VT
Vermont Senate Bill S0039

Vermont 2025-2026 Regular Session

Vermont Senate Bill S0039 Compare Versions

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11 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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55 VT LEG #379449 v.2
66 S.39 1
77 Introduced by Senators Gulick, Norris and Weeks 2
88 Referred to Committee on 3
99 Date: 4
1010 Subject: Education; State aid for capital construction costs; school construction 5
1111 Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to establish a 6
1212 new State Aid for School Construction Program within the Agency of 7
1313 Education to provide State debt service subsidy to school districts undertaking 8
1414 eligible school construction projects, with varying amounts of State aid 9
1515 available based on bonus incentive criteria adopted by rule of the Agency. 10
1616 An act relating to the State Aid for School Construction Program 11
1717 It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 12
1818 Sec. 1. 16 V.S.A. § 3440 is added to read: 13
1919 § 3440. STATEMENT OF POLICY 14
2020 It is the intent of this chapter to encourage the efficient use of public funds 15
2121 to modernize school infrastructure in alignment with current educational needs. 16
2222 School construction projects supported by this chapter should be developed 17
2323 taking consideration of standards of quality for public schools under section 18
2424 165 of this title and prioritizing cost, geographic accessibility, 21st century 19
2525 education facilities standards, statewide enrollment trends, and capacity and 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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3030 scale that support best educational practices. Further, it is the intent of this 1
3131 chapter to encourage the use of existing infrastructure to meet the needs of 2
3232 Vermont students. Joint construction projects between two or more school 3
3333 districts and consolidation of buildings within a district where feasible and 4
3434 educationally appropriate are encouraged. 5
3535 Sec. 2. 16 V.S.A. § 3442 is added to read: 6
3636 § 3442. STATE AID FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM 7
3737 The Agency of Education shall be responsible for implementing the State 8
3838 Aid for School Construction Program according to the provisions of this 9
3939 chapter. The Agency shall be responsible for: 10
4040 (1) reviewing all preliminary applications for State school construction 11
4141 aid and issuing an approval or denial in accordance with section 3445 of this 12
4242 chapter; 13
4343 (2) adopting rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 pertaining to school 14
4444 construction and capital outlay, including rules to specify a point prioritization 15
4545 methodology and a bonus incentive structure aligned with the legislative intent 16
4646 expressed in section 3440 of this title; 17
4747 (3) including as part of its budget submitted to the Governor pursuant to 18
4848 subdivision 212(21) of this title its annual school construction funding request; 19
4949 (4) developing a prequalification and review process for project delivery 20
5050 consultants and architecture and engineering firms specializing in 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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5555 prekindergarten through grade 12 school design, renovation, or construction 1
5656 and maintaining a list of such prequalified firms and consultants; 2
5757 (5) providing technical assistance and guidance to school districts and 3
5858 supervisory unions on all phases of school capital projects; 4
5959 (6) providing technical advice and assistance, training, and education to 5
6060 school districts, supervisory unions, general contractors, subcontractors, 6
6161 construction or project managers, designers, and other vendors in the planning, 7
6262 maintenance, and establishment of school facility space; 8
6363 (7) maintaining a current list of school construction projects that have 9
6464 received preliminary approval, projects that have received final approval, and 10
6565 the priority points awarded to each project; 11
6666 (8) collecting, maintaining, and making publicly available quarterly 12
6767 progress reports of all ongoing school construction projects that shall include, 13
6868 at a minimum, the costs of the project and the time schedule of the project; 14
6969 (9) recommending policies and procedures designed to reduce 15
7070 borrowing for school construction programs at both State and local levels; 16
7171 (10) conducting a needs survey at least every five years to ascertain the 17
7272 capital construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and other capital needs for 18
7373 all public schools and maintaining such data in a publicly accessible format; 19
7474 (11) developing a formal enrollment projection model or using 20
7575 projection models already available; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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8080 (12) encouraging school districts and supervisory unions to investigate 1
8181 opportunities for the maximum utilization of space in and around the district or 2
8282 supervisory union; 3
8383 (13) collecting and maintaining a clearinghouse of prototypical school 4
8484 plans, as appropriate, that may be consulted by eligible applicants; 5
8585 (14) retaining the services of consultants, as necessary, to effectuate the 6
8686 roles and responsibilities listed within this section; and 7
