section. 6
408408 (z)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, 7
409409 no permit or permit amendment is required for any subdivision, development, 8
410410 or change to an existing project, as defined by Board rules, that is located 9
411411 entirely within a Tier 1A area under section 6034 of this chapter. Units 10
412412 constructed pursuant to this subsection shall not count towards the total units 11
413413 constructed in other Tier areas. 12
414414 (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, 13
415415 no permit or permit amendment is required within a Tier 1B area approved by 14
416416 the Board under section 6033 of this chapter for the subdivision for or 15
417417 construction of 50 units or fewer of housing on a tract or tracts of land 16
418418 involving 10 acres or less or for mixed-use development with 50 units or fewer 17
419419 of housing on a tract or tracts of land involving 10 acres or less. Units 18
420420 constructed pursuant to this subsection shall not count towards the total units 19
421421 constructed in other Tier areas. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
422422 2025 Page 18 of 94
423423
424424
425425 VT LEG #380410 v.1
426426 (A) No permit or permit amendment is required for any subdivision, 1
427427 development, or change to an existing project, as defined by Board rules, for 2
428428 priority housing projects in Tier 1B eligible areas up to 50 units. 3
429429 (B) No permit or permit amendment is required for any subdivision, 4
430430 development, or change to an existing project, as defined by Board rules, for 5
431431 priority housing projects in Tier 1B areas up to 75 units. 6
432432 (3) Upon receiving notice and a copy of the permit issued by an 7
433433 appropriate municipal panel pursuant to 24 V.S.A. § 4460(g), a previously 8
434434 issued permit for a development or subdivision located in a Tier 1A area shall 9
435435 remain attached to the property. However, neither the Board nor the Agency 10
436436 of Natural Resources shall enforce the permit or assert amendment jurisdiction 11
437437 on the tract or tracts of land unless the designation is revoked terminated or the 12
438438 municipality has not taken any reasonable action to enforce the conditions of 13
439439 the permit. The permit may also be discharged upon request of the permittee 14
440440 pursuant to section 6091of this chapter. 15
441441 (aa) No permit or permit amendment is required for the construction of 16
442442 improvements for a hotel or motel converted to permanently affordable 17
443443 housing developments as defined in 24 V.S.A. § 4303(2). 18
444444 (bb) Until July 1, 2028 July 1, 2035, no permit or permit amendment is 19
445445 required for the construction of improvements for one accessory dwelling unit 20
446446 constructed within or appurtenant to a single-family dwelling. Units 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
447447 2025 Page 19 of 94
448448
449449
450450 VT LEG #380410 v.1
451451 constructed pursuant to this subsection shall not count towards the total units 1
452452 constructed in other projects. 2
453453 (cc) Until July 1, 2028 July 1, 2035, no permit amendment is required for 3
454454 the construction of improvements for converting a structure used for a 4
455455 commercial purpose nonresidential structure to 29 or fewer housing units. 5
456456 (dd) Interim housing exemptions. 6
457457 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, until 7
458458 January 1, 2027 July 1, 2035, no permit or permit amendment is required for 8
459459 the subdivision for or the construction of housing projects and mixed-use 9
460460 development such as cooperatives, condominiums, dwellings, or mobile 10
461461 homes, with 75 units or fewer, constructed or maintained on a tract or tracts of 11
462462 land, located entirely within the areas of a designated new town center, a 12
463463 designated growth center, or a designated neighborhood development area 13
464464 served by public sewer or water services or soils that are adequate for 14
465465 wastewater disposal. Housing units constructed pursuant to this subdivision 15
466466 shall not count towards the total units constructed in other areas. This 16
467467 exemption shall not apply to areas within mapped river corridors and 17
468468 floodplains identified flood hazard and fluvial erosion areas except those areas 18
469469 containing preexisting development in areas suitable for infill development as 19
470470 defined in 29-201 of the Vermont Flood Hazard Area and River Corridor Rule 20
471471 or unless the municipality has adopted flood hazard and river corridor bylaws 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
472472 2025 Page 20 of 94
473473
474474
475475 VT LEG #380410 v.1
476476 applicable to the entire municipality that are consistent with the standards 1
477477 established pursuant to subsections 755(b) and 428(b) of this title. 2
478478 (2)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, until 3
479479 July 1, 2027 2035, no permit or permit amendment is required for the 4
480480 subdivision for or the construction of housing projects and mixed-use 5
481481 development such as cooperatives, condominiums, dwellings, or mobile 6
482482 homes, with 50 or fewer units, constructed or maintained on a tract or tracts of 7
483483 land of 10 acres or less, located entirely within: 8
484484 (i) areas of a designated village center and within one-quarter mile 9
485485 of its boundary with permanent zoning and subdivision bylaws and served by 10
486486 public sewer or water services or soils that are adequate for wastewater 11
487487 disposal or extending to the terminus of the area served by public sewer or 12
488488 water services if beyond the one-quarter mile area; or 13
489489 (ii) areas of a municipality that are within a census-designated 14
490490 urbanized area adjusted federal aid urban areas as approved by the federal 15
491491 highway administration with over 50,000 residents and or within one-quarter 16
492492 mile of a transit route in existence and mapped as of July 1, 2024 and which 17
493493 may be further defined and updated by Board rule or guidance. 18
494494 (B) Housing units constructed pursuant to this subdivision (2) shall 19
495495 not count towards the total units constructed in other areas. This exemption 20
496496 shall not apply to areas within mapped river corridors and floodplains 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
497497 2025 Page 21 of 94
498498
499499
500500 VT LEG #380410 v.1
501501 identified flood hazard and fluvial erosion areas, except those areas containing 1
502502 preexisting development in areas suitable for infill development as defined in 2
503503 29-201 of the Vermont Flood Hazard Area and River Corridor Rule or unless 3
504504 the municipality has adopted flood hazard and river corridor bylaws applicable 4
505505 to the entire municipality that are consistent with the standards established 5
506506 pursuant to subsections 755(b) and 428(b) of this title. For purposes of this 6
507507 subdivision, in order for a parcel to shall qualify for the exemption, at least 51 7
508508 percent if any part of the parcel shall be is located within one-quarter mile of 8
509509 the designated village center boundary or the center line of the transit route. If 9
510510 the one-quarter mile extends into an adjacent municipality, the legislative body 10
511511 of the adjacent municipal may inform the Board that it does not want the 11
512512 exemption to extend into that area. 12
513513 (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, until 13
514514 January 1, 2027 July 1, 2035, no permit or permit amendment is required for 14
515515 the construction of or subdivision for, or the housing projects and mixed use 15
516516 development such as cooperatives, condominiums, dwellings, or mobile 16
517517 homes, constructed or maintained on a tract or tracts of land, located entirely 17
518518 within a designated downtown development district with permanent zoning 18
519519 and subdivision bylaws served by public sewer or water services or soils that 19
520520 are adequate for wastewater disposal or extending to the terminus of the areas 20
521521 served by public sewer or water services if beyond area of the development 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
522522 2025 Page 22 of 94
523523
524524
525525 VT LEG #380410 v.1
526526 district. Housing units constructed pursuant to this subdivision shall not count 1
527527 towards the total units constructed in other areas. This exemption shall not 2
528528 apply to areas within mapped river corridors and floodplains except those areas 3
529529 containing preexisting development in areas suitable for infill development as 4
530530 defined in 29-201 of the Vermont Flood Hazard Area and River Corridor Rule 5
531531 or unless the municipality has adopted flood hazard and river corridor bylaws 6
532532 applicable to the entire municipality that are consistent with the standards 7
533533 established pursuant to subsections 755(b) and 428(b) of this title. 8
534534 (4) This subsection is effective retroactively to July 1, 2023. Any 9
535535 project permitted after July 1, 2023 that meets the requirements of this 10
536536 subsection may seek a discharge of the permit from the District Commission. 11
537537 * * * Discharge of Act 250 Permits and Jurisdiction * * * 12
538538 Sec. 12. 10 V.S.A. § 6091 is amended to read: 13
539539 § 6091. RENEWALS; AND DISCHARGE; NONUSE 14
540540 * * * 15
541541 (e) Discharge of permits. Existing permits and jurisdiction encumbering a 16
542542 parcel may be discharged by the District Commission or LURB upon request 17
543543 of the parcel owner or permittee if the parcel is changed to a use that would not 18
544544 otherwise trigger jurisdiction or the parcel falls within an area otherwise 19
545545 exempt from jurisdiction as approved by LURB. The District Commission or 20
546546 LURB may deny a request for permit discharge if the permit contains ongoing 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
547547 2025 Page 23 of 94
548548
549549
550550 VT LEG #380410 v.1
551551 conditions that relate to the use of the property. The LURB shall be 1
552552 responsible for continued review and enforcement of these conditions. A 2
553553 denial of a request for discharge may be appealed to Environmental Division 3
554554 of the Superior Court. 4
555555 Sec. 13. 2023 Acts and Resolves No. 47, Sec. 16a is amended to read: 5
556556 Sec. 16a. ACT 250 EXEMPTION REQUIREMENTS 6
557557 In order to qualify for the exemptions established in 10 V.S.A. § 6001 7
558558 (3)(A)(xi) and (3)(D)(viii)(III), a A person shall may request a jurisdictional 8
559559 opinion under 10 V.S.A. § 6007 on or before June 30, 2026 to confirm a 9
560560 project is exempted under-exemptions established in 10 V.S.A. § 6001 10
561561 (3)(A)(xi) and (3)(D)(viii)(III). The jurisdictional opinion shall require the 11
562562 project to substantially complete construction on or before June 30, 2029 July 12
563563 1, 2035 in order to remain exempt. A jurisdictional opinion is not required to 13
564564 utilize the exemption. 14
565565 * * * LURB Public Meeting Exemption * * * 15
566566 Sec. 14. 1 V.S.A. § 312 is amended to read: 16
567567 § 312. RIGHT TO ATTEND MEETINGS OF PUBLIC AGENCIES 17
568568 * * * 18
569569 (e) Nothing in this section or in section 313 of this title shall be construed 19
570570 as extending to the Judicial Branch of the Government of Vermont or of any 20
571571 part of the same or to the Public Utility Commission or the Land Use Review 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
572572 2025 Page 24 of 94
573573
574574
575575 VT LEG #380410 v.1
576576 Board established in 10 V.S.A. § 6021; nor shall it extend to the deliberations 1
577577 of any public body in connection with a quasi-judicial proceeding; nor shall 2
578578 anything in this section be construed to require the making public of any 3
579579 proceedings, records, or acts which are specifically made confidential by the 4
580580 laws of the United States of America or of this State. 5
581581 * * * 6
582582 * * * Community Investment Board Transition * * * 7
583583 Sec. 15. 24 V.S.A. § 5802(f) is amended to read: 8
584584 (f) In addition to any other duties confirmed by law, the State Board shall 9
585585 have the following duties: 10
586586 * * * 11
587587 (6) To assume authority over any remaining powers and responsibilities 12
588588 of the former Downtown Board established under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A. The 13
589589 Community Investment Board is the successor entity of the Downtown Board 14
590590 with all due rights, duties, and authority transferred thereto. 15
591591 * * * Designation Transition * * * 16
592592 Sec. 16. 24 V.S.A. § 4348 is amended to read: 17
593593 § 4348. ADOPTION AND AMENDMENT OF REGIONAL PLAN 18
594594 * * * 19
595595 (g) A regional plan or amendment shall be adopted by not less than a 60 20
596596 percent vote of the commissioners representing municipalities, in accordance 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
597597 2025 Page 25 of 94
598598
599599
600600 VT LEG #380410 v.1
601601 with the bylaws of the regional planning commission. A regional plan shall be 1
602602 effective upon adoption for regional purposes and will remain effective for 2
603603 purposes other than future land use mapping if not approved by the Land Use 3
604604 Review Board. 4
605605 * * * 5
606606 (p) Regional planning commissions shall adopt a regional plan in 6
607607 conformance with this title after July 1, 2025 and on or before December 31, 7
608608 2026. 8
609609 Sec. 17. 24 V.S.A. § 5803 is amended to read: 9
610610 § 5803. DESIGNATION OF DOWNTOWN AND VILLAGE CENTERS 10
611611 (a) Designation established. A regional planning commission may apply to 11
612612 the LURB for approval and designation of all centers by submitting the 12
613613 regional plan future land use map adopted by the regional planning 13
614614 commission. The regional plan future land use map shall identify downtown 14
615615 centers and village centers as the downtown and village areas eligible for 15
616616 designation as centers. The Department and State Board shall provide 16
617617 comments to the LURB on areas eligible for center designation as provided 17
618618 under this chapter. 18
619619 * * * 19
620620 (e) Transition. All designated downtowns, village centers, or new town 20
621621 centers existing as of December 31, 2025 will retain current benefits until 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
622622 2025 Page 26 of 94
623623
624624
625625 VT LEG #380410 v.1
626626 December 31, 2026 2027 or until approval of the regional future land use maps 1
627627 by the LURB, whichever comes first. All existing designations in effect 2
628628 December 31, 2025 will expire December 31, 2026 2027 if the regional plan 3
629629 does not receive LURB approval under this chapter. All benefits for unexpired 4
630630 designated downtowns, village centers, and new town centers that are removed 5
631631 under this chapter shall remain in effect until July 1, 2034 2035. Prior to June 6
632632 30, 2026 2027, no check-in or renewals shall be required for the preexisting 7
633633 designations. New applications for downtowns, villages, and new town centers 8
