Advocates urge $7.4 million in BAA fixes to avert housing loss and expand assistance
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Summary
Housing and homelessness advocates told the House Appropriations Committee they need immediate FY26 budget adjustments — a $5 million voucher contingency, $1.322 million in rapid financial assistance, $1 million for land-access grants and $100,000 for disability-focused case management — to prevent evictions and stabilize services.
Advocates for renters, community land trusts and homelessness service providers asked the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday to approve multiple one-time corrections in the FY2026 Budget Adjustment Act to shore up housing supports.
Chad Simmons, executive director of the Housing and Homelessness Alliance of Vermont, asked legislators to add four items to the BAA: $5 million for a Vermont State Housing Authority voucher contingency fund to keep rental-assistance vouchers solvent; $1,322,000 for the Housing Opportunity Program’s financial assistance to prevent and exit homelessness; $1,000,000 for Land Access and Community Resilience grants; and $100,000 to sustain disability-focused case management at End Homelessness Vermont.
Why it matters: Witnesses said the requests are focused on preventing immediate housing loss and preserving programs that stabilize people in their homes. Jenna O’Farrell of Northeast Kingdom Community Action told the committee that reduced financial-assistance caps now limit help to about $1,500 per household, frequently covering only one month’s rent in market-rate units and leaving families vulnerable to eviction.
End Homelessness Vermont’s Brenda Siegel and client witnesses described program outcomes tied to the $100,000 request. Siegel said the program helped 80 people with complex needs into permanent housing with only two returning to homelessness — a 97.5% retention rate — and argued that disability-focused case management and concrete supports prevent catastrophic outcomes.
Support for land and predevelopment grants also came from Linda Ramsdell of Headwaters Community Trust, who said the Beginning Developers Predevelopment Grant Fund and Resilience Hubs lower barriers to locally led housing in rural areas without zoning or infrastructure.
What advocates asked: If approved, the voucher contingency would address threats to voucher solvency; financial assistance funding would restore short-term stabilization payments used to avert evictions; land-access funds would subsidize predevelopment costs to enable community land trust projects; and the $100,000 would preserve disability-focused case management capacity.
What’s next: This public hearing produced testimony but no committee vote. The committee will consider testimony alongside written submissions as staff and legislators finalize BAA language and potential appropriations.