Earlier this year, Governor Scott and lawmakers agreed to a new law (Act 73) that starts the process of reforming public education governance and funding in the hopes of stabilizing (and ideally reducing) the property tax burden.

Two state panels are currently examining how to reform school governance, stabilize school funding, and stop drastic property tax hikes every year.

One of those panels, the Commission on the Future of Public Education, is requesting feedback from Vermonters on property taxes and education funding.

*****

You can take the survey here: CFPE Vermont’s Education System Survey.

*****

This survey is conducted and maintained by the State of Vermont’s Commission on the Future of Public Education.

How Does Act 73 Work? The goal of property tax relief in Act 73 largely hinges on a handful of concepts:

A Foundation Formula is a method of state funding for schools that is stable and predictable from year to year that prevents or limits drastic annual spikes in the statewide education property tax as a result of local spending increases.

Minimum Class Sizes means a minimum number of students that must be enrolled per grade for a school to comply with the new law.

School District Consolidation means transitioning from ~170 governing units that range in student population from a few hundred to tens of thousands to roughly 10 to 20 larger school districts across the state.

Read more about Act 73 here: 2025 Vermont Legislative Recap Part V: Taxes & Property Taxes – NFIB.

School Redistricting. In the meantime, the other panel – the School District Redistricting Task Force – continues to explore options for school governance reform and consolidation.

Read more about that task force here: Vermont School District Redistricting Appointees Named – NFIB.

Two members of the task force have published an early proposal for consolidated regional school districts based on existing Career and Technical Education Districts: Wolk-Beck CTE-Based Map

Members are also looking at a map option based on proposed BOCES, or Boards of Cooperative Education Services, areas. This model has been used in New York since the 1940s, were authorized in Vermont in 2024, and allow schools to pool together to share services with the goal of improving quality and reducing costs.

BOCES often focuses on special and technical education services but can apply to a wide range of services that would otherwise be provided individually by schools.

More concepts are sure to be introduced ahead of the December 1 deadline for the task force to submit proposed school district maps to the Vermont Legislature.

Make your voice heard here: CFPE Vermont’s Education System Survey.