634634 may be approved by the State Board prior to the first public hearing on a 9
635635 regional future land use map or until December 31, 2025, whichever comes 10
636636 first. 11
637637 (f) Benefits Steps. A center may receive the benefits associated with the 12
638638 steps in this section by meeting the established requirements. The Department 13
639639 shall review applications from municipalities to advance from Step One to 14
640640 Two and from Step Two to Three and issue written decisions. The Department 15
641641 shall issue a written administrative decision within 30 days following an 16
642642 application. If a municipal application is rejected by the Department, the 17
643643 municipality may appeal the administrative decision to the State Board. To 18
644644 maintain a downtown approved under chapter 76A after December 31, 2026 19
645645 2035, the municipality shall apply for renewal following a regional planning 20
646646 approval by the LURB and meet the program requirements. Step Three 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
647647 2025 Page 27 of 94
648648
649649
650650 VT LEG #380410 v.1
651651 designations that are not approved for renewal revert to Step Two. The 1
652652 municipality may appeal the administrative decision of the Department to the 2
653653 State Board. Appeals of administrative decisions shall be heard by the State 3
654654 Board at the next meeting following a timely filing stating the reasons for the 4
655655 appeal. The State Board’s decision is final. The Department shall issue 5
656656 guidance to administer these steps. 6
657657 * * * 7
658658 Sec. 18. 24 V.S.A. § 5804 is amended to read: 8
659659 § 5804. DESIGNATED NEIGHBORHOOD 9
660660 * * * 10
661661 (b) Transition. All designated growth center or neighborhood development 11
662662 areas existing as of December 31, 2025 will retain current benefits until 12
663663 December 31, 2026 2027 or upon approval of the regional plan future land use 13
664664 maps, whichever comes first. All existing neighborhood development area and 14
665665 growth center designations in effect on December 31, 2025 will expire on 15
666666 December 31, 2026 2027 if the regional plan future land use map is not 16
667667 approved. All benefits that are removed for unexpired neighborhood 17
668668 development areas and growth centers under this chapter shall remain active 18
669669 with prior designations existing as of December 31, 2025 until December 31, 19
670670 2034 2035. Prior to December 31, 2026 2027, no check-ins or renewal shall be 20
671671 required for the existing designations. New applications for neighborhood 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
672672 2025 Page 28 of 94
673673
674674
675675 VT LEG #380410 v.1
676676 development area designations may be approved by the State Board prior to 1
677677 the first hearing for a regional plan adoption or until December 31, 2025, 2
678678 whichever comes first. 3
679679 * * * 4
680680 * * * Appeals * * * 5
681681 * * * Priority for Act 250 and LURB Appeals * * * 6
682682 Sec. 19. 10 V.S.A. § 6089 is amended to read: 7
683683 § 6089. APPEALS 8
684684 (a) Appeals of any act or decision of a District Commission under this 9
685685 chapter or a district coordinator under subsection 6007(c) of this title shall be 10
686686 made to the Environmental Division in accordance with chapter 220 of this 11
687687 title. For the purpose of this section, a decision of the Chair of a District 12
688688 Commission under section 6001e of this title on whether action has been taken 13
689689 to circumvent the requirements of this chapter shall be considered an act or 14
690690 decision of the District Commission. 15
691691 (b) Except cases the Court considers of greater importance, proceedings 16
692692 involving development of residential housing before the Environmental 17
693693 Division of the Superior Court and appeals there from take precedence on the 18
694694 docket over all cases and shall be assigned for hearing and trial or for argument 19
695695 at the earliest practicable date and expedited in every way. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
696696 2025 Page 29 of 94
697697
698698
699699 VT LEG #380410 v.1
700700 * * * Municipal Zoning Appeals * * * 1
701701 Sec. 20. 24 V.S.A. § 4465 is amended to read: 2
702702 § 4465. APPEALS OF DECISIONS OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER 3
703703 * * * 4
704704 (b) As used in this chapter, an “interested person” means any one of the 5
705705 following: 6
706706 * * * 7
707707 (4) Any 20 persons A minimum of 20 percent of the most recent U.S. 8
708708 Census Bureau population estimate of the municipality who may be any 9
709709 combination of voters, residents, or real property owners within a municipality 10
710710 listed in subdivision (2) of this subsection who, by signed petition to the 11
711711 appropriate municipal panel of a municipality, the plan or a bylaw of which is 12
712712 at issue in any appeal brought under this title, allege that any relief requested 13
713713 by a person under this title, if granted, will not be in accord with the policies, 14
714714 purposes, or terms of the plan or bylaw of that municipality. This petition to 15
715715 the appropriate municipal panel must designate one person to serve as the 16
716716 representative of the petitioners regarding all matters related to the appeal. For 17
717717 purposes of this subdivision, an appeal shall not include the character of the 18
718718 area affected if the project has a residential component that includes affordable 19
719719 housing. 20
720720 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
721721 2025 Page 30 of 94
722722
723723
724724 VT LEG #380410 v.1
725725 (d) A party appealing a land use decision must demonstrate a clear and 1
726726 substantial departure from the comprehensive plan or land use regulation that 2
727727 directly affects the party’s property. 3
728728 * * * Priority for Hearing of Housing Appeals * * * 4
729729 Sec. 21. 24 V.S.A. § 4471 is amended to read: 5
730730 § 4471. APPEAL TO ENVIRONMENTAL DIVISION 6
731731 * * * 7
732732 (f) Except cases the Court considers of greater importance, proceedings 8
733733 involving development of residential housing before the Environmental 9
734734 Division of the Superior Court and appeals there from take precedence on the 10
735735 docket over all cases and shall be assigned for hearing and trial or for argument 11
736736 at the earliest practicable date and expedited in every way. 12
737737 (g) A party appealing a land use decision must demonstrate a clear and 13
738738 substantial departure from the comprehensive plan or land use regulation that 14
739739 directly affects the party’s property. 15
740740 Sec. 22. 10 V.S.A. § 8504 is amended to read: 16
741741 § 8504. APPEALS TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL DIVISION 17
742742 * * * 18
743743 (k) Limitations on appeals. Notwithstanding any other provision of this 19
744744 section: 20
745745 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
746746 2025 Page 31 of 94
747747
748748
749749 VT LEG #380410 v.1
750750 (4) it shall be the goal of the Environmental Division to hear cases 1
751751 involving development of residential housing within 60 days and to issue a 2
752752 decision on a case involving development of residential housing or regarding 3
753753 an appeal of an appropriate municipal panel decision under 24 V.S.A. chapter 4
754754 117 within 90 days following the close of the hearing. 5
755755 * * * 6
756756 * * * Attorney’s Fees and Costs * * * 7
757757 Sec. 23. 10 V.S.A. § 8507 is added to read: 8
758758 § 8507. LEGAL FEES AND ASSOCIATED COSTS OF APPEAL 9
759759 (a) If an aggrieved person elects to appeal the judgment of the appropriate 10
760760 municipal panel on an approved application for a project involving residential 11
761761 housing to the court under this chapter, and the court rules in favor of the 12
762762 applicant, the court shall require the aggrieved person to compensate, in a 13
763763 sufficient sum as the court directs, the permit applicant for an amount not to 14
764764 exceed $50,000.00 consisting of: 15
765765 (1) the permit applicant’s reasonable attorney’s fees; and 16
766766 (2) tangible costs incurred by the permit applicant in defending the 17
767767 permit, such as costs of studies and other analysis. 18
768768 (b) The court may grant dispensation from the compensation required in 19
769769 subsection (a) of this section for aggrieved persons that can demonstrate undue 20
770770 hardship due to income status or other factors in the court’s discretion. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
771771 2025 Page 32 of 94
772772
773773
774774 VT LEG #380410 v.1
775775 * * * Downtown and Village Center Tax Credits * * * 1
776776 Sec. 24. 32 V.S.A. § 5930ee is amended to read: 2
777777 § 5930ee. LIMITATIONS 3
778778 Beginning in fiscal year 2010 and thereafter, the State Board may award tax 4
779779 credits to all qualified applicants under this subchapter, provided that: 5
780780 (1) the total amount of tax credits awarded annually, together with sales 6
781781 tax reallocated under section 9819 of this title, does not exceed $3,000,000.00 7
782782 $5,000,000.00; 8
783783 * * * 9
784784 * * * Consistency of Flood Planning Requirements * * * 10
785785 Sec. 25. 24 V.S.A. § 4348a is amended to read: 11
786786 § 4348a. ELEMENTS OF A REGIONAL PLAN 12
787787 (a) A regional plan shall be consistent with the goals established in section 13
788788 4302 of this title and shall include the following: 14
789789 * * * 15
790790 (12) A future land use element, based upon the elements in this section, 16
791791 that sets forth the present and prospective location, amount, intensity, and 17
792792 character of such land uses in relation to the provision of necessary community 18
793793 facilities and services and that consists of a map delineating future land use 19
794794 area boundaries for the land uses in subdivisions (A)–(J) of this subdivision 20
795795 (12) as appropriate and any other special land use category the regional 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
796796 2025 Page 33 of 94
797797
798798
799799 VT LEG #380410 v.1
800800 planning commission deems necessary; descriptions of intended future land 1
801801 uses; and policies intended to support the implementation of the future land use 2
802802 element using the following land use categories: 3
803803 (A) Downtown or village centers. These areas are the mixed-use 4
804804 centers bringing together community economic activity and civic assets. They 5
805805 include downtowns, villages, and new town centers previously designated 6
806806 under chapter 76A and downtowns and village centers seeking benefits under 7
807807 the Community Investment Program under section 5804 of this title. The 8
808808 downtown or village centers are the traditional and historic central business 9
809809 and civic centers within planned growth areas, village areas, or may stand 10
810810 alone. Village centers are not required to have public water, wastewater, 11
811811 zoning, or subdivision bylaws. 12
812812 (B) Planned growth areas. These areas include the high-density 13
813813 existing settlement and future growth areas with high concentrations of 14
814814 population, housing, and employment in each region and town, as appropriate. 15
815815 They include a mix of historic and nonhistoric commercial, residential, and 16
816816 civic or cultural sites with active streetscapes, supported by land development 17
817817 regulations; public water or wastewater, or both; and multimodal transportation 18
818818 systems. These areas include new town centers, downtowns, village centers, 19
819819 growth centers, and neighborhood development areas previously designated 20
820820 under chapter 76A of this title. These areas should generally meet the smart 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
821821 2025 Page 34 of 94
822822
823823
824824 VT LEG #380410 v.1
825825 growth principles definition in chapter 139 of this title and the following 1
826826 criteria: 2
827827 (i) The municipality has a duly adopted and approved plan and a 3
828828 planning process that is confirmed in accordance with section 4350 of this title 4
829829 and has adopted bylaws and regulations in accordance with sections 4414, 5
830830 4418, and 4442 of this title. 6
831831 (ii) This area is served by public water or wastewater 7
832832 infrastructure. 8
833833 (iii) The area is generally within walking distance from the 9
834834 municipality’s or an adjacent municipality’s downtown, village center, new 10
835835 town center, or growth center. 11
836836 (iv) The Unless the municipality has adopted flood hazard and 12
837837 river corridor bylaws applicable to the entire municipality that are consistent 13
838838 with the standards established pursuant to 10 V.S.A. § 755 (State flood hazard 14
839839 area standards) and 10 V.S.A. § 1428 (river corridor protection), the area 15
840840 excludes identified flood hazard and river corridor areas, except those areas 16
841841 containing preexisting development in areas suitable for infill development as 17
842842 defined in section 29-201 of the Vermont Flood Hazard Area and River 18
843843 Corridor Rule. 19
844844 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
845845 2025 Page 35 of 94
846846
847847
848848 VT LEG #380410 v.1
849849 * * * Wetlands * * * 1
850850 Sec. 26. 10 V.S.A. § 902 is amended to read: 2
851851 § 902. DEFINITIONS 3
852852 Wherever used or referred to in this chapter, unless a different meaning 4
853853 clearly appears from the context: 5
854854 * * * 6
855855 (7) “Class II wetland” means a wetland other than a Class I or Class III 7
856856 wetland that: 8
857857 (A) is a mapped wetland identified on the Vermont significant 9
858858 wetlands inventory maps; or 10
859859 (B) is an unmapped wetland that the Secretary determines to merit 11
860860 protection, pursuant to section 914 of this title, based upon an evaluation of the 12
861861 extent to which it serves the functions and values set forth in subdivision 13
862862 905b(18)(A) of this title and the rules of the Department. 14
863863 (8) “Class III wetland” means a wetland that is neither a Class I wetland 15
864864 nor a Class II wetland. 16
865865 (9) “Buffer zone” means an area contiguous to a significant wetland that 17
866866 protects the wetland’s functions and values. 18
867867 (A) The Except as provided in subdivision (B) of this subdivision (9): 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
868868 2025 Page 36 of 94
869869
870870
871871 VT LEG #380410 v.1
872872 (i) the buffer zone for a Class I wetland shall extend at least 100 1
873873 feet from the border of the wetland, unless the Department determines 2
874874 otherwise under section 915 of this title. The; and 3
875875 (ii) the buffer zone for a Class II wetland shall extend at least 50 4
876876 feet from the border of the wetland unless the Secretary determines otherwise 5
877877 under section 914 of this title. 6
878878 (B) The buffer zone of a Class II wetland shall be 25 feet when the 7
879879 wetland is located in: 8
880880 (i) an industrial park, as that term is defined in subdivision 212(7) 9
881881 of this title, that is permitted under chapter 151 of this title; 10
