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Treasurer’s office outlines baby bonds pilot plan, seeks private fundraising and evaluation partners
Summary
The Vermont State Treasurer’s Office said May 13 it will pursue a privately funded pilot of the baby bonds program authorized by the legislature last session, targeting the Northeast Kingdom and accelerated cohorts to produce earlier evaluation data; the statewide program was not funded in the last session.
Becky Wasserman, director of economic empowerment at the Vermont State Treasurer’s Office, told the House Committee on Commerce & Economic Development on May 13 that the office is developing a privately funded pilot for the baby bonds program authorized by the legislature last session and is pursuing fundraising, advisory input and evaluation partners.
Wasserman said the statutory baby bonds proposal previously presented by the Treasurer’s Office would have provided a $3,200 seed investment for babies born on Medicaid, to grow until individuals can access funds for education, starting a business, buying property or retirement between ages 18 and 30. ‘‘We did not get funding for the program, but the legislature did authorize us to do a pilot,’’ she said.
Because statewide implementation would take many years to produce outcome data, the office plans an accelerated pilot that would give older cohorts amounts comparable to the invested $3,200 — roughly $20,000 in her description — to generate measurable outcomes in a shorter time frame. Wasserman said the office has formed a baby bonds advisory committee, is preparing a fundraising proposal to solicit private philanthropy, and plans to issue an RFI for an evaluation partner.
The pilot will emphasize rural counties with higher Medicaid birth rates; Wasserman said statewide Medicaid births are about 40% of births, while in some Northeast Kingdom counties the rate is closer to 60%. ‘‘We would like to focus the pilot in the Northeast Kingdom, because we want to focus on sort of the most rural counties in Vermont,’’ she said.
Wasserman said the office has identified a program administrator with experience in other baby bonds pilots who can provide financial education modules and coaching and who partners with a financial advisory firm to offer optional advice to recipients. The office is also discussing partnerships with a local academic evaluator and a national research organization to design rigorous data collection and control cohorts so the pilot can measure impacts of funds plus wraparound services versus services alone.
Committee members asked whether pilot funds would require in-state use for education, business or property. Wasserman said the office has not made final program-design decisions and that requirements such as in-state restrictions on education or property purchases will be determined through stakeholder engagement and advisory committee recommendations.
Wasserman said the office wants to add legislative language to the pilot authorization to require ongoing reporting to the legislature and to create a distinct fund structure for a short-term pilot rather than a long-term trust. She noted the next advisory committee meeting is scheduled for July and that additional stakeholder engagement, including a youth council, is planned.
Next steps are finalizing the fundraising proposal, issuing an RFI for evaluation partners, convening stakeholders and drafting pilot-specific statutory language to add accountability and reporting requirements.
