Farmers, housing groups urge full VHCB funding, cite repairs and new farmworker housing

Farmers and housing advocates told a legislative committee Friday that fully funding the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board at $36,900,000 for fiscal 2026 — the amount in the governor’s budget — is necessary to keep farmland affordable, expand farm businesses and finish a state‑funded program that repairs and replaces unsafe on‑farm worker housing.

Abby White, vice president for engagement at Vermont Land Trust and co‑chair of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Coalition, said the coalition represents more than 50 organizations and is asking the General Assembly to maintain the program’s full statutory share. “With the full property transfer tax continuing to rise because of high end real estate transactions, we think the full statutory share for VHCB, which is all about permanent and perpetual affordability, is really the right investment for this year,” White said.

The request follows several farm testimony pieces that described how VHCB‑funded programs and partner organizations have supported conservation easements, business planning and direct grants or loans that let small farms expand operations or secure long‑term viability. Becca Canals, owner of The Goat Project in Bennington, said technical assistance and an equipment grant through VHCB‑supported programs helped her move from hand milking to a mechanized system, qualify for a loan, and conserve farmland with the Vermont Land Trust. “DHCD has been my lifeline in building my dream as a farmer and providing food for my community,” Canals said.

Julie Curtin, director of homeownership at Champlain Housing Trust, described a VHCB‑funded on‑farm housing program launched in 2022 that provides no‑interest, secured loans to repair and, in some cases, replace worker housing. Curtin said the repair loans range from $3,000 to $30,000 and are structured so the balance declines 10% a year and does not require payment after 10 years if the unit remains used for farmworker housing. Curtin said the organization’s total program investments to date are about $2,600,000 for repairs and $1,120,000 for the replacement pilot.

Curtin offered project counts and examples: since the program began, 88 farms have applied; projects are underway on almost 50 farms, yielding roughly 70 newly improved units; five replacement projects are in progress and three have been completed; and about 75 farmworkers have benefited so far. She described one replacement project that produced a factory‑built modular home to replace a substandard trailer, and said residents “literally cried when they got to move in.”

Farm owners also described how conservation easements and VHCB support have enabled intergenerational transfers and affordability. Katie Rose Seward, owner of Head of Woodfield in Charlotte, said she purchased a conserved 76‑acre farm in 2021 in part because of VHCB and Land Trust support, and told the committee, “We support the administration’s fiscal year 26 budget for VHCB in full at $36,900,000.” Seward also described workforce pressures that affect small farms, including rising wages and a lack of affordable housing for employees.

Committee members and witnesses discussed timing and commitments for prior appropriations. White said the FY25 appropriation was about $34,000,000 and that many conservation commitments made with those funds are already allocated; she noted that the lifecycle of conservation and housing projects can stretch years. Program staff and advocates emphasized that once VHCB funds are committed to a project they are effectively reserved for that property even if construction and closing take additional months or years.

Speakers stressed two constraints that limit how far VHCB funds stretch: construction and materials costs have climbed since the pandemic, and a continuing shortage of contractors slows completion. Curtin said replacement projects often require considerably more funding than the $30,000 repair cap — one modular replacement project she described cost nearly $500,000 with multiple funding sources — and VHCB funding is essential but not sufficient on its own.

The coalition asked lawmakers to fund VHCB’s full statutory share so that conservation easements, farm viability assistance and the on‑farm housing repair and replacement programs can continue to support farm businesses and the workers they employ. Witnesses noted continued uncertainty about federal cost‑share programs and the need to get the word out to farms about available resources.

The committee did not take any formal votes on the VHCB request during the testimony period recorded in the transcript.