Vermont Legislature SmartTranscripts:

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: Yeah. I'm gonna say yesterday that during the afternoon session, there was no video. It was just coming through as podcasts.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Our session was? Yeah.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: How odd.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Yeah. Okay. Well, in any case, yeah. So we are I just wanna spend a minute or two seeing whether there's interest in the committee in taking any more testimony from the food bank or other, it could be other witnesses too. They had mentioned that they were requesting to get all of these adjustments, additional funding for Montrose program. And I don't know that there was an official ask when they were here, I can't remember. But anyway, they have made an official ask to the Appropriations Committee, and I made some inquiries just to see whether it be helpful to have us support that officially the way that we did with the bridges. And the response was, yes, we're welcome to do that. And as a committee, we can do that for a set of time. This is time. And I will say that we haven't had any other requests for BAA funding that I'm aware of. I'll let you guys jump in here. In other years, budget adjustment proposal, the recommendation from the administration has done something that affects us. And so that we have been asked to weigh in. This year, we weren't asked. That's why I wanted to just double check on the procedures.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: Thank you. You know, I would like an update if somebody in this committee has a handle on, you know, Washington, you know, Anseltree Square. We a lot of programs, and then there were litigations, and then they flip flopped like a fish, but it's all confusing. In real time, where do we stand today? And even if they reverse the policies, is money coming in?

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Federal money. Federal money. Yeah. I mean, I think rather than try and say what I think I know, it might be helpful to have Hunger Fever Mont just give us that information.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: Would that It would be helpful because quite honestly, it's pretty confusing. I agree

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: with that. And

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: and just like, you know, FEMA's shut off and it's back on, it's partially good staff, but I was at a meeting in our municipality and they still haven't gotten dollar 1 from the twenty three flood, twenty four flood, which our town was had a lot of damage on the Oyster Range side and the Green Sun flooding.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: So, okay, so let's do that, if everybody's agreed.

[Rep. Michelle Bos-Lun (Member)]: Michelle? Yeah, I was just gonna say, I think we've only had two direct asks for the BAA, and the one was the letter for bridges, which was for a relatively small amount in terms of things that were asked for. And then the Vermonters, feeding Vermonters, which I think is a program that we're all aware of. We might not be aware of all the details of the other food supports that people get. But I just think in general, like in terms of this particular ask, it's food and it's farms. It's like two thirds of what we do as a committee. It's not about trees, but like there isn't anything else we do. I think that so directly is beneficial to both. And so I would be happy to hear more testimony. I would be ready to support her without more testimony. But I think if we could have an update, that probably could be useful just in terms of some of the things that I'm speaking about in terms of, you know, with all the federal things that have changed, it might be useful just to see, like, we we heard last year at the beginning of the year how dire the food situation was because of all the cuts and proposed cuts. It might be good to have just a reset on that and that if we put in perspective a little bit the need for Vermonters feeding the line.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Yes, good. Yeah, I mean, When we had the update last week, it was really how did the programs roll out and the implementation going, and rather than what are you hearing on the ground or what are you seeing? So that, yeah, that might be good. Even setting aside this particular program. So

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: a couple points on that.

[Rep. John O’Brien (Member)]: You know, like, we talk about don't take stuff back. But we talk about taking money to fund education out of the general fund. And the speaker said, with the cuts to federal programs, we have a limited source of money. We have to be careful where we go with it. And being on a school board, anytime we talked about doing something with surplus monies to offset an increase for one year, we've always said we're just kicking the can down the road, and that increase is gonna bite us ahead. That's the way I feel about taking money out in the BAA to fund education. Don't throw stuff at me. And I'm very mindful of the pain my constituents had for their property taxes, but I'm more mindful about people getting fed. And so, you know, I agree that, you know, we need to take care of our people, and we got another government shutdown. I guarantee you. And I don't and if they don't fix health care, it's gonna shut down until they agree to fix health care this time, and I don't blame them. I don't blame them for shutting it down to fix health care.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: Who gets them? The Democrats?

[Rep. John O’Brien (Member)]: Who whoever. Rand Paul and the Democrats or or maybe five or six Republicans that wanna see health care fixed too, Jed. I don't care, that's nonpartisan to me. Well, so anyway, I think that we need to look at feeding people. The one thing I would ask, the one thing I would ask is it's nonpolitical and food is food. And I the only thing that it hits me every now and then when I talk about wholesome organic food. To me, all food is wholesome. Now if you're eating white bread like I did, like it was free, that that wasn't so good. But carrots are carrots to me. They're non GMO and all carrots are and, so I I just wish we wouldn't you're listening, Amy? You know, that's and and, you know, and I asked Ellen one time once, why was organic grass fed beef better than regular, you know, my beef that I raise? And she's like, no, all beef's good. So that's the only thing I asked. That's but other than that, I'm all about feeding people and getting the best bang for our buck. And it does, you're exactly right, Michelle, those crop cash plus dollars at the farmers markets, they can spend them at any booth on the farmers market. And we use when we sold corn at the farmer's market, we used to take in the great thing when you got one of those little coupons, it was got three or four extra years of corn because they needed it. Okay, I'm done with my rant. Thank you.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Can I throw stuff at you now?