882882 (ii) designated centers designated under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A; 11
883883 (iii) Tier 1A and Tier 1B areas approved by the Land Use Review 12
884884 Board; or 13
885885 (iv) locations meeting the requirements established in subsection 14
886886 6081(z) of this title as eligible for an interim exemption from the permit or 15
887887 permit amendment requirements of chapter 151 of this title. 16
888888 (10) “Panel” means the Water Resources Panel of the Agency of Natural 17
889889 Resources. 18
890890 (11) “Significant wetland” means any Class I or Class II wetland. 19
891891 (12)(11) “Secretary” means the Secretary of Natural Resources or the 20
892892 Secretary’s authorized representative. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
893893 2025 Page 37 of 94
894894
895895
896896 VT LEG #380410 v.1
897897 (13)(12) “Dam removal” has the same meaning as in section 1080 of 1
898898 this title. 2
899899 Sec. 27. 10 V.S.A. § 913 is amended to read: 3
900900 § 913. PROHIBITION 4
901901 (a) Except for allowed uses adopted by the Department by rule, no person 5
902902 shall conduct or allow to be conducted an activity in a significant wetland or 6
903903 buffer zone of a significant wetland except in compliance with a permit, 7
904904 conditional use determination, or order issued by the Secretary. 8
905905 (b) A permit shall not be required under this section for: 9
906906 (1) any activity that occurred before the effective date of this section 10
907907 unless the activity occurred within: 11
908908 (A) an area identified as a wetland on the Vermont significant 12
909909 wetlands inventory maps; 13
910910 (B) a wetland that was contiguous to an area identified as a wetland 14
911911 on the Vermont significant wetlands inventory maps; or 15
912912 (C) the buffer zone of a wetland referred to in subdivision (A) or (B) 16
913913 of this subdivision (1); 17
914914 (2) any construction within a wetland that is identified on the Vermont 18
915915 significant wetlands inventory maps or within the buffer zone of such a 19
916916 wetland, provided that the construction was completed prior to February 23, 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
917917 2025 Page 38 of 94
918918
919919
920920 VT LEG #380410 v.1
921921 1992, and no action for which a permit is required under the rules of the 1
922922 Department was taken or caused to be taken on or after February 23, 1992; or 2
923923 (3) any construction or activity in an unmapped Class II wetland located 3
924924 in: 4
925925 (i) an industrial park, as that term is defined in subdivision 212(7) 5
926926 of this title, that is permitted under chapter 151 of this title; 6
927927 (ii) designated centers designated under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A; 7
928928 (iii) Tier 1A and Tier 1B areas approved by the Land Use Review 8
929929 Board; or 9
930930 (iv) locations meeting the requirements established in subsection 10
931931 6081(z) of this title as eligible for an interim exemption from the permit or 11
932932 permit amendment requirements of chapter 151 of this title. 12
933933 Sec. 28. 10 V.S.A. § 914 is amended to read: 13
934934 § 914. WETLANDS DETERMINATIONS 14
935935 (a) The Secretary may, upon a petition or on his or her the Secretary’s own 15
936936 motion, determine whether any wetland is a Class II or Class III wetland. Such 16
937937 The Secretary’s determinations shall be based on an evaluation of the functions 17
938938 and values set forth in subdivision 905b(18)(A) of this title and the rules of the 18
939939 Department. 19
940940 (b) The Secretary may establish the necessary width of the buffer zone of 20
941941 any Class II wetland as part of any wetland determination pursuant to the rules 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
942942 2025 Page 39 of 94
943943
944944
945945 VT LEG #380410 v.1
946946 of the Department, except that buffer zone of a Class II wetland shall be 25 1
947947 feet when the wetland is located in: 2
948948 (1) an industrial park, as that term is defined in subdivision 212(7) of 3
949949 this title, that is permitted under chapter 151 of this title; 4
950950 (2) designated centers designated under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A; 5
951951 (3) Tier 1A and Tier 1B areas approved by the Land Use Review Board; 6
952952 or 7
953953 (4) locations meeting the requirements established in subsection 6081(z) 8
954954 of this title as eligible for an interim exemption from the permit or permit 9
955955 amendment requirements of chapter 151 of this title. 10
956956 * * * 11
957957 Sec. 29. 10 V.S.A. § 918 is amended to read: 12
958958 § 918. NET GAIN OF WETLANDS; STATE GOAL; RULEMAKING 13
959959 (a) On or before July 1, 2025 2026, the Secretary of Natural Resources 14
960960 shall amend the Vermont Wetlands Rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 to 15
961961 clarify that the goal of wetlands regulation and management in the State is the 16
962962 net gain of wetlands to be achieved through protection of existing wetlands and 17
963963 restoration of wetlands that were previously adversely affected. This condition 18
964964 shall not apply to wetland, river, and flood plain restoration projects, including 19
965965 dam removals. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
966966 2025 Page 40 of 94
967967
968968
969969 VT LEG #380410 v.1
970970 (b)(1) The Vermont Wetlands Rules shall prioritize the protection of 1
971971 existing intact wetlands from adverse effects. 2
972972 (2) Where a permitted activity in a wetland will cause more than 5,000 3
973973 square feet of adverse effects that cannot be avoided, the Secretary shall 4
974974 mandate that the permit applicant restore, enhance, or create wetlands or 5
975975 buffers to compensate for the adverse effects on a wetland. The amount of 6
976976 wetlands to be restored, enhanced, or created shall be calculated, at a 7
977977 minimum, by determining the acreage or square footage of wetlands 8
978978 permanently drained or filled as a result of the permitted activity and 9
979979 multiplying that acreage or square footage by two, to result in a ratio of 2:1 10
980980 restoration to wetland loss, except that a ratio of 1:1 restoration to wetland loss 11
981981 shall apply in: 12
982982 (A) an industrial park, as that term is defined in subdivision 212(7) of 13
983983 this title, that is permitted under chapter 151 of this title; 14
984984 (B) designated centers designated under 24 V.S.A. chapter 76A; 15
985985 (C) Tier 1A and Tier 1B areas approved by the Land Use Review 16
986986 Board; or 17
987987 (D) locations meeting the requirements established in subsection 18
988988 6081(z) of this title as eligible for an interim exemption from the permit or 19
989989 permit amendment requirements of chapter 151 of this title. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
990990 2025 Page 41 of 94
991991
992992
993993 VT LEG #380410 v.1
994994 (3) Establishment of a buffer zone contiguous to a wetland shall not 1
995995 substitute for the restoration, enhancement, or creation of wetlands. Adverse 2
996996 impacts to wetland buffers shall be compensated for based on the effects of the 3
997997 impact on wetland function. 4
998998 * * * 5
999999 Sec. 30. 10 V.S.A. § 919 is amended to read: 6
10001000 § 919. WETLANDS PROGRAM REPORTS 7
10011001 (a) On or before April 30, 2025, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of 8
10021002 Natural Resources shall submit to the House Committee on Environment and 9
10031003 Energy and to the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy a report 10
10041004 on annual losses and gains of significant wetlands in the State. The report shall 11
10051005 include: 12
10061006 (1) the location and acreage of Class II wetland and buffer losses 13
10071007 permitted by the Agency in accordance with section 913 of this title, for which 14
10081008 construction of the permitted project has commenced; 15
10091009 (2) the acreage of Class II wetlands and buffers gained through permit-16
10101010 related enhancement and restoration, and an estimate of wetlands gained 17
10111011 through wetlands, river, and floodplain restoration projects, including dam 18
10121012 removals; 19
10131013 (3) the number of site visits and technical assistance calls conducted by 20
10141014 the Agency of Natural Resources, the number of permits processed by the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
10151015 2025 Page 42 of 94
10161016
10171017
10181018 VT LEG #380410 v.1
10191019 Agency, and any enforcement actions that were taken by the Agency or the 1
10201020 Office of the Attorney General in the previous year for violations of this 2
10211021 chapter; and 3
10221022 (4) an updated mitigation summary of the extent of wetlands restored 4
10231023 on-site compared with compensation performed off-site, in-lieu fees paid, or 5
10241024 conservation. 6
10251025 * * * 7
10261026 (c) On or before December 15, 2025, the Agency of Natural Resources 8
10271027 shall publish on its website and submit to the House Committee on 9
10281028 Environment and to the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy 10
10291029 wetland guidance on the mitigation and compensation sequence contemplated 11
10301030 in the Vermont Wetland Rules subsections 9.5(b) and (c). The guidance shall 12
10311031 clearly identify the process applicants should follow and the information and 13
10321032 proof necessary to demonstrate a project has practicably avoided and 14
10331033 minimized wetland impacts and is eligible for mitigation during the State 15
10341034 wetland permit application process. 16
10351035 * * * Potable Water Supply and Wastewater System Connections * * * 17
10361036 Sec. 31. 10 V.S.A. § 1971 is amended to read: 18
10371037 § 1971. PURPOSE 19
10381038 It is the purpose of this chapter to: 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
10391039 2025 Page 43 of 94
10401040
10411041
10421042 VT LEG #380410 v.1
10431043 (1) establish a comprehensive program to regulate the construction, 1
10441044 replacement, modification, and operation of potable water supplies and 2
10451045 wastewater systems in the State in order to protect human health and the 3
10461046 environment, including potable water supplies, surface water, and 4
10471047 groundwater; 5
10481048 * * * 6
10491049 (6) allow delegation of the permitting program created by this chapter to 7
10501050 municipalities demonstrating the capacity to administer the chapter allow 8
10511051 delegation to municipalities of technical review of potable water supply and 9
10521052 wastewater system connections pursuant to the rules of the Agency adopted 10
10531053 under this chapter. 11
10541054 Sec. 32. 10 V.S.A. § 1972 is amended to read: 12
10551055 § 1972. DEFINITIONS 13
10561056 For the purposes of this chapter: 14
10571057 * * * 15
10581058 (6) “Potable water supply” means the source, treatment, and conveyance 16
10591059 equipment used to provide water used or intended to be used for human 17
10601060 consumption, including drinking, washing, bathing, the preparation of food, or 18
10611061 laundering. This definition includes a service connection to a public water 19
10621062 system of any size that does not require a permit pursuant to Chapter 56 of this 20
10631063 title. This definition does not include any internal piping or plumbing, except 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
10641064 2025 Page 44 of 94
10651065
10661066
10671067 VT LEG #380410 v.1
10681068 for mechanical systems, such as pump stations and storage tanks or lavatories, 1
10691069 that are located inside a building or structure and that are integral to the 2
10701070 operation of a potable water system. This definition also does not include a 3
10711071 potable water supply that is subject to regulation under chapter 56 of this title. 4
10721072 * * * 5
10731073 (10) “Wastewater system” means any piping, pumping, treatment, or 6
10741074 disposal system used for the conveyance and treatment of sanitary waste or 7
10751075 used water, including carriage water, shower and wash water, and process 8
10761076 wastewater. This definition does not include any internal piping or plumbing, 9
10771077 except for mechanical systems, such as pump stations and storage tanks or 10
10781078 toilets, that are located inside a building or structure and that are integral to the 11
10791079 operation of a wastewater system. This definition also does not include 12
10801080 wastewater systems that are used exclusively for the treatment and disposal of 13
10811081 animal manure. In this chapter, “wastewater system” refers to a soil-based 14
10821082 disposal system of less than 6,500 gallons per day, or a sewerage sanitary 15
10831083 sewer collection system connection of any size. 16
10841084 Sec. 33. 10 V.S.A. § 1973 is amended to read: 17
10851085 § 1973. PERMITS 18
10861086 (a) Except as provided in this section and sections 1974 and 1978 of this 19
10871087 title, a person shall obtain a permit from the Secretary before: 20
10881088 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
10891089 2025 Page 45 of 94
10901090
10911091
10921092 VT LEG #380410 v.1
10931093 (7) making a new or modified connection to a new or existing potable 1
10941094 water supply or wastewater system; or 2
10951095 * * * 3
10961096 (f)(1) The Secretary shall give deference to a certification by a licensed 4
10971097 designer with respect to the engineering design or judgment exercised by the 5
10981098 designer in order to minimize Agency review of certified designs. Nothing in 6
10991099 this section shall limit the responsibility of the licensed designer to comply 7
11001100 with all standards and rules, or the authority of the Secretary to review and 8
11011101 comment on design aspects of an application or to enforce Agency rules with 9
11021102 respect to the design or the design certification. 10
11031103 (2) The Secretary shall issue a permit for a new or modified connection 11
11041104 to a water main and a sewer main or indirect discharge system from a building 12
11051105 or structure in a designated downtown development district upon submission 13
11061106 of an application under subsection (b) of this section that consists solely of the 14
11071107 certification of a licensed designer, in accordance with subsection (d) of this 15
11081108 section, and a letter from the owner of the water main and sewer main or 16
11091109 indirect discharge system allocating the capacity needed to accommodate the 17
11101110 new or modified connection. However, this subdivision (2) shall not apply if 18
11111111 the Secretary finds one of the following: 19
11121112 (A) The Secretary has prohibited the system that submitted the 20
11131113 allocation letter from issuing new allocation letters due to a lack of capacity. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
11141114 2025 Page 46 of 94
11151115
11161116
11171117 VT LEG #380410 v.1
11181118 (B) As a result of an audit of the application performed on a random 1
11191119 basis or in response to a complaint, the system is not designed in accordance 2
11201120 with the rules adopted under this chapter. 3
11211121 * * * 4
11221122 (k)(1) The Secretary shall adopt a general permit for municipal potable 5
