 Thank you. Welcome back to the morning committee meeting of the house appropriations committee today is Friday the 11th of February We're about to go into our second debrief of the public hearing session We like to go through all of the information that has been that has been we either received in person or that we received through written testimony and several of us I know that I have I cannot speak for everyone but I know that everyone has been looking at the tip that the written testimony I've gone through all of it myself and Definitely some consistent themes are are are coming to the forefront. So This is a kind of freewheeling a little bit, but that's waited. So I'll start off again and and then everyone can can follow along You know, I continue to hear and continue to read about the about Childcare and the issues there and that's certainly a big thing another one that I that I just wanted to Bring up was the DA's and SSA's and the rate increase. What's going on there? And they're just they are I'm not going to use word crisis, but it's close. It certainly is close. So that's certainly some things that we're going to have to look at Forward so again, we can go around the table a few times made it I was Struggling not surprised by the reiteration of the kinds of These which we're spoken to in our first public hearing A few people for attention Brown with the natural resources conservation districts As they relate to I Very very true. Thank you. Good point Well, I can just clarify. Yes, that one stuck me as well So separate two or three that it I've been involved in that in the past This group has come to me because I had natural resources and asked about it the current funding for them from us Related to be a CD, but as I understand it the current funding for them goes to the agency of agriculture And it's a fairly small amount and and they do get people funding, but they would like more one that And we have the continuation of talking about the Access TV that was in several others and there were several that we're talking about the adult in literacy Regarding the the adult ed. I know we haven't who's got that budget does anyone I think it's me Okay, I just how long has it been since we've done anything to Level funded forever for 14 years or 2014 or something a very long time And and the population they serve is a pretty needy Population that could be very productive if they get There they are folks that met some of the graduates from the program over the years and There are folks that have decided they're going to do something. Yes, and we need to help them do something Exactly I think the critical thing on that is that they have not that group there. There's four groups and they you know, divide the money They did not receive any of the funds or any SR funds, right? There was some ear funds and I'm not exactly sure how that worked Still, it's not a substantial amount Okay Jim Yeah, I mean the pick TV I guess more of a question during the BAA we Added in 300,000. I believe I don't know if that stayed in the Senate or not and Then I I know on that proposal it was 600 this year, but I thought we were going to ask Another committee to look at the long-term Funding issue and I don't know if that's happening or not Because the numbers they gave it's kind of escalated every year There's two different organizations that are attempting to to fix funding all at least two different organizations Obviously the Center for Crime Victim Services attempting to fix that but so is this group and I believe that They are trying to get to a point where they can apply for or perhaps they've already applied for new grant funding but because it's in line with the federal fiscal year it doesn't start until October and So they need to get through July August and September hence the $600,000 Yeah, but that's there next year they were asking for even more. That's a different group I've got the information Okay, okay, but well as it has just the follow-up that conversation I remember hearing that it's been part of that conversation that the community of jurisdiction Overseas that actually said to them we need to look at that, but in the meantime go to a probe No, and look for the bridge funding until that's right. I don't know what those committees are quite fine I remember hearing that a couple different rights They was sent to us. Yeah, and that but was that for the BAA or was it for both both? Okay In the beginning But if it's just going to build I mean we've increased the base funding So is that the solution we want or is there another funding mechanism that energy and technology is going to come up with That's sustainable and that's just the question. I mean, I agree with I mean, there's obviously a lot of good needs out there I would be curious and maybe it's just me everybody has a different perspective at looking at these But it would be I'm not saying I agree with the administration's choices down the line, but they obviously Said no on a lot of these and they put whatever finite amount of money elsewhere it would be interesting to Let them explain why You know, they didn't build in tech tv or why they didn't build in About learning obviously because it took money from elsewhere or a little bit other A more of a priority that I just I appreciate hearing the different perspective. Sure. Sure. Yes, ma'am. If I could just I understand what you're saying, but with regard to the paid tv in particular My understanding is following up on what trevor said is that they use they use the approach Ask for the 300,000 in the a and 600,000 in f y 23 because that is what the committee of policy jurisdiction Said they should do It wasn't a matter of well, why don't you go ask the Administration, that's why I think that that's a piece of why it doesn't perhaps show up in the governor's recommended Oh I appreciate that And I don't want to see that network fail because of you know, a few hundred thousand dollars. I'm just asking I mean, did they ask the administration to be put in part of the base budget? Because