The House Human Services Committee on Jan. 13 completed its review of the Budget Adjustment Act, recommending several targeted changes to the FY26 spending plan while asking the administration and JFO to clarify technical details.

Chair Teresa Wood summarized the panel’s recommendations, saying the committee would back a Medicaid rate adjustment effective April 1 if the Joint Fiscal Office confirms the department cannot make retroactive payments. "They say that they can only do an increase effective April 1," she said, noting Nolan at JFO would confirm the timing.

The committee recommended restoring Housing Opportunity Program funding to FY25 levels for 14 providers — an increase of $1,322,141 — and flagged a related departmental request for $2,000,000 in HOP grants. It also recommended $210,000 for recovery centers, funded from prevention funds supported by drug manufacturers, which represents roughly half the amount requested by providers.

The panel did not recommend funding several requests in the FY26 adjustment, including Legal Aid, 2‑1‑1 support, and a Homelessness Vermont request, concluding those ask for new or expanded programs more appropriate for FY27 consideration.

On operations and administration, committee members approved a $50,000 request for an income‑verification system that must be maintained after federal support ends and discussed a $1,000,000 contract‑pressure request tied to scarce provider capacity. Chair Wood said these were largely "must‑do" costs reflected in agency spending.

The committee also agreed to include proposed language in its memo to the House Appropriations Committee protecting designated and specialized service agencies during the first year of the developmental services payment‑requirement implementation (10/01/2025–09/30/2026). Katie McDonough of the Office of Legislative Council summarized the provision: errors by a DA or SSA that result from system limitations or transitional processes "shall not be subject to a financial penalty, decreased payment rates, budget reduction, recoupment, or clawback of appropriated funds" during the one‑year period.

Several members urged prompt follow‑up. Representative Dan Noyce and others asked that the Division of Rate Setting and the long‑term care ombudsman be included in a deeper review of nursing‑home emergency financial relief, and Wood said a report due Jan. 15 will inform that work.

The committee agreed by a show of hands to direct $1,300,000 of the department’s requested $2,000,000 shelter‑investment dollars to reinstate provider allocations the committee had previously reduced, and signaled support for crisis‑stabilization funding in Windham County and $150,000 per‑hotline IT upgrades to improve compatibility.

Next steps: staff will draft the committee memo over the weekend and circulate a draft on Tuesday for final review before forwarding recommendations to House Appropriations. The committee repeatedly emphasized that some items discussed as policy changes (for example, adjusting Reach Up cash supports) should be addressed in the FY27 budget process rather than in this one‑time adjustment.