Reflections on the "Think Twice" Provisions of Act 82
Prepared by
the Vermont Superintendents Association,
the Vermont School Boards Association
and the Vermont Principals Association
The law usurps the authority of school boards to propose budgets reflecting the needs of their communities in formats understandable to voters.
The required ballot wording for the two votes is prejudicial and misleading. To require a vote first on a "total budget" and then on "additional spending" unfairly presents the budget and will invite voters to unreasonably question the true fiscal needs of the district.
The law unfairly affects average-spending districts that require one-time greater budget increases, even if the district has a history of lesser budget increases.
The Act’s spending "benchmarks" will confuse the local budget process. School boards will be pressured to "budget to the benchmark" even though benchmarks are blind to the origin of costs such as transportation, tuition and special education.
Act 82 is the product of political expediency. It was pushed through the legislative process by means of a suspension of legislative rules and the "think twice" provisions were not presented at any time for public scrutiny or comment.
Act 82 is misguided. Over the last decade, the General Assembly has passed more than 80 new laws affecting education, each one of which added more obligations to school operations and more costs to local school districts. Additionally, federal requirements have increased school costs significantly. The Legislature ignored these facts through the passage of Act 82.
Act 82 reinforces the erroneous assumption that school spending is the sole cause of increasing property taxes and supports the politically motivated message that Vermont has an extraordinarily high tax burden that is due solely to excessive school budgets.
Act 82 potentially circumvents local control in 19 Vermont cities and 12 Vermont incorporated school districts by superseding their charters.
