 I am having to meet remotely a number of us are in quarantine but I guess we're making sure that government continues to soldier on relying on my colleague representative Lanford to do the introductions and timing. We thank you for coming. We have many witnesses tonight and so I'm going to let representative Lanford give the instructions for the people who are going to be testifying but again welcome everyone and thank you for coming out tonight. Thank you Senator Kitchell and the entire Senate appropriations committee for being accommodating with with with this particular format. The house has had several members that are that are also having some illness or some health issues that that are on zoom and we have just our forum that is here. So I just want to start off that you know that this hearing is being a few housekeeping things and I'm going to try to be really quick with this. This house this hearing is being live streamed on our committee and on YouTube and we have somebody filming from Access Television as well. Those joining remotely will notice that you will see and hear everything that's going on in the room but you won't be able to control your video or your audio for now. You will you all should be able to see the list of speakers for today in your chat box on zoom. I will also call out actually representative shy will actually call out the names of the of the people that are up next and the person who was on deck after that and we will do are very very best to get your name annunciated correctly and we apologize for anything in error and please when you come in you can state your name. So when when we call your name your the committee assistant will promote you from being an attendee to a being a panelist. The screen is going to flicker a little when this happens and you may need to turn your video on and your audio also. Once you are orientated and begin to speak the timer will start and you will have two minutes to speak your thoughts and the timer will turn yellow at 30 seconds and then red and at two minutes we are going to need to cut you off that's going to be one of my jobs is to indicate to our assistance when when when it's time to cut off. If you don't get what you need communicated to us in that two minutes you are welcome please welcome anything that's not finished saying or even if it's just saying again write it send it in an email to us and we keep it in a folder under public public hearing. So once after your term you you're going to be moved back into the attendee area where you are welcome to watch the rest of the hearing. So I hope that that's helpful instructions and with that so if we got two minutes we have 59 people signed up so we're going to have to be very tight to our time and representative shy one of you call the first first up is going to be Rachel Grossman and on she's on zoom and then followed by Mary Kate Mulman who's in person at the State House. Rachel's there so go ahead Rachel. Good evening my name is Rachel Grossman. I work as a family support worker through the defender general's office supporting parents who have children in DCF custody. I am testifying this evening to urge this committee to fully fund Reach Up in the 2024 budget programs like Reach Up are created as a safety net for families and financial distress and especially to assure that our children have their basic needs net currently Reach Up participants receive about half the amount that the state determines they need to live. This makes absolutely no sense. Where are the parents supposed to find that extra income? This is a program that has in its basic design incentive for parent participants to cheat to find other sources of income however they can. I'm pretty sure I would cheat. I'm pretty sure anyone would cheat. When we are desperate enough we do what we need to do to keep our children healthy and safe by not giving families enough to live on we are actually creating more stress. How do we do that? Applying for and receiving for benefits requires filling out multiple complicated forms though not required access to a computer or at least a phone is a virtual necessity but this too is problematic. People run out of minutes on their phone and miss important messages about meetings or one day they find that they've lost their benefits because of a missed message and with this assistance parents still cannot make ends meet and are more stressed than ever. A program that gives families who are struggling living in poverty struggling to make ends meet half of what they need is not a safety net. It is at very best half of a band aid. Children do not grow and thrive when their parents are stressed out nor do they grow and thrive when they are hungry cold because the fuel bill wasn't 20 seconds. The words get homeless need the basic needs of our children and families when the stress of survival is removed. Human beings thrive. We can do better. Please invest in our children now. Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you. But next up is Mary Kate Moment and followed by Lauren blend of it in on zoom. Thank you. Good evening to your kitchen chair and for members of the committee. My name is Mary Kate Molman. I'm the Vermont director for public policy for by state primary care association. Thank you for the opportunity to be here. I'm here to testify on behalf of Vermont's federally qualified health centers who serve a third of Vermonters. You will hear from many in the health care sector about the financial pressures we are all facing. FQHCs are no different. Currently multiple FQHCs are operating on a loss and considering for the first time ever reducing services offered as safety net providers. They reach out to those most in need. They must accept all Medicaid patients and everyone regardless of whether that person has insurance or whether that person can pay for the services they receive. These include primary care mental health oral health substance use disorder treatment vision care to name a few reducing these or other support services that FQHCs provide will have a significant impact on those with the fewest options under federal statute. Medicaid is supposed to cover the full cost of Medicaid services for FQHCs in 2021. It covered 71% and the trend is not favorable. The projected funding out for 2022 services. We still waiting for that data is 15.6 million dollars in deficit. However we understand the many budget pressures and have two requests. First we are asking for 6.9 million for FQHCs much below the 15.6. This will bring their rates closer to what is called for under federal law and bring some much needed financial stability. We also ask that the legislature direct Diva to continue its work with the FQHCs to update Medicaid's FQHC payment methodology so that it is in line with federal law and guidelines by fiscal year 2025 and onward. Again thank you for the opportunity to be here and considering our requests. Susan, please come join us. Thank you. I'm here. Where's one's here? Hi good evening. My name is Susan Aronoff. I am the Senior Planner and Policy Analyst for the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council. Thank you very much for the opportunity to testify I've submitted a written statement that gives a lot of background about the council. One thing you'll notice if you've ever received email from me is I am a state employee. I always need to start my testimony here with a clarification that while I work in the agency of human services I work for a federally funded independent council so I don't have to support the governor's recommended budget. I work for a council that's made up of 60% of people with disabilities and their family members. We have a legislative platform every year I'm going to leave you with a copy of and our platform includes several budget items. I'm only really going to focus on one here tonight because it is the most urgent because really I don't say this lightly lives are at stake. I'm talking about the needed oversight for Vermont's developmental disabilities system the home and community based service system. There have been several articles in Digger in August criminal charges were filed because a person a vulnerable adult who cannot communicate who is living in the house of a community member paid for with Medicaid funds went from weighing 138 pounds to 68 pounds. That doesn't happen overnight. There are simply not enough eyes on. There is not enough oversight. Last year the house passed a bill act 186 that included increased oversight for developmental disability services. The senate took it out because the house didn't fund it. We want you to fund it this year. The governor has not put in funding. You'll be hearing new stories about this system. It is in crisis. We need quality oversight. We need it now. We need checks and balances. Please read the comments I submitted and the articles that they're linked to. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Thank you. Next up is Lauren Glenn Davidian followed by Molly Dugan. Thank you very much madam cheer women and members of the House and Senate appropriations committees. My name is Lauren Glenn Davidian. I'm co-director of CCTV Center for Media and Democracy and I work as part of Vermont Access Network 23 community media centers that provide public educational and government access services to all corners of Vermont. I'm appearing before you today to request your support to include Vans one million dollar one-time bridge request in the FY 24 budget. As we speak across the state Vermont community media centers are connecting our neighbors to the working of local government here today at this hearing election coverage that's happening in advance of town meeting and other public meetings to each other through major community events, local arts and culture programming and to the world beyond. During a time when Vermont's local newspapers are struggling community media centers provide an essential service identified by the legislature when you committed COVID relief funds and then when you appropriated FY 22 budget adjustment funds and FY 23 funds amounting to $900,000 for which we are very grateful. The demand for our service is growing at the same time that our primary revenue source cable TV is declining while community media centers such as CCTV are diversifying our revenue for example through projects like the Vermont language justice project that translates public health messages into 16 languages. We must contend with the accelerating decline of cable television revenue and that's why we're seeking bridge funding as we pursue longer term policy solutions. We thank you very much for your consideration and hope you will include our request of one million dollars one-time bridge funding in the FY 24 budget. Great. Thank you very much. Next up is Molly Dugan and following Molly is Tatswozy also on Zoom. Molly, go ahead. Thank you. Good evening. My name is Molly Dugan and I'm one of the co-chairs of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Coalition. I'm also the director of policy and strategic initiatives for Cathedral Square. VHCC is a coalition of more than 50 private businesses and nonprofit organizations that represent a wide spectrum of interests. VHCC respectfully requests that you fully fund the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board at its statutory amount of 27.8 million in the fiscal year 24 budgets. Our members have a proven record of accomplishment to deliver solutions to urgent community needs. These needs include homelessness, affordable housing, access to the outdoors for physical and mental health, climate resilience and economic development. The governor's recommended funding for the base budget of VHCC of 15.4 million is not only inadequate, it represents a 10 million dollar cut in last year's base appropriation. Additionally, we ask that you prioritize allocating one-time funds to address the ongoing housing crisis that too many Vermonters experience every day. As our VHCC members testified while in nine different committees on February 17th and as dozens testified at a joint hearing on housing the night before, the spectrum of housing needs and opportunities are large and diverse. New multifamily and farm worker housing, senior housing, manufactured housing, home ownership and supports for the unhoused. VHCC members have projects in their pipelines to address these needs. In fact, VHCC reports that there is approximately 200 million in pipeline projects that would create 2000 homes. That kind of investment will put us on the path to truly meeting our state's housing needs. We thank you for your past investment. We thank you for your past investment in VHCC and we urge you to support VHCC at the full statutory share along with the additional one-time funds to address the housing crisis. Thank you very much for your time. Thank you very much. Next up is Pat Swase on Zoom followed by Nate Pine also on