Each year, BBF collects input from our 12 Regional Councils, our Strategic Plan Committees and annual Strategic Plan Summit, the State Advisory Council, and community forums and events to develop Policy Recommendations for the next legislative session. There is more information below on ways you can get involved, but first it’s important to look back at BBF’s Policy Recommendations for the recently finished legislative session to see what was accomplished and where there is more work to be done. Here’s a brief review of our 2026 Policy Recommendations:
While much has happened at the federal level to increase paperwork and work requirements for SNAP (3SquaresVT) recipients, the state of Vermont is stepping up to mitigate increased budget pressures. The SFY27 budget includes an additional $2 million to cover the reduction in the federal cost share—from 50% to 25%—for the administrative costs of the program. And to address the increased paperwork and work requirements for SNAP recipients, the Vermont budget includes $3.5 million to fund more than 60 “benefits assisters” embedded in community-based organizations, including Parent Child Centers, across Vermont. One-time appropriations include funding to Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) Vermont for the Crop Cash, Crop Cash Plus, and Farm Share programs (see page 97, section (L)(1)(1) here), Vermont Foodbank’s network partners through a statewide distribution of food and/or subgrants (see page 92, section (c)(7) here), Vermont Foodbank for the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters Program (see page 97, section (L)(1)(3) here), and continuation of funding to support the three CACFP Sponsoring Organizations.
The shortage of housing that the average Vermont family can afford is an issue that will take years to rectify. There were several bills related to housing and homelessness that passed the Legislature and were signed by the Governor. This session was a mixed bag as the state works to reduce reliance on COVID-era hotel/motel usage, all while the number of unsheltered Vermonters continues to remain high, including approximately 350 children under age 5 as of June 2025 Coordinated Entry Data (see page 6 here). H.938 establishes a continuum of supports and services for households that are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of experiencing homelessness and puts caps on the number of rooms used per night (700 rooms/night from April-November and up to 1,000 rooms/night from December-March), as well as a 70-night cap/household on a rolling 12-month basis. Some of this session’s highlights include:
- A base appropriation increase for the Vermont Housing Improvement Program
- Fully allocating the statutory Property Transfer Tax amount of $37.65 million to the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board
- One-time funding allocations for the Rent Arrears Assistance Fund, the Manufactured Home Improvement and Repair Program, Vermont Housing Finance Agency’s First Generation Homebuyer program, and expansion of the renter credit for 2027 only by increasing the cap from $2,500 to $3,250
For more information related to housing policy, check out the Housing and Homelessness Alliance of Vermont’s 2026 Legislative Summary.
The federal budget bill passed in the summer of 2025 (HR.1) allowed the enhanced subsidies for those purchasing health care through Vermont Health Connect to expire at the end of 2025. This led enrollment to drop and increased costs for those still enrolled. At the state level, Vermont provided increases in base appropriations for:
- Designated Agencies, Specialized Service Agencies, and Community Based Service providers, including Medicaid skilled home health services
- Vermont’s free and referral clinics, which provide health care services to Vermonters without health insurance
- The Bridges to Health Program, which supports migrant and immigrant workers and families
- Funding to maintain Medicaid prescription co-pays at $1 (preferred) and $3 (non-preferred).
- One-time appropriations included funding for Parent Child Center Network concrete supports programs and Prevent Child Abuse Vermont’s nurturing parenting programs.
BBF’s 2026 Policy Recommendations included support for sustained state funding for the Vermont Consultation and Psychiatry Access Program (VTCPAP), which provides pediatric and perinatal mental health consultation services. During this session, that immediate funding need was addressed through the Rural Health Transformation Grant, which will cover the program for the next several years. State funding will eventually be needed to sustain the program over the long term, but for now, VTCPAP will continue to serve families and providers without interruption.
A total of $367,500 in base, one-time, and federal funds was appropriated to the six existing community-based supervised visitation sites in Vermont. The Department of Children and Families has been tasked with working with the Vermont Network Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Violence “to develop a funding formula for supervised visitation sites, to identify the community partners to develop two new supervised visitation sites during fiscal year 2027, and to begin planning for the creation of four additional supervised visitation sites, two each to become operational beginning in fiscal years 2028 and 2029” (see page 181, Sec. E.317 here).
Vermont’s Preschool Development Grant includes $1 million designated to modernize the fingerprint-supported background check system, with a goal of moving to a fully digital process. This is an important step toward resolving the crisis-level hiring delays that programs are experiencing. A Request for Proposal (RFP) has recently been completed, and final selection of a vendor is expected in the very near future. The new system will include the elimination of physical paperwork and the electronic delivery of results, and will be completed by the end of 2026. Building Bright Futures continues to monitor this effort and will share updates and developments when available.
BBF, along with partner organizations, was able to solidify the Legislature’s understanding of the continued need for a mixed-delivery prekindergarten system; the importance of providing pre-K to 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds, and 5-year-olds not yet enrolled in kindergarten; and the significant variation in access based on geography.
The education transformation bill (H.955) includes four intents for Universal Prekindergarten in Vermont: treat prekindergarten education as an integral part of the preK-12 system; determine a locus of responsibility to ensure access within all school districts; provide access to licensed teachers in both public and private prequalified provider classrooms, including support and provisional status; and equalize financial resources for all prequalified providers. The Joint Fiscal Office has been tasked with contracting an expert for an updated cost-of-care analysis covering children ages 3, 4, and 5 who are not yet eligible to enroll in kindergarten. H.955 makes changes to District-level reporting that relates to pre-K, adding the number of hours of prekindergarten education received by each prekindergarten child.