of the shortfall That'd be a question we could ask them. Yeah, we need to ask them some of these Yeah, but but the reason they're going down is because they've been getting their money from cable, right? Right, and so I sent you all the little chart Thank you. I remember that now we're all streaming so the cable revenue is declining and that's where they were funded This is the reason when I bite my grip my teeth and pay my podcast bill every year I'm doing it because I'm supporting middle grade community And it's a follow-up to remember I think it was last year wasn't that we Here at uniformed somewhere we put in a little bit of funding for the study Yeah, to be done and this is all coming. It's all study is that's that's from the study. Yes, it's all related I thought I had the entire study that I'm not seeing I've got that I consented to you Robin if you want it Robin what struck you other than the access network? Well, obviously adult adult learning also because I think it's really really important And I'd always be hcb as people said it and also the downtowns I think I think that really That really struck me actually there was one piece of testimony that I read yesterday that was Not like all the other testimony that we've done trying to The second one's in the top off to come back to find it Oh, I think it was about the state colleges and scholarships and money and thinking about it But I think supporting the state colleges is a pretty important piece as well But what I liked was the way the person talked about it and It was very thoughtful in the way they suggested us thinking about it. So I will find out get back to you One of the things about the state colleges um A lot of folks that will access Opportunity because it's fairly close They are not spending funds to to house themselves or to feed themselves because they're staying at home to do that And should something happen to some of the state college campuses? The likelihood of those folks driving or or going into a different facility Is questionable You know, it doesn't mean they won't but you cannot absolutely say they will and and we could You know, it may impact vermoder's desires to improve themselves So the the vermoder state college requests are very keen on my mind This was actually from the McClure foundation. So I did find it It was about it was about really having um, uh, a strategic direction and goal um and uh Lowering tuition for college-bound students And but they said we fail to see the strategic objective of driving the institutional allegation of that 15 million There's 10 million to uvm and 5 million to the state colleges And uh They They think that they see the greatest difference is making 10 million to community college A lower tuition there to get people into the system So is it it's worth reading this two-page? Meadow from them well as soon as you started talking about it. I had read it Yeah, one of the things that they did not recognize in that is that we have the 802 opportunity scholarship Uh at the at the community colleges, which means anyone whose family is under $50,000 in a right is going there Last dollar free. How how much money do we have into that? That's right now 1.9 a year Okay, so they're talking about a lot more than that. Well, sure sure. Yeah And I think that that is really important to uh to have something like that Was there two of the last this year? Uh, who's the the colleges? Um, so the last system the whole system So realistically it's a base of 48 million if if we accelerate all the the base increases and then a uh, and then if we do that then the uh, the Bridge would be 14 or 7 or 14. I can't remember. I got to look it up. Is that being off the top? Yeah, I had 55 if I that's about right. Yeah, that sounds about right So you're asking me to remember a number instead of looking it up It's a number worse. You remember I agree It's not a small number. It's not a small number, but it's a number I get it. I get it to you Can I work degree things up, please You were here a while. I was here a while. Yep, and I watched Vermont State did in my area and he was here too. Sure I watched Vermont State colleges come in prior to Is your name Sophie Sophie? Yeah and Jeff Spaulding annually Pleaded with us for more dollars and we'd give him anywhere between three and eight million or somewhere in there closer to five and four and maybe three but nonetheless Finally one year he came in Basically He threw his badge on the table and said I'm done folks Can't do this anymore. We're broke And everybody was astonished And it was our own fault That's what worries me more about this whole thing than anything else. These are big asks here 55 million bucks So I have a lot of respect for Jeff Spaulding and people a lot of people were mad at him, but If I did all he could do he had asked us and we had refused year after year so and I don't want to bore you but I Just don't want to see us start to go in that same direction because those three ladies right there this morning are probably the most Some of the most professional people I will say this about them. They have been extraordinary in the In the response to all the asks that that I have asked of them and that this body has asked of them They have performed an extraordinary amount of work. I'm sort of using the same same term But I really can't think of a of another term that that's that high in a very short period of time. They are transitioning those facilities from from a A stodgy liberal arts institution to a A liberal arts slash workforce development institution that students want to go to again And and the thing is a lot of college students want to go like this And they are incorporating that the asynchronous aspect of their of their Delivery system is it is a great idea You know the number of times that that any student would like to I wish I could rewatch or re-see that class Because I missed something and I could really you know use the ability to look at again if they can So they are doing things that will help our students In the future. They