Zoom. Thank you. I'm Pat Swase. I'm the president of the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds. We are a statewide organization of volunteer lake associations, lake stewards and individuals. On behalf of our members, I want to address the woeful lack of funding for the prevention and control of aquatic invasive species in our public waters. Aquatic invasive species are biological pollutants and are one of the 10 major stressors in Vermont's surface waters. The primary cause of the spread of invasives is human, moving boats and other aquatic gear from water body to water body. Therefore, boat inspections and reduction of existing infestations are crucial to stop invasive spreading. The Department of Environmental Conservation Aquatic Nuisance Control grant and aid program is the primary source of funding for both prevention and control efforts. However, only $25,000 per year comes from the state's general fund. The remainder is from a portion of the motorboat registration fees. For 2023, this program is being reduced by 22%, leaving a meager $350,000 for all programs in the entire state. Aquatic invasive prevention and control programs are not eligible for funding from the over $50 million clean water fund. Our lakes and ponds are public waters. In 1978, the aquatic nuisance control law was passed. It states that it is the policy of the state of Vermont to prevent the infestation and proliferation of invasive species. However, it is not possible to do this without a reasonable and reliable level of funding and adequate technical staff to train and support volunteers. I am here tonight to ask that you ensure that there is funding of $1 million in the state budget for the aquatic nuisance control grant and aid program and that there is additional and adequate funding for technical staff in the Department of Environmental Conservation to provide support and training as we continue to work together to protect and improve Vermont's public waters for all of us now and for future generations. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to address this issue with you tonight. Thank you. Next up is Nate Hine followed by Linda Wicklach all on Zoom. Thanks. Thanks to the committee for having me. My name is Nate Hine. I'm a retired engineer and I spend my time now as a volunteer guardian at Lightham and as a volunteer and advocate for domestic violence and sexual assault victims. And let me first say that I'm not speaking in any capacities for the Guardian of Lightham program or any other program. I'm speaking strictly as an individual. My daily work over the past years has in my daily work over the past years, I regularly interact with low-resourced parents and children, single people living at the margin. Usually their traumatic histories include parental abuse and neglect, domestic violence and or substance use and other health disorders. Many of these due to their individual circumstances and the endemic and the currently critical shortage of affordable housing in Vermont are chronically homeless or perpetually at risk of homelessness. Despite their own strenuous efforts and the tireless work of service providers, they're unable to locate alternatives to GA emergency housing and are facing media homelessness every time the threat of cuts to GA funding looms as it has recently. The other persistent problem that gets in the way of families that I work with many of them and for many of whom prevents the reunification or makes it impossible for them to keep their children is the inadequacy of reach-up funding. And it seems we have difficulty properly funding this program and I assume it's because we think other programs are going to do the job but people have a great deal of difficulty navigating the huge alphabet soup of programs that have to apply to meet their needs. So I hope you'll fully support reach-up in the coming budget. Thank you, thank you. Next up is Linda Wicklach followed by Mary Hayden who's here at the State House and Mary you're welcome to come sit up here so you're ready if you are here. Yeah, you can just come sit up here and wait. Okay, Linda. My name is Linda Wicklach and I'm the current president of the Vermont Association of Adult Day Services. I'd like to speak with you about the Medicaid reimbursement rate and MNG funding tonight. The majority of adult day participants are dependent on Medicaid. Our Medicaid reimbursement rate right now is 1860 an hour for all of our comprehensive services. This past fall, adult day services underwent a rate setting review and many of the recommendations were based on a lack of understanding of our services. We strongly disagree with the results of the rate study that was released last week. The recommendation of the report is a 15% Medicaid reimbursement increase which equates to 2150 an hour. Unfortunately, this will not sustain us. If the 15% increase is approved, we know that we will most certainly be coming back for an additional appropriation to assist us with operational needs with salaries and expenses. In addition, more programs will be potentially put at risk. We've lost six during the COVID pandemic and we are very concerned the participants will lose their lifeline to the community and health care costs will increase as their additional ER and hospitalization visits and families will be placed in a very difficult position as to whether or not they give up their unemployment or may have to place their individual in a nursing home or other sort of institutional setting. We are requesting a Medicaid reimbursement rate of $25 an hour. We are also requesting that you do not cut the Medicaid, the MNG funding by $2 million. We have been asking for Dale to lift the caps on MNG so that we can serve more people under the MNG program and feel that we can adequately do this. And so we would appreciate that cut if there were, if it were not put in place. Thank you so much for your consideration of our request and thank you so very much for all your support during COVID and as we rebuild the adult day system which is so critical for our long-term care and health care system in Vermont. Thank you very much. Thank you very much for coming. Next we have Mary Hayden who is here in person and I'm followed by Rachel Jolly on Zoom. My name is Mary Hayden. I'm the Executive Director of the Vermont Association of Area Agencies on Aging. Thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight in support of budget items which impact older Vermonters. We are an association of five area agencies on aging located throughout Vermont. Our mission is to provide advocacy, leadership and a voice for Vermont's aging network. Our services include meals on wheels, congregate meals, long-term care coordination, caregiver programs, Medicare and health insurance counseling and education, wellness activities and programs and information and referrals for legal and mental health services and other benefits such as housing fuel in three squares Vermont. I'm going to speak to the older Vermonters nutrition program. There are 182,000 Vermonters aged 60 and older or 28 percent of the population. Six percent of them are receiving home-delivered and congregate meals. It's projected that by 2030 33 percent of Vermonters will be 65 and older. Meals providers report increasing demand for home-delivered meals. But the combined state and federal funding for older Vermonters nutrition does not meet the current and future needs of older Vermonters. We have a mounting funding gap. The total cost is $13,700,700,500 but it leaves a funding gap of over four million. Vermont must increase its investment in nutrition for older Vermonters to create a sustainable and cost-effective plan for the future. We therefore ask for an investment of $3 million to begin to address this funding gap. I also want to speak up for funding for the long-term care crisis in Vermont. Vermont has failed to invest enough resources to ensure a stable system of care for the long-term. The long-term care system is currently underfunded according to rate studies by at least $30 million. We therefore ask the legislature to make a meaningful investment in long-term care services in next year's budget to ensure older and disabled Vermonters have the services they need to age at home or in the community with dignity and respect. Thank you. Well, Jolly Umsoom followed by Tammy Riley Umsoom. You did. Okay. Hi. Hi everyone. My name is Rachel Jolly and I'm the director of the Burlington Community Justice Center. I'm proud to work at one of Vermont's state-funded restorative justice agencies. Collectively, 24 agencies receive funding from the Department for Children and Families, the Attorney General's Office, the Department of Corrections, and the Vermont Center for Crime Victim Services to use restorative practices to address harm and crime. Our approach is based on the philosophy that crime is first and foremost a violation of relationships. Through voluntary engagement of the parties directly involved in the harm and addressing the impacts of the crime on the victim, the person or people responsible, and the community in which the harm happened, and seeking repair, community bonds are strengthened and the public is safer because of it. To rise to its potential, restorative justice needs to offer dedicated services to the impacted parties or victims. All of our primary funders, with the exception of the Center for Crime Victim Services, are focused on the defendants or responsible parties. Despite our best intentions, we are not serving victims adequately. Most of our funding has been level-funded, equating to annual cuts for years. Some of our funding from the Federal Victims of Crime Act is diminishing and its future is uncertain. Through a total investment of $1.19 million in fiscal year 24 for 15.25 FTEs, Vermont would be making a visionary investment in expansive and creative solutions for our public safety system. Enabling each of our 24 agencies to provide dedicated victim services for fair and equitable restorative processes through referrals from both the community and the criminal legal system. Thirty seconds. Given that only 42 percent of violent crimes and 40 percent of property crimes are reported to law enforcement, resourcing alternative paths for harmed parties is essential. Thank you for investing in a public safety system that takes victims' needs into account. Thank you very much. Next up is Tammy Riley, followed by Jane Duanel. Thank you for your time and the opportunity today. My name is Tammy Riley. I serve on the Vermont Access Network Board of Directors, and I'm the Executive Director of Greater Northshire Access Television in the Manchester area. We serve the town, we serve 11 towns, including Arlington, Dorset, London Dairy, Manchester, Haroe, Rupert, Sandgate Stratton, Sunderland, Weston, and Winhall. I'm here today to ask for support of the Vermont Access Network and our state's 24 community media HEG-TV centers, with a one-time bridge funding appropriation of $1 million in the fiscal year of 2024. Community members depend on Genet TV for trustworthy local information and open access to local government proceedings that impact their daily lives. We often hear from citizens that we are the most thorough source and sometimes the only source for local election information. Non-profit organization schools, students, teachers, utilize our education services and we provide a lasting archive of our community events and culture for generations to come. As commercial media outlets focus on more global audiences, local community media centers provide vital communication services for our citizens and connect them to their government and to one another. Please consider Vans Fiscal Year 2024 budget request. For monitors from all walks of life, rely on community media to be informed, to stay engaged, and to be inspired. Thank you so much for your time and the opportunity today. Thank you. Next up is Jane Dwinell, followed by Amy Johnson. Good evening. My name is Jane Dwinell and my late husband Skyard Lee had both Alzheimer's and Lewy body dimensions. I'm here to speak to the need for a statewide dementia coordinator. When the doctor gave us the diagnosis in 2016, I asked what services are there for me? His answer, I have no idea. Imagine being faced with the diagnosis of this life limiting disease only to hear these words. A statewide dementia coordinator would have been a godsend. In 2017 and 18, Sky and I traveled around the country speaking about living with dementia. We started a blog to continue to share our thoughts and after Sky died in 2021, I turned our blog into a book, Alzheimer's Canyon, One Couple's Reflections on Living with Dementia, one of a small handful of books written by a person with dementia. I'm now on my own speaking tour and I hear the same things over and over. We need help. Where can we turn for information about resources, home and residential care, support groups? Where is assistance for the caregiver and the person with the disease? What will it cost and can we afford it? It's so hard to watch my loved one fade away. Hearing for someone with dementia is a 24-7 job. Confusion, forgetfulness, hallucination comes at all hours of the day and night. Finding the bathroom, getting dressed, eating a meal. Sky, for instance, lost the ability to know how to get into bed, lie down and cover himself up. So multiple times every night, I had to help him do this simple task. I was not getting a lot of sleep. We were lucky. We were educated, financially secure, had a good library, internet access. We did our own research, our own support community, but others are not so lucky. Who will help those without internet or library access, without financial stability? We need a statewide dementia coordinator and we need one now. