Prevention groups outline expansion of school-based substance-misuse programs funded by cannabis excise tax

A representative of a regional prevention collaborative told the Senate Education Committee that new allocations from the cannabis excise tax are funding multi‑year, regionally managed prevention grants that can be embedded in schools.

"Every dollar spent on prevention is $18 spent in other spaces — public safety, workforce issues," said Mariam Mars, executive director of the Collaborative and a regional Vermont Prevention League lead, highlighting the program's cost‑benefit argument. She described a regional advisory structure that awards grants, supports evaluation and partners with schools and community organizations to deliver prevention, screening and student-assistance services.

Mars told senators the Department of Health's recent growth in school funding increased the number of directly funded school districts from 19 in FY25 to 29 in FY26 and that base grants were increased from $60,000 to $80,000. She said the regional model allows local partners to tailor prevention programming where community needs are greatest and to provide multi-year funding to build capacity rather than short-term, piecemeal grants.

Why it matters: testimony framed prevention spending as an upstream investment that can reduce later costs in public safety and health services, and the regional rollout ties funding decisions to local needs assessments and evaluation metrics.

Mars said the collaborative is prepared to manage grants for schools and to provide technical assistance; committee members asked for further details about metrics and coverage in unfunded districts.

The committee took the presentation as informational; no appropriation or formal action was decided during the hearing.