BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 1 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
S.39 1
Introduced by Senators Gulick, Norris and Weeks 2
Referred to Committee on 3
Date: 4
Subject: Education; State aid for capital construction costs; school construction 5
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to establish a 6
new State Aid for School Construction Program within the Agency of 7
Education to provide State debt service subsidy to school districts undertaking 8
eligible school construction projects, with varying amounts of State aid 9
available based on bonus incentive criteria adopted by rule of the Agency. 10
An act relating to the State Aid for School Construction Program 11
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 12
Sec. 1. 16 V.S.A. § 3440 is added to read: 13
§ 3440. STATEMENT OF POLICY 14
It is the intent of this chapter to encourage the efficient use of public funds 15
to modernize school infrastructure in alignment with current educational needs. 16
School construction projects supported by this chapter should be developed 17
taking consideration of standards of quality for public schools under section 18
165 of this title and prioritizing cost, geographic accessibility, 21st century 19
education facilities standards, statewide enrollment trends, and capacity and 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 2 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
scale that support best educational practices. Further, it is the intent of this 1
chapter to encourage the use of existing infrastructure to meet the needs of 2
Vermont students. Joint construction projects between two or more school 3
districts and consolidation of buildings within a district where feasible and 4
educationally appropriate are encouraged. 5
Sec. 2. 16 V.S.A. § 3442 is added to read: 6
§ 3442. STATE AID FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM 7
The Agency of Education shall be responsible for implementing the State 8
Aid for School Construction Program according to the provisions of this 9
chapter. The Agency shall be responsible for: 10
(1) reviewing all preliminary applications for State school construction 11
aid and issuing an approval or denial in accordance with section 3445 of this 12
chapter; 13
(2) adopting rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 pertaining to school 14
construction and capital outlay, including rules to specify a point prioritization 15
methodology and a bonus incentive structure aligned with the legislative intent 16
expressed in section 3440 of this title; 17
(3) including as part of its budget submitted to the Governor pursuant to 18
subdivision 212(21) of this title its annual school construction funding request; 19
(4) developing a prequalification and review process for project delivery 20
consultants and architecture and engineering firms specializing in 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 3 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
prekindergarten through grade 12 school design, renovation, or construction 1
and maintaining a list of such prequalified firms and consultants; 2
(5) providing technical assistance and guidance to school districts and 3
supervisory unions on all phases of school capital projects; 4
(6) providing technical advice and assistance, training, and education to 5
school districts, supervisory unions, general contractors, subcontractors, 6
construction or project managers, designers, and other vendors in the planning, 7
maintenance, and establishment of school facility space; 8
(7) maintaining a current list of school construction projects that have 9
received preliminary approval, projects that have received final approval, and 10
the priority points awarded to each project; 11
(8) collecting, maintaining, and making publicly available quarterly 12
progress reports of all ongoing school construction projects that shall include, 13
at a minimum, the costs of the project and the time schedule of the project; 14
(9) recommending policies and procedures designed to reduce 15
borrowing for school construction programs at both State and local levels; 16
(10) conducting a needs survey at least every five years to ascertain the 17
capital construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and other capital needs for 18
all public schools and maintaining such data in a publicly accessible format; 19
(11) developing a formal enrollment projection model or using 20
projection models already available; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 4 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(12) encouraging school districts and supervisory unions to investigate 1
opportunities for the maximum utilization of space in and around the district or 2
supervisory union; 3
(13) collecting and maintaining a clearinghouse of prototypical school 4
plans, as appropriate, that may be consulted by eligible applicants; 5
(14) retaining the services of consultants, as necessary, to effectuate the 6
roles and responsibilities listed within this section; and 7