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: John, I just wanted to add. How much is how many dollars are at play

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: in the budget?

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: Higher BAA. Yeah. Is it surplus or just

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: There's surplus that was

[Rep. Amy Sheldon]: There was a surplus, but $73,000,000

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Yeah, that was from July When the economists met in July with the legislature, they were projecting for this year, they were forecasting out a surplus. They already were able to do that, and even though the year just started based on what they were seeing. I think as it happens, the e board is meeting again today, maybe has already met and hearing, they do this twice a year. So today just happens to be the day. And so there'll be a new forecast, which will change the answer to your question, John. But whatever the number is, I think that the, I mean, politically, the real question is how much of that do we want to set aside or potentially keep for either to go into the Ed Fund or for what might happen federally in a number of different ways, I guess. And at the end of the day, a million here, a million there doesn't seem like very much, but it adds up.

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: Or some things. Like obviously the transportation forecast was so far off today with a $33,000,000 deficit.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: That's a problem. Yeah. It is, you match with federal dollars. What's the asking again? How much from? 1 and a half million was the request. And that was when we they had requested 2,000,000 last year for the fiscal year, but they ended up with a half million. So they're saying we're still interested and we can use this budget adjustment to get to the end of year. And then we're still going to be looking at That's just for this year. And then we would be asked, maybe when we had the food security conversation yesterday, the day before, there was some telegraphing of next year's request too. This is specifically for the Vermonters feeding Vermonters? Yes. Which we actually, last year we established that. Yeah, that's perfect.

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: That's what the food bank was asking. So is that the same as Vermonters reading Vermonters ask?

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Yes. Okay. Well, for the budget adjustment, yes. Does the purchasing. Right, they make the arrangements. So, okay, so it sounds like we could benefit from hearing a little bit more from Food Bank also in addition to just getting an update from Hungry Free Vermont. And we should probably try and schedule those, Patricia, sooner rather than later. And I know next week is already pretty booked up, but I think that if we want to if we decide that we want to make a statement to the appropriations, we would need to do that sooner rather than later because I'm not sure what the calendar is. Do they

[Patricia (Committee Assistant)]: have a deadline for BA?

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Well, let's ask Amy. She might know that.

[Rep. Amy Sheldon]: Amy Sheldon for the record, they are almost done, and I believe they're just waiting to see the governor, hear the governor's fajour address, and then they're gonna wrap it up pretty quickly. So I will say Tuesday, we're gonna be here. Okay.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: We're

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: we're hearing from the governor on on Tuesday His budget address is at 01:00. Is that right? Okay. Well, it's at

[Rep. Amy Sheldon]: it starts at two, but I

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: think there's two on the floor. Yep.

[Rep. Amy Sheldon]: His feet's at two, but I think you're more at that.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Okay. Our floor is at one on two things?

[Rep. Amy Sheldon]: Because you have to get them. We might get the senate. It's Berlin.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Senate doesn't really take an hour, though.

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: No. Our agenda sets committee instructions one.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Well, our agenda is not necessarily the last word. Understood. Yeah. Why don't we see let let's figure that out, and then maybe we can have even if it's only I mean, I don't think we need for the half an hour probably to hear.

[Rep. John O’Brien (Member)]: We have a short floor, I believe, Tuesday morning. Okay. Yeah. I I think looking at the action calendar. Probably too. And and we might be out of there eleven, 11:30. We could hear someone between then and lunch. Yep. And the reason we gotta be back in at 01:00 is they gotta usher the lord senators in last week.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: I still don't think that's an hour.

[Rep. John O’Brien (Member)]: An hour for that. No. But I yeah.

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: Okay. Well, in any case, we also know that there's caucuses generally on Tuesdays, we'll work around that. But stay tuned anyway, and I'm sure we can fit it in somewhere. With that, I think why don't we take just a very quick short break, and then we're gonna have rural Vermont in. Rural Vermont's already here, but we'll just take the break to

[Jed Lipsky (Clerk)]: get

[Rep. David Durfee (Chair)]: them set up.