Committee recommends targeting infant‑toddler reimbursement gap, backs several base funding increases

The Human Services Committee working group recommended narrowing a reported infant‑and‑toddler reimbursement gap by restoring funding to the base and targeting rate increases this fiscal year, while leaving a broader automatic inflation adjustment for a follow‑up bill next year.

The recommendation to prioritize infant and toddler reimbursement emerged after the group reviewed a department cost study that, members said, shows the largest shortfall in programs serving infants and toddlers. The working group identified two index‑based increase options (roughly 4.7 percent or a capped 6.15 percent) and noted that applying the higher cap would represent about a $6,500,000 increase to the base to close the shortfall in the near term.

Why this matters: committee members tied the recommendation to Act 76, which the committee said intended to address provider rates and capacity. The working group argued that by closing the infant/toddler gap now and legislating an automatic inflationary adjustment in a separate bill for the next fiscal year, the state can address urgent cost shortfalls without creating large downstream deficits.

Other budget priorities the group recommended adding to the base this year include:

- Building Bright Futures (BBF): a $322,000 base increase so the organization can sustain services the presenters described as statutorily required advisory and monitoring work. The working group said the increase would still leave state funding below half of BBF’s annual operating costs.

- CIS: an appropriation of $450,000 to increase a per‑member monthly rate the group cited as $650 currently toward an estimated actual cost of $738 per member per month. The working group said a 2024 rate study commissioned by Barnes & Associates supports the higher cost estimate and noted CIS last received a rate change in FY2022 when the rate moved from $600 to $650.

- Youth apprenticeship expansion: $156,000 to expand a childcare apprenticeship program administered with Vermont AEYC from 25 to 35 students annually. The presenters said the Child Development Division (CDD) was already working to clear an eight‑student waitlist and had temporarily absorbed roughly $25,000 of that cost.

- 2‑1‑1 service: a $332,000 addition to the base to maintain a 24/7 statewide resource and referral line that the presenters said had received one‑time funding in the most recent budget and would otherwise face a cut under the governor’s recommendation.

The group also discussed potential costs tied to a 7 percent copay rule and other implementation changes (including an enrollment‑based payment method and related IT or cash‑flow effects). Presenters said the department has an ARPA waiver in place now and that the federal and implementation details remain uncertain; the working group did not provide a firm dollar estimate for the copay change and suggested setting aside funds from a larger appropriation as a precaution.

No formal appropriation votes were recorded in the session transcript. Presenters said the recommendations would be folded into the committee’s overall budget memo and brought back for review and possible action at a later meeting, with members noting they expect to see the full package before formal votes.

The working group repeatedly stressed the connection between the recommendations and statutory goals in Act 76 (as described to the committee) and highlighted workforce and access concerns: the infant/toddler gap, CIS’s per‑member shortfall, and a childcare apprenticeship program’s waitlist were each described as barriers to expanding provider capacity.

Next steps: staff members said they would insert the newly received numbers into the working document, update language, and circulate a final draft before the committee reconvenes to consider the full budget package.