(15) notwithstanding 2 V.S.A. § 20(d), annually on or before December 8
15, submitting a written report to the General Assembly regarding the status 9
and implementation of the State Aid for School Construction Program, 10
including the data required to be collected pursuant to this section. 11
Sec. 3. 16 V.S.A. § 3443 is added to read: 12
§ 3443. STATE AID FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY 13
BOARD 14
(a) Creation. There is hereby created the State Aid for School Construction 15
Advisory Board, which shall advise the Agency on the implementation of the 16
State Aid for School Construction Program in accordance with the provisions 17
of this chapter, including the adoption of rules, setting of statewide priorities, 18
criteria for project approval, and recommendations for project approval and 19
prioritization. 20
(b) Membership. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 5 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(1) Composition. The Board shall be composed of the following eight 1
members: 2
(A) four members who shall serve as ex officio members: 3
(i) the State Treasurer or designee; 4
(ii) the Commissioner of Buildings and General Services or 5
designee; 6
(iii) the Executive Director of the Vermont Bond Bank or 7
designee; and 8
(iv) the Chair of the State Board of Education or designee; and 9
(B) four members, none of whom shall be a current member of the 10
General Assembly, who shall serve four-year terms as follows: 11
(i) two members, appointed by the Speaker of the House, each of 12
whom shall have expertise in education or construction, real estate, or finance 13
and one of whom shall represent a supervisory union; and 14
(ii) two members, appointed by the Committee on Committees, 15
each of whom shall have expertise in education or construction, real estate, or 16
finance and one of whom shall be an educator. 17
(2) Members with four-year terms. 18
(A) A member with a term limit shall serve a term of four years and 19
until a successor is appointed. A term shall begin on January 1 of the year of 20
appointment and run through December 31 of the last year of the term. Terms 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 6 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
of these members shall be staggered so that not all terms expire at the same 1
time. 2
(B) A vacancy created before the expiration of a term shall be filled 3
in the same manner as the original appointment for the unexpired portion of the 4
term. 5
(C) A member with a term limit shall not serve more than two 6
consecutive terms. A member appointed to fill a vacancy created before the 7
expiration of a term shall not be deemed to have served a term for the purpose 8
of this subdivision (C). 9
(c) Duties. The Board shall advise the Agency on the implementation of 10
the State Aid for School Construction Program in accordance with the 11
provisions of this chapter, including: 12
(1) rules pertaining to school construction and capital outlay; 13
(2) project priorities; 14
(3) proposed legislation the Board deems desirable or necessary related 15
to the State Aid for School Construction Program, the provisions of this 16
chapter, and any related laws; 17
(4) policies and procedures designed to reduce borrowing for school 18
construction programs at both State and local levels; 19
(5) development of a formal enrollment projection model or the 20
consideration of using projection models already available; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 7 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(6) processes and procedures necessary to apply for, receive, administer, 1
and comply with the conditions and requirements of any grant, gift, 2
appropriation of property, services, or monies; 3
(7) the collection and maintenance of a clearinghouse of prototypical 4
school plans that may be consulted by eligible applicants and recommended 5
incentives to utilize such prototypes; 6
(8) the determination of eligible cost components of projects for funding 7
or reimbursement, including partial or full eligibility for project components 8
for which the benefit is shared between the school and other municipal and 9
community entities; 10
(9) development of a long-term vision for a statewide capital plan in 11
accordance with needs and projected funding; 12
(10) collection and maintenance of data on all public school facilities in 13
the State, including information on size, usage, enrollment, available facility 14
space, and maintenance; 15
(11) advising districts on the use of a needs survey to ascertain the 16
capital construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and other capital needs for 17
schools across the State; and 18
(12) encouraging school districts and supervisory unions to investigate 19
opportunities for the maximum utilization of space in and around the district or 20
supervisory union. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 8 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(d) Meetings. 1
(1) The State Treasurer shall call the first meeting of the Board to occur 2