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Thank you. Amy Johnson, followed by Mindy Claussen, both on Zoom. Good evening. My name is Amy Johnson and I'm the director of the Parent Child Center of Northwestern Counseling and Support Services. I'm here today in support of increasing state funding by $5.2 million for the 15 parent child centers providing essential state services. First, I would like to thank the legislature for their ongoing support of the PCC network. Your investments in fiscal year 23 made profound impacts on our centers, the families we serve, and our greater community and state. Early experiences are an important public health issue and it is clear the Vermont legislature recognizes and is supportive of those who do this important work. To continue to provide prevention-based supports and services and build healthy communities in our state, we are advocating for a base funding increase of $5.2 million to the PCC line in the fiscal year 24 budget. Underfunding has made providing all the needed services for families an ongoing challenge of equal importance. It has left vacancies and critical positions across the network resulting in increased caseloads and long waiting lists for services, all which impact retention and recruitment efforts. It is important for Vermont families and communities that the services provided by PCCs are not only fully funded but of high quality and consistent across the state. An increase in funding will support the overall global health of the network by allowing for adequate funding of our prevention hub. An increase to our base funding will ensure that our state maintains a rich and robust network of family resource centers with high quality programming and staff to support families in these programs. Investing in PCCs as critical primary prevention and upstream supports for families and children strengthens families and communities. Every dollar invested in building healthy communities reduces the demand on our healthcare system and helps to ensure that more people will be healthier for longer periods of their lives. The system exists to support families and it is a robust one. Please continue to invest in the important work of parent child centers. For Vermont families PCCs are the answer. Thank you for your time and thoughtful consideration. Thank you. Next up we have Mindy Claussen who I see on Zoom followed by Eric Peterson who is here and Eric why don't you come take a seat so you're ready when it's your turn. Go ahead Mindy. Thank you so much. My name is Mindy Claussen and I appreciate this opportunity. I am also here to speak about the need for a state dementia coordinator in Vermont. My father died from Alzheimer's in 2019. Dad could afford a long term care facility but this is only child. I was the sole person supporting him managing his finances doing end of life planning and in some cases finding solutions that staff at his long term care facility couldn't. Through most of this I worked full time. The stress and emotional impact led to burnout and affected my health my job performance and my life to the point where I retired. Since then I've worked with various organizations in Vermont to make it easier for dementia caregivers here to find the resources that they so desperately need. Vermont has neither a coordinated system of care nor a process for those facing dementia. If you're lucky enough to get a clear diagnosis where do you go? The shock and burden of that diagnosis or the lack of one are huge. By the time most caregivers realize they need help they're in crisis mode and have no idea of where to turn. What does a system of care look like? Well cancer has its own center at the UBM Medical Center. After my diagnosis there I was given an appointment with an oncologist and later assigned a radiation oncologist. I had access to free counseling, free rehabilitation and received a book that walked me through the treatment process and listed available resources. Creating and funding a state dementia coordinator is a critical first step toward developing the same type of recognizable path for every family facing dementia. This roadmap must consider the challenges of our rural state, our workforce crisis, the needs of providers, the dearth of respite. The burden on unpaid family caregivers and the responsibility to the goal of Dale to quote make Vermont the best state in which to grow old or live with the disability with dignity, respect and independence. Thank you so very much for your time. Thank you very much. We have Eric Peterson who is here followed by Barbara Edelman who is on Zoom. Thank you. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to all of you here today. I'm Eric Peterson. I'm the regional director for Vermont Adult Learning in Franklin Grand Isle counties. As you're aware the adult education and literacy system is asking for an additional $1.5 million to support our efforts to help adults 16 years and up improve their literacy skills and high school diplomas and improve employment opportunities. Over the past few years our system has seen an increasing fallout from the devastating effects of the pandemic on high school students and educational systems. National publications like Education Week have pointed to a decline in graduation rates and an increase in dropout rates across the country. Vermont is seeing the same effects. Many students fell behind during the pandemic and missed critical educational components leading to skill gaps. When many students found out they would not be graduating on time they gave up and dropped out. Data from places like Education Week shows the impacts of disproportionately impacted some populations especially students with disabilities and states that have a robust system of charter schools they have become the safety net for students. Vermont does not have such a system so the adult education system has become that safety net. We're seeing an increase in students coming straight from high schools with IEPs from 504s. Many of these students have gaps in their education and need more focused attention and greater accommodations to be successful. They struggle to achieve the test scores needed to qualify for Vermont's high school completion program so their services are only funded by the adult education literacy grants. We do not receive additional HSEB funds to serve them. If you're going to provide students with the services they need to fill in missing skill gaps and help them graduate we need the resources to do so. This is why adult education providers are coming to you and requesting the additional 1.5 million dollars. Please help us to help these students and again thank you for the opportunity to speak to you all tonight. Thank you very much. Next up we have Barbara Edelman on Zoom and then we have Lori O'Hanlon. Go ahead Barbara. Hi, my name is Barbara Edelman. I live in St. Johnsbury and I work for Northeast Kingdom Community Action where I connect with more than 50 food relief programs run by organizations in our region. Many of these organizations rely heavily on the Vermont Food Bank to be able to offer nutritious food to folks who just cannot make ends meet. People like Alicia whose husband has a good job but not good enough to keep their family well fed. Alicia told me that when she heard the SNAP emergency allotments will end next month she challenged herself this month to feed her family on the reduced amount she'll soon be receiving and she could not do it. She is panicked. Like Alicia, 40% of the people you serve experienced food insecurity last year. Finding a way to address the root causes of this awful statistic keeps many of us and I suspect many of you up at night. But in the meantime we all have a moral obligation to make sure our neighbors can adequately feed themselves and their families now. And you are in one of the best positions to do so by establishing a base appropriation of $3 million in the FY24 state budget for the Vermont Food Bank, one of your most effective partners in this work. I respect that you're being asked to juggle many needs. I only ask that your response to this request reflects the importance of making sure the most basic need of your constituents to be well nourished is met. Would you please spend the few remaining seconds in silent reflection on this request? Thank you so much. I'm a registered nurse at Champlain Community Services. We support adults with intellectual disabilities and autism. Each person we serve has an individualized support plan documenting their personal story, goals, dreams, needs and challenges so their time with staff is spent living life the way they want to live it, the sort of thing many of us take for granted. This work requires exceptional calm balanced with precise vigilance. It's exhilarating and exhausting. It attracts the loveliest people you'd ever want to spend the day with. Often when the newest support person is finally broken in those somebody else gives notice. Then there's a scramble to fill the most critical spots, moving support people around covering clients who suddenly don't have a home, others don't get daily services and clients have to begin trust building all over again. The CCS management team has done absolutely everything to create an enjoyable and supportive work environment and employees really seem to love it here but unfortunately feeling supported and valued, feeling good about the difference you're making in others lives, none of that will buy you a place to live in Vermont or even a few hours of childcare. So the worker shortage and our inability to compete with less demanding career choices puts us and the people we serve at a huge disadvantage. We've been unable to hire and keep enough staff to create a stable and predictable base to plan from. We spend a ridiculous amount of time and resources interviewing for the same types of positions and shuffling duties to those who have not yet given notice. This creates a constant state of overwork and stress with a devastating ripple effect that results in instability, unpredictability and unavoidable isolation for our consumers the very thing that we're here to prevent. By now I know you're wishing that you could work there and you're wondering how you can help. So we're asking for a 10% increase in our Medicaid rate and 6 million added to our annual fund to offer student loan payoffs or support for people in furthering their education. These would give us a chance to hold on to our very stretched workforce while recruiting enough employees to put our energy back into providing services. Our people are counting on us and there are more people waiting for us. Thank you very much. Darrell Rudy followed by Juanita Wade. Thank you so much. My name is Darrell Rudy and I'm here to tell you and share why Vermont needs a state dementia coordinator. Like more than 13,000 other Vermonters over the age of 65, I have Alzheimer's. Let me repeat that I have Alzheimer's. I live in St. Johnsbury with my partner Barb and I want to spend the rest of my life there with Barb in our own. This choice is the most effective cost thing you can imagine and for the state it's absolutely perfect. In Vermont there are over 26,000 unpaid dementia family caregivers like Barb. All of them are working to navigate a disease that is long, complex and terminal. Let me repeat that terminal. Many of them are also working and taking care of kids and other family members and they need help as well. Vermont has amazing organizations and people doing the best they can to meet our needs but this system is often fragmented and even in little Vermont there is a lot of variance depending on where you live. There are so many different pieces that must be juggled by those of us dealing with this disease. This places an unbearable burden on our families. I'm asking that the Vermont make an investment in families like mine by establishing a state dementia coordinator, a point person to ensure access is available and equitable across our state. A dementia coordinator will provide Vermont's doctors, service organizations