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NCSL briefs Vermont appropriations panel on state budget tools and shortfall tracking
Summary
Erica McKellar of the National Conference of State Legislatures told the committee about NCSL resources — including a state shortfall database and reports on budget process issues — and encouraged legislative staff to use webinars and committee services to prepare for federal funding changes.
Erica McKellar, a fiscal affairs program member and NCSL liaison to the Vermont legislature, briefed the Senate Appropriations Committee on Feb. 18 about resources the National Conference of State Legislatures provides to state fiscal offices.
McKellar told the committee that NCSL is a bipartisan organization that supports legislatures through research, meetings, training and staff services. She highlighted a searchable state 'actions to close shortfalls' database that tracks how states respond when revenues tighten — whether by cuts, revenue changes, or tapping rainy-day funds. "We know that revenue is tightening and budgets are tightening for states," McKellar said, noting NCSL produced similar tracking tools during the Great Recession and the COVID period.
McKellar said an updated state budget survey and a fiscal notes review will be released in the coming weeks to show how revenues are performing relative to forecasts and how states craft fiscal notes. She also pointed members to webinars (including a Feb. 27 session on federal health funding changes) and to standing NCSL committees such as the budgets and revenue committee for ongoing guidance.
The presentation was framed as informational; McKellar emphasized that while most states' revenues remain on target for the moment, some states are already planning precautionary tightening in anticipation of federal policy shifts. She encouraged committee staff to use NCSL's newsletters and recorded webinars as reference material while Vermont develops its FY27 budget approach.
The committee did not take action on the NCSL briefing; members asked clarifying questions about the shortfall database and upcoming reports.