on or before August 15, 2025. 3
(2) The Board shall select a chair from among its members. 4
(3) A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum. 5
(4) The Board shall meet not more than six times per year. 6
(e) Assistance. The Board shall have the administrative, technical, and 7
legal assistance of the Agency of Education. 8
(f) Compensation and reimbursement. Members of the Board shall be 9
entitled to per diem compensation and reimbursement of expenses as permitted 10
under 32 V.S.A. § 1010 for not more than six meetings per year. 11
Sec. 4. PROSPECTIVE REPEAL OF STATE AID FOR SCHOOL 12
CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY BOARD 13
16 V.S.A. § 3443 (State Aid for School Construction Advisory Board) is 14
repealed on July 1, 2035. 15
Sec. 5. 16 V.S.A. § 3444 is added to read: 16
§ 3444. SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AID SPECIAL FUND 17
(a) Creation. There is created the School Construction Aid Special Fund, 18
to be administered by the Agency of Education. Monies in the Fund shall be 19
used for the purposes of: 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 9 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(1) awarding aid to school construction projects under section 3445 of 1
this title; 2
(2) awarding grants through the Facilities Master Plan Grant Program 3
established in section 3441 of this title; 4
(3) funding administrative costs of the State Aid for School 5
Construction Program; and 6
(4) awarding emergency aid under section 3445 of this title. 7
(b) Funds. The Fund shall consist of: 8
(1) any amounts transferred or appropriated to it by the General 9
Assembly; and 10
(2) any interest earned by the Fund. 11
Sec. 6. 16 V.S.A. § 3445 is added to read: 12
§ 3445. APPROVAL AND FUNDING OF SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION 13
PROJECTS 14
(a) Construction aid. 15
(1) Preliminary application for construction aid. A school district 16
eligible for assistance under section 3447 of this title that intends to construct 17
or purchase a new school, or make extensive additions or alterations to its 18
existing school, and desires to avail itself of State school construction aid shall 19
submit a written preliminary application to the Secretary. A preliminary 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 10 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
application shall include information required by the Agency by rule and shall 1
specify the need for and purpose of the project. 2
(2) Approval of preliminary application. 3
(A) When reviewing a preliminary application for approval, the 4
Secretary shall consider: 5
(i) regional educational opportunities and needs, including school 6
building capacities across school district boundaries, and available 7
infrastructure in neighboring communities; 8
(ii) economic efficiencies; 9
(iii) the suitability of an existing school building to continue to 10
meet educational needs; and 11
(iv) statewide educational initiatives. 12
(B) The Secretary may approve a preliminary application if: 13
(i)(I) the project or part of the project fulfills a need occasioned 14
by: 15
(aa) conditions that threaten the health or safety of students 16
or employees; 17
(bb) facilities that are inadequate to provide programs 18
required by State or federal law or regulation; 19
(cc) excessive energy use resulting from the design of a 20
building or reliance on fossil fuels or electric space heat; or 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 11 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(dd) deterioration of an existing building; or 1
(II) the project results in consolidation of two or more school 2
buildings and will serve the educational needs of students in a more cost-3
effective and educationally appropriate manner as compared to individual 4
projects constructed separately; 5
(ii) the need addressed by the project cannot reasonably be met by 6
another means; 7
(iii) the proposed type, kind, quality, size, and estimated cost of 8
the project are suitable for the proposed curriculum and meet all legal 9
standards; 10
(iv) the applicant achieves the level of “proficiency” in the school 11
district quality standards regarding facilities management adopted by rule by 12
the Agency; and 13
(v) the applicant has completed a facilities master planning 14
process that: 15
(I) engages robust community involvement; 16
(II) considers regional solutions; 17
(III) evaluates environmental contaminants; and 18
(IV) produces a facilities master plan that unites the applicant’s 19
vision statement, educational needs, enrollment projections, renovation needs, 20
and construction projects. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 12 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(3) Priorities. Following approval of a preliminary application and 1
provided that the district has voted funds or authorized a bond for the total 2
estimated cost of a project, the Agency, with the advice of the State Aid for 3
