[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-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",6117177,"mediaKeyId","2730752-5da60e29f9c7058892af22764e8814f7","parentId",2730752,"title","Senate committee hears AOT on certified payroll; members debate prevailing‑wage reporting and impact on small contractors","audioSeconds",1415,"startMs",2041060,"endMs",3456290,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2730752-5da60e29f9c7058892af22764e8814f7&start=2041&end=3456","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2730752-5da60e29f9c7058892af22764e8814f7/thumbnail_2041060.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6117177/Vermont/Senate-committee-hears-AOT-on-certified-payroll-members-debate-prevailingwage-reporting-and-impact-on-small-contractors","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6117177-6837b37a7b466d67d6f9dcef881a06ce/orig.mp4?Expires=1771171249&Signature=EL6FpRVoXecsSUOkMaj7lKZ6eP0Mch~sCBWIj0TemSPB28nR3MzINzUFRAdZdurTv5DA9TlfPQcPuaoVA~jnB2uXEHXFVRUCSzIO2LpvKtpH5jEb~z25wNn67AccmjKZ57Xj5OSpuPYasXEu5M3iwW-zRo7ycfOOvw~yoh~wn7U9duJW2c2TD71xY~VqhFi60lUxqQ9LH8V3Wtnm0V0VnpgVYHkNw-GFmkKYgp2FYPoJ8wrMOgdCh1LUsScgTV7G0AucW336DiA8cM9KWpkQmpTCGdEqSFbfKVo76oeNBSW5PRYttm8rOzpDHi8h33M0xYC1ARd77~gdsKrSWLHhlw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-03-22T00:29:20.853Z","article","MONTPELIER — The Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee heard testimony from the Agency of Transportation on certified payroll procedures and spent more than two hours debating whether to require similar reporting for state prevailing‑wage construction projects.

Sonia Bover, civil rights labor compliance program manager at AOT, told the committee that AOT requires certified payroll (Davis‑Bacon) for federally funded construction projects and reviews weekly payroll submissions through a Doc Express platform. She said the agency monitors projects ranging from small jobs to multi‑million‑dollar contracts, and that most contractors who work on AOT projects have become familiar with the weekly certified‑payroll routine. Bover added that onboarding a handful of small “mom‑and‑pop” contractors can require additional staff assistance and that in some seasons — especially after emergency work such as flood recovery — new contractors unfamiliar with certified payroll have been unable or unwilling to complete the reporting.

Why it matters: Committee members framed the question as a balance between two aims — preventing misclassification and underpayment on public projects versus not discouraging small contractors from bidding for state work. The committee considered whether to require certified‑payroll reporting for projects that fall under the state prevailing‑wage statute (thresholds discussed ranged from $100,000 to $200,000 depending on funding source) and whether any new requirement should be phased in to give contractors time to comply.

Key testimony and points of debate

- Scope and practice: Bover said AOT currently enforces prevailing‑wage compliance on projects that carry federal Davis‑Bacon obligations and that contractors submit certified payroll weekly; the agency reviews those reports and, when discrepancies appear, resolves them with contractors and secures restitution to affected workers where required.

- Small‑contractor burden: Bover and Jayna (Jane) Morris, AOT director of administration, said the paperwork and equal‑employment‑opportunity compliance pieces can impose an administrative burden on smaller firms that lack dedicated office staff. Morris told senators that extending state requirements beyond federally funded projects may significantly shrink the pool of contractors able to bid on some state work if new administrative needs are not paired with assistance programs.

- Prevalence of misclassification: Discussion participants said misclassification and wage disputes have arisen in past years but disagreed about scale. Labor advocates and committee members who support tighter reporting said certified payroll is a transparency tool that makes it easier to detect and resolve underpayment. Representatives of contractors said many long‑established firms already comply and that the marginal burden is concentrated among very small operators.