and unpaid caregivers and services and structures they desperately need to cope with dementia in the most efficient and cost effective way. Thank you so much. Thank you. Next up is Juanita Wade followed by Daniel Barlow. You're on mute Juanita. There try that. Thanks. Good evening. My name is Juanita Wade. I'm a resident of New Haven and a volunteer for the Vermont food bank. And tonight I ask that you please address the ongoing needs of Vermonters facing food insecurity by establishing a base appropriation of $3 million in the fiscal year 24 state budget for the Vermont food bank. The food bank serves Vermont's most vulnerable populations volunteering in Addison and Rutland counties at the food bank's veggie van go food distribution sites. I see that vulnerability and corresponding relief that families feel when shares of fresh produce are loaded into their cars. The food bank provides quality food, much of it produced by Vermont farmers and a portion gleaned from local farms thanks to the generous donation of farmers and the hard work of volunteers. While I have yet to see and eat more kale bumper sticker on any of the hundreds of cars driving through the distribution sites, I know that with the continued efforts and the coordinated efforts of the food bank, as well as continued funding more Vermonters will be able to enjoy kale and food security food security being a basic need of a healthy productive life. I again ask please address the ongoing needs of Vermonters facing food insecurity by establishing a base appropriation of $3 million in the fiscal year 24 state budget for the Vermont food bank. Thank you for your consideration. Thank you very much. We have Dan Barlow on zoo and then Carl Stein. If you want to take a seat you'll see you'll be after Dan. Go ahead Dan. Thank you committees. My name is Daniel Barlow. I'm the executive director of the People's Health and Wellness Clinic here tonight representing Vermont's free and referral clinics. We are an association of nine free and referral clinics throughout Vermont. We are asking for a $453,000 increase above the governor's recommendation in the fiscal year 2024 budget. This increase will allow us to continue to address the ongoing health care crisis facing the uninsured and underinsured residents of Vermont. Last year our clinics cared for almost 12,000 patients, more than 4,000 of whom were brand new to our clinics. We provided over 40,000 services averaging four services per patient. These services include primary care, dental hygiene, mental counseling, and many others. This additional funding will allow us to meet the increased demand for our services. As free health care clinics we are unique in that we do not receive payment based on numbers of services or patients. When our patient numbers increase we must seek additional funding to allow our clinics to continue operating. And this request this year is based on our actual 2022 expenses. We saw personnel costs go up, occupancy and office supply costs go up, and our program costs go up. Additionally in Vermont more than 22,000 patients could become uninsured over the next two years due to the Medicaid unwind. We will be on the front lines of ensuring that Vermonters do not fall through the cracks during this transition. Even if only one third of these patients came to our clinics our numbers would increase by 39%. We were also a good investment in our health care system. For every $1 invested in the free clinics we saved the state $6 in avoided emergency room costs. So please continue to support health care services for vulnerable Vermonters with an additional appropriation of $453,000 to Vermont's free and referral clinics association to address our ongoing health care crisis. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up is Carl Stein who's here in person followed by Howard Goodrow on Zoom. Thank you. My name is Carl Stein. I'm an advanced EMT with 15 years of experience and an EMT instructor coordinator for the state of Vermont. I'm currently working for Harbick Rescue as a volunteer and for Nems and Johnson Vermont as a per diem employee. I'm a retired teacher and principal with 24 years of educational experience. Emergency medical services are a critical part of the state's emergency response system and our health care system. As part of the health care system EMS professionals provide critical access to health care services life-saving procedures and medical transportation to a growing number of Vermonters without professionally trained volunteers. Small rural towns in Vermont cannot afford their local ambulance services. Volunteers have to take the same courses past the same exams and continuing education requirements and provide the same level of professional patient care as paid EMS providers. In the past 15 years I've taught seven EMT courses and three first responder courses. The cost of these courses has gone from $325 to $1,200. Most Vermonters cannot afford $1,200 which must be paid up front. The cost of the course and the difficulty of obtaining certification are barriers to filling the ranks of our volunteer EMS providers. Currently the EMS special funds receives $150,000 per year to support online regional training programs, data collection and analysis, and other activities related to the training and delivery of emergency medical services in Vermont. The funds are shared by paid career and volunteer EMS. The legislature should allocate $1 million annually to the EMS special funds to support the ongoing training needs of EMS providers. This will provide much needed relief to our volunteer providers. Thank you. Good evening. My name is Howard Goodrow and I'm the Executive Director of the Vermont Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Thank you for the opportunity to highlight the need for a state dementia coordinator. The Alzheimer's Association leads the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. Here in Vermont we work in collaboration with the Department of Health and the Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living, the UVM Center on Aging, Area Agencies on Aging, and so many others to build systemic capacity for Vermonters with dementia. We offer free caregiver support groups and educational programs with more than 80 Vermonters participating every month, a number that is rapidly growing. These programs help families understand the different aspects they will need to navigate over the course of this disease. We also provide training for professionals as we work to build a dementia-capable Vermont. For instance, we're currently working with the Department of Public Safety on a training for law enforcement, and we offer an essentials training program for staff at long-term care facilities. We're in an exciting time with several new Alzheimer's treatments currently in the FDA approval process. The Alzheimer's Association is dedicated to ensuring there is equitable and affordable access to treatment. We will need to work with providers in Vermont to understand what is needed to meet this goal. A state dementia coordinator will be vital in this process. Every day we hear from Vermonters who are on this journey of dementia. They're looking for support for themselves or their loved one, housing, ideas to address cost, respite care, and disbelief over a lack of insurance coverage and feeling isolated and scared. Vermont has many of the components to meet these needs, but they're not organized or consistently available. We need a state dementia coordinator guide us as we develop the best Vermont-appropriate system of care. Please allocate $150,000 in the FY24 budget for this position. Thank you very much for your time. Thank you. Next we have Erica Frost, followed by Luba Ruzon. Good evening. My name is Erica Frost. I live in South Hero, and in 2020 I lost my mother to frontal temporal dementia. I'm here today to share the importance of adult day centers and ask that you ensure they receive sufficient and reliable funding so they're available when Vermonters need them. All new diagnoses bring steep learning curves, but dementia brings additional challenges. There's no care, no need to consult with surgeons and definitely no play book for families. In addition to accepting our new role as caregivers for my mother, my father and I had to figure out how to cover all 24 hours of each day. I'm a mother, a full-time employee, and someone who wanted to keep my mom in her home as long as possible. I was thrilled to learn about adult day programs in my community. Adult day programming is an essential piece of the survival kit for so many touched by dementia. There are incredible benefits for the participants, such as health and personal care, companionship, and meals. Equally important is the benefit for the 26,000 unpaid primary caregivers like me and Vermont. It can be the only way we can address our other responsibilities and remain in the workforce. Where else can you get the comprehensive services that adult day programs provide for their requested rate of $25 an hour? If an adult day program disappears, many caregivers will have to choose between placing their family members in a nursing home or leaving their jobs, both at great expense to our state. Working in an adult day may seem like an easy job, but I can assure you it's one that requires professional skill, patience, attention to detail, flexibility, a good sense of humor, and deep compassion. The work is physically and emotionally exhausting. Please support the budget request of $25 an hour of the Vermont Association of Adult Day Services. Vermonters cannot afford to lose these services. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next. I wasn't doing my job. That's okay. You did. They all, everybody did fine. Luba Routesong and followed by Charlie Wanzer. Good evening. My name is Luba Routesong. I'm a retired school counselor and a resident of Colchester. My husband has Alzheimer's. It is a disease that robs him of heart, soul, and body. Upon his diagnosis over two years ago, I was overwhelmed with grief, confusion, and anxiety. I asked the doctor, how do I help my husband? His advice was to keep my husband's brain activated through creative arts, socialization, physical exercise, and good nutrition. However, I learned it was much easier to access a plumber, an electrician, or a carpenter than to find any programs to engage my husband. Not only did a resource list not exist, but the resources do not exist. I have found some opportunities through hours of searching. But for the most part, I have created and implemented opportunities for my husband by relying on myself, my friends, and the kindness of strangers. I have lived in Vermont for 45 years and love the quality of life. However, Vermont's support for Alzheimer's and dementia is lagging. We are in a crisis. There is no central resource center. It is no surprise those with dementia and their caregivers till incredibly isolated. I am asking you to please allocate $150,000 in the FY24 budget for a state dementia coordinator. Thank you very much for your time tonight. Thank you. Next up, we have Charlie Wanzer, followed by Nick Sherman. Nick, come on up. Good evening, senators and representatives. Thanks for your service. My name is Charlie Wanzer, and I'm a public school teacher at Twinfield. I've also been a public school teacher up at Cabot. And I'm here to testify and ask you to fully fund Vermont Energy Education Program's request for monies. Their VEAPs programs are really fantastic. They support both teachers and ultimately, really, they educate our students at a critical issue. I propose that the next 20 years, one of the major issues going forward is going to be our energy transition away from carbon. So if we can teach our kids about renewable energies and the decarbonization process, I suspect the arguments and the public policy discussions are going to be a lot less acrimonious. It's going to be really interesting to see how we do this. So therefore, I propose that you folks support Annie Shapiro and the great VEAP organization. I've used their materials for many, many years. My students find them really engaging and they teach many valuable lessons about how to be a young scientist, how to think about energy, how to think how energy behaves and what it is. VEAP also does some really wonderful professional development. They pull a lot of teachers together during the summertime and through the school year, and I found that support to be invaluable. If you don't know how VEAP works, they've got many, many different kits that come in plastic tubs that a teacher can reserve. They can be delivered or picked up and they come with an adult. They teach some critical skills, including what solar energy is, what renewable energy is, how electricity is and how it behaves. They teach how energy moves through homes. They teach about how the grid works. So if you can support VEAP, that would be fantastic. Thanks