11231123 water supply and wastewater system connections that are reviewed by 6
11241124 municipalities with authority delegated pursuant to section 1976 of this 7
11251125 chapter. 8
11261126 (2) The Secretary may adopt by rule general permitting program for 9
11271127 other activities permitted under this section. 10
11281128 Sec. 34. 10 V.S.A. § 1976 is amended to read: 11
11291129 § 1976. DELEGATION OF CONNECTION AUTHORITY TO 12
11301130 MUNICIPALITIES 13
11311131 (a)(1) The Secretary may delegate to a municipality authority to: 14
11321132 (A) implement all sections of this chapter, except for sections 1975 15
11331133 and 1978 of this title; or 16
11341134 (B) implement permitting under this chapter for the subdivision of 17
11351135 land, a building or structure, or a campground when the subdivision, building 18
11361136 or structure, or campground is served by sewerage connections and water 19
11371137 service lines, provided that: 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
11381138 2025 Page 47 of 94
11391139
11401140
11411141 VT LEG #380410 v.1
11421142 (i) the lot, building or structure, or campground utilizes both a 1
11431143 sanitary sewer service line and a water service line; and 2
11441144 (ii) the water main and sanitary sewer collection line that the water 3
11451145 service line and sanitary sewer service line are connected to are owned and 4
11461146 controlled by the delegated municipality. 5
11471147 (2) If a municipality submits a written request for delegation of this 6
11481148 chapter, the Secretary shall delegate authority to the municipality to implement 7
11491149 and administer provisions of this chapter, the rules adopted under this chapter, 8
11501150 and the enforcement provisions of chapter 201 of this title relating to this 9
11511151 chapter, provided that the Secretary is satisfied that the municipality: 10
11521152 (A) has established a process for accepting, reviewing, and processing 11
11531153 applications and issuing permits, that shall adhere to the rules established by 12
11541154 the Secretary for potable water supplies and wastewater systems, including 13
11551155 permits, by rule, for sewerage connections; 14
11561156 (B) has hired, appointed, or retained on contract, or will hire, appoint, 15
11571157 or retain on contract, a licensed designer to perform technical work that must 16
11581158 be done by a municipality under this section to grant permits; 17
11591159 (C) will take timely and appropriate enforcement actions pursuant to 18
11601160 the authority of chapter 201 of this title; 19
11611161 (D) commits to reporting annually to the Secretary on a form and date 20
11621162 determined by the Secretary ; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
11631163 2025 Page 48 of 94
11641164
11651165
11661166 VT LEG #380410 v.1
11671167 (E) will only issue permits for water service lines and sanitary sewer 1
11681168 service lines when there is adequate capacity in the public water supply system 2
11691169 source, wastewater treatment facility, or indirect discharge system; and 3
11701170 (F) will comply with all other requirements of the rules adopted under 4
11711171 section 1978 of this title The Secretary may delegate to a municipality 5
11721172 authority to conduct technical review of municipal potable water supply and 6
11731173 wastewater system connections provided that the water main and sanitary 7
11741174 sewer collection line that the water service line and sanitary sewer service line 8
11751175 are connected to are owned and controlled by the delegated municipality. 9
11761176 (2) If a municipality submits a request for delegation of authority under 10
11771177 this subsection, the Secretary shall delegate authority to the municipality to 11
11781178 implement and administer provisions of this chapter governing municipal 12
11791179 potable water supply and wastewater system connections provided that the 13
11801180 municipality: 14
11811181 (A) is qualified to perform the technical review as determined by the 15
11821182 Secretary; 16
11831183 (B) receives authorization from the municipal legislative body to 17
11841184 administer a program for review of potable water supply and wastewater 18
11851185 system connections; 19
11861186 (C) meets any other requirement for the delegation program as 20
11871187 adopted by the Secretary in writing; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
11881188 2025 Page 49 of 94
11891189
11901190
11911191 VT LEG #380410 v.1
11921192 (D) will only issue permits for water service lines and sanitary sewer 1
11931193 service lines when there is adequate capacity in the public water system, 2
11941194 wastewater treatment facility, or indirect discharge system; and 3
11951195 (E) complies with the requirements for connection and all 4
11961196 requirements of the Agency’s rules adopted under section 1978 of this title. 5
11971197 * * * 6
11981198 (f) The Secretary may review municipal implementation of this section on 7
11991199 a random basis, or in response to a complaint, or on his or her the Secretary’s 8
12001200 own motion. This review may include consideration of the municipal 9
12011201 implementation itself, as well as consideration of the practices, testing 10
12021202 procedures employed, systems designed, system designs approved, installation 11
12031203 procedures used, and any work associated with the performance of these tasks. 12
12041204 Sec. 35. 3 V.S.A. § 2822(j) is amended to read: 13
12051205 (j) In accordance with subsection (i) of this section, the following fees are 14
12061206 established for permits, licenses, certifications, approvals, registrations, orders, 15
12071207 and other actions taken by the Agency of Natural Resources. 16
12081208 * * * 17
12091209 (4) For potable water supply and wastewater permits issued under 10 18
12101210 V.S.A. chapter 64. Projects under this subdivision include: a wastewater 19
12111211 system, including a sewerage sanitary sewer collection system connection; and 20
12121212 a potable water supply, including a connection to a public water supply system: 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
12131213 2025 Page 50 of 94
12141214
12151215
12161216 VT LEG #380410 v.1
12171217 (A) Original applications, or major amendments for a project with the 1
12181218 following proposed design flows. In calculating the fee, the highest proposed 2
12191219 design flow whether wastewater or water shall be used: 3
12201220 (i) design flows 560 gpd or less: $306.25 per application; 4
12211221 (ii) design flows greater than 560 and less than or equal to 2,000 5
12221222 gpd: $870.00 per application; 6
12231223 (iii) design flows greater than 2,000 and less than or equal to 7
12241224 6,500 gpd: $3,000.00 per application; 8
12251225 (iv) design flows greater than 6,500 and less than or equal to 9
12261226 10,000 gpd: $7,500.00 per application; 10
12271227 (v) design flows greater than 10,000 gpd: $13,500.00 per 11
12281228 application. 12
12291229 (B) Minor amendments: $150.00. 13
12301230 (C) Minor projects: $270.00. 14
12311231 As used in this subdivision (j)(4)(C), “minor project” means a project 15
12321232 that meets the following: there is an increase in design flow but no 16
12331233 construction is required; there is no increase in design flow, but construction is 17
12341234 required, excluding replacement potable water supplies and wastewater 18
12351235 systems; or there is no increase in design flow and no construction is required, 19
12361236 excluding applications that contain designs that require technical review. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
12371237 2025 Page 51 of 94
12381238
12391239
12401240 VT LEG #380410 v.1
12411241 (D) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this subdivision (4), 1
12421242 when a project is located in a Vermont neighborhood, as designated under 24 2
12431243 V.S.A. chapter 76A, the fee shall be no not more than $50.00 in situations in 3
12441244 which the application has received an allocation for sewer capacity from an 4
12451245 approved municipal system. This limitation shall not apply in the case of fees 5
12461246 charged as part of a duly delegated municipal program. 6
12471247 (E) Projects permitted under a municipal potable water supply or 7
12481248 wastewater system connection general permit as established in 10 V.S.A. 8
12491249 § 1973(i)(1) or as adopted by rule per 10 V.S.A. § 1973(i)(2): $500. 9
12501250 * * * 10
12511251 * * * Municipal Aid for Water Supply and Water Pollution Abatement and 11
12521252 Control * * * 12
12531253 Sec. 36. 10 V.S.A. § 1628 is amended to read: 13
12541254 § 1628. PRIORITIES 14
12551255 (a) The Department shall make grant awards under this chapter to eligible 15
12561256 municipal water pollution abatement and control projects on the basis of need 16
12571257 as determined according to a system of priorities adopted by rule by the 17
12581258 Department and to the extent appropriate funds are available. The system of 18
12591259 priorities shall require consideration of criteria, including: 19
12601260 (1) whether a project is grant or loan eligible; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
12611261 2025 Page 52 of 94
12621262
12631263
12641264 VT LEG #380410 v.1
12651265 (2) the condition of the waters affected by the project and whether the 1
12661266 waters are: 2
12671267 (A) not in compliance with the Vermont Water Quality Standards; or 3
12681268 (B) have a total maximum daily load (TMDL); 4
12691269 (3) whether the project will address water quality issues identified in a 5
12701270 basin plan; 6
12711271 (4) whether the project will abate or control pollution that is causing or 7
12721272 may cause a threat to public health; 8
12731273 (5) whether the project will address an emergency situation affecting or 9
12741274 constituting a threat to the environment or the public health, safety, or welfare; 10
12751275 (6) if the project repairs or replaces existing infrastructure, the condition 11
12761276 and integrity of such infrastructure; 12
12771277 (7) whether the project incorporates principles of environmental 13
12781278 resiliency or sustainability, including energy efficiency, which reduce the 14
12791279 environmental impacts of the project or a water pollution abatement and 15
12801280 control facility; 16
12811281 (8) the fiscal integrity and sustainability of the project, including 17
12821282 whether the project is a cost-effective alternative, when compared to other 18
12831283 alternatives; 19
12841284 (9) whether the project serves a designated center; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
12851285 2025 Page 53 of 94
12861286
12871287
12881288 VT LEG #380410 v.1
12891289 (10) affordability factors for the municipality or municipalities in which 1
12901290 the project is located, including: 2
12911291 (A) median household income; 3
12921292 (B) unemployment rate; and 4
12931293 (C) population trends; and 5
12941294 (11) if the project removes a pollutant for which the water or waters 6
12951295 affected by the project are impaired, the cost-effectiveness of the project at 7
12961296 removing that pollutant. 8
12971297 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the demonstration 9
12981298 requirements of the Agency of Natural Resources, Department of 10
12991299 Environmental Conservation, Environmental Protection Rules, Chapter 2 - 11
13001300 Municipal Pollution Control Priority System, Subchapter 300, shall be met 12
13011301 when the municipality making application for funding under this chapter 13
13021302 certifies that the project shall include service for new housing units or 14
13031303 wastewater capacity shall be reserved for new housing units. 15
13041304 * * * Vermont Rental Housing Improvement Program * * * 16
13051305 Sec. 37. 10 V.S.A. § 699 is amended to read: 17
13061306 § 699. VERMONT RENTAL HOUSING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM 18
13071307 (a) Creation of Program. 19
13081308 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
13091309 2025 Page 54 of 94
13101310
13111311
13121312 VT LEG #380410 v.1
13131313 (5)(A) The Department may cooperate with and subgrant funds to State 1
13141314 agencies and governmental subdivisions and public and private organizations 2
13151315 in order to carry out the purposes of this subsection. 3
13161316 (B) Entities carrying out the provisions of this section, including 4
13171317 grantees, subgrantees, and contractors of the State, shall be exempt from the 5
13181318 provisions of 8 V.S.A. chapter 73 (licensed lenders, mortgage brokers, 6
13191319 mortgage loan originators, sales finance companies, and loan solicitation 7
13201320 companies). 8
13211321 * * * 9
13221322 (d) Program requirements applicable to grants and forgivable loans. 10
13231323 (1)(A) A grant or loan shall not exceed: 11
13241324 (i) $70,000.00 per unit, for rehabilitation or creation of an eligible 12
13251325 rental housing unit meeting the applicable building accessibility requirements 13
13261326 under the Vermont Access Rules; or 14
13271327 (ii) $50,000.00 per unit, for rehabilitation or creation of any other 15
13281328 eligible rental housing unit. Up to an additional $20,000.00 per unit may be 16
13291329 made available for specific elements that collectively bring the unit to the 17
13301330 visitable standard outlined in the rules adopted by the Vermont Access Board. 18
13311331 * * * 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
13321332 2025 Page 55 of 94
13331333
13341334
13351335 VT LEG #380410 v.1
13361336 (e) Program requirements applicable to grants and five-year forgivable 1
13371337 loans. For a grant or five-year forgivable loan awarded through the Program, 2
13381338 the following requirements apply for a minimum period of five years: 3
13391339 (1) A landlord shall coordinate with nonprofit housing partners and local 4
13401340 coordinated entry homelessness service organizations approved by the 5
13411341 Department to identify potential tenants. 6
13421342 (2)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (2)(B) of this subsection (e), a 7
13431343 landlord shall lease the unit to a household that is: 8
13441344 (i) exiting homelessness, including any individual under 25 years 9
13451345 of age who secures housing through a master lease held by a youth service 10
13461346 provider on behalf of individuals under 25 years of age; 11
13471347 (ii) actively working with an immigrant or refugee resettlement 12
13481348 program; or 13
13491349 (iii) composed of at least one individual with a disability who 14
13501350 receives or is eligible approved to receive Medicaid-funded home and 15
13511351 community based services or Social Security Disability Insurance; or 16
13521352 (iv) with approval from the Department in writing, an organization 17
13531353 that will hold a master lease that explicitly states the unit will be used in 18
13541354 service of the populations described in this subsection (e). 19
13551355 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
13561356 2025 Page 56 of 94
13571357
13581358
13591359 VT LEG #380410 v.1
13601360 (4)(A) A landlord may convert a grant to a forgivable loan upon 1
13611361 approval of the Department and the housing organization that approved the 2
13621362 grant. 3