8787 (15) notwithstanding 2 V.S.A. § 20(d), annually on or before December 8
8888 15, submitting a written report to the General Assembly regarding the status 9
8989 and implementation of the State Aid for School Construction Program, 10
9090 including the data required to be collected pursuant to this section. 11
9191 Sec. 3. 16 V.S.A. § 3443 is added to read: 12
9292 § 3443. STATE AID FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY 13
9393 BOARD 14
9494 (a) Creation. There is hereby created the State Aid for School Construction 15
9595 Advisory Board, which shall advise the Agency on the implementation of the 16
9696 State Aid for School Construction Program in accordance with the provisions 17
9797 of this chapter, including the adoption of rules, setting of statewide priorities, 18
9898 criteria for project approval, and recommendations for project approval and 19
9999 prioritization. 20
100100 (b) Membership. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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105105 (1) Composition. The Board shall be composed of the following eight 1
106106 members: 2
107107 (A) four members who shall serve as ex officio members: 3
108108 (i) the State Treasurer or designee; 4
109109 (ii) the Commissioner of Buildings and General Services or 5
110110 designee; 6
111111 (iii) the Executive Director of the Vermont Bond Bank or 7
112112 designee; and 8
113113 (iv) the Chair of the State Board of Education or designee; and 9
114114 (B) four members, none of whom shall be a current member of the 10
115115 General Assembly, who shall serve four-year terms as follows: 11
116116 (i) two members, appointed by the Speaker of the House, each of 12
117117 whom shall have expertise in education or construction, real estate, or finance 13
118118 and one of whom shall represent a supervisory union; and 14
119119 (ii) two members, appointed by the Committee on Committees, 15
120120 each of whom shall have expertise in education or construction, real estate, or 16
121121 finance and one of whom shall be an educator. 17
122122 (2) Members with four-year terms. 18
123123 (A) A member with a term limit shall serve a term of four years and 19
124124 until a successor is appointed. A term shall begin on January 1 of the year of 20
125125 appointment and run through December 31 of the last year of the term. Terms 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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130130 of these members shall be staggered so that not all terms expire at the same 1
131131 time. 2
132132 (B) A vacancy created before the expiration of a term shall be filled 3
133133 in the same manner as the original appointment for the unexpired portion of the 4
134134 term. 5
135135 (C) A member with a term limit shall not serve more than two 6
136136 consecutive terms. A member appointed to fill a vacancy created before the 7
137137 expiration of a term shall not be deemed to have served a term for the purpose 8
138138 of this subdivision (C). 9
139139 (c) Duties. The Board shall advise the Agency on the implementation of 10
140140 the State Aid for School Construction Program in accordance with the 11
141141 provisions of this chapter, including: 12
142142 (1) rules pertaining to school construction and capital outlay; 13
143143 (2) project priorities; 14
144144 (3) proposed legislation the Board deems desirable or necessary related 15
145145 to the State Aid for School Construction Program, the provisions of this 16
146146 chapter, and any related laws; 17
147147 (4) policies and procedures designed to reduce borrowing for school 18
148148 construction programs at both State and local levels; 19
149149 (5) development of a formal enrollment projection model or the 20
150150 consideration of using projection models already available; 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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155155 (6) processes and procedures necessary to apply for, receive, administer, 1
156156 and comply with the conditions and requirements of any grant, gift, 2
157157 appropriation of property, services, or monies; 3
158158 (7) the collection and maintenance of a clearinghouse of prototypical 4
159159 school plans that may be consulted by eligible applicants and recommended 5
160160 incentives to utilize such prototypes; 6
161161 (8) the determination of eligible cost components of projects for funding 7
162162 or reimbursement, including partial or full eligibility for project components 8
163163 for which the benefit is shared between the school and other municipal and 9
164164 community entities; 10
165165 (9) development of a long-term vision for a statewide capital plan in 11
166166 accordance with needs and projected funding; 12
167167 (10) collection and maintenance of data on all public school facilities in 13
168168 the State, including information on size, usage, enrollment, available facility 14
169169 space, and maintenance; 15
170170 (11) advising districts on the use of a needs survey to ascertain the 16
171171 capital construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and other capital needs for 17
172172 schools across the State; and 18
173173 (12) encouraging school districts and supervisory unions to investigate 19
174174 opportunities for the maximum utilization of space in and around the district or 20
175175 supervisory union. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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180180 (d) Meetings. 1
181181 (1) The State Treasurer shall call the first meeting of the Board to occur 2
