Land Access and Opportunity Board asks for steady funding, outlines housing and land-access programs

At a meeting of the Agriculture, Food Resiliency, & Forestry committee, Jean Hamilton, co‑director of the Land Access and Opportunity Board, reported on the board’s first year of staff work and urged steady funding to expand land‑access and housing programs. Hamilton said the board was written into the governor’s budget for $1,600,000 and is pursuing a separate, larger funding stream through a cannabis excise‑tax community‑reinvestment proposal she said could total about $5,600,000.

Hamilton told members the LAOB has been contracted to serve as the state’s anchor organization for a regional U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant effort she described as “a $48,000,000 grant project” available across New England; she added the LAOB itself would receive a smaller anchor allocation of about $150,000 if that work proceeds. "This past week, every single day, we have gotten different guidance on, it's a go, we're holding back," Hamilton said of the EPA rollout.

Why it matters: Hamilton said the funds would enable direct payments and program scaling aimed at Vermonters who face systemic barriers to land and homeownership, naming low‑income residents, people with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, Black, Indigenous and other people of color, queer Vermonters and psychiatric survivors. LAOB’s priorities include down‑payment assistance for homes and land, targeted capital for emerging community developers, and community resilience efforts tied to flood and climate impacts.

Hamilton summarized LAOB structure and capacity. The board has 22 seats and operates under an enabling statute enacted in 2022; administrative services are provided through a memorandum of understanding with the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board (VHCB), but Hamilton said LAOB “operates completely independently” in setting its agenda. She said LAOB currently has two staff members and plans to hire additional staff to run proposed programs.

Programs and proposals described

- Housing coaches: Hamilton said LAOB plans to contract five full‑time housing coaches positioned in partner organizations to provide sustained, hands‑on help with rental searches and the home‑buying process and to surface on‑the‑ground barriers such as lending discrimination.

- Direct payments and down‑payment assistance: Hamilton highlighted proposals to put dollars directly into Vermonters’ hands to support land and home purchases; she said a sustained revenue stream from cannabis excise tax would expand the scale and flexibility of such programs.

- Technical assistance and developer cohort: LAOB is partnering with the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) on a technical‑assistance cohort aimed at BIPOC and other emerging developers; Hamilton said the program addresses nontechnical barriers such as access to capital and discriminatory lending practices.

- Emergency preparedness and capacity building: Hamilton described planned organizational grants to shore up volunteer networks that respond to floods and other disasters.

Discussion and follow‑up

Committee members asked about cluster and planned‑unit development models, current‑use tax implications, farmland succession and whether LAOB can serve the state evenly from a two‑staff operation. Hamilton described work in the Northeast Kingdom and a Plainfield village expansion example, and said LAOB is convening partners — including land trusts and Agency of Agriculture staff — to explore models such as community land trusts and clustered housing that preserve open land while creating affordable housing opportunities. "We are connected in the kingdom with a 501(c)(3) that's called Northeast Kingdom Organizing," Hamilton said.

On cannabis revenue, Hamilton said a study group recommended directing 25% of the cannabis excise tax to LAOB for community reinvestment; she described the Joint Fiscal Office estimate for that share as roughly $5,600,000. She noted that only the governor’s one‑time $1.6 million appeared in the administration’s budget proposal and that LAOB staff will continue to pursue a dedicated, ongoing funding stream.

Hamilton flagged other policy areas LAOB is watching, including Act 250 reforms, Act 181 study work on housing projects and fair‑housing and Human Rights Commission funding. She said LAOB has advisory powers with several state agencies under its statute and has been invited into conversations by many agencies, though not yet with Department of Taxes.

No formal votes or binding committee actions occurred during the presentation. Hamilton offered to share the cannabis control board report and other slides with committee members and confirmed LAOB has invited the Cannabis Control Board to speak with the committee on related topics.

The presentation closed with committee members and staff agreeing to continue conversations on funding, cluster housing, and coordination with state agencies.