13631363 (B) A landlord who converts a grant to a forgivable loan shall receive 4
13641364 a 10-percent prorated credit for loan forgiveness for each year in which the 5
13651365 landlord participates in the Program. 6
13661366 (f) Requirements applicable to 10-year forgivable loans. For a 10-year 7
13671367 forgivable loan awarded through the Program, the following requirements 8
13681368 apply for a minimum period of 10 years: 9
13691369 (1) A landlord shall coordinate with nonprofit housing partners and local 10
13701370 coordinated entry organizations to identify potential tenants The total cost of 11
13711371 rent for the unit, including utilities not covered by rent payments, shall not 12
13721372 exceed the applicable fair market rent established by the Department of 13
13731373 Housing and Urban Development, except that a landlord may accept a housing 14
13741374 voucher that exceeds fair market rent, if available. 15
13751375 (2)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (2)(B) of this subsection (f), a 16
13761376 landlord shall lease the unit to a household that is: 17
13771377 (i) exiting homelessness, including any individual under 25 years 18
13781378 of age who secures housing through a master lease held by a youth service 19
13791379 provider on behalf of individuals under 25 years of age; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
13801380 2025 Page 57 of 94
13811381
13821382
13831383 VT LEG #380410 v.1
13841384 (ii) actively working with an immigrant or refugee resettlement 1
13851385 program; or 2
13861386 (iii) composed of at least one individual with a disability who is 3
13871387 eligible to receive Medicaid-funded home and community based services. 4
13881388 (B) If, upon petition of the landlord, the Department or the housing 5
13891389 organization that issued the grant determines that a household under 6
13901390 subdivision (2)(A) of this subsection (f) is not available to lease the unit, then 7
13911391 the landlord shall lease the unit: 8
13921392 (i) to a household with an income equal to or less than 80 percent 9
13931393 of area median income; or 10
13941394 (ii) if such a household is unavailable, to another household with 11
13951395 the approval of the Department or housing organization. 12
13961396 (3)(A) A landlord shall accept any housing vouchers that are available to 13
13971397 pay all, or a portion of, the tenant’s rent and utilities. 14
13981398 (B) If no housing voucher or federal or State subsidy is available, the 15
13991399 cost of rent for the unit, including utilities not covered by rent payments, shall 16
14001400 not exceed the applicable fair market rent established by the Department of 17
14011401 Housing and Urban Development. 18
14021402 (4) The Department shall forgive 10 percent of the amount of a 19
14031403 forgivable loan for each year a landlord participates in the loan program. 20
14041404 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
14051405 2025 Page 58 of 94
14061406
14071407
14081408 VT LEG #380410 v.1
14091409 (i) Creation of the Vermont Rental Housing Improvement Program 1
14101410 Revolving Fund. Funds repaid or returned to the Department from forgivable 2
14111411 loans or grants funded by the Program shall return to the Vermont Rental 3
14121412 Housing Improvement Revolving Fund to be used for Program expenditures 4
14131413 and administrative costs at the discretion of the Department. 5
14141414 * * * MHIR * * * 6
14151415 Sec. 38. 10 V.S.A. § 700 is added to read: 7
14161416 § 700. VERMONT MANUFACTURED HOME IMPROVEMENT AND 8
14171417 REPAIR PROGRAM 9
14181418 (a) There is created within the Department of Housing and Community 10
14191419 Development the Manufactured Home Improvement and Repair Program. The 11
14201420 Department shall design and implement the Program to award funding to 12
14211421 statewide or regional nonprofit housing organizations, or both, to provide 13
14221422 financial assistance or awards to manufactured homeowners and manufactured 14
14231423 home park owners to improve existing homes, incentivize new slab placement 15
14241424 for prospective homeowners, and incentivize park improvements for infill of 16
14251425 more homes. 17
14261426 (b) The following projects are eligible for funding through the Program: 18
14271427 (1) The Department may award up to $20,000.00 to owners of 19
14281428 manufactured housing communities to complete small-scale capital needs to 20
14291429 help infill vacant lots with homes, including disposal of abandoned homes, lot 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
14301430 2025 Page 59 of 94
14311431
14321432
14331433 VT LEG #380410 v.1
14341434 grading and preparation, the siting and upgrading of electrical boxes, 1
14351435 enhancing E911 safety issues, transporting homes out of flood zones, and 2
14361436 improving individual septic systems. Costs awarded under this subdivision 3
14371437 may also cover legal fees and marketing to help make it easier for home-4
14381438 seekers to find vacant lots around the State. 5
14391439 (2) The Department may award funding to manufactured homeowners 6
14401440 for which the home is their primary residence to address habitability and 7
14411441 accessibility issues to bring the home into compliance with safe living 8
14421442 conditions. 9
14431443 (3) The Department may award up to $15,000.00 per grant to a 10
14441444 homeowner to pay for a foundation or federal Department of Housing and 11
14451445 Urban Development approved slab, site preparation, skirting, tie-downs, and 12
14461446 utility connections on vacant lots within a manufactured home community. 13
14471447 (c) The Department may adopt rules, policies, and guidelines to aid in 14
14481448 enacting the Program. 15
14491449 * * * Tax Increment Financing * * * 16
14501450 Sec. 39. 24 V.S.A. chapter 53, subchapter 7 is added to read: 17
14511451 SUBCHAPTER 7. Strategic Projects for Advancing Rural Communities 18
14521452 § 1907. DEFINITIONS 19
14531453 As used in this subchapter: 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
14541454 2025 Page 60 of 94
14551455
14561456
14571457 VT LEG #380410 v.1
14581458 (1) “Committed” means pledged and appropriated for the purpose of the 1
14591459 current and future payment of financing and related costs. 2
14601460 (2) “Community agreement” means a binding legal contract negotiated 3
14611461 between a municipality and a person to initiate a SPARC project on behalf of 4
14621462 the municipality. 5
14631463 (3) “Community investment partner” means a person who enters into a 6
14641464 community agreement with a municipality. 7
14651465 (4) “Coordinating agency” means any public or private entity from 8
14661466 outside a municipality’s departments or offices and not employing the 9
14671467 municipality’s staff that has been designated by the municipality to administer 10
14681468 and coordinate a SPARC project during creation, public hearing process, 11
14691469 approval process, or administration and operation of the SPARC project, 12
14701470 including overseeing infrastructure development, real property development 13
14711471 and redevelopment, assisting with reporting, and ensuring compliance with 14
14721472 statute and rule. 15
14731473 (5) “Financing” means debt incurred, including principal, interest, and 16
14741474 any fees or charges directly related to that debt, or other instruments or 17
14751475 borrowing used by a municipality to pay for an approved SPARC project and 18
14761476 related costs for the SPARC project. Payment for related costs may also 19
14771477 include direct payment by the municipality consistent with the terms of the 20
14781478 community agreement. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
14791479 2025 Page 61 of 94
14801480
14811481
14821482 VT LEG #380410 v.1
14831483 (6) “Improvements” means the installation, new construction, or 1
14841484 reconstruction of infrastructure or development that will serve a public 2
14851485 purpose, including housing, flood resiliency, flood mitigation, brownfield 3
14861486 remediation, utilities, digital infrastructure, transportation, public recreation, 4
14871487 commercial and industrial facilities, public facilities and amenities, land and 5
14881488 property acquisition and demolition, and site preparation. For remediation of a 6
14891489 brownfield, this shall include the cost of the site preparation needed to 7
14901490 stimulate development or redevelopment in the SPARC site as identified in 8
14911491 clean-up documentation approved by the Vermont Agency of Natural 9
14921492 Resources. “Improvements” also means the funding of debt service interest 10
14931493 payments. 11
14941494 (7) “Legislative body” means the mayor and alderboard, the city 12
14951495 council, the selectboard, and the president and trustees of an incorporated 13
14961496 village, as appropriate. 14
14971497 (8) “Municipality” means a city, town, or incorporated village. 15
14981498 (9) “Original taxable value” means the total valuation as determined in 16
14991499 accordance with 32 V.S.A. chapter 129 of all taxable real property located 17
15001500 within the SPARC site as of the creation date, provided that no parcel within 18
15011501 the project shall be divided or bisected. 19
15021502 (10) “Related costs” means expenses incurred and paid by the 20
15031503 municipality or a community investment partner consistent with the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
15041504 2025 Page 62 of 94
15051505
15061506
15071507 VT LEG #380410 v.1
15081508 community agreement, exclusive of the actual cost of constructing and 1
15091509 financing improvements, that are directly related to the creation and 2
15101510 implementation of the SPARC project, including reimbursement of sums 3
15111511 previously advanced by the municipality or a community investment partner 4
15121512 for those purposes and use of a coordinating agency. Related costs do not 5
15131513 include direct municipal or community investment partner expenses such as 6
15141514 departmental or personnel costs. 7
15151515 (11) “SPARC project” means an improvement, as defined in subdivision 8
15161516 (6) of this section (a). A SPARC project must meet one of the following six 9
15171517 criteria: 10
15181518 (A) The development will improve flood resiliency by protecting the 11
15191519 functions of watersheds, adapting critical infrastructure, or enhancing 12
15201520 emergency preparedness. 13
15211521 (B) The development will include the purchase and improvement of 14
15221522 flood-prone property or mitigate flood damage by elevating, floodproofing or 15
15231523 relocating existing structures or creating new, elevated, comparable structures. 16
15241524 (C) The development includes new or rehabilitated housing. 17
15251525 (D) The SPARC project will affect the remediation and 18
15261526 redevelopment of a brownfield. As used in this subchapter, “brownfield” 19
15271527 means an area in which a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant is or 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
15281528 2025 Page 63 of 94
15291529
15301530
15311531 VT LEG #380410 v.1
15321532 may be present, and that situation is likely to complicate the expansion, 1
15331533 development, redevelopment, or reuse of the property. 2
15341534 (E) The development will include at least one entirely new business 3
15351535 or business operation or expansion of an existing business within the SPARC 4
15361536 site, and this business will provide new, quality, full-time jobs that meet or 5
15371537 exceed the prevailing wage for the region as reported by the Department of 6
15381538 Labor. 7
15391539 (F) The development will enhance transportation and public 8
15401540 recreation by creating improved traffic patterns and flow or creating or 9
15411541 improving public transportation systems, including development of 10
15421542 recreational trail systems. 11
15431543 (11) “SPARC site” means an area and adjoining parcels where approved 12
15441544 development or redevelopment is occurring. 13
15451545 § 1908. PROGRAM CREATION; GENERAL AUTHORITY; OPERATION 14
15461546 (a) Program. The Vermont Economic Progress Council is authorized to 15
15471547 approve SPARC projects and to finance municipal investments within a 16
15481548 SPARC site or to provide financing to a community investment partner 17
15491549 consistent with the terms of the community agreement. 18
15501550 (b) General authority. Under the program established in subsection (a) of 19
15511551 this section, a municipality, upon approval of the community agreement by its 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
15521552 2025 Page 64 of 94
15531553
15541554
15551555 VT LEG #380410 v.1
15561556 legislative body, may apply to the Vermont Economic Progress Council to use 1
15571557 financing for a SPARC project. 2
15581558 (c) Approval process. The Vermont Economic Progress Council shall do 3
15591559 all of the following to approve an application: 4
15601560 (1) Application review. 5
15611561 (A) Review each application to determine that the improvements 6
15621562 proposed to serve the SPARC site and the proposed development in the 7
15631563 SPARC site would not have occurred as proposed in the application or would 8
15641564 have occurred in a significantly different and less desirable manner than as 9
15651565 proposed in the application, but for the proposed utilization of the incremental 10
15661566 tax revenues. 11
15671567 (B) The review shall take into account: 12
15681568 (i) the amount of additional time, if any, needed to complete the 13
15691569 proposed development within the SPARC site and the amount of additional 14
15701570 cost that might be incurred if the SPARC project were to proceed without 15
15711571 financing; 16
15721572 (ii) the lack of new construction in the municipality, indicated by a 17
15731573 stagnant or declining grand list value as determined by the Department of 18
15741574 Taxes, considering both the total full listed value and the equalized education 19
15751575 grand list value, or the documented need for housing in the municipality as 20
15761576 stated in the most recent housing needs assessment; and 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
15771577 2025 Page 65 of 94
15781578
15791579
15801580 VT LEG #380410 v.1
15811581 (iii)(I) the amount of additional revenue expected to be generated 1
15821582 as a result of the proposed SPARC project; 2
15831583 (II) the sufficiency of that incremental revenue to cover the 3
15841584 incurred debt; 4
15851585 (III) the percentage of that revenue that shall be paid to the 5
15861586 Education Fund; 6
15871587 (IV) the percentage that shall be paid to the municipality; and 7
15881588 (V) the percentage of the revenue paid to the municipality that 8
15891589 shall be used to pay financing incurred for development of the SPARC project 9
15901590 and related costs. 10
15911591 (2) Process requirements. Determine that each application meets all of 11
15921592 the following requirements: 12
15931593 (A) The municipality held public hearings and established a SPARC 13
15941594 site. 14
15951595 (B) The municipality has developed a SPARC financing plan, 15
15961596 including a project description; a development financing plan; a pro forma 16
15971597 projection of expected costs; a projection of revenues; evidence that the 17