182182 on or before August 15, 2025. 3
183183 (2) The Board shall select a chair from among its members. 4
184184 (3) A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum. 5
185185 (4) The Board shall meet not more than six times per year. 6
186186 (e) Assistance. The Board shall have the administrative, technical, and 7
187187 legal assistance of the Agency of Education. 8
188188 (f) Compensation and reimbursement. Members of the Board shall be 9
189189 entitled to per diem compensation and reimbursement of expenses as permitted 10
190190 under 32 V.S.A. § 1010 for not more than six meetings per year. 11
191191 Sec. 4. PROSPECTIVE REPEAL OF STATE AID FOR SCHOOL 12
192192 CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY BOARD 13
193193 16 V.S.A. § 3443 (State Aid for School Construction Advisory Board) is 14
194194 repealed on July 1, 2035. 15
195195 Sec. 5. 16 V.S.A. § 3444 is added to read: 16
196196 § 3444. SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AID SPECIAL FUND 17
197197 (a) Creation. There is created the School Construction Aid Special Fund, 18
198198 to be administered by the Agency of Education. Monies in the Fund shall be 19
199199 used for the purposes of: 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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204204 (1) awarding aid to school construction projects under section 3445 of 1
205205 this title; 2
206206 (2) awarding grants through the Facilities Master Plan Grant Program 3
207207 established in section 3441 of this title; 4
208208 (3) funding administrative costs of the State Aid for School 5
209209 Construction Program; and 6
210210 (4) awarding emergency aid under section 3445 of this title. 7
211211 (b) Funds. The Fund shall consist of: 8
212212 (1) any amounts transferred or appropriated to it by the General 9
213213 Assembly; and 10
214214 (2) any interest earned by the Fund. 11
215215 Sec. 6. 16 V.S.A. § 3445 is added to read: 12
216216 § 3445. APPROVAL AND FUNDING OF SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION 13
217217 PROJECTS 14
218218 (a) Construction aid. 15
219219 (1) Preliminary application for construction aid. A school district 16
220220 eligible for assistance under section 3447 of this title that intends to construct 17
221221 or purchase a new school, or make extensive additions or alterations to its 18
222222 existing school, and desires to avail itself of State school construction aid shall 19
223223 submit a written preliminary application to the Secretary. A preliminary 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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228228 application shall include information required by the Agency by rule and shall 1
229229 specify the need for and purpose of the project. 2
230230 (2) Approval of preliminary application. 3
231231 (A) When reviewing a preliminary application for approval, the 4
232232 Secretary shall consider: 5
233233 (i) regional educational opportunities and needs, including school 6
234234 building capacities across school district boundaries, and available 7
235235 infrastructure in neighboring communities; 8
236236 (ii) economic efficiencies; 9
237237 (iii) the suitability of an existing school building to continue to 10
238238 meet educational needs; and 11
239239 (iv) statewide educational initiatives. 12
240240 (B) The Secretary may approve a preliminary application if: 13
241241 (i)(I) the project or part of the project fulfills a need occasioned 14
242242 by: 15
243243 (aa) conditions that threaten the health or safety of students 16
244244 or employees; 17
245245 (bb) facilities that are inadequate to provide programs 18
246246 required by State or federal law or regulation; 19
247247 (cc) excessive energy use resulting from the design of a 20
248248 building or reliance on fossil fuels or electric space heat; or 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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253253 (dd) deterioration of an existing building; or 1
254254 (II) the project results in consolidation of two or more school 2
255255 buildings and will serve the educational needs of students in a more cost-3
256256 effective and educationally appropriate manner as compared to individual 4
257257 projects constructed separately; 5
258258 (ii) the need addressed by the project cannot reasonably be met by 6
259259 another means; 7
260260 (iii) the proposed type, kind, quality, size, and estimated cost of 8
261261 the project are suitable for the proposed curriculum and meet all legal 9
262262 standards; 10
263263 (iv) the applicant achieves the level of “proficiency” in the school 11
264264 district quality standards regarding facilities management adopted by rule by 12
265265 the Agency; and 13
266266 (v) the applicant has completed a facilities master planning 14
267267 process that: 15
268268 (I) engages robust community involvement; 16
269269 (II) considers regional solutions; 17
270270 (III) evaluates environmental contaminants; and 18
271271 (IV) produces a facilities master plan that unites the applicant’s 19
272272 vision statement, educational needs, enrollment projections, renovation needs, 20
273273 and construction projects. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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278278 (3) Priorities. Following approval of a preliminary application and 1
279279 provided that the district has voted funds or authorized a bond for the total 2
280280 estimated cost of a project, the Agency, with the advice of the State Aid for 3
