House Transportation chair outlines T bill changes, cites delay to mileage fee and a one-time $1.7M town highway transfer

Representative Matt Walker, chair of the House Committee on Transportation, told the Senate Transportation committee on March 31 that the House T bill largely follows the governor’s recommendation but carries several substantive changes after an 11‑page Ways and Means amendment.

Walker said "more than 99% of the T bill matches the governor's recommend" while noting targeted changes including about $192,000 identified for electric-vehicle pilot work. He stressed the most consequential amendment relates to the mileage-based user fee (MBUF): "we won't be looking at any money into the T fund for at least 12 plus months," Walker said, describing a shift from point-of-sale collection toward reconciliation after a year of driving.

Why it matters: lawmakers had expected MBUF collections to begin with new-vehicle sales on Jan. 1; the amendment alters timing, payment options and the collection mechanism. Walker said the committee did not receive outside testimony on the Ways and Means amendment beyond legislative fiscal office and counsel review, and that the changes will require additional work before the January implementation date.

Budget and town highways: Walker said his committee spent substantial time addressing a roughly $33 million shortfall in the transportation budget. To help towns, he said there had been an effort to create a structural, long-term source of aid for town highways (including a proposal to redirect 50% of annual surplus in the pilot fund) but the amendment instead provided a one-time transfer of $1.7 million from the TIP bond fund to town highway aid. "That was not done in our committee. That was done in ways," Walker said, noting the House committee had sought a longer-term fix.

Public transit and paving: On public transit, Walker reported more than a $5 million increase in statewide transit spending under the governor’s recommendation and referenced a program-level number in the tens of millions, saying providers such as Green Mountain Transit had testified on refocusing services and reporting ridership. He acknowledged service shortfalls in some rural areas and said the committee wants providers to show route-level performance to support future funding.

On road maintenance, members raised concerns about project delays and a steep reduction in paving next year; Walker said the department faces balancing choices and that the committee tried "to maximize the most amount of work they could get done with the limited amount of funds that were there." He described the committee’s approach as a one-year patch in the absence of a longer-term funding structure.

Committee action and procedure: Walker said the House committee took a straw poll on the Ways and Means amendment after it had passed Ways and Means and appropriations; "we did take a straw poll on it. It was 7 to four," he said. He also explained that the committee removed an escalator previously included in the governor’s MBUF recommendation and characterized the reworked fee as revenue neutral in the near term.

Bike/ped and federal funds: Walker pointed to sections 10–13 for bike-and-ped and transportation-alternative changes that increase agency flexibility to move federal funds into local projects and adjust per‑grant limits. He said the changes include temporary measures to capture federal opportunities and that some limits will sunset to allow access to current federal allocations.

What happens next: Walker said the amended language will require further review and work before implementation, and reiterated the committee’s interest in pursuing longer-term structural solutions to transportation funding. The Senate committee did not take formal votes during the hearing; members thanked Walker and closed the session.

Sources: Comments and numbers above are attributed to Representative Matt Walker as recorded during the Senate Transportation hearing on March 31.