15981598 municipality is actively seeking or has obtained other sources of funding and 18
15991599 investment; and a development schedule that includes a list, a cost estimate, 19
16001600 and a schedule for public improvements and projected private development to 20
16011601 occur as a result of the improvements. The life of the project begins at 12:01 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
16021602 2025 Page 66 of 94
16031603
16041604
16051605 VT LEG #380410 v.1
16061606 a.m. on April 1 of the calendar year the Vermont Economic Progress Council 1
16071607 approves the SPARC project plan according to the terms set forth in 2
16081608 subdivision (f)(3) and subsection (g) of this section. 3
16091609 (C) The municipality has approved or pledged the utilization of 4
16101610 incremental municipal tax revenues for the purposes of the SPARC project in 5
16111611 the proportion set forth in subdivision (g)(2) of this section. 6
16121612 (3) The Vermont Economic Progress Council shall determine there is a 7
16131613 relationship between the improvement and the expected development and 8
16141614 redevelopment for the SPARC project and expected outcomes. 9
16151615 (d) Incurring indebtedness. 10
16161616 (1) A municipality approved under the process set forth in subsection (c) 11
16171617 of this section may incur indebtedness against revenues of the SPARC site to 12
16181618 provide funding to pay for improvements and related costs for the SPARC 13
16191619 project development. 14
16201620 (2) Notwithstanding any provision of any municipal charter, the 15
16211621 municipality shall only require one authorizing vote to incur debt through one 16
16221622 instance of borrowing to finance or otherwise pay for the tax increment 17
16231623 financing project improvements and related costs; provided, however, that a 18
16241624 municipality may present one or more subsequent authorization votes in the 19
16251625 event a vote fails. The municipality shall be authorized to incur indebtedness 20
16261626 only after the legal voters of the municipality, by a majority vote of all voters 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
16271627 2025 Page 67 of 94
16281628
16291629
16301630 VT LEG #380410 v.1
16311631 present and voting on the question at a special or annual municipal meeting 1
16321632 duly warned for the purpose, authorize the legislative body to pledge the credit 2
16331633 of the municipality, borrow, or otherwise secure the debt for the specific 3
16341634 purposes so warned. 4
16351635 (3) Any indebtedness shall be incurred within five years following the 5
16361636 date of approval by the Vermont Economic Progress Council. A bond 6
16371637 anticipation note is not considered a first or last incurrence of debt. The 7
16381638 Vermont Economic Progress Council may extend the period of time to incur 8
16391639 debt for a period not to exceed three years. 9
16401640 (4) A municipal legislative body shall provide information to the 10
16411641 public prior to the public vote required under subdivision (2) of this subsection. 11
16421642 This information shall include the amount and types of debt and related costs 12
16431643 to be incurred, including principal, interest, and fees; terms of the debt; the 13
16441644 improvements to be financed; the expected development to occur because of 14
16451645 the improvements; and notice to the voters that if the tax increment received by 15
16461646 the municipality from any property tax source is insufficient to pay the 16
16471647 principal and interest on the debt in any year, for whatever reason, including a 17
16481648 decrease in property value or repeal of a State property tax source, unless 18
16491649 determined otherwise at the time of such repeal, the municipality shall remain 19
16501650 liable for the full payment of the principal and interest for the term of 20
16511651 indebtedness. If interfund loans within the municipality are used, the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
16521652 2025 Page 68 of 94
16531653
16541654
16551655 VT LEG #380410 v.1
16561656 information must also include documentation of the terms and conditions of 1
16571657 such loan. If interfund loans within the municipality are used as a method of 2
16581658 financing, no interest shall be charged. 3
16591659 (e) Original taxable value. As of the date the project is approved by the 4
16601660 Vermont Economic Progress Council, the lister or assessor for the municipality 5
16611661 shall certify the original taxable value and shall certify to the Vermont 6
16621662 Economic Progress Council in each year thereafter during the life of the 7
16631663 SPARC site the amount by which the total valuation as determined in 8
16641664 accordance with 32 V.S.A. chapter 129 of all taxable real property located 9
16651665 within the SPARC site has increased or decreased relative to the original 10
16661666 taxable value. 11
16671667 (f) Incremental community enhancements. 12
16681668 (1) In each year following the approval of the SPARC site, the lister or 13
16691669 assessor shall include not more than the original taxable value of the real 14
16701670 property in the assessed valuation upon which the treasurer computes the rates 15
16711671 of all taxes levied by the municipality and every other taxing district in which 16
16721672 the SPARC site is situated, but the treasurer shall extend all rates so 17
16731673 determined against the entire assessed valuation of real property for that year. 18
16741674 In each year, the municipality shall hold apart, rather than remit to the taxing 19
16751675 districts, that proportion of all taxes paid that year on the real property within 20
16761676 the SPARC site that the excess valuation bears to the total assessed valuation. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
16771677 2025 Page 69 of 94
16781678
16791679
16801680 VT LEG #380410 v.1
16811681 The amount held apart each year is the “incremental community enhancement” 1
16821682 for that year. Not more than the percentages established pursuant to subsection 2
16831683 (g) of this section of the municipal and State education tax increments received 3
16841684 with respect to the SPARC site and committed for the payment for financing 4
16851685 for improvements and related costs shall be segregated by the municipality in a 5
16861686 special SPARC financing project account and in its official books and records 6
16871687 until all capital indebtedness of the project has been fully paid. The final 7
16881688 payment shall be reported to the treasurer, who shall thereafter include the 8
16891689 entire assessed valuation of the SPARC site in the assessed valuations upon 9
16901690 which municipal and other tax rates are computed and extended and thereafter 10
16911691 no taxes from the SPARC site shall be deposited in the SPARC site’s SPARC 11
16921692 financing project account. 12
16931693 (2) In each year, a municipality shall remit not less than the aggregate 13
16941694 tax due on the original taxable value to the Education Fund. 14
16951695 (3) Notwithstanding any charter provision or other provision, all 15
16961696 property taxes assessed within a SPARC site shall be subject to the provision 16
16971697 of subdivision (1) of this subsection. Special assessments levied under chapter 17
16981698 76A or 87 of this title or under a municipal charter shall not be considered 18
16991699 property taxes for the purpose of this section if the proceeds are used 19
17001700 exclusively for operating expenses related to properties within the SPARC site. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
17011701 2025 Page 70 of 94
17021702
17031703
17041704 VT LEG #380410 v.1
17051705 (4) Amounts held apart under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall 1
17061706 only be used for financing and related costs as defined in section 1907 of this 2
17071707 subchapter. 3
17081708 (g) Use of incremental community enhancement. 4
17091709 (1) Use of the education property tax increment. For only debt incurred 5
17101710 within the period permitted under subdivision (d)(3) of this section after 6
17111711 approval of the project, up to 100 percent of the education tax increment may 7
17121712 be retained to service the debt and related costs, beginning with the first year in 8
17131713 which debt is incurred for the SPARC project. Upon incurring the first debt, a 9
17141714 municipality shall notify the Department of Taxes and the Vermont Economic 10
17151715 Progress Council of the beginning of the retention period of the education tax 11
17161716 increment. 12
17171717 (2) Use of the municipal property tax increment. For only debt incurred 13
17181718 within the period permitted under subdivision (d)(3) of this section after 14
17191719 approval of the project, not less than 100 percent of the municipal tax 15
17201720 increment shall be retained to service the debt and related costs, beginning the 16
17211721 first year in which debt is incurred for the project. 17
17221722 (3) Retention period. Retention of tax increment shall continue until all 18
17231723 debt is retired. 19
17241724 (h) Distribution. Of the municipal and education tax increments received 20
17251725 in any tax year that exceed the amounts committed for the payment of the 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
17261726 2025 Page 71 of 94
17271727
17281728
17291729 VT LEG #380410 v.1
17301730 financing for improvements and related costs for the SPARC project, equal 1
17311731 portions of each increment may be retained for the following purposes: 2
17321732 prepayment of principal and interest on the financing, placed in a special 3
17331733 account required by subdivision (f)(1) of this section and used for future 4
17341734 financing payments, or used for defeasance of the financing. Any remaining 5
17351735 portion of the excess municipal tax increment shall be distributed to the city, 6
17361736 town, or village budget, in the proportion that each budget bears to the 7
17371737 combined total of the budgets, unless otherwise negotiated by the city, town, or 8
17381738 village, and any remaining portion of the excess education tax increment shall 9
17391739 be distributed to the Education Fund. 10
17401740 (i) Information reporting. A municipality with a SPARC project approved 11
17411741 pursuant to this section shall: 12
17421742 (1) Develop a system, segregated for the SPARC project, to identify, 13
17431743 collect, and maintain all data and information necessary to fulfill the reporting 14
17441744 requirements of this section, including performance measures as outlined in the 15
17451745 community agreement. 16
17461746 (2) Provide, as required by events, notification to the Vermont 17
17471747 Economic Progress Council and the Department of Taxes regarding any 18
17481748 SPARC project debt obligations, public votes, or votes by the municipal 19
17491749 legislative body immediately following such obligation or vote on a form 20
17501750 prescribed by the Council, including copies of public notices, agendas, 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
17511751 2025 Page 72 of 94
17521752
17531753
17541754 VT LEG #380410 v.1
17551755 minutes, vote tally, and a copy of the information provided to the public in 1
17561756 accordance with subdivision (d)(4) of this section. 2
17571757 (3) Ensure that the SPARC financing project account required by 3
17581758 subdivision (f)(1) of this section is subject to the annual audit prescribed in 4
17591759 subsection (j) of this section. Procedures shall include verification of the 5
17601760 original taxable value and annual and total municipal and education tax 6
17611761 increments generated, expenditures for debt and related costs, and current 7
17621762 balance. 8
17631763 (j) Audit; financial reports. Annually on or before April 1, until the year 9
17641764 following the end of the period for retention of education tax increment, a 10
17651765 municipality with a SPARC project approved under this section shall ensure 11
17661766 that the SPARC project is subject to the annual audit prescribed in sections 12
17671767 1681 and, if applicable, 1690 of this title and submit a copy of the audit report 13
17681768 to the Vermont Economic Progress Council. In the event that the SPARC 14
17691769 project is only subject to the audit under section 1681 of this title, the Vermont 15
17701770 Economic Progress Council shall ensure a process is in place to subject the 16
17711771 SPARC project to an independent audit. Procedures for the audit must include 17
17721772 verification of the original taxable value and annual and total municipal and 18
17731773 education tax increments generated, expenditures for debt and related costs, 19
17741774 and current balance. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
17751775 2025 Page 73 of 94
17761776
17771777
17781778 VT LEG #380410 v.1
17791779 (k) Authority to issue decisions. The Vermont Economic Progress Council, 1
17801780 after reasonable notice to a municipality, is authorized to issue decisions to a 2
17811781 municipality on questions and inquiries concerning the administration of 3
17821782 SPARC projects, statutes, rules, noncompliance with this section, and any 4
17831783 instances of noncompliance. The Vermont Economic Progress Council shall 5
17841784 deliberate and vote and may consult with the Commissioner of Taxes, the 6
17851785 Attorney General, and the State Treasurer. 7
17861786 Sec. 40. 24 V.S.A. § 1891 is amended to read: 8
17871787 § 1891. DEFINITIONS 9
17881788 As used in this subchapter: 10
17891789 * * * 11
17901790 (4) “Improvements” means the installation, new construction, or 12
17911791 reconstruction of infrastructure or municipal capital assets that will serve a 13
17921792 public purpose and fulfill the purpose of tax increment financing districts as 14
17931793 stated in section 1893 of this subchapter, including utilities, transportation, 15
17941794 public facilities and amenities, land and property acquisition and demolition, 16
17951795 and site preparation. “Improvements” also means the funding of debt service 17
17961796 interest payments for a period of up to two four years, beginning on the date on 18
17971797 which the first debt is incurred. 19
17981798 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
17991799 2025 Page 74 of 94
18001800
18011801
18021802 VT LEG #380410 v.1
18031803 (7) “Financing” means debt incurred, including principal, interest, and 1
18041804 any fees or charges directly related to that debt, or other instruments or 2
18051805 borrowing used by a municipality to pay for improvements in a tax increment 3
18061806 financing district, only if authorized by the legal voters of the municipality in 4
18071807 accordance with section 1894 of this subchapter. Payment for the cost of 5
18081808 district improvements may also include direct payment by the municipality 6
18091809 using the district increment. However, such payment is also subject to a vote 7
18101810 by the legal voters of the municipality in accordance with section 1894 of this 8
18111811 subchapter and, if not included in the tax increment financing plan approved 9
18121812 under subsection 1894(d) of this subchapter, is also considered a substantial 10
