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Witnesses to legislative oversight committee urge clearer metrics and impact assessments for accountability bill
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Summary
Witnesses testifying on bill 867 told the Government Operations & Military Affairs committee that clearer outcome definitions, named accountability roles, and built-in impact assessments are needed to make oversight meaningful; the deputy auditor flagged compliance gaps and technical fixes to draft 2.2.
The Government Operations & Military Affairs Committee heard continued testimony on bill 867 on Thursday, with witnesses urging clearer metrics, named responsibilities and use of impact assessments to ensure the measure produces useful oversight rather than perfunctory reports.
Dora Levinson, research and data director at Building Bright Futures, told the committee her organization — statutorily charged with monitoring Vermont’s early childhood system — found more than 150 potential indicators when it began tracking implementation of Act 76. “Defining success is more complex,” Levinson said, arguing that accountability systems need “clarity about outcomes, clear alignment with legislative intent, and dedicated analytical capacity.” She emphasized that accountability should combine quantitative metrics with qualitative input from families and providers.
Levinson offered a concrete example of how monitoring changed practice: feedback from families and eligibility specialists led the child development division to release a new eligibility screener that lets applicants determine likely eligibility before completing a lengthy financial-assistance application. Levinson said the screener, which had just been released, reduces burden for families who otherwise might complete a long application only to be denied.
Susana Davis, director of the Office of Racial Equity, supported the call for clearer measures and urged the committee to define terms such as “failure” and “vulnerable populations” so judgments are not subjective. Davis also recommended that the committee adopt or require use of formal impact-assessment tools — noting that ORE and the chief performance officer have developed an assessment used across executive agencies — and asked that the proposed oversight extend beyond executive agencies to include review of legislative design when appropriate. “What constitutes a failure for communities of color is often exactly the way the system was designed to work,” Davis said, urging the committee to incorporate population-level impacts and community voice into its review process.
Tim Ash, the deputy auditor, praised draft 2.2 as “a very good start” but raised technical concerns about membership and workload. Ash suggested keeping the committee’s core appointments legislative to preserve oversight independence and asked the bill to clarify whether the proposal’s reference to 10 meetings was intended per year or across the pilot’s lifetime. Ash also shared a compliance example: after contacting nearly 300 public schools about a 2021 radon-testing law (updated in 2022), his office found that about 70 percent had tested by the 06/30/2025 deadline and roughly 30 percent had not, a gap he said illustrates the difference between requiring testing and ensuring follow-through.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about how BBF narrowed indicators and about implementation details; Levinson and other witnesses offered to provide tool walkthroughs and technical assistance. No formal action or votes were taken at the hearing; the chair thanked witnesses and said the committee would reconvene after a short break to consider a separate alcoholic-beverages bill.
The committee will continue reviewing draft language and testimony as it works toward clarifying membership, expectations for meeting frequency, and whether and how impact assessments should be integrated into the proposed oversight mechanism.