are succeed sore It's every other college Well, not to believe well, you can't say that because every other college. There's a lot of colleges that are just plain closing And they wait are closing. Oh, yes. Oh, yeah. Oh, yes Well, that's that's a good thing to gel up feathers out a little bit I haven't heard that much about it gel up feathers out a little bit that that will help Hope the life colleges never we skipped over you Well, I I think there were a lot of common themes on both sides, so But the two that and in order to spoken to here, but sort of stood out to be in the second round You're doing this again Please would be the conservation districts and the adult learning So I think those are the two themes for me, but it's put out the second round of Presentations And and and again I I I concur with Robin about the importance of adult that and certainly I've had a fair amount of experience with conservation districts I work in environmental stuff. So and they do very good work and we should try to support them in their ass Bob, did you have something else or you want me to wait until the next go? Oh, I'm done. Okay Kimberly. Yeah, I'm going to echo a lot of what's already been said the conservation districts I didn't think of it in terms of clean water goals. So that was an interesting piece One thing I don't understand is how they Work and align with what the extension agents do. So that's just one question that Came across my mind and the Vermont adult learning I think is really important because as we talked about yesterday. There is a entire Educational spectrum and literacy is what you need to plug in at any point regardless of where you choose to go and it may be because Language other than English is your first language or any number of reasons. So that strikes me as being really important Then the downtown program. I also think is Interesting because it is Different in each place and the needs are different and what people do and how they run with it I've seen what they've done in Montpelier and It's So and I agree with many of the other points that have already been made in particular the da's and ssa's and I think that's going to come up The budget adjustment in terms of how those dollars are allocated. What's the therapy that goes? So you just said something that that caused me to to think regarding the adult basic ed I wonder if they do And I don't know what it's not called but English is a second language teaching Yeah, we we have a population of refugees that are that are coming into the state and certainly there's they're probably going to be settled in a few different locations, you know You want them to feel like they can go have a cup of coffee with someone that's from their home country You know so so putting one here and one here and one here probably is not the preferred Methodology learning is what it's called ELL. It's not ESL anymore. Okay. I was close I included something about English and language. So, you know, yeah, and yes, they do that They do that and and yes, one of their main things is helping people study for learn English But study for the the exam that the immigrant the citizenship And a lot of their students they help them through that process, right? Yes, we've got the immigrants who To be citizens. Yeah, so that's another aspect that that we need to remember, you know, when we're going through this We are we have chosen happily to be welcoming to people coming here from other countries and refugees and we Shouldn't be supporting that and supporting them. So this is the way to do that. It's probably the way it happens For the adults Anything else My eye fell on Mark Hughes had besides urging us to Create a moral budget He he had a specific ask $400,000 for the Richard Kemp Center in Burlington. Anybody know what Richard I know who Richard Kemp was I knew them, but I don't have a clue Richard who Nobody Can you find out for a sentence so they're going off? Yeah, that was the fact you could see when I wrote it down I there's one of those what's that? Yeah I'll check it out All right, anything else I have one more And only one person spoke about it. It's the Vermont association for the blind and visually in there their executive director came and I think for all familiar with the program we gave him a hundred thousand dollars Last year and the year before it's from carers funding because it was related to isolation of these folks About that home and and we're blind or almost blind and they needed training on how to use iPhone They're all kinds of wonderful Apps available for these people to use but they needed training. I'm happy to do that So we gave them a hundred thousand dollars for two separate years They don't have funding on their own to be able to continue that and this time around they're asking for a hundred thousand dollars But for it to be continuing somehow So we would have to consider that as well. I I think it's a very very valuable program and then Full disclosure to everybody. I'll tell you my husband is chairman of the board of this And has been for several years before that So he is very keen on their activities and what they do And they work in conjunction with our department of line It's just that our state agency concentrates on trying to get people into the workforce and actually give them training whereas The VAB VI does certainly do some Training they do a lot of work with children and then a lot of work with other people who are home It's a worthy Efforts, I think but whether we feel comfortable in Asking Dale to put a hundred thousand dollars in their budget Of course, that's where I was ago Sorry to find my note today. Do they currently have they have a base right now? No, they do not base. No, it was just a grant And we authorized it through one time funds to give it to Dale to ask them to grant it out Jenny, I had your hand up Yeah, I mean there was some of course. Yeah, I mean we talked about it earlier on the I assume it's a Medicaid reimbursement that was built in for a 3% increases like choices for care They're