Committee direction and amendment drafting

Committee members agreed to pursue two parallel steps: (1) refer the state employees’ affirmative‑action (AAP) matter as a standalone bill to the appropriate committees, and (2) continue work on two amendments for the labor bill that the committee is considering. The two amendments under active discussion were (a) raising the threshold for a decertification petition and (b) certified‑payroll reporting for projects covered by the prevailing‑wage statute.

- Decertification threshold: Senators moved to change the threshold that triggers a decertification petition process. A motion to prepare draft 3.1 that increases the showing‑of‑interest threshold to 50% plus one (from 30%) was put on the table. A non‑binding straw poll showed three committee members in support (Senators Tom Chittenden, Allison Clarkson and Ron Hinsdale) and two opposed; the chair requested that drafters prepare the new language (draft 3.1) for the committee record.

- Certified payroll requirement: Committee members did not adopt a final position on inserting a state certified‑payroll requirement into statute. AOT and small‑contractor advocates recommended a phased approach and technical assistance; labor proponents argued certified payroll would provide transparency and reduce misclassification and restitution costs over time. The committee agreed to extend conversation, draft possible language that would delay implementation to allow contractor onboarding, and to move technical pieces (the AAP matter) to other committees for further review.

Ending: The committee left the certified‑payroll question open, requested draft language for the decertification threshold, and asked staff to prepare amendments so the body could continue deliberations. No formal committee floor vote was recorded on the certified‑payroll requirement during this meeting.

All direct quotes are from committee testimony and are attributed to speakers in the speaker list below.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Economic Development - 2025-03-21-8:30 AM","oneSentenceSummary","Agency of Transportation staff told the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee that certified payrolls are routine on federally funded projects but can be burdensome for small contractors; senators debated whether to require similar reporting for state prevailing‑wage projects and agreed to draft changes to decertification thresholds while continuing work on the payroll question.","taxTitle","Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs, SENATE, Committees, Legislative , Vermont","taxId",37662,"location","Vermont","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6117182,"Burlington International Airport leaders brief Senate committee on growth, Project NEXT and sustainability plans",1949,28450,1977460,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2730752-5da60e29f9c7058892af22764e8814f7&start=28&end=1977","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2730752-5da60e29f9c7058892af22764e8814f7/thumbnail_28450.jpg","/articles/6117182/Vermont/Burlington-International-Airport-leaders-brief-Senate-committee-on-growth-Project-NEXT-and-sustainability-plans","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6117182-f65ecff1686fff889d653facb2295c7e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771171249&Signature=FAbbxYvdSLavOfMJAkYBtMxxM-KiMFPqayTu3yKCFZar~og231aXePgH-dfGrX7iozvPksRGS~BjN21bDVZl34JBR5d-cTX0lfTNcAjecDpIqUDmsVwbCephs-16nPV48YssCJopY3zWKWfYvlBV6OUV-HSU4NBK5Rwx~A4Fzv5xooq-kQ~wHWRxt9S6hpLILzUdH~EaB5HgsFKayqySHG~kTdBghIeu4LlwH~tlAeoD3ObvC51VlSZOp-jWP-A6Swnjz0Koo8ssqEFz5Tm32rNvc6uWuoJdlWJbf9~uGqi2VFbspxCW6m-cOnpO3kCgt1lqwK5kouN2Iqa9rRmcqw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","BURLINGTON, Vt. — Officials from Burlington International Airport told the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee that the airport is growing rapidly, serving a wider mix of commercial, cargo and general aviation traffic and planning a multi‑year capital program to expand terminal capacity and reduce its carbon footprint.

Airport Director Nick Longo summarized the airport’s role in the region and outlined Project NEXT, a phased effort to enlarge the terminal, add jetbridge capacity and reconfigure aircraft parking so Burlington can handle larger aircraft and rising passenger counts. Longo said the airport is classified as a small‑hub, is a U.S. port of entry with U.S. Customs preclearance as a target for future international service, and projects between about 1.4 million and 1.5 million passengers this calendar year.