very much. Thank you. Next we have Nick Sherman, who's here in person, followed by Becca Parent on Zoom. Hello, members of the committee. Thanks for the opportunity to weigh in. Nick Sherman with Leonine Public Affairs. I'm here tonight on behalf of Pathways Vermont. Pathways Vermont is a specialized service agency that contracts with the Department of Mental Health and Department of Corrections and serves much of the state. Pathways is requesting a one-time appropriation of $985,000 to support the purchase of a property in Burlington that will allow them to expand their Stereo House program. This is a therapeutic program for individuals experiencing psychosis for the first time. Operates 24-7 and has been run by Pathways since 2015. The program emphasizes therapy in small, supportive, family-like environments with low or possible no medication, and the goal is to be an alternative for the hospital. Short-term outcomes are comparable to treatment in a hospital setting, and long-term outcomes are far better. The individuals generally stay three to six months, sometimes longer, and it's in Burlington, but it is available for patients around the state. The current program utilizes a five-bedroom rented facility. This appropriation would allow them to purchase a new building that would expand the program from five beds to nine beds and increase the ADA accessibility from one bedroom to two. It would also save $50,000 a year on the rent. They've already raised $515,000 for the project. The total cost is $1.5 million, and so they respectfully request the difference, a one-time appropriation in FY 2024 of $985,000. Thank you for your consideration. Hello, committee members, and thank you for hearing my testimony. My name is Becca Perron. I am the Food Hub Account Manager for Green Mountain Farm to Schools Local Food Hub, Green Mountain Farm Direct, based in Newport, Vermont. I'm here today to ask that you please support the Farm to School and Early Childhood program with a level-funded base appropriation of $500,000 for fiscal year 2024. Also, please support the local purchasing incentive program for schools at $500,000 in base funding. Green Mountain Farm Direct is a regional mission driven food hub that partners with Vermont-based farmers and producers to provide affordable, bulk local food to schools across Northern and Central Vermont. We source a wide range of products from over 50 Vermont-based farmers and producers. As the liaison between local food producers and Vermont school kitchens, I have seen firsthand how powerful the local food purchasing incentive program has been for both schools and farms. Farm Direct decides overall sales to school customers grow by 25% after the local food purchasing incentive program launched in 2021. It has empowered food service directors to reinvest their budgets into the local food economy while also opening up new wholesale markets for our local producers. The program is a win-win for Vermont's food economy. Not to mention the powerful effect it has on the over 80,000 students eating breakfast and lunch in Vermont schools every day. Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine has said, quote, fresh local food leads to better health for children and Farm to School is the key part of making this happen. Again, I urge you to please support the 42nd Early Childhood Program with a level-funded base appropriation of $500,000 for FY24, and please support the local purchasing incentive program for schools at $500,000 in base funding. These programs are critical to the ability for schools and early childhood programs to participate in and strengthen our local food system and create a sustainable food economy for all Vermonters. Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you. Next up, we have Shane Rogers, followed by Mary Feldman. Thank you very much. Hi, everybody. Thanks for the opportunity to testify today. My name is Shane Rogers. I live in Milton, Vermont, and I'm here to advocate for an appropriation of $4.8 million this year to sustain and expand the work of the Land Access Opportunity Board, which is housed within the Vermont Housing Protection Board. I'm a member of CDN Power, Vermont, with the board of organizers that crafted an application for each 273 to buy upon land access an opportunity act. This was the original legislation that set out to create a group that Land Access Opportunity Board and the powers to find these creation are a narrative and equitable or important to address the systemic marginalization of a whole range of folks in regard to land and home access ownership. This board has advisory powers to help state agencies, departments, and committees integrate equity measures and mandate to create programs that include housing and land accessibility, the ability for communities to digest the marginalization of other protected classes. The lab has incredible community support behind it. Constituents from your legislative district and the counties you live in have spoken up to support the board. Now nonprofits, businesses, Melania, me, and more are joining our call for an appropriation of $4.8 million to be made for the continued work of the Land Access Opportunity Board. Support, you will be able to see shortly a collective letter that is being circulated. The lab submitted their sunrise report last week in a big detail they needed at least $1.2 billion annually for baseline operation. That is why I gather that we are having to earn an appropriation of $4.8 million this year so that the board can function for the next four years and do their work with certainty. It is critical to ensure that this board can continue its important work for the next four years and achieve your future success. I implore you to please commit now to the Land Access Opportunity Board and your budget this year for a total appropriation of $4.8 million. Thank you so much. Thank you. Next we have Mary Feldman followed by Jessica LaPorte. My name is Mary Feldman and I'm the executive director of Rutland County Child Center. RCPC is home to 50 committed, effective, and well-educated staff members who connect with hundreds of families throughout our programs across Rutland County. Over the course of the year we support up to 1,000 children at our family members. Committed to the important role of child education and family support this spring, RCPC is opening a USDA-funded whole family learning center so that both parents and children have a safe space to learn and thrive. This center will help save lives, to work for us in Rutland now and for the next 20 years. I'm asking for your commitment to parent child center network FY 2024 budget request for increased and based funding for the PCC integrated grant by $5.2 million with a goal of 10 million statewide. And that's bargain. Our parent child center staff are professional experts in supporting children and families. We understand child development and family needs and ways that are unparalleled. All families have benefit from our work regardless of socio-economic status. Thank you for supporting the work of the parent child center and for acknowledging through your funding decision how important and critical this work is to a sustainable Vermont. PCCs have for decades received level funding and we're catching up on years of disadvantage of limited resources and do some of the most important work in the state. We provide a placer of services and stabilize families and children and prevent unwanted outcomes. These services are provided through long-standing trust and relationships with pieces of professionals. Our agency has been asked to sacrifice salary both holding professional respect to this work. Our agency is competing starting salaries in supermarkets. That's why it's really important that we receive a full $5.2 million request. Thank you so much for the work you're doing serving the state of Vermont. Thank you very much. Next we have Jessica Lafort followed by Sophia Donforth who's in person so have a come on up. Thanks. Hello. Hello. My name is Jessica Lafort. I identify with she is my pronouns and I am a resident of Baxbury. I am a member of the Land Access Opportunity Board. The state instrumentality created in the last biennium that is tasked with a variety of responsibilities. But most importantly is looking at equitable land and home ownership for protected classes in Vermont. I am the representative of the Every Town BIPOC land access project across route movement to bring land and permanent stewardship for BIPOC people in Vermont. And I'm joined on the board by members of community-based organizations that represent, serve, and really are highly skilled in meeting the needs of a number of protected classes. From people of color in Vermont, to the commission of Native American Affairs, including the National Association of Social Workers in Vermont, Pride Center in Vermont, the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants in Vermont, the Vermont Department for Developmental Disabilities, and Vermont's psychiatric survivors. I want to share the breadth of this board with you all as we ask for an appropriation of $4.8 million because these are community-based organizations that have the skills, training, and track record of finding ways to make our state programs and the number of other public services accessible to all. In the Land Access Opportunity Board, we are seeking to bring support for equity programs across a number of Vermont departments. We're housed under the Vermont Housing Conservation Board, a known partner for the state, and we're asking for a capacity building budget of $4.8 million so we can establish staff and expand our network in order to address the critical matters from protected classes. Thank you very much. Next we have Sophia Donforth here. Thank you for making time to hear all of us this evening. My name is Sophia Donforth and I'm the director of the Vermont Energy Education Program, or VEEP, that Charlie Wanzer was speaking about earlier. We support teachers across the state in teaching about the energy we use and its impact on our climate, and we bring equipment to classrooms for a hands-on, minds-on learning experience. I'm here to urge the Vermont legislature to invest in climate education for all Vermonters. To reach our Climate Action Plan's goals, all Vermonters need to be informed about energy and climate and about opportunities for action to reduce emissions and save money. Our Climate Action Plan lists education for all as the first non-energy emissions pathway for mitigation, noting that education is a vital part of solving the climate crisis and that it strengthens the success of every other pathway towards resilient climate adaptation. In our work we see fourth graders figure out the importance of insulating and air-sealing houses. We see teachers realize the real-world impact of what they are teaching their students. A teacher on Fairhaven recently shared, my students were surprised to see how quickly a truck filled the 12-foot exhaust bag compared with a small car. They knew it would be faster, but whoa. Through VEEP Interactives, we then learned what was in the exhaust and how greenhouse gases affect the temperature of the planet. This made it real. It's now hard to sit in traffic and not think of all those bags filling up with carbon dioxide and other pollutants. VEEP is requesting 458,000 in one-time funding to make climate education for all a reality. We need to bring these programs to every school that's interested in Vermont, regardless of their ability to pay, and we'd like to bring these same programs to adults in libraries, granges, and other public spaces in partnership with other organizations and state initiatives to help Vermonters conserve energy and make choices that reduce carbon pollution. This is for kids and for adults. We know that education combined with accessible opportunities for action are the best way to inspire the transition that we need to a more sustainable, affordable, equitable, and carbon-free future for Vermont. Thank you for your time this evening. Next, we have Beverly Little Thunder, followed by Andrew Courtney. Hey, Honeywash Day. Good day to all of you, and thank you for allowing me to be here. My name is Beverly Little Thunder. I am a Lakota woman from Standing Rock, North Dakota, who has lived in Huntington, Vermont for the past 17 years. I have been working with seating power to help marginalized individuals gain access to land stewardship. I'm asking you the appropriations body to ensure that the Land Access and Opportunity Board has the $4.8 million it needs to succeed in providing a reparative framework to put marginalized Vermonters in ownership of land within Vermont. This charge has been led by community organizers like myself and our supporters. Trust us to know what we are doing and what we can do to achieve our goals. The Land Access and Opportunity Board was charged with a difficult