281281 School Construction Advisory Board, shall assign points to the project as 4
282282 prescribed by rule of the Agency so that the project can be placed on a priority 5
283283 list based on the number of points received. 6
284284 (4) Request for legislative appropriation. The Agency shall submit its 7
285285 annual school construction funding request to the Governor as part of its 8
286286 budget pursuant to subdivision 212(21) of this title. Following submission of 9
287287 the Governor’s recommended budget to the General Assembly pursuant to 10
288288 32 V.S.A. § 306, the House Committee on Education and the Senate 11
289289 Committee on Education shall recommend a total school construction 12
290290 appropriation for the next fiscal year to the General Assembly. 13
291291 (5) Final approval for construction aid. 14
292292 (A) Unless approved by the Secretary for good cause in advance of 15
293293 commencement of construction, a school district shall not begin construction 16
294294 before the Secretary approves a final application. A school district may submit 17
295295 a written final application to the Secretary at any time following approval of a 18
296296 preliminary application. 19
297297 (B) The Secretary may approve a final application for a project 20
298298 provided that: 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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303303 (i) the project has received preliminary approval; 1
304304 (ii) the district has voted funds or authorized a bond for the total 2
305305 estimated cost of the project; 3
306306 (iii) the district has made arrangements for project construction 4
307307 supervision by persons competent in the building trades; 5
308308 (iv) the district has provided for construction financing of the 6
309309 project during a period prescribed by the Agency; 7
310310 (v) the project has otherwise met the requirements of this chapter; 8
311311 (vi) if the proposed project includes a playground, the project 9
312312 includes a requirement that the design and construction of playground 10
313313 equipment follow the guidelines set forth in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety 11
314314 Commission Handbook for Public Playground Safety; and 12
315315 (vii) if the total estimated cost of the proposed project is less than 13
316316 $50,000.00, no performance bond or irrevocable letter of credit shall be 14
317317 required. 15
318318 (C) The Secretary may provide that a grant for a high school project 16
319319 is conditioned upon the agreement of the recipient to provide high school 17
320320 instruction for any high school pupil living in an area prescribed by the Agency 18
321321 who may elect to attend the school. 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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326326 (D) A district may begin construction upon receipt of final approval. 1
327327 However, a district shall not be reimbursed for debt incurred due to borrowing 2
328328 of funds in anticipation of aid under this section. 3
329329 (6) Award of construction aid. 4
330330 (A) The base amount of an award shall be 20 percent of the eligible 5
331331 debt service cost of a project. Projects are eligible for additional bonus 6
332332 incentives as specified in rule for up to an additional 20 percent of the eligible 7
333333 debt service cost. 8
334334 (B) As used in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (6), “eligible debt 9
335335 service cost” of a project means the product of the lifetime cost of the bond 10
336336 authorized for the project and the ratio of the approved cost of a project to the 11
337337 total cost of the project. 12
338338 (b) Emergency aid. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, 13
339339 the Secretary may grant aid pursuant to subdivision (a)(6) of this section for a 14
340340 project the Secretary deems to be an emergency, up to a maximum total project 15
341341 cost of $100,000.00. 16
342342 Sec. 7. 16 V.S.A. § 3446 is added to read: 17
343343 § 3446. APPEAL 18
344344 Any municipal corporation as defined in section 3447 of this title aggrieved 19
345345 by an order, allocation, or award of the Agency of Education may, within 30 20
346346 days, appeal to the Superior Court in the county in which the project is located. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED S.39
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351351 Sec. 8. TRANSFER OF RULEMAKING AUTHORITY; TRANSFER OF 1
352352 RULES 2
353353 (a) The statutory authority to adopt rules by the State Board of Education 3
354354 pertaining to school construction and capital outlay adopted under 16 V.S.A. 4
355355 § 3448(e) and 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 is transferred from the State Board of 5
356356 Education to the Agency of Education. 6
357357 (b) All rules pertaining to school construction and capital outlay adopted by 7
358358 the State Board of Education under 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 prior to July 1, 2026 8
359359 shall be deemed the rules of the Agency of Education and remain in effect until 9
360360 amended or repealed by the Agency of Education pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 10
361361 25. 11
362362 (c) The Agency of Education shall provide notice of the transfer to the 12
363363 Secretary of State and the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules in 13
364364 accordance with 3 V.S.A. § 848(d)(2). 14
365365 Sec. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE 15
366366 This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026. 16