18131813 change and subject to the review process provided by subdivision 1901(2)(B) 11
18141814 of this subchapter. If interfund loans within the municipality are used as the 12
18151815 method of financing, no interest shall be charged. Bond anticipation notes may 13
18161816 be used as a method of financing; provided, however, that bond anticipation 14
18171817 notes shall not be considered a first or last incurrence of debt pursuant to 15
18181818 subsection 1894(a) of this subchapter. 16
18191819 * * * 17
18201820 Sec. 41. 24 V.S.A. § 1892 is amended to read: 18
18211821 § 1892. CREATION OF DISTRICT 19
18221822 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
18231823 2025 Page 75 of 94
18241824
18251825
18261826 VT LEG #380410 v.1
18271827 (b) When adopted by the act of the legislative body of that municipality, 1
18281828 the plan shall be recorded with the municipal clerk and lister or assessor. The 2
18291829 plan shall be presented to the Vermont Economic Progress Council for 3
18301830 approval, and the creation of the district shall occur at 12:01 a.m. on April 1 of 4
18311831 the calendar year so voted by the municipal legislative body Vermont 5
18321832 Economic Progress Council. 6
18331833 * * * 7
18341834 (e) On or before January 15, 2018, the Joint Fiscal Office, with the 8
18351835 assistance of the consulting Legislative Economist, the Department of Taxes, 9
18361836 the State Auditor, and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development 10
18371837 in consultation with the Vermont Economic Progress Council, shall examine 11
18381838 and report to the General Assembly on the use of both tax increment financing 12
18391839 districts and other policy options for State assistance to municipalities for 13
18401840 funding infrastructure in support of economic development and the capacity of 14
18411841 Vermont to utilize TIF districts moving forward. [Repealed.] 15
18421842 (f) The report shall include: 16
18431843 (1) a recommendation for a sustainable statewide capacity level for TIFs 17
18441844 or comparable economic development tools and relevant permitting criteria; 18
18451845 (2) the positive and negative impacts on the State’s fiscal health of TIFs 19
18461846 and other tools, including the General Fund and Education Fund; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
18471847 2025 Page 76 of 94
18481848
18491849
18501850 VT LEG #380410 v.1
18511851 (3) the economic development impacts on the State of TIFs and other 1
18521852 tools, both positive and negative; 2
18531853 (4) the mechanics for ensuring geographic diversity of TIFs or other 3
18541854 tools throughout the State; and 4
18551855 (5) the parameters of TIFs and other tools in other states. [Repealed.] 5
18561856 * * * 6
18571857 Sec. 42. 24 V.S.A. § 1894(a) is amended to read: 7
18581858 (a) Incurring indebtedness. 8
18591859 (1) A municipality approved under 32 V.S.A. § 5404a(h) may incur 9
18601860 indebtedness against revenues of the tax increment financing district at any 10
18611861 time during a period of up to five years following the creation of the district. If 11
18621862 no debt is incurred during this five-year period, the district shall terminate, 12
18631863 unless the Vermont Economic Progress Council grants an extension to a 13
18641864 municipality pursuant to subsection (d) of this section. However, if any 14
18651865 indebtedness is incurred within the first five years after the creation of the 15
18661866 district, then the district has a total of ten years after the creation of the district 16
18671867 to incur any additional debt. 17
18681868 (2) Any indebtedness incurred under subdivision (1) of this subsection 18
18691869 may be retired over any period authorized by the legislative body of the 19
18701870 municipality. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
18711871 2025 Page 77 of 94
18721872
18731873
18741874 VT LEG #380410 v.1
18751875 (3) The district shall continue until the date and hour the indebtedness is 1
18761876 retired or, if no debt is incurred, five years following the creation of the 2
18771877 district. 3
18781878 (4) Indebtedness is incurred upon final execution of a debt instrument. 4
18791879 Sec. 43. 24 V.S.A. § 1896 is amended to read: 5
18801880 § 1896. TAX INCREMENTS 6
18811881 (a) In each year following the creation of the district, the listers or assessor 7
18821882 shall include not more than the original taxable value of the real property in the 8
18831883 assessed valuation upon which the treasurer computes the rates of all taxes 9
18841884 levied by the municipality and every other taxing district in which the tax 10
18851885 increment financing district is situated; but the treasurer shall extend all rates 11
18861886 so determined against the entire assessed valuation of real property for that 12
18871887 year. In each year, the municipality shall hold apart, rather than remit to the 13
18881888 taxing districts, that proportion of all taxes paid that year on the real property 14
18891889 in the district that the excess valuation bears to the total assessed valuation. 15
18901890 The amount held apart each year is the “tax increment” for that year. Not more 16
18911891 than the percentages established pursuant to section 1894 of this subchapter of 17
18921892 the municipal and State education tax increments received with respect to the 18
18931893 district and committed for the payment for financing for improvements and 19
18941894 related costs shall be segregated by the municipality in a special tax increment 20
18951895 financing account and in its official books and records until all capital 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
18961896 2025 Page 78 of 94
18971897
18981898
18991899 VT LEG #380410 v.1
19001900 indebtedness of the district financed through education tax increment has been 1
19011901 fully paid. The final payment shall be reported to the treasurer, who shall 2
19021902 thereafter include the entire assessed valuation of the district in the assessed 3
19031903 valuations upon which municipal and other tax rates are computed and 4
19041904 extended and thereafter no taxes from the district shall be deposited in the 5
19051905 district’s tax increment financing account. 6
19061906 * * * 7
19071907 Sec. 44. 24 V.S.A. § 1898 is amended to read: 8
19081908 § 1898. POWERS SUPPLEMENTAL; CONSTRUCTION 9
19091909 * * * 10
19101910 (b) A municipality shall have power to issue from time to time general 11
19111911 obligation bonds, revenue bonds, or revenue bonds also backed by the 12
19121912 municipality’s full faith and credit in its discretion to finance the undertaking 13
19131913 of any improvements wholly or partly within such district. If revenue bonds 14
19141914 are issued, such bonds shall be made payable, as to both principal and interest, 15
19151915 solely from the income proceeds, revenues, tax increments, and funds of the 16
19161916 municipality derived from or held in connection with its undertaking and 17
19171917 carrying out of improvements under this chapter. 18
19181918 (c) Bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter are declared to be 19
19191919 issued for an essential public and governmental purpose. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
19201920 2025 Page 79 of 94
19211921
19221922
19231923 VT LEG #380410 v.1
19241924 (d) Bonds issued under this section shall be authorized by resolution or 1
19251925 ordinance of the local governing body and may be payable upon demand or 2
19261926 mature at such time or times, bear interest at such rate or rates, be in such 3
19271927 denomination or denominations, be in registered form, carry such conversion 4
19281928 or registration privileges, have such rank or priority, be executed in such 5
19291929 manner, be payable in such medium or payment, at such place or places, and 6
19301930 be subject to such terms of redemption, such other characteristics, as may be 7
19311931 provided by such resolution or trust indenture or mortgage issued pursuant 8
19321932 thereto. 9
19331933 (e) [Repealed.] 10
19341934 (f) Such bonds may be sold at not less than par at public or private sales 11
19351935 held after notice published prior to such sale in a newspaper having a general 12
19361936 circulation in the municipality. If bonds are sold above par or a bond premium 13
19371937 is generated, the proceeds shall not be used for improvements until the 14
19381938 additional amount has been approved by the Vermont Economic Progress 15
19391939 Council by filing a substantial change request. 16
19401940 * * * 17
19411941 Sec. 45. 32 V.S.A. § 5404a is amended to read: 18
19421942 § 5404a. TAX STABILIZATION AGREEMENTS; TAX INCREMENT 19
19431943 FINANCING DISTRICTS 20
19441944 * * * 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
19451945 2025 Page 80 of 94
19461946
19471947
19481948 VT LEG #380410 v.1
19491949 (f) A municipality that establishes a tax increment financing district under 1
19501950 24 V.S.A. chapter 53, subchapter 5 shall collect all property taxes on properties 2
19511951 contained within the district and apply not more than 70 percent of the State 3
19521952 education property tax increment, and not less than 85 percent of the municipal 4
19531953 property tax increment, to repayment of financing of the improvements and 5
19541954 related costs for up to 20 years pursuant to 24 V.S.A. § 1894, if approved by 6
19551955 the Vermont Economic Progress Council pursuant to this section, subject to the 7
19561956 following: 8
19571957 (1) In a municipality with one or more approved districts, the Council 9
19581958 shall not approve an additional district until the municipality retires the debt 10
19591959 incurred for all of the districts in the municipality. [Repealed.] 11
19601960 (2) The Council shall not approve more than six districts in the State, 12
19611961 and not more than two per county, provided: 13
19621962 (A) The districts listed in 24 V.S.A. § 1892(d) shall not be counted 14
19631963 against the limits imposed in this subdivision (2). 15
19641964 (B) The Council shall consider complete applications in the order 16
19651965 they are submitted, except that if during any calendar month the Council 17
19661966 receives applications for more districts than are actually available in a county, 18
19671967 the Council shall evaluate each application and shall approve the application 19
19681968 that, in the Council’s discretion, best meets the economic development needs 20
19691969 of the county. [Repealed.] 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
19701970 2025 Page 81 of 94
19711971
19721972
19731973 VT LEG #380410 v.1
19741974 (3)(A) A municipality shall immediately notify the Council if it resolves 1
19751975 not to incur debt for an approved district within five years of approval or a 2
19761976 five-year extension period as required in 24 V.S.A. § 1894. 3
19771977 (B) Upon receiving notification pursuant to subdivision (A) of this 4
19781978 subdivision (3), the Council shall terminate the district and may approve a new 5
19791979 district, subject to the provisions of this section and 24 V.S.A. chapter 53, 6
19801980 subchapter 5. 7
19811981 * * * 8
19821982 (h) To approve utilization of incremental revenues pursuant to subsection 9
19831983 (f) of this section, the Vermont Economic Progress Council shall do all the 10
19841984 following: 11
19851985 * * * 12
19861986 (3) Location criteria. Determine that each application meets at least two 13
19871987 of the following three four criteria: 14
19881988 (A) The development is: 15
19891989 (i) compact; 16
19901990 (ii) high density; or 17
19911991 (iii) located in or near existing industrial areas. 18
19921992 (B) The proposed district is within an approved growth center, 19
19931993 designated downtown, designated village center, new town center, or 20
19941994 neighborhood development area. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
19951995 2025 Page 82 of 94
19961996
19971997
19981998 VT LEG #380410 v.1
19991999 (C) The development will occur in an area that is economically 1
20002000 distressed, which for the purposes of this subdivision means that the 2
20012001 municipality in which the area is located has at least one of the following: 3
20022002 (i) a median family income that is not more than 80 percent of the 4
20032003 statewide median family income as reported by the Vermont Department of 5
20042004 Taxes for the most recent year for which data are available; 6
20052005 (ii) an annual average unemployment rate that is at least one 7
20062006 percent greater than the latest annual average statewide unemployment rate as 8
20072007 reported by the Vermont Department of Labor; or 9
20082008 (iii) a median sales price for residential properties under six acres 10
20092009 that is not more than 80 percent of the statewide median sales price for 11
20102010 residential properties under six acres as reported by the Vermont Department 12
20112011 of Taxes. 13
20122012 (D) The development will occur in an area wholly or partially exempt 14
20132013 from Act 250 jurisdiction codified in 10 V.S.A. § 6081. 15
20142014 (4) Project criteria. Determine that the proposed development within a 16
20152015 tax increment financing district will accomplish at least three of the following 17
20162016 five six criteria: 18
20172017 (A) The development within the tax increment financing district 19
20182018 clearly requires substantial public investment over and above the normal 20
20192019 municipal operating or bonded debt expenditures. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
20202020 2025 Page 83 of 94
20212021
20222022
20232023 VT LEG #380410 v.1
20242024 (B) The development includes new or rehabilitated affordable 1
20252025 housing, as defined in 24 V.S.A. § 4303. 2
20262026 (C) The project will affect the remediation and redevelopment of a 3
20272027 brownfield located within the district. As used in this section, “brownfield” 4
20282028 means an area in which a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant is or 5
20292029 may be present, and that situation is likely to complicate the expansion, 6
20302030 development, redevelopment, or reuse of the property. 7
20312031 (D) The development will include at least one entirely new business 8
20322032 or business operation or expansion of an existing business within the district, 9
20332033 and this business will provide new, quality, full-time jobs that meet or exceed 10
20342034 the prevailing wage for the region as reported by the Department of Labor. 11
20352035 (E) The development will enhance transportation by creating 12
20362036 improved traffic patterns and flow or creating or improving public 13
20372037 transportation systems. 14
20382038 (F) The project will mitigate flood risks within a flood-prone area or 15
20392039 will relocate development previously destroyed by flooding from a flood-prone 16
20402040 area to another area within the municipality where flood risks are significantly 17
20412041 lower. As used in this section, “flood-prone area” means an area in which 18
20422042 significant residential or commercial property lies within the floodplain. 19
20432043 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
20442044 2025 Page 84 of 94
20452045
20462046
20472047 VT LEG #380410 v.1
20482048 (l) The State Auditor of Accounts shall conduct performance audits of all 1
