[{"_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",6275025,"mediaKeyId","2777105-937e160e789e4529e3ce70c81e766d68","parentId",2777105,"title","Appropriations committee amends H.167; implementation of Vermonters Feeding Vermonters made contingent on funding, amendment approved 8‑0","audioSeconds",2497,"startMs",1158000,"endMs",3655000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2777105-937e160e789e4529e3ce70c81e766d68&start=1158&end=3655","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2777105-937e160e789e4529e3ce70c81e766d68/thumbnail_1158000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6275025/Vermont/Appropriations-committee-amends-H167-implementation-of-Vermonters-Feeding-Vermonters-made-contingent-on-funding-amendment-approved-80","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6275025-c2d050e2065ad17851a6aa809d4b30dc/orig.mp4?Expires=1770976449&Signature=URUO-bOqAMCgTG61VA7LZWcZWxtWkem64xEMZQg29ykeI1AXpX2diYBpE73BLmtMW8cee5b6ygpL1m1hlnoK9QXCtoq9wyV9AEQp50VWPKbJH4KPndO2OBJ8VU4bmWIpYE53~nJ7wBFfYBP7-FFrnu9H65Ieif0UJRLhGe7bu1bYLF7cebvj5Slly~4mbmh3GU8MZeWmhNGnn4rb-5KDTT~ThypDph9jxh9aLpwJCIsPriQVprGka5mLO2A9t6VXA7wQKdvwtSlWEVfai-2lGjZulRKK5eHlEiq7eenJXXdsKagMDQ6qAo3aWXsRFTcrNv0VIrqCMo9c0w3kmSH~Sw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-03-26T07:33:03Z","article","The committee reviewed H.167, the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters measure, and accepted the Appropriations Committee’s amendment that removes a $2,000,000 direct appropriation from the bill and makes the agency’s duty to implement the new grant program contingent on a fiscal‑year appropriation.

Tom Stevens, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, and staff explained that H.167 as passed out of the House originally included a $2,000,000 appropriation to the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (AAFM) to establish the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters grant program, including an administrative allowance of up to $67,500. Appropriations staff said their amendment strips the one‑time appropriation from the bill’s text and instead makes the statute contingent on receiving an appropriation in fiscal year 2026; if the appropriation is provided the agency is required to implement the program.

Stevens told the committee the current budget package includes $500,000 from the general fund for this program, which would make the program implementable if the budget survives final negotiations. He said the Appropriations Committee had requested larger amounts from advocates and agencies but the administration’s budget recommended smaller sums.

Committee discussion noted related budget items and funds: working lands and the Sustainable Jobs Fund were discussed as program partners for strategic investments; a separate Business Grant and Assistance Program (BGAP) $7,000,000 allocation was described as split and $2,000,000 directed to a faster disaster loan program administered outside AAFM; committee members also raised uncertainty about federal USDA funds that had been frozen and later unfrozen for some farm bill programs.

After discussion the committee took a straw poll to accept the Appropriations Committee amendment. The motion carried on a show of hands, 8‑0‑0, reported as the committee’s result for its forthcoming report. Committee staff said the bill language will remain in statute (Title 6) once enacted but implementation and award of grants will depend on appropriation in the future; if no appropriation is provided the agency is not required to implement the program.