asking for a 10% increase Do we know what that difference is in dollars? Oh, we can find out. I don't know Certainly when we get the And we get the budget Uh, but How here the numbers Yeah, we'll be able to we'll see what a 3% looks like and it's easy math from there and I just I mean I I get it if you haven't had regular ongoing increases that 3% it may be appreciated, but it doesn't catch you up to where you need to be But I don't know if we're talking a million dollars or if we're talking 20 million dollars Or that difference it's going to be a number between the two Thank you. It will definitely So so when I heard 3% the first the first thing in my head was around 7 million. Maybe I'm wrong But we'll find out So it would be a pretty big number. It is a fairly big number. Yeah Do it it's just right You know, it's making it all work. Yeah Um A lot of issues a lot of a lot of issues and there have been years when when they did not receive any type of an increase at all Well, and that's what I'm getting at. I think 10% they probably figure gets them back to where they I'm assuming where they think they should be to retain You know, the people are attract people to that field and I get it And last month inflation was 7.5%. So Um, hopefully this doesn't continue, but it does Exaggerate the problem. I I know one da who keeps losing their people to the school system because the school system pays more. Yeah Oh, you know, it's yeah, very, you know, it's popular problem The other one that a couple a few people mentioned actually I think in both of them, but I'm not sure I've heard us talk about I think it's already in the governor's budget is the money for recovery housing There's sober housing and people transitioning And I I think that's really important because We want people to succeed and become Self-supporting and if we don't have those recovery housing We're going to be paying for it again and again in other ways that are much more expensive So I can't I don't I'd have to go find the exact amount I'm pretty sure it was already in the governor's budget, but I I think that's a really important piece And I've got to take into that I've also got a follow-up email when I raised it for the top dollar That's what I was going to say also He he had asked specifically for just just uh a recovery center focused on justice involved Which was right and in the same amount he explains how it's different right And and so just to just to you know, just to clarify that recovery center is kind of like a turning point where where it is um They are for justice involved youth and recovery housing is is in residence type facility where where people go to to To start getting off of whatever substance they are they are on and then and then they may go out and and work into a The one of the turning points So The what we call them is too similar to get and it's really easy to confuse them to yes Remember anything else Yeah, I think you know anything I would add I think there were a couple folks In that second round that spoke to I I don't remember now. It's the The bond income tax assistance program Yes, that was uh, I'll be people to tax forms wouldn't normally have to but obviously after the few sponsored income tax but it Refunds and I'm not sure what the ask was But I remember hearing that from the public I picked up on that I don't know much about the program No, I would second that they I I have a constituent who's volunteered for that program for a number of years and They don't always get the training And They need for that so Anything we can do to help that it's a very very valuable service for Especially seniors. Um, so I think rsvp is helps with that And uh, you know, which office can be either way, but it's a separate funding stream The ask is 400,000 80,000 per cap and if we all know there's five caps Really anything else? I think everything has been said Yeah The one thing that I found is that there was a real consistent theme throughout both public hearings and and throughout All of the documents that have been sent to us. Um, there was maybe maybe 12 to 15 different real issues that have been pinpointed and I don't know that I can ever can but I can say that I've had that feeling in past years You know, it's it's just very consistent narrowly focused concepts because it just seems to me from past years that it's been broader than that Maybe I'm wrong. No, I think that's probably That resonates with me and that may be in part because we have federal fiscal stimulus and recovery dollars in the way that we haven't had in the past And that's changed the landscape to a certain degree In groups you're organized And that Yes, they are Yes, they are So all right very good Anything else? Just send everybody a digger article when I found about the Wichita Center Oh good So what is it? What is it? Oh, did you were you able to read it? We're all near to our seats Say it's the state's first community center run by black and brown for monitors for black and brown Space focused on wellness cultural empowerment and economic development Um Once in Burlington black and brown people are implementing policies processes Programs and initiatives for black and brown people in Burlington As opposed to folks who are Outside that community say And it goes on from there Including focus on young people Okay. Well, thank you. Thank you for looking that up That's pretty the website you can go to the website And you can find out more but it seems to have Vermont racial justice alliances across the top I couldn't find the names of anybody who Works there who the board is or there wasn't that kind of information. Yeah, they're just getting started Okay, well very good. Well, thank you everyone. Um, this has been good. It's always it's always good to listen to Uh, Vermonters and their needs and get and get folks perspective Especially and during the era of covet when when it's difficult to have somebody walk in Talk to us as they have in the past. So, uh, thanks again to one and all and we will be back at one o'clock promptly