task and rode to the job. Producing the sunrise report, now Vermont has the opportunity to show their commitment to equality by appropriating $4.8 million needed for their work ahead. Reparations can be begun by approval of this request. Please do not just give service to the marginalized population of the state we all love. To do so would be to repeat an embarrassing history. I appreciate you taking the time to hear me and to appropriate the funds for those marginalized people who live in Vermont and who want to stay in Vermont. Thank you very much. Thank you. Next we have Andrew Courtney and followed by Ellen Whitlow. Good evening. My name is Andrew Courtney. I work as the Director of Food Works for Groundworks Collaborative in Brattleboro. Foodworks is a network partner of the Vermont Food Bank. Please address the ongoing needs of Vermonters facing food insecurity by establishing a base appropriation of $3 million in the fiscal year 2024 estate budget for the Vermont Food Bank. Foodworks is designed as a neighborhood grocery store where anyone can access supplemental food resources for free. Over the past year we have seen a dramatic increase in need from community members in Brattleboro. We have seen a 40% increase in visits in just the last nine months. In total we estimate that over 4,000 unique individuals will access food through our program this year. Programs like ours are being hit with a double impact of inflation. We're seeing seeing record utilization numbers in our program during a time when the cost of stocking our shelves is also higher than it has ever been. Our shoppers notice when we are forced to make decisions to stop stockings certain items due to cost and it exasperates concerns about their own food needs being met. The combination of no-cost and low-cost food we have access to through the Vermont Food Bank is the backstop that allows our program to meet the needs of our community. The Vermont Food Bank and its partners like us at Groundworks Collaborative have made substantial investment into programs that serve the basic food needs of individuals. We in turn need the support of the legislature to continue to provide the most basic need to Vermonters. It is unacceptable for any Vermonter to experience food insecurity and coming weeks communities across Vermont will be facing the reality of the Everyone Eats program coming to a close at the same time as the reduction in three-squares Vermont benefits is initiated. Meanwhile prices of groceries are 11% higher than one year ago. It is now a good time for the legislature to fail to acknowledge the need for access to food in our Vermont communities. Please address the ongoing needs of Vermonters facing food insecurity by establishing a base appropriation of three million in the FY24 state budget for the Vermont Food Bank. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up we have Ellen Wicklum followed by Anne Sosin. Good evening. My name is Ellen Wicklum. I am the executive director of Valley Court Diversion Programs. From our offices in White River Junction we provide court diversion, pretrial services and other restorative justice programs to residents of Windsor County. I represent a vibrant community of restorative justice providers. We're grateful for the legislature's ongoing financial support and its progressive approach to reforming the criminal legal system. Currently the fee for participation in court diversion is $175 which is very frequently reduced according to an income-based sliding scale. Fee revenues have been declining across the state for many years. At my agency for example, this fiscal year fee revenue is on track to fall just short of 50% of what it was four years ago. Consider Marnie, who recently picked up a misdemeanor charge for a property crime. She's a single mother who works two jobs. She has successfully completed everything on her restorative contract. The harmed party has been made whole and Marnie herself has learned anger management techniques. All she has left is the fee. She qualifies to have her fee reduced to $90 which she's agreed to pay in $10 increments. The court diversion financial model in Vermont relies partly on collecting fees from youth and people in poverty. This is inherently problematic. In the interests of sustainability, equity and accessibility, court diversion providers request an additional $329,000 for the coming fiscal year. Poverty should not be an obstacle to restorative justice opportunities. Please designate money in this fiscal year to cover lost fee income and equalize access to restorative outcomes to Vermonters who have made a mistake, stepped forward and been accountable. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up is Ann Sossen followed by Michael Ruggles. Good evening. My name is Ann Sossen and I'm the interim executive director of the Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition. Vermont faces a generational housing crisis. The state currently has the second highest per capita rate of homelessness in the U.S. and the lowest rental vacancy rate in the country. Recent estimates suggest that the state needs an additional 40,000 units by 2030 to return to a healthy housing market. We are asking legislative leaders for policies and investments commensurate with the scale of this crisis in fiscal year 24. Housing leaders across the state have put forth the bridges to housing proposal to advance the dual goals of addressing our state's crisis of homelessness while decreasing reliance on motel-based shelter. Specifically, we request the following appropriations in fiscal year 2024. First, Vermont must create alternatives to motel-based shelter. We propose a $40 million appropriation in the budget to the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board to expand and improve shelter capacity. Second, Vermont must accelerate the production of affordable housing and increase funding for supportive services in the coming year. We support full statutory funding for VHCB and $175 million in funding for new housing development. Third, we recommend that the legislature make 50,000 one-time appropriations to update the 2017 Vermont roadmap to end homelessness to reflect the current context, latest evidence-based practices, and progress on the 2017 roadmap. Finally, we are requesting $72 million in fiscal year 24 to sustain motel-based shelter as a critical safety net for Vermonters experiencing homelessness. The proposed fiscal year 24 budget threatens to leave more than 2,000 people without shelter in unsafe conditions, displace a problem from the state to local communities, and exacerbate a crisis that has garnered national attention. In addition, we are proposing $20 million in supplemental the Office of Economic Opportunity for the Housing Opportunity Grant Program for increased support and services for a mere urgency shelter. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. Thank you. Next, we have Michael Ruggles, followed by Joanna Lidback. Well, thank you for this time. My name is Michael Ruggles. I'm a 56-year-old homeless veteran. I'm currently in the transitional housing program, which is coming to an end on March 31st, and I'm asking that you try to find some funding in the general assistance to help homeless people because living in a tent is not ideal. And I realize that living in a hotel is not ideal, but living in a hotel has allowed a lot of people to access supports that they wouldn't otherwise have been able to access, myself included. What services have you been able to access? Absolutely. Health care, housing searches, food access, mental health, all of that is improved since being sheltered. Being unsheltered, nothing happens because we're always worried about our possessions and you can't leave your tent. And this transitional housing program is working. I've seen people moving forward and gaining more and more support as they go along. And I'm just asking that you find some funding somewhere to keep this sort of program going so that myself and other people coming behind me from this whole experience have a place to go. Thank you very much, sir. We appreciate you coming. Next we have, we're going to skip to Annika Hylwile who's here and then probably Abby White who will be on Zoom. Hi, thank you for having all of us this evening. My name is Annika Hylwile and I use she, her pronouns. I work for a public assets institute and I'm the campaign manager for Fund Vermont's Future, which is a coalition project focused on ensuring that the state of Vermont works to meet the needs of all Vermonters. I come to you with a request that your committees work to improve the Vermont state budget process to directly engage with the needs of all Vermonters and build a budget based on those needs. I therefore request that your committees work with the Fund Vermont's Future Coalition on a budget process in which the administration and legislature use existing and improved statues to ensure that the needs of the people of Vermont are the focus of the budgeting process and that we are collectively working to eliminate historic and current injustices, that the revenue raising and budgeting processes and recommendations are publicized and explained using plain language, that the public and the entire legislature, not just the appropriations committees, are encouraged to participate in the budgeting process and are able to do so in meaningful ways and that when the process is not followed it is known publicly and there is a way to require for it to be followed. The barrier of entry for me to sit before you today was high. As a young person with a job where I'm just beginning to engage with the legislature, members of my coalition informed me that there are public hearings on the budget. I was sent the press released by others in my circle of work. When I came to the state house for the first time, co-workers showed me around the space. If I was not shown the ropes through my employment or was not otherwise involved with an advocacy organization engaged with the process, none of these steps would have occurred and I would not be here. Public input on the state budget should not only come from people in my position who already have some level of access to individuals in the state house. Instead, we need to give all of Vermonters the opportunity to demonstrate their needs, which means ensuring that both the administration and legislature directly engage with communities instead of having a process that only allows a small number of individuals to engage. Focusing on the needs of all people, publicizing and explaining the revenue and budget processes, engaging the entire legislature and introducing measures of accountability to ensure that the budget is used to address the needs of all Vermonters, will begin to center people in the budget process and improve livelihoods of individuals across the state. This is not a straightforward request for an appropriation but instead a call for a change in the budget process. The Femvermonts Future Coalition has concrete ideas to meet these goals and I'm excited to work with you to build a better future for Vermont. Thank you. Next up is Abby White followed by Peter Mallory. Hi, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. My name is Abby White. I work for the Vermont Land Trust and serve as the co-chair of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Coalition. I'm here today to speak about the importance of land conservation, particularly in a time of rising land values, more severe climate impacts and challenges across our agricultural and forestry sectors. Some people have asked me, why do we need more conservation in the time of a housing crisis? In many states, conservation and housing are at odds but in Vermont, VHCB was founded on the core value that when you invest in both conservation and housing, communities thrive. We've seen this most recently in St. Johnsbury with the completion of the New Avenue Apartments and the protection of the 117-acre observatory knob, both were funded by VHCB and enhanced the vitality of that town. Last year, you increased VHCB's base funding by $10 million. Thank you. This year, we asked you to support VHCB at its statutory share of $27.8 million. Governor Scott has allocated only $15.2 million to VHCB's base funding, which is $9.6 million less than last year and $12.6 million less than the anticipated statutory share. This moves us in the wrong direction. While the governor cut VHCB's budget, he also allocated $10 million in one-time money for housing. Under this scenario, investments in housing are held steady, but investments in conservation suffer. In a time of growth, we must balance development with conservation. This includes concentrating development in growth areas, protecting land, water, and soil, and strengthening our resilience to climate change. I respectfully urge you to support VHCB at its statutory share of $27.8 million, enabling us to meet important needs today and tomorrow. Thank you. Thank you. Next we have Peter Mallory, followed by Marlena Till-Disley. Good evening. I'm Peter Mallory, and I'm grateful to all of you for listening tonight. And those of you who know me will probably not be surprised to hear that I'm here to advocate for Vermont's recovery system of care, for the recovery center's increased funding of $1.8 million, and for the Vermont Foundation of Recovery and Recovery Residences increase of $1 million. I believe these efforts are essential to our battle against addiction and alcoholism. The centers are drastically underfunded, understaffed, and underpaid staff. In most cases, they lack health care coverage. Many staff do. As far as recovery residences, we need more transitional and sober beds, which is not a surprise to any of you. My personal experience is that when I first got sober, around 20 years ago, there was one recovery center in the state. It was a hole in the wall in White River, and the only other thing on the block was a liquor store. What we have now is a network of recovery centers, which is the envy of many states in the nation. That's been a product of 20 years of hard work. And these are the places where people meet. 20 seconds. And it makes, if addiction, the opposite of addiction is connection, this is where it happens. And I hope that you all will find a way to continue to support those efforts. And I'll pass. