Liz Smith, executive director of the Vermont Council on Rural Development, told the committee she and the Working Lands Coalition are asking the legislature to appropriate $3,000,000 to the Working Lands Enterprise Fund for fiscal 2026.

The request would raise base support from the $1,000,000 included in the governor’s recommended budget to $3,000,000. "What we're here to request for the budget is an appropriation of $3,000,000 to the enterprise fund for FY 2026," Smith said. She said the 2024 application pool exceeded $16,000,000 while only $3,000,000 was available for awards.

The request matters because the fund supports small farm and forest businesses across Vermont, proponents said. "These grants have helped Vermonters start, expand, and pivot their businesses," Smith said, adding that the program supports local economies and resilient working lands that contribute to climate and water-quality goals.

Ellen Kaylor of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund, a member of the Working Lands Coalition, described how the fund has been used and why consistent funding matters. She said the program serves a wide range of business stages, from micro-startups to larger projects that require six-figure investments. "If we could get to $3,000,000 or $5,000,000 every year in base funding for this program, then forest and farm and food businesses would just be able to count on that," Kaylor said. She also described prior one-time ARPA allocations that temporarily boosted the fund to $3,000,000 in fiscal 2024.

Committee members asked for history and clarifications. One representative asked whether the extra $2,000,000 that produced $3,000,000 in 2024 was recurring; Kaylor explained that $2,000,000 had been one-time ARPA allocations spread across prior years, and the governor's base for the current fiscal year is $1,000,000. Committee members discussed whether a one-time top-up or an increase in base funding would be feasible given revenue forecasts.

Kaylor and Smith discussed program design, including a small-grants pilot funded in prior years that awarded roughly $150,000 to help smaller farms transition out of dairy. Kaylor recommended keeping a small-grants focus inside the existing Working Lands Enterprise Fund rather than creating a separate program, arguing that the board and staff have the review capacity and statewide allocation experience to manage a range of grant sizes.

Proponents asked the committee to coordinate with the House Commerce Committee and other lawmakers who have historically supported joint funding for the program. The two witnesses said program and board review processes help make the fund an effective lever for private lending by providing grant equity that allows businesses to qualify for loans.

Ending: The committee did not vote on a funding change during this hearing; members said they would weigh the request against revenue forecasts and other budget priorities. Smith and Kaylor said they would provide written materials to committee members and follow up with staff if the committee requested more data.