[{"_1":2,"_86":-5,"_87":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},"mediaId",6317279,"mediaKeyId","2374776-fbe8da271648c9bbb938cca13faff5bd","parentId",2374776,"title","Representative outlines plan to shift school funding from property to income","audioSeconds",954,"startMs",365000,"endMs",1319000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2374776-fbe8da271648c9bbb938cca13faff5bd&start=365&end=1319","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2374776-fbe8da271648c9bbb938cca13faff5bd/thumbnail_365000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6317279/Vermont/Representative-outlines-plan-to-shift-school-funding-from-property-to-income","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6317279-22741c76433f98a38c218ccbdedfd90d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771064559&Signature=ehuNYaG2OpHaNTwRLQmPu9NyxYqdJ9TIPMeqUWICqxeXjiPwmsDXEHW6seHfVXwmhm5qiOugNALrBCq4v0pWZ2784-pMVtRux0mH4a90Oe2oZQZ3DGrZ0KBcvq9ITIovY3VPZorRxdfvHgG0P4rnKk8urVfllprPXlzzg5-l1YfJ1zQW-x2lXKY2I7RU0RwXbDVxoxeC1IysJHAphbyoRUlSVLwTn5B8em0ZHopdE4XDQgn-e7oUObv-pPd9JE~7Q2IbK64jPBBimRn0L3ivgQ6KySq2zzdU2DDgseEbrvrIRZUavXx53-sft30pHtPjnPm--1fJCrBkBzH~U5dCTQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-02-22T02:27:33Z","article","Representative Kloepner of Burlington introduced bill H177, proposing a phased move of education funding from a property-value base to an income-based system.

\"People would like us to do something about their property taxes,\" Representative Kloepner said, framing the bill as the next step in a long transition to link education funding to household income rather than property value. She told the Ways & Means Committee the bipartisan Tax Structure Commission unanimously recommended moving education funding to an income base and that the change would \"make Vermont's tax system more fair by more closely matching the tax with the ability to pay.\"

Kloepner and several members emphasized the complexity of the analysis needed to compare household property value and income, including how to incorporate rental data and homeowner data. She said, based on her review and with several caveats, roughly \"65 to 70% of Vermont schools would have a net tax cut,\" about 10% would be roughly a wash, and about 20% of Vermonters could see a net tax increase under the proposed brackets.

Committee members asked several clarifying questions. One member asked whether the bill would remove local control of school budgets; Kloepner said it would not and that H177 does not itself centralize those local votes. When asked whether moving to an income base would discourage enrollment in current-use land programs, Kloepner said the bill applies only to homesteads and would likely not affect most current-use enrollments.

Kloepner acknowledged the numerical tax rates in the bill are placeholders: the draft uses current Vermont personal income tax brackets because legislative counsel recommended inserting numbers rather than leaving blanks. She said the Tax Structure Commission’s recommended rates were less than half of what appears in the draft, and the placeholder values have led to confusion and consternation among members and constituents trying to calculate individual impacts. Kloepner said the Joint Fiscal Office (JFO) provided partial analysis but could not complete every requested calculation.

No committee vote on H177 was recorded at the hearing; the bill was introduced and discussed with questions and answers.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Ways and Means 2025-02-21 9:00AM","oneSentenceSummary","Representative introduced H177 to replace property-based education funding with an income-based model; members questioned distributional effects and placeholder tax rates in the draft bill.","taxTitle","Ways & Means, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Committees, Legislative , Vermont","taxId",35157,"location","Vermont","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6317284,"Committee hears bill to correct TIF overpayments after state audit",0,704000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2374776-fbe8da271648c9bbb938cca13faff5bd&start=704&end=704","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2374776-fbe8da271648c9bbb938cca13faff5bd/thumbnail_704000.jpg","/articles/6317284/Vermont/Committee-hears-bill-to-correct-TIF-overpayments-after-state-audit","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6317284-a35937e76d06269b5947d296d22277b4/orig.mp4?Expires=1771064559&Signature=Nk4tUdhdIqMyCEkdmbvTiNH9rWbJjMEcndxONfrz-WsG5wzdAu5Tv5dlZG326ji-W1SUyvHSOVQoVQcV~BFnVAajq55Lewp41yz4L9V-WqcOjIympj55Ul-4Ua733DALhstjVnWSu~6ZUHiWELFlZBzEYf6oNMWqNX3~rOgi5YRCpVyjPZudKIO8k6C92SfFkF84A7l7dZGoXgnsRCE6xW33yb1veznZDocUp4jHkE~JWp-DBoOdMsE09nmgep-daT~FDYO2c9TglrwhsKi8tJWyaxQ3ICsxsJsxaAw3aIIRZhQlzh10dsFHlMLZOeoQiEoX8i4Xr0HWU9yhZ3sf5g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Ways & Means Committee heard testimony on bill H178 to correct miscalculated tax increment financing (TIF) transfers that resulted in excess payments to education funds in multiple municipalities.

Carol Dawes, TIF administrator for Barre City, told the committee the state auditor’s TIF audit for the town of Milton uncovered a miscalculation in the NEMREC grand-list module used to transfer grand-list information between the Department of Taxes and towns. \"The miscalculation led to more money being transferred to the ed funds than should have been,\" Dawes said, citing about $180,000 for Milton and about $437,000 for Barre City.

The nut graf: Dawes said the overpayments were confirmed with the Department of Taxes, the Vermont Economic Progress Council, and the state auditor’s office, and that the problem stems from the NEMREC software module rather than a local accounting error. The committee received Dawes’s written testimony and audit corrections; the Barre City TIF audit was amended by the state auditor and resubmitted to the legislature in December 2024, she said.

Committee members asked whether the software error has been fixed. Dawes said it has not been corrected within NEMREC because that module is being phased out; the Department of Taxes and Property Valuation and Review are transitioning to a new program called VTPi, and officials decided not to invest in repairing a module scheduled for replacement.

No formal action or vote on H178 was recorded at the hearing. Dawes told members that similar corrections in the past have been handled as part of other bills or folded into miscellaneous tax language. She also said she had shared the details with the senator who typically handles Barre City TIF corrections and with Senate Finance.

The committee did not vote on H178 during the hearing; staff and members indicated the issue may be folded into other tax legislation as the session proceeds.","A bill introduced to correct tax increment financing (TIF) calculation errors would reimburse education funds after an audit found software miscalculations; no vote was taken.","actionData","errors"]

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Representative outlines plan to shift school funding from property to income

Committee hears bill to correct TIF overpayments after state audit