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next, we have Marlena Tildesly through Zoom, and then Drew Hazelton, if you want to come up and be ready. Thank you. Hi. Thank you for hearing testimony tonight. My name is Marlena Tildesly. I'm a senior at UVM studying molecular genetics. This semester, I'm also an intern for the Vermont chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. In the short time I've been engaged with the association, I've been able to hear from Vermonters who have Alzheimer's and unpaid family caregivers about the challenges that they face. I believe the need for a state dementia coordinator is huge. More than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's, and one in three seniors die with Alzheimer's or another dementia. In January, my grandmother became one of those seniors without access to good information about dementias, my grandfather and aunt, quickly and seemingly out of nowhere became her full-time caregivers. Beyond the work that we typically think of with caregiving, like driving her around, making her food, there was the devastating and emotionally draining work of bathing and clothing her, struggling as her memory of their lives together began to fade and isolation from friends and activities that they used to engage in daily. Not to mention my grandmother's experience of frustration, fear and sadness, as she grappled with an inability to retain information that used to come easily. As I completed my training to become a community educator for my internship, it became clear that my family was not alone. The first time I presented the 10 warning signs of Alzheimer's was last month at the Fairfield Library. As I listened to representatives from a variety of organizations answer questions and try to guide people, it became abundantly clear that services are available but they're not coordinated and they're not easy to find. A dementia coordinator will play a central role in creating a coordinated system of care. This system would evaluate how we share resources and who might not be receiving them. It would focus on the direct care workforce and how we can grow it and what needs to be done to expand respite opportunities for unpaid caregivers. I feel the urgency as I connect with older Vermonters in their communities and wish for my family that they had had access to the kinds of resources a dementia coordinator would support. I ask that you appropriate funding for a state dementia coordinator this year. Thank you very much. Thank you. Next we have Drew Hazelton who is here followed by Jesse Barnard. Hello, Drew Hazelton. I'm a paramedic. I chair the Vermont EMS Advisory Council and the Vice President of the Vermont Ambulance Association. I'm here tonight to ask you to put some money in the budget to support EMS in Vermont. Medicaid funding in Vermont has not changed since 2019 and we're currently operating at about 70% of where Medicare is paying for EMS. EMS is the true safety net in every single community 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And I certainly think through the pandemic we proved our value to our community through those services. EMS in Vermont is in crisis. Our system is failing. Our workforce is failing. So we're asking for consideration to increase our Medicaid rates to Medicare rates. We're also asking for a million dollars in education funding. Over the last four or five years we've come to the legislature and we've been grateful to receive one-time funding to support EMS education. With huge success we've been able to bring in about 400 new people. Unfortunately those 400 new people don't replace the numbers that are leaving EMS in Vermont which is what's leaving many of your services, short people, many of your services relying on their neighbors to provide care. Every single day we hear stories about injured or sick Vermonters that have had to wait for a neighboring ambulance service to come 20, 30, 40 minutes and the only solution to that is to invest in our EMS system. So this year to bring Medicaid to the Medicare rate we need about a 1.3 million dollar match so we can pull down federal dollars and we need a million dollars in education funds to continue the good work that we've been doing building our EMS system in Vermont and supporting our EMS system. So I appreciate the time to speak and ask the U.S. support EMS in Vermont. Thank you very much for having me. Next up we have Jessa Barnard followed by Cheryl Mitchell. Good evening. Thank you for hearing from me. My name is Jessa Barnard. I am the executive director of the Vermont Medical Society representing physicians and physician assistants across Vermont. I'm also speaking tonight on behalf of the Vermont Academy of Family Physicians and the American Academy of Pediatrics Vermont chapter and I've submitted more detailed comments and writing for your review. I'm here to request a 3.8% inflationary adjustment for Medicaid rates for professional medical services contained in the Department of Vermont Health Accesses RBRBS fee schedule which is for professional medical services. 3.8% is the established Medicare Economic Index or MEI inflation factor for medical services a conservative estimate of an increase in costs. This is compared to a $380,000 cut to primary care and medical services proposed in the governor's budget. There are 13 fewer independent primary care practices in Vermont since 2017. The stories are often sadly familiar and I note many in my written testimony clinicians near retirement who are unable to recruit a replacement to take their place given low reimbursement and high administrative burden or pediatric practices who see a high Medicaid volume. What are some of the pressures primary care practices are facing this year in particular due to inflation expenses such as fuel electricity and wages are up. Practices received a Medicare cut of 2.3% in 2023 and currently face another 1.5% cut in 2024. With Diva required to pause eligibility redeterminations during COVID medical practices are seeing a higher percent of patients with Medicaid lowering overall reimbursement and due to Blue Cross Blue Shields recent pulling out of Vermont that's led to approximately $600,000 cut across primary care. So again our organizations request the Diva RBRBS fee schedule to be increased by 3.8% this year to account for inflation and to help keep primary care doors open. Thank you very much. Welcome thank you. Next up is Cheryl Mitchell followed by Camille Kaufman. Hi thank you so much for the opportunity of speaking with you. I hope those of you that are ill recover quickly. My name is Cheryl Mitchell. I live in New Haven and I've been active in the fields of early care and learning family support research and public policy for almost 50 years. I testified today in support of the request by the Snelling Center for Government for an appropriation of $130,000. This would be used to revive the Early Childhood Leadership Institute. The Institute was created in 2014 with federal funds and continued until 2019 when it was ended by COVID and the tragic death of Mariah McGill who was then serving as its director. It's part of the Snelling Center's family of leadership institutes and as such it elevates the professionals serving our youngest children to their rightful place as peers with those who serve school age children and adults. Promoting the voices and skills of those who work most intimately with young children and their families has a huge magnifying effect. Early Childhood Leadership Institute participants come to know and appreciate one another across disciplinary boundaries, health and mental health, child welfare, family support, child care and public education. They feel valued and respected and thus are more likely to stay in the field and contribute their ideas and insights to policymakers. They have a lot of fun together and they also have a safe place to engage in probing and challenging conversations that lead to equity for the children and families they serve. During these next five years when you, our legislators, will be responding to the challenges facing our state, I know it would be amazingly beneficial if you could turn to a well-trained and supported group of leaders as your partners in making wise decisions. I wholeheartedly support this $130,000 appropriation request. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up is Camille Kaufman followed by Elisa Deltufo. Hi my name is Camille Kaufman and I represent Lake Parin located in North Bennington, Vermont. I'm speaking today in regards to the reduction of funding allocated to Vermont lakes and ponds specifically to aquatic invasive species funding that Lake Parin and countless other lakes in Vermont rely on. Now more than ever we need funding for AIS prevention and control to increase. Lake Parin is a beautiful recreation destination for many families in this southern part of the state. Thousands of community members use the lake and surrounding trail systems each year. Access to beautiful lakes and ponds is a crucial part of people's lives here in rural Vermont. However our lake is under dire threat from invasive and nuisance aquatic plants. Parin recreation is a small non-profit that owns eight acres of shoreline and the Bennington County Conservation District have partnered to embark on a campaign called Save Lake Parin. We've launched over 700 signatures on our petition. There are several things that make Lake Parin unique including other lakes unlike other lakes in southern Vermont. Lake Parin has neither municipal state or homeowners that maintain it. The lake is surrounded by property that is either conserved or is in the hands of the railway and state of Vermont. In 1978 the water levels of Lake Parin were lowered to restore the dam creating a perfect storm for aquatic invasive vegetation to grow and has become rampant in Lake Parin ever since. It is important to preserve this biodiverse and recreational asset in our community by undergoing a consecutive year plan for aquatic invasive control. We know that this is a story that is repeated in many places around our state. The difference here is that the value of this resource in a resource starved region combined with a specific commitment from the state that was supposed to address these problems. We respectfully request that the state of Vermont fulfill its commitment to Lake Parin and Vermont lakes and ponds by increasing funding to AIS management before it's too late. Thank you. Thank you. We're now going to skip to Matt Levin and followed by Kathy Byer. My name is Matt Levin. I'm the Executive Director of the Vermont Early Childhood Advocacy Alliance. I am testifying today on behalf of our coalition members in support of an appropriation of $768,180 in one-time funds that will allow for improvements in data systems used by children's integrated services providers. CIS provides child health promotion, prevention, and early intervention services to children birth age, birth to age six, their families, and specialized childcare providers. CIS uses data to monitor and evaluate the delivery and integration of services to satisfy state and federal reporting requirements and to support better outcomes for families. The state has twice tried and failed to create a statewide database for CIS. As a result, the community agencies delivering CIS have had to develop their own data management systems. Some of the agencies still track client case data by hand using paper files and Excel