20492049 tax increment financing districts. The cost of conducting each audit shall be 2
20502050 considered a “related cost” as defined in 24 V.S.A. § 1891(6) and shall be 3
20512051 billed back to the municipality pursuant to subsection 168(b) of this title borne 4
20522052 by the State Auditor of Accounts and shall be included in the State Auditor of 5
20532053 Accounts’ annual budget request. Audits conducted pursuant to this subsection 6
20542054 shall include a review of a municipality’s adherence to relevant statutes and 7
20552055 rules adopted by the Vermont Economic Progress Council pursuant to 8
20562056 subsection (j) of this section, an assessment of record keeping related to 9
20572057 revenues and expenditures, and a validation of the portion of the tax increment 10
20582058 retained by the municipality and used for debt repayment and the portion 11
20592059 directed to the Education Fund. 12
20602060 * * * 13
20612061 * * * Tax Value Freeze * * * 14
20622062 Sec. 46. 32 V.S.A. § 3870 is amended to read: 15
20632063 § 3870. DEFINITIONS 16
20642064 As used in this subchapter: 17
20652065 * * * 18
20662066 (7)(A) “Qualifying property” means a parcel with a structure that is: 19
20672067 * * * 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
20682068 2025 Page 85 of 94
20692069
20702070
20712071 VT LEG #380410 v.1
20722072 (iii) undergoing, has undergone, or will undergo qualifying 1
20732073 improvements; and 2
20742074 (iv) in compliance with all relevant permitting requirements; and 3
20752075 (v) located in an area that was declared a federal disaster between 4
20762076 July 1, 2023 and October 15, 2023 that was eligible for Individual Assistance 5
20772077 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or located in Addison or 6
20782078 Franklin County. 7
20792079 * * * 8
20802080 Sec. 47. 32 V.S.A. § 3871 is amended to read: 9
20812081 § 3871. EXEMPTION 10
20822082 * * * 11
20832083 (d) Exemption period. 12
20842084 * * * 13
20852085 (2) An exemption under this subchapter shall remain in effect for three 14
20862086 five years, provided the property continues to comply with the requirements of 15
20872087 this subchapter. When the exemption period ends, the property shall be taxed 16
20882088 at its most recently appraised grand list value. 17
20892089 * * * 18
20902090 * * * Vermont Infrastructure Sustainability Fund * * * 19
20912091 Sec. 48. 24 V.S.A. chapter 119, subchapter 6 is amended to read: 20
20922092 Subchapter 6. Special Funds 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
20932093 2025 Page 86 of 94
20942094
20952095
20962096 VT LEG #380410 v.1
20972097 * * * 1
20982098 § 4686. VERMONT INFRASTRUCTURE SUSTAINABILITY FUND 2
20992099 (a) Creation. There is created the Vermont Infrastructure Sustainability 3
21002100 Fund within the Vermont Bond Bank. 4
21012101 (b) Purpose. The purpose of the Fund is to provide capital to extend and 5
21022102 increase capacity of water and sewer service and other public infrastructure in 6
21032103 municipalities where lack of extension or capacity is a barrier to housing 7
21042104 development. 8
21052105 (c) Administration. The Vermont Bond Bank may administer the Fund in 9
21062106 coordination with and support from other State agencies, government 10
21072107 component parts, and quasi-governmental agencies. 11
21082108 (d) Program parameters. 12
21092109 (1) The Vermont Bond Bank, in consultation with the Department of 13
21102110 Housing and Community Development, shall develop program guidelines to 14
21112111 effectively implement the Fund. 15
21122112 (2) The program shall provide low-interest loans or bonds to 16
21132113 municipalities to expand infrastructure capacity. Eligible activities include: 17
21142114 (A) preliminary engineering and planning; 18
21152115 (B) engineering design and bid specifications; 19
21162116 (C) construction for municipal waster and wastewater systems; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
21172117 2025 Page 87 of 94
21182118
21192119
21202120 VT LEG #380410 v.1
21212121 (D) transportation investments, including those required by municipal 1
21222122 regulation, the municipality’s official map, designation requirements, or other 2
21232123 planning or engineering identifying complete streets and transportation and 3
21242124 transit related improvements, including improvements to existing streets; and 4
21252125 (E) other eligible activities as determined by the guidelines produced 5
21262126 by the Vermont Bond Bank in consultation with the Department of Housing 6
21272127 and Community Development. 7
21282128 (e) Application Requirements. Eligible project applications shall 8
21292129 demonstrate: 9
21302130 (1) the project will create reserve capacity necessary for new housing 10
21312131 unit development; 11
21322132 (2) the project has a direct link to housing unit production; and 12
21332133 (3) the municipality has a commitment to own and operate the project 13
21342134 throughout its useful life. 14
21352135 (f) Application Criteria. In addition to any criteria developed in the 15
21362136 program guidelines, project applications shall be evaluated using the following 16
21372137 criteria: 17
21382138 (1) whether there is a direct connection to proposed or in-progress 18
21392139 housing development with demonstrable progress toward regional housing 19
21402140 targets; 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
21412141 2025 Page 88 of 94
21422142
21432143
21442144 VT LEG #380410 v.1
21452145 (2) whether the project is an expansion of an existing system and the 1
21462146 proximity to a designated area; 2
21472147 (3) the project readiness and estimated time until the need for financing; 3
21482148 (4) the ranking of the community on the Vermont Department of 4
21492149 Finance and Management, Vermont Community Index; and 5
21502150 (5) the demonstration of financing for project completion or completion 6
21512151 of a project component. 7
21522152 (g) Award terms. The Vermont Bond Bank, in consultation with the 8
21532153 Department of Housing and Community Development, shall establish award 9
21542154 terms that may include: 10
21552155 (1) the maximum loan or bond amount; 11
21562156 (2) the maximum term of the loan or bond amount; 12
21572157 (3) the time by which amortization shall commence; 13
21582158 (4) the maximum interest rate; 14
21592159 (5) whether the loan is eligible for forgiveness and to what percentage or 15
21602160 amount; 16
21612161 (6) the necessary security for the loan or bond; and 17
21622162 (7) any additional covenants encumbering the improved properties to 18
21632163 further secure the loan or bond. 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
21642164 2025 Page 89 of 94
21652165
21662166
21672167 VT LEG #380410 v.1
21682168 (h) Revolving fund. Any funds repaid or returned from the Infrastructure 1
21692169 Sustainability Fund shall be deposited into the Fund and used to continue the 2
21702170 program established in this section. 3
21712171 * * * Tax Department Housing Data Access * * * 4
21722172 Sec. 49. 32 V.S.A. § 5404 is amended to read: 5
21732173 § 5404. DETERMINATION OF EDUCATION PROPERTY TAX GRAND 6
21742174 LIST 7
21752175 * * * 8
21762176 (b) Annually, on or before August 15, the clerk of a municipality, or the 9
21772177 supervisor of an unorganized town or gore, shall transmit to the Director in an 10
21782178 electronic or other format as prescribed by the Director: education and 11
21792179 municipal grand list data, including exemption information and grand list 12
21802180 abstracts; tax rates; an extract of the assessor database also referred to as a 13
21812181 Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA) system or Computer Assisted 14
21822182 Mass Appraisal database; and the total amount of taxes assessed in the town or 15
21832183 unorganized town or gore. The data transmitted shall identify each parcel by a 16
21842184 parcel identification number assigned under a numbering system prescribed by 17
21852185 the Director. Municipalities may continue to use existing numbering systems 18
21862186 in addition to, but not in substitution for, the parcel identification system 19
21872187 prescribed by the Director. If changes or additions to the grand list are made 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
21882188 2025 Page 90 of 94
21892189
21902190
21912191 VT LEG #380410 v.1
21922192 by the listers or other officials authorized to do so after such abstract has been 1
21932193 so transmitted, such clerks shall forthwith certify the same to the Director. 2
21942194 * * * 3
21952195 * * * Vermont Community Development Program Environmental Review * * 4
21962196 * 5
21972197 Sec. 50. 10 V.S.A. chapter 29, subchapter 1 is amended to read: 6
21982198 Subchapter 1. Community Development Act 7
21992199 * * * 8
22002200 § 690b. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW SERVICES 9
22012201 (a) All agencies, departments, and component parts of the State, federal 10
22022202 entities, and nonstate entities such as nonprofit and privately held companies 11
22032203 that receive services from the Vermont Department of Housing and 12
22042204 Community Development for projects funded in whole or in part by the federal 13
22052205 Department of Housing and Urban Development or other federal funding 14
22062206 requiring environmental review pursuant to 24 C.F.R. Part 58 (environmental 15
22072207 review procedures for entities assuming HUD environmental responsibilities) 16
22082208 may be charged for environmental review services through an assessment 17
22092209 payable to the Department of Housing and Community Development on a 18
22102210 basis established by the Commissioner of the Department of Housing and 19
22112211 Community Development and with the approval of the Secretary of 20
22122212 Administration. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
22132213 2025 Page 91 of 94
22142214
22152215
22162216 VT LEG #380410 v.1
22172217 (b) The Department of Housing and Community Development may render 1
22182218 these services solely in its discretion. The Department shall not charge for 2
22192219 environmental review associated with HUD funding the Department issues 3
22202220 directly, such as Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding. 4
22212221 (c) The Department may utilize these funds for administrative costs 5
22222222 associated with providing environmental review services and other 6
22232223 administrative costs of the Vermont Community Development Program. 7
22242224 * * * Appropriations * * * 8
22252225 Sec. 51. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY 9
22262226 DEVELOPMENT; POSITIONS; APPROPRIATION 10
22272227 Three full-time, classified positions are created in the Department of 11
22282228 Housing and Community Development. The sum of $450,000.00 is 12
22292229 appropriated from the General Fund to the Department in fiscal year 2026 for 13
22302230 the purposes of funding these positions. 14
22312231 Sec. 52. APPROPRIATIONS 15
22322232 (a) The following shall be appropriated to the Department of Housing and 16
22332233 Community Development: 17
22342234 (1) The sum of $300,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund in 18
22352235 fiscal year 2026 for the purposes of funding two existing limited-service 19
22362236 positions for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. One limited-service position shall 20
22372237 provide technical assistance to municipalities, nonprofit organizations, and 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
22382238 2025 Page 92 of 94
22392239
22402240
22412241 VT LEG #380410 v.1
22422242 private developers to aid in the development of infill and missing middle-1
22432243 income housing through the Homes for All initiative. One limited-service 2
22442244 position shall coordinate funding to distribution amongst State entities and 3
22452245 gather and analyze housing data to ensure efficient use of funds. 4
22462246 (2) The sum of $4,000,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund in 5
22472247 fiscal year 2026 for the purposes of providing funding to the Vermont Rental 6
22482248 Housing Improvement Program Revolving Fund established in 10 V.S.A. 7
22492249 § 699. 8
22502250 (3) The sum of $2,000,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund in 9
22512251 fiscal year 2026 for the purposes of providing funding for the Manufactured 10
22522252 Home Improvement and Repair Program established in 10 V.S.A. § 700. 11
22532253 (b) The sum of $2,000,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund to the 12
22542254 Department of Economic Development in fiscal year 2026 for brownfield 13
22552255 redevelopment. The Department of Economic Development shall use the 14
22562256 funds for the assessment, remediation, and redevelopment of brownfield sites 15
22572257 to be used in the same manner as the Brownfields Revitalization Fund 16
22582258 established in 10 V.S.A. § 6654, except, notwithstanding the grant limitations 17
22592259 in 10 V.S.A. § 6654, projects supported by these funds shall not be limited to a 18
22602260 maximum amount per site. The Department of Economic Development may 19
22612261 award up to the amount of $1,000,000.00 in fiscal year 2026 to regional 20
22622262 planning commissions for the purposes of brownfield assessment. In awarding 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
22632263 2025 Page 93 of 94
22642264
22652265
22662266 VT LEG #380410 v.1
22672267 funds under this subsection, the Secretary of the Agency of Commerce and 1
22682268 Community Development, in consultation with the Vermont Association of 2
22692269 Planning and Development Agencies, shall select one regional planning 3
22702270 commission to administer these funds. To ensure statewide availability, the 4
22712271 selected regional planning commission shall subgrant to regional planning 5
22722272 commissions with brownfield programs, with not more than 10 percent of the 6
22732273 funds being used for administrative purposes. 7
22742274 (c) The sum of $50,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund to the 8
22752275 Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation in 9
22762276 fiscal year 2026 to develop a water and sewer database and to administer the 10
22772277 amendments made to 3 V.S.A. chapter 51. 11
22782278 (d) The sum of $39,100,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund to 12
22792279 the Department of Housing and Community Development in fiscal year 2026 13
22802280 for the following purposes: 14
22812281 (1) $15,000,000.00 granted to the Vermont Housing Finance Agency to 15
22822282 continue implementation of the Middle-Income Homeownership Development 16
22832283 Program; 17
22842284 (2) $15,000,000.00 granted to the Vermont Housing Finance Agency to 18
22852285 continue implementation of the Rental Housing Revolving Loan Fund; and 19
22862286 (3) $9,100,000.00 granted to the Vermont Bond Bank to implement the 20
22872287 Vermont Infrastructure Sustainability Fund. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.412
22882288 2025 Page 94 of 94
22892289
22902290
22912291 VT LEG #380410 v.1
22922292 * * * Effective Date * * * 1
22932293 Sec. 53. EFFECTIVE DATE 2
22942294 This act shall take effect on July 1, 2025. 3