The Project NEXT proposal, Longo said, responds to two trends: larger aircraft with higher seat counts and more concentrated peak‑period demand. Jeff Bartley, director of innovation and marketing, told senators that average seats per aircraft have risen from about 69 seats in 2008 to more than 90 seats now, while load factors have moved from roughly 75% to about 85%. The airport projects roughly 940,000 scheduled seats departing BTV this year (one‑way), which Bartlett and Longo said could make 2024/2025 the busiest year in airport history.

Why it matters: Committee members were shown that the existing terminal and apron were designed for smaller regional aircraft and shorter peak loads. Longo said safety and passenger throughput — notably through TSA — were solved in a prior project that consolidated security lanes and cut average TSA wait times from about 40 minutes to about 4 minutes. Project NEXT aims to solve remaining bottlenecks: interior passenger capacity, exterior aircraft parking positions and improved gate/jetbridge flexibility so longer, wider aircraft can fit without disrupting operations.

Key facts and funding: Longo said a 2017 master plan estimated the airport’s regional economic impact at just over $1 billion and cited prior study figures that attributed several billion dollars annually in tax collections to airport activity; he characterized those older figures as in need of update. The airport estimates a multi‑year capital program of roughly $140 million to $180 million in near‑term needs; Longo said the majority of those funds come through Federal Aviation Administration grants and that the state currently contributes about $500,000 annually under a capped support arrangement. He added that fuel sales taxes collected at the airport are in the low‑millions per year and that airport leaders have urged attention to both sustainability and the transportation fund implications of fuel tax revenues.

Operations and partners: Longo said Burlington averages about 20,000 operations a year at the airport and is the second‑busiest airport in New England by operations after Boston Logan. The airport currently works with six commercial carriers (Delta, American, United, Breeze, Frontier and seasonal service) and listed current corporate and industrial tenants, including Beta Technologies, Pratt & Whitney Canada, FedEx, UVM Medical Center (air ambulance), Vermont Air and Vermont National Guard elements. Airport staff said they are pursuing year‑round restoration or expansion of routes such as Denver and Raleigh‑Durham, and added a summer seasonal service to Charleston starting next month.

Sustainability and Project NEXT design: Longo emphasized sustainability features planned for the new terminal: mass timber construction, geothermal heating/cooling wells, and an airport carbon accreditation effort. He said Burlington has achieved Airport Carbon Accreditation Level 1 (data collection and emissions accounting) and is pursuing higher levels that require active emissions reduction. Longo also said the airport is electrifying parts of its ground operations fleet and has piloted charging infrastructure with Beta Technologies.

Passenger experience and concessions: Airport staff said the consolidation of security led to substantially improved wait times and that increased seat counts and larger planes require more concession and circulation capacity. Longo said the airport is pursuing new concessionaires, expanding food‑service hours and improving passenger amenities to handle higher peak demands and longer aircraft turnaround periods.

Committee reaction and next steps: Senators asked about the airport’s catchment area and “leakage” — passengers who drive to larger regional airports instead of using Burlington — which airport staff said currently retains about 42% of regional passengers. Committee members suggested expanded bus partnerships and improved ground access as ways to reduce leakage. The airport said it will update its economic impact study to reflect recent growth, including new employers locating at the airport and expanding cargo operations.

Ending: Airport officials invited legislators to tours and to an upcoming legislative breakfast at the terminal. Committee leaders thanked the delegation and shifted the hearing to labor‑bill matters.

Quotes used in this article come from the meeting transcript and are attributed to speakers listed below.","Burlington International Airport officials told the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee they expect record passenger volumes this year and outlined Project NEXT, a multi‑phase terminal expansion designed to accommodate larger aircraft, improve passenger flow and embed sustainability measures including mass‑timber construction and geothermal heating/cooling.","actionData","errors"]

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Senate committee hears AOT on certified payroll; members debate prevailing‑wage reporting and impact on small contractors

Burlington International Airport leaders brief Senate committee on growth, Project NEXT and sustainability plans