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Appropriations panel flags out-of-state placements, holds several education items open
Summary
The House Appropriations Committee reviewed multiple education budget items on Feb. 26 and kept several education appropriations open while asking agencies for more detail, with sustained attention on state-placed students sent to out‑of‑state residential programs and the effect on education costs.
The House Appropriations Committee on Feb. 26 continued review of the FY26 education budget and left several education line items open while requesting more information from agency staff.
Committee members said they will wait for additional detail from the Department of Education and other agencies before making final recommendations on major rollups, special education and residential-placement costs. Members noted the education payment roll-up (the committee referred to it as the “mixing bowl”) totals roughly $2,000,000,000 and is therefore not a line-by-line target for immediate closure.
Members raised a separate concern about students placed by the state in residential programs outside Vermont. A committee member said many state-placed students with complex needs have been sent to facilities in other states — including New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Mississippi and Arkansas — and that the practice increases difficulty for family connection and services. The committee asked staff to seek information from the Agency of Human Services and the Department of Education on the number of such students, the reasons for out‑of‑state placements, and which agencies currently pay the costs. Committee members described past reviews that found the out‑of‑state population fluctuates between roughly 30 and 60 students at any given time and asked that family services and education officials be invited to brief the committee.
On several specific points, the committee left B504 (adult education and literacy) and a series of K‑12 and higher education requests open to allow follow-up with agency finance staff. Committee members also requested clarification on extraordinary cost-sharing mechanisms for state-placed and high-cost students, including how programs such as Project SOAR and other state-placed arrangements factor into the extraordinary cost formula.
Committee leadership asked members to confer with education committee chairs and agency contacts and to return with letters or updated data in the coming days. No formal votes were taken on education appropriations during the session.
Looking ahead, members signaled they will continue to hold major education categories open until they receive requested clarifications and testimony from human services and education officials.
