by Rep. David Yacovone
MONTPELIER – Serving on the Appropriations Committee can be exhilarating, sobering, mind-numbing and humbling all at once.
This week alone, close to sixty people paraded through our committee room to pitch their services for funding. Many of the organizations had been recommended for support by the governor, in full or in part, while others were omitted from his list entirely. In addition, thirty-nine organizations have signed up to testify at a public hearing, all hoping to persuade the committee that their work deserves a place in the final budget.
Unlike recent years, there are far fewer one-time federal funds available to ease difficult choices. That reality sharpens every decision.
If the committee chooses to fund a program not recommended by the governor, it must cut something he did recommend, never an easy or painless exercise.
There is, however, one notable exception. When last year’s budget was developed, roughly $110 million was set aside to soften the blow of anticipated Trump-era federal budget cuts. About $75 million of that reserve remains available, and some of it could be used to preserve important services the governor has proposed eliminating to balance the budget. Still, tapping these funds is far from simple. They are strictly one-time dollars, available for only a single year.
Programs that support families at high-risk of infant abuse, which help seniors with complex health needs remain in their homes, or offer assistance for tuition loans for physicians and nurses, among others, would be grateful for temporary relief. Yet one-time funding can become a bridge to nowhere, offering short-term survival with little hope of long-term sustainability. Those are the trade-offs the committee must weigh carefully.
Beyond the hard budget calls, serving on Appropriations provides a comprehensive understanding of the full breadth of state government. And for trivia buffs, there are plenty of memorable factoids along the way, from learning that Vermont ranks as the seventh-highest beer-consuming state in the nation at roughly 35 gallons per adult, to discovering that lottery ticket sales run close to $100 million a year. Of course, tourists may skew the numbers, but they still make for lively conversation and a reminder that in public policy, as in budgeting, nothing is ever quite as simple as it seems.
David Yacavone represents Lamoille-Washington in the Vermont Legislature, including Elmore, Morristown, Woodbury, Worcester and Stowe.
