DAIL proposes $783.5 million FY2026 budget; Medicaid waiver covers majority of costs

The Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living presented its proposed fiscal year 2026 budget of $783,521,821 to the House Appropriations Committee on May 20, 2025, saying the request is structured so most spending flows through the state’s Global Commitment Medicaid program.

“The Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living is responsible for managing services for older Vermonters and Vermonters of all ages with disabilities,” Commissioner Dr. Bowen Dilbone said as the department opened its testimony to the committee.

DAIL officials told lawmakers the total represents a mix of funding sources: 88.8% from Global Commitment (Vermont’s Medicaid waiver), about 4.6% from the state general fund, 6.2% federal funds outside Global Commitment and roughly 1% special or interdepartmental funds. Division-level totals included a proposed $353,407,236 for the Developmental Disability Services Division (about 45% of the department request) and $378,590,741 for the Adult Services Division (about 48%). Other divisions—Vocational Rehabilitation (HireAbility), Blind and Visually Impaired services, Licensing and Protection, and the Commissioner’s Office—made up the remainder.

The department framed the request around program highlights and continuing priorities: implementing the Age Strong Vermont plan, expanding community-based supported housing pilots, moving toward mandatory conflict-free case management required by federal rules, stabilizing nursing facility payment rates, and continuing Meals on Wheels and other Older Americans Act services. DAIL cited service volumes in fiscal year 2024, including about 48,500 people receiving Older Americans Act services, just under 8,700 receiving home-delivered meals and roughly 6,663 receiving Choices for Care supports.

Budget details submitted to the committee described several large line items and adjustments: statutory nursing-home rate rebasing and related utilization increases, targeted caseload and program increases for developmental and brain-injury services, and funding to implement the conflict-free case management transition. Department staff said some of the change items reflect annualization of prior adjustments and caseload changes rather than brand-new program starts.

Committee members asked clarifying questions during the presentation. Representative Stevens queried the department about supported-housing pilot projects and a $2.8 million line referenced for a Burlington project; department officials said those pilot projects are meant to seed models that can attract additional public and private funding. Committeemembers also discussed Meals on Wheels funding and learned the department expects about $10 million from the Older Americans Act plus about $6 million in state funds to support nutritional programs statewide.

There were no formal votes recorded during the presentation. Department staff and the committee noted the budget will move through the committee process and that members may raise additional questions during the scheduled budget adjustment and floor discussions.

DAIL staff provided a detailed program-level packet and performance scorecards to the committee with request materials and said more granular line-item questions could be routed through staff ahead of the committee’s next steps.