Draft H.454 would replace Vermont school funding with foundation formula, reshape local tax rules

A legislative draft known as H.454 would replace Vermont’s current education funding system with a foundation formula intended to send a single “educational opportunity payment” to each district and create a separate locally approved tax for spending above that amount, committee staff said.

John Ray, legal counsel who led the committee walkthrough, summarized the change: “This general section … to move from our current education funding system to a foundation formula,” he said, describing a system that would create a base per‑pupil amount and weights that increase funding for students with additional needs.

Why it matters: The proposal alters how education dollars are calculated and collected across the state. Under the draft, most education revenue would flow into a single state education fund and then be distributed to districts based on a district’s “weighted long‑term membership.” Local voters could still authorize additional district spending, but that spending would be raised with a new, equalized supplemental district spending tax rather than the current local budget votes.

Key provisions and math discussed

Committee staff said the bill sets a base per‑pupil “cost factor” and a series of weights. In the walkthrough Ray read a line from the draft saying the base amount is “a per pupil cost factor amount of 15,033,” and later described the bill at a higher level as creating “a base per pupil amount of roughly $50,000 and educational opportunity payment for each school district.” The bill text and the staff presentation…