Commission urges cohesive, evidence-driven approach; offers no short-term cost-containment plan

Megan Roy, chair of the Commission on the Future of Public Education in Vermont, told a joint House Education and House Ways and Means hearing that the commission’s preliminary report highlights the interconnectedness of finance, governance and delivery and therefore does not yet include modeled short-term cost-containment recommendations.

The commission—created under Act 183—was convened to study statewide education provision and propose a vision and legislative language. Roy said the panel, which first met on July 15, developed guiding principles (equity, quality and sustainability), gathered public comment across Vermont and compiled a working “brainstorm” document of policy ideas. "This is really difficult work, but it's really important work," Roy said.

Nut graf: The commission presented two main, actionable requests for the legislature: to affirm and support the commission’s role so it can act cohesively with the Agency of Education and the General Assembly, and to sustain and expand public engagement before the commission issues final recommendations. The panel stopped short of recommending immediate cost cuts because members said they lacked time and sufficiently validated data to model the full effects of specific changes.

Roy said the commission’s short-term charge included producing a preliminary report (statutorily due in December) and a final report by December 2025 that should include proposed legislative language and a formal public-comment period starting in October 2025. The December preliminary report was published after several data revisions; Roy said the agency of education provided updated datasets and that the commission reviewed those updates but that deeper modeling remained incomplete.

The commission organized its work into three policy areas—education finance, governance and the physical delivery footprint—and created subcommittees for finance and for communications and engagement. Roy said the commission is temporarily meeting more frequently as a full body and has contracted a communications and engagement firm to broaden public input. The commission has held meetings in Washington, Orange, Addison and Franklin counties and plans a meeting in the Northeast Kingdom.

Members and observers repeatedly emphasized the report’s central finding: changes in any one of the three policy areas affect the others. "If a school district is simply asked to spend less money ... and there is not a concrete and specific expectation around delivery ... they could make decisions about what to do with less money that are not good for kids," Roy warned, stressing the need to pair fiscal change with clear decisions about who defines quality and delivery.

The panel discussed concerns about the quality and interpretation of some data in the report. Roy said the commission “supports the high level findings” but is not unanimous on every inference; she said she believes the commission approved the preliminary findings by an 8-to-3 vote. Lawmakers pressed for more rigorous vetting of specific data points related to special education spending and whether federal funds could be supplanting state support; Roy said the agency of education is preparing additional detail and that the commission would review those analyses.

Legislators attending the hearing said they value the commission’s statewide engagement but warned of public expectations for faster relief on education costs. Several lawmakers urged clearer direction about the commission’s role—whether it should primarily generate policy or act as an expert responder to legislative proposals. Roy said the commission can shift to more reactive work if the legislature clarifies priorities and provides direction or resources.

The hearing also recorded two formal items the commission discussed: the commission’s preliminary-report approval (commission members voted, 8 yes, 3 no) and the commission’s engagement-plan contract with a communications and engagement firm (the agency signed that contract this week, per Roy). No other formal statutory changes, motions or bills were voted on during the hearing.

Ending: The commission plans to continue monthly meetings and more frequent full-commission sessions to analyze questions raised by lawmakers and the public. It reiterated that a sustained public-engagement effort and more detailed, validated data analyses will be central to any future recommendations the commission offers to the General Assembly.