School Construction Advisory Board, shall assign points to the project as 4
prescribed by rule of the Agency so that the project can be placed on a priority 5
list based on the number of points received. 6
(4) Request for legislative appropriation. The Agency shall submit its 7
annual school construction funding request to the Governor as part of its 8
budget pursuant to subdivision 212(21) of this title. Following submission of 9
the Governor’s recommended budget to the General Assembly pursuant to 10
32 V.S.A. § 306, the House Committee on Education and the Senate 11
Committee on Education shall recommend a total school construction 12
appropriation for the next fiscal year to the General Assembly. 13
(5) Final approval for construction aid. 14
(A) Unless approved by the Secretary for good cause in advance of 15
commencement of construction, a school district shall not begin construction 16
before the Secretary approves a final application. A school district may submit 17
a written final application to the Secretary at any time following approval of a 18
preliminary application. 19
(B) The Secretary may approve a final application for a project 20
provided that: 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 13 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(i) the project has received preliminary approval; 1
(ii) the district has voted funds or authorized a bond for the total 2
estimated cost of the project; 3
(iii) the district has made arrangements for project construction 4
supervision by persons competent in the building trades; 5
(iv) the district has provided for construction financing of the 6
project during a period prescribed by the Agency; 7
(v) the project has otherwise met the requirements of this chapter; 8
(vi) if the proposed project includes a playground, the project 9
includes a requirement that the design and construction of playground 10
equipment follow the guidelines set forth in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety 11
Commission Handbook for Public Playground Safety; and 12
(vii) if the total estimated cost of the proposed project is less than 13
$50,000.00, no performance bond or irrevocable letter of credit shall be 14
required. 15
(C) The Secretary may provide that a grant for a high school project 16
is conditioned upon the agreement of the recipient to provide high school 17
instruction for any high school pupil living in an area prescribed by the Agency 18
who may elect to attend the school. 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 14 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
(D) A district may begin construction upon receipt of final approval. 1
However, a district shall not be reimbursed for debt incurred due to borrowing 2
of funds in anticipation of aid under this section. 3
(6) Award of construction aid. 4
(A) The base amount of an award shall be 20 percent of the eligible 5
debt service cost of a project. Projects are eligible for additional bonus 6
incentives as specified in rule for up to an additional 20 percent of the eligible 7
debt service cost. 8
(B) As used in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (6), “eligible debt 9
service cost” of a project means the product of the lifetime cost of the bond 10
authorized for the project and the ratio of the approved cost of a project to the 11
total cost of the project. 12
(b) Emergency aid. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, 13
the Secretary may grant aid pursuant to subdivision (a)(6) of this section for a 14
project the Secretary deems to be an emergency, up to a maximum total project 15
cost of $100,000.00. 16
Sec. 7. 16 V.S.A. § 3446 is added to read: 17
§ 3446. APPEAL 18
Any municipal corporation as defined in section 3447 of this title aggrieved 19
by an order, allocation, or award of the Agency of Education may, within 30 20
days, appeal to the Superior Court in the county in which the project is located. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
2025 Page 15 of 15
VT LEG #379449 v.2
Sec. 8. TRANSFER OF RULEMAKING AUTHORITY; TRANSFER OF 1
RULES 2
(a) The statutory authority to adopt rules by the State Board of Education 3
pertaining to school construction and capital outlay adopted under 16 V.S.A. 4
§ 3448(e) and 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 is transferred from the State Board of 5
Education to the Agency of Education. 6
(b) All rules pertaining to school construction and capital outlay adopted by 7
the State Board of Education under 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 prior to July 1, 2026 8
shall be deemed the rules of the Agency of Education and remain in effect until 9
amended or repealed by the Agency of Education pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 10
25. 11
(c) The Agency of Education shall provide notice of the transfer to the 12
Secretary of State and the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules in 13
accordance with 3 V.S.A. § 848(d)(2). 14
Sec. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE 15
This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026. 16