The amendment also removed the explicit $67,500 administrative allocation from the bill; staff said the agency may still request administrative resources through the regular budget process if needed. Committee members said the statutory change preserves the program in law and creates an ongoing line item the administration and Appropriations can fund in future budgets, but acknowledged that funding could be set to zero during appropriation decisions and that final funding levels depend on ongoing budget negotiations.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Agriculture – 2025-03-25 – 2:20PM","oneSentenceSummary","Committee members accepted an amendment to H.167 that strips the bill’s $2 million line item and makes the new Vermonters Feeding Vermonters program contingent on an appropriation; committee staff said the biennial budget includes $500,000 that would allow implementation if enacted.","taxTitle","Agriculture, Food Resiliency, & Forestry, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Committees, Legislative , Vermont","taxId",36721,"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},6275030,"Sponsor outlines H.423 to embed year‑round food system and land‑use changes into Vermont planning",824,89000,913000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2777105-937e160e789e4529e3ce70c81e766d68&start=89&end=913","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2777105-937e160e789e4529e3ce70c81e766d68/thumbnail_89000.jpg","/articles/6275030/Vermont/Sponsor-outlines-H423-to-embed-yearround-food-system-and-landuse-changes-into-Vermont-planning","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6275030-4be9dac410bd21553a29b9149cd03b45/orig.mp4?Expires=1770976449&Signature=aByzXiOt6ig4I4b7hM3QfiWDI7JgnCVekqSFxp1pMEmejtNW5GPIS2BWL-YCxEvZdR7Q2eU3-fnlNNNywfeXcFq6eeAJJCMAPlo~sJuq70Towh1eHktsnf4bJlzsohg6E2T4gdvTfHsA2WjJkFMHBDExMUr7ycbQn8xu-v0CFcfbAthWRIrjj9gT5XJq8w2QV0rjsDpLoBoXJQ0Osx5iulKrSUPVGXSfVhzEIeul-Ge40PbeBOZ0-fcIASVBefPhcg-xb5h8gEQpiatXmxVWTfQQ8fHOC3o5vfiq1NIlzBeyF59~F7wsLbua5Q5tAHq-vZvFkJSyYK1~Dp~SA5syBg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Gina, a Burlington lawmaker, introduced H.423 — “An act relating to implementing the Vermont agriculture food systems strategic plan” — and told the committee the bill is intended to move the state toward “a statewide year round agricultural” network of production, processing and storage linked to local communities.

The bill’s sponsor told the committee the measure is grounded in the state’s strategic plan and in grassroots experience running food distribution programs. The sponsor said those programs expanded during the COVID‑19 pandemic and described sustained demand: “we started doing food distributions … we’ve been going 3 nights a week to feed people, 10 at night,” the sponsor said, recounting work with a group called the People’s Kitchen and deliveries to housing projects and people living outside.

Why it matters: the sponsor said the strategic plan addresses increased food insecurity since the pandemic and articulates ways state policy can strengthen local food systems. At the hearing the sponsor emphasized two recommendations from the plan: integrate access to agriculture into regional land‑use maps and invest in funded research and community‑centered programs to build skills and infrastructure for local food production.

Details provided at the meeting included proposals to embed agriculture into residential planning — for example, mapping community gardens and corridors linking downtowns to farms — and co‑locating shared facilities such as community kitchens, canneries, storage and tool banks. The sponsor pointed to Burlington’s Intervale as a model area where greenhouses, community composting and waste‑heat reuse could support year‑round growing.

The sponsor also urged the committee to fund research and programs that teach growing and food‑preservation skills and to “integrate food security into existing planning systems,” language the sponsor said appears in the strategic plan. The presentation noted that local initiatives such as People’s Kitchen and universal school meals are examples of existing community responses the bill aims to augment.

Committee members asked clarifying questions and identified agency and budget implications, but the meeting did not record a formal committee vote on H.423 during the session. Committee members and staff said the bill references the state strategic plan and could require subsequent budget action to fund grants or infrastructure once the statutory framework is established.

The sponsor closed by reiterating the bill’s purpose: creating statutory support and funding pathways so communities can build local production, storage and shared infrastructure that increase food security and strengthen social connections around food. The committee moved on to other items after the presentation.","A Burlington lawmaker previewed H.423, “An act relating to implementing the Vermont agriculture food systems strategic plan,” urging statutory steps to embed year‑round production, community infrastructure and land‑use changes to increase food security and local resilience.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Appropriations committee amends H.167; implementation of Vermonters Feeding Vermonters made contingent on funding, amendment approved 8‑0

Sponsor outlines H.423 to embed year‑round food system and land‑use changes into Vermont planning