S.214, which addresses pre-K access gaps specific to Essex County, was signed into law by the Governor on June 8, marking important progress in ensuring more equitable access to a program intended to be universally accessible.Vermont’s Preschool Development Grant includes $1 million designated to modernize the fingerprint-supported background check system, with a goal of moving to a fully digital process. This is an important step toward resolving the crisis-level hiring delays that programs are experiencing. A Request for Proposal (RFP) has recently been completed, and final selection of a vendor is expected in the very near future. The new system will include the elimination of physical paperwork and the electronic delivery of results, and will be completed by the end of 2026. Building Bright Futures continues to monitor this effort and will share updates and developments when available.
During this session, advocates successfully protected the progress made for Vermont families and providers by sustaining Act 76 investments in child care. In spite of federal uncertainty, funding levels for the Child Care Financial Assistance Program (CCFAP) were maintained. Since Act 76 was implemented in July 2023, the number of families receiving CCFAP has grown by 48%, and the number of children enrolled in CCFAP has grown by 58%. While enrollment in regulated child care programs has not yet reached pre-pandemic levels, the state’s total full-day, full-year regulated child care capacity has been reliably increasing since 2024.
S.206, the Early Childhood Education Profession Bill, did not pass this session. The bill passed the Senate and was taken up by the House Committee on Human Services, where it was ultimately held for 2027. Rep. Theresa Wood, chair of the committee, expressed general support for recognizing early childhood educators as professionals and indicated that the committee plans to return to the bill next year.
BBF engaged substantively with this bill throughout the session. Our 2026 Policy Recommendations call for implementing a licensure system for Vermont’s early childhood educators, a recommendation grounded in evidence from the National Institute for Early Education Research, and we testified to that alignment before the House Committee on Human Services as well as the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare. Licensure would represent a meaningful step toward the professional recognition that early childhood educators have long sought, and it reflects the goals Vermont has already committed to through Act 76 and Vermont’s Early Childhood Strategic Plan 2030: safe, high-quality settings; clear expectations and pathways; and a stable, well-supported workforce.
Our testimony also focused on implementation, especially how the transition is structured to support all types of providers. Done well, licensure can protect and improve quality while opening clearer pathways into the profession. Ensuring that the policy is well-designed is critical, and the committee’s decision to hold the bill for further work is an opportunity to get those details right. We expect to remain an active resource as that work continues in 2027.
This session, Vermont lawmakers made data protection a top priority, passing three major bills:
- H.211 overhauls the state’s data broker rules by expanding definitions, tightening registration and disclosure requirements, strengthening consumer protections and breach notification rules, and boosting oversight of educational technology and cybersecurity, while also launching a study into a centralized system for deleting personal data.
- H.639, the Vermont Genetic Information Privacy Act, protects consumers’ genetic data—especially from direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies—by requiring clear privacy notices, separate explicit consent for collecting and using genetic information, an easy way for consumers to revoke that consent (with samples destroyed within 30 days if requested), and limits on sharing genetic data with insurers, employers, or the government without a warrant or consent.
- S.71, the Vermont Data Privacy and Online Surveillance Act, creates broad consumer data privacy rights for Vermonters, letting people access, correct, delete, and obtain copies of their personal data and opt out of targeted ads, data sales, and certain profiling, while requiring companies to secure data properly, provide clear privacy notices, and get consent before handling sensitive information—with extra safeguards for minors and health data (including bans on tracking people near health facilities or selling health data without consent), enforced solely by the Vermont Attorney General rather than through consumer lawsuits.
Vermont’s Preschool Development Grant Birth to Five includes funding designated to create a centralized CIS billing system to improve efficiency and service. In the current fiscal environment, funding for CIS stayed level. Additionally, the Family and Child Health Division of the Vermont Department of Health is currently contracting with Mathematica on the next phase of work following the Vermont Coordinated Intake and Referral (CIR) System Study. The report and next steps include opportunities for CQI in the CIS system, and how it integrates with other systems to support children and their families, including Help Me Grow Vermont.
Public response to Act 181 served as a valuable reminder to lawmakers that they must be in direct conversation with families most affected by policies. BBF helps to facilitate those connections through the Families and Communities Committee as well as parent representation on the State Advisory Council. Upcoming Community Child Care Conversations and Legislative Forums will provide qualitative data that can be integrated into fiscal and policy deliberations.
Over the next few months, Building Bright Futures will be formulating Policy Recommendations for the 2027 legislative session. The process includes compiling input gathered over the last year from Early Childhood Strategic Plan Committees, Regional Councils, families, program leaders, and state agencies, and sharing that information for discussion during network meetings in August and September. We’ll also incorporate information that was gathered during this year’s Early Childhood Strategic Plan Summit and consult with partners who have expertise in areas such as housing and food security. Once partners have weighed in on Policy Recommendations, they are presented to the State Advisory Council for feedback and finalization.
We want to hear from you! Parents, guardians, and caregivers of young children have important insight into what is working well and where there is room for improvement within the early childhood system. We invite you to join a Strategic Plan Committee Meeting—the following are open to the public and will provide opportunities for feedback:
- The Families and Communities Committee is a group of parents, guardians, caregivers, and professionals that meets virtually on the first Thursday of each month from 10–11:30 a,m. The next meeting is Thursday, August 6.
- The Early Learning and Development Committee brings together public and private partners—including early care and learning program leaders, school administrators, philanthropy partners, advocates, and state agency representatives—who meet regularly to review progress, identify challenges, and support coordinated system improvement for children and families. The committee meets on the second Wednesday of each month from 10 a.m.–noon. The next meeting is Thursday, August 13.
If you have thoughts about 2027 Policy Recommendations that you would like to discuss, please reach out to [email protected].
