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Senators hear that four competing foundation formulas for Vermont schools aren’t directly comparable
Summary
Fiscal analysts told a Vermont Senate committee that four foundation-formula proposals use different bases and assumptions — making direct comparisons misleading — and urged clearer common definitions before lawmakers pick a model that will affect school funding and property-tax pressure.
Members of a Vermont Senate committee were told that four competing “foundation formula” proposals for school funding cannot be compared directly because each uses different bases, district constructs and assumptions, a complication that could materially change how much money districts receive and how the state’s school tax rate is affected.
The memo and presentations came from fiscal office staff and outside reports during a committee hearing where Julia Richter, Joint Fiscal Office, and Ezra Holden, Fiscal Office, described differences among an adjusted evidence‑based model promoted by the administration, an enhanced evidence‑based variant, a cost‑function model used in the House (H.454), and a Senate education proposal that holds FY2025 spending steady.
The distinction matters because the same weight or label in different proposals can produce different dollar amounts depending on the base used and whether the modeling assumes consolidated districts or today’s governance structure. “The base spending amounts are not directly comparable because they are assuming…
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