spreadsheets. In the Washington County CIS region, the Family Center of Washington County initially developed their own database in 2016 using private funds. In 2020, with financial support from CDD and in consultation with the Agency of Digital Services, the Family Center worked with Exponent Partners, a national technology company to implement a Salesforce community using the Family Center system. With adequate funding, the system can be made available to other CIS providers across the state. The Family Center system includes three out of the five CIS services but could be expanded to cover the other services. This expansion is included in the proposed project budget which is outlined in our written testimony which provides more information about CIS and the proposal. Based on the success of the Family Center system, we proposed an investment of one-time funds to allow three more CIS regions in Vermont to utilize this system. All CIS fiscal agents have indicated support and or interest in the project with several indicating strong interest in making the conversion in the first year. Thank you for considering our request. Thank you very much. Next we have Kathy Beyer followed by Danielle Wallace. Thank you and good evening and I just want to say I really appreciate all the time that both committees are putting into this tonight. I am Kathy Beyer and I'm Senior Vice President for Real Estate Development at Evernorth and many of you may be familiar with our work across the state in building affordable rental housing. We work with partnership with our regional non-profit housing developers and we build both in larger urban communities and smaller communities like Bristol where we now have 20 apartments under construction. Just want to take a moment to say that Vermont made a commitment to perpetual affordability back in 1987 when BHCB was created. This was a huge step and Vermont's commitment to perpetual affordability has been steadfast. And why is this important? In my line of work I know there are several states that only required 30-year or even less affordability commitments and now hundreds of affordable rental units are being lost to conversion to market rate housing. So perpetual affordability means that the housing becomes a resource to the community that can't be lost. Just as we conserve land in perpetuity and which becomes a forever resource to that community we create housing that is a forever resource. Continued support for BHCB is essential to our pipeline. In response to the housing crisis this legislature has made additional investments that have created many many more affordable homes across the state. We have 300 apartments under construction. We have another 590 apartments and 16 different projects across the state from West Rutland to St. Johnsbury that are in various stages of permitting and pre-development. But without the additional investment directed to BHCB by this legislature some of these 16 projects will be stalled. Thank you for your continued support and our efforts to build more housing for homeowners. Thank you. Thank you. Next we have Danielle Wallace followed by Nicole Fortier Grease-Gropper. Thank you for being here and thank you for listening to all this testimony. My name is Danielle Wallace and I'm the executive director of the Turning Point Center of Addison County. I'm also in person in recovery from substance use disorder. Our center is a proud member of the recovery partners of Vermont and I'm testifying today in support of the increase of 1.85 million in base funding for the 13 community recovery organizations across the state and the $1 million increase in base funding for recovery residents. Vermont is an immune from the overarching reach of substance use disorder. In fact nearly all Vermonters are affected in some way by this disease. In 2021 over 200 Vermonters lost their lives due to opiate related drug overdose. So this is the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in our state. The Turning Point Center's coaches work in collaboration with local homeless shelters, emergency department staff, community teen centers, Middlebury College, local high schools and Valley Vista to support individuals who are seeking a change. As the impact of substance use continues to grow we are regularly asked to coordinate and expand our services to support both people seeking recovery and those affected by their use. Our center currently employs eight recovery coaches that have successfully completed the requirements to achieve nationally recognized certification. The level of passion and commitment among peer support is unparalleled but to retain and continue to grow this professional workforce we need to provide competitive wages and adequate benefits. Recovery centers across Vermont are providing vital services that save lives and are worth investing in. The proposed increase in 1.85 million in base funding for recovery organizations and 1 million in base funding for recovery residents ensures that we can employ and retain trained professional recovery supports to develop and deliver high-quality programming for all Vermonters. 10 seconds. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up we have Nicole Fornier-Grissgrauber and I apologize if I'm pronouncing a name I hope you'll correct me. Followed by Mary Beth Canard. Great job with my name. My name's Nicole Fornier-Grissgrauber. I live in Jeffersonville, Vermont and work in Morrisville. I've enjoyed being the executive director of Meals and Meals of Plumile County for the last nine years. I'm here today to request an appropriation for the Meals and Meals home delivered nutrition programs to be included in the base budget starting in fiscal year 2024. I make this request based on my experience in the last nine years. During those years roughly a half a million meals have been served. A half a million meals that's just in LeMoyle County. One small part of Vermont. By 2060, one in three Americans will be 60 or older. Our population is aging and their demand for meals is also growing. In fact in the last 10 years Meals and Meals of Plumile County has experienced a 12% increase in participation. Meals and Meals programs across Vermont are essential to older Vermonters. They provide a nutritious meal that meets one-third of the recommended daily allowance, a well-checked visit, socialization and oftentimes our connection with them leads to other needed services within our communities like nutrition counselors, home health agencies, firewood programs and more. 15% of older Vermonters experience some form of food insecurity. One in four Americans live alone. One in three are living with disabilities and in Vermont many of our older Vermonters are living in rural areas alone, no longer able to cook or drive. Tonight I invite you to visit your nearest nutrition program and join them in delivering meals. When you do I have no doubt that an that an appropriation will be created so that they can continue their important work without waiting lists due to funding challenges. Thank you for this opportunity to speak today. I deeply appreciate it. Thank you very much. Next is Mary Beth Panard followed by Dave Perry. Yes, good evening. My name is Mary Beth Panard and I'm the Executive Director of Vermont Catholic Charities. Vermont Catholic Charities is a statewide social service agency serving all Vermonters regardless of fate since 1929 and we operate four level three residential care homes located in Derby Line, Rutland and Burlington. Level three means that we provide each resident with his or her own room. We serve meals in a community dining room, assist with personal care, provide housekeeping and laundry services, organize activities, provide medication management and nursing overview. We have nursing staff on site 24-7, 365 days a year. We receive reimbursement through Medicaid-assisted community care services, ACCS, and enhance residential care ERC. This reimbursement helps pay for critical services for our residents but is currently under half what we need to cover our costs of care. We currently receive $47.25 per day for a resident on ACCS. 80% of our residents are on Medicaid and our costs continue to increase overall. Recently, the instability in the healthcare workforce has meant that some physicians have seen staffing costs increase as much as 10 times and we expect nursing to increase 60% this year over last year. Long-term care providers require a rate increase to hire and retain high quality staff so we can continue to provide necessary services in Vermont, one of the oldest states with one of the highest life expectancy rates, and lower than average medium income. Our facility in Derby Line is one of the few level three residential care homes in the Northeast Kingdom and we serve 30 to 34 residents there. The Northeast Kingdom has lost 45 ERC-ACCS beds since 2020. 20 seconds. Across Vermont, 10 residential care homes have closed over that same time. A family member will tell you that the care, compassion, respect, and patience our staff gives every resident is something that they cannot thank us enough for. Please help bridge the gap between costs and payment before it widens any further. Thank you. Thank you. Next up we have Dave Perry followed by Amanda Daniels. Hello my name is Dave Perry. I'd first like to thank these senators and committee members for the opportunity to speak. This is my first time doing anything like this so I might be a little bit nervous but hey it's only two minutes. I currently live in the Craftsbury Albany area. I'm a board member for the Northeast Council of Aging and I also sit on the Finance Committee. I currently work as an operations manager for a mobile vascular access group operating here in the Northeast. My background is in both EMS and emergency care. I was an ER nurse on the west coast for 10 years. I also worked as an EMS liaison for our ER for about three years. Worked with about three fire and EMS systems and nine private ambulance systems. We work closely with our EMS systems to ensure that the right care was delivered in the pre-hospital setting. We also work with them to successfully improve out of hospital survival rates for cardiac arrest and other life threatening emergencies. We did this through EMS training data collection and collaboration. We truly relied on their training and skilled interventions during the pandemic to keep patients alive long enough to get to the hospital. It was an honor to work with them. EMS is quite literally a lifeline for Vermont residents. My first ask is that the state of Vermont reimburse Medicaid rates at the same 100% of Medicare rates. The current rate of 80% is not kept up with inflation and the EMS community should not have to appeal yearly for increases due to inflation. Professional reimbursement rates now cover the service delivery model which impacts other areas of local government. We need to support these vital EMS resources and fund them properly. My second ask is that the money set aside for the EMS special fund is increased dramatically. $150,000 a year is not sufficient to cover trading, data analysis and other elements required to train and assist in the delivery of EMS in our state. The legislature needs to allocate at least $1 million to train annually to this EMS special fund to support ongoing training needs given the remote nature of the state that we live in. This is vitally important. Again, I want to thank everyone for the opportunity to speak. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next we have Hassan Koh followed by Ruby Baker. Good afternoon. I'm Hassan Koh. I live in Wunuski. I work for Green March and South Africa City. I have a dissimilarity. I got a service from Champlain Community Service. I'm here today to ask you for more money for my staff. I work at a job. I need staff for my everyday life. I need staff to help me work. There is a problem. We do not have staff. We need to pay them more money. Right now, all the different agencies have a big problem about turnover staff. If you give more money than people work for our agency, that we get more support. We get more opportunity if we do. Thank you for listening to me. Thank you. Thank you very much for coming. We appreciate it. Next we have Ruby Baker followed by Amanda Haas. Hello. I am Ruby Baker, Executive Director of Community of Vermont Elders. Thank you for being here so late tonight. I'm sure you all want to go home. Or some of you are already home and stuck there. We have been advocating on behalf of older adults for over 40 years. We support individuals who want to have a voice in the legislature. We also work to be that voice for the broader elder population. As you know, the population of adults over the age of 60 is expanding and Vermont will soon be the oldest state in the nation. COVID does not receive state funds. I am not here to advocate for my organization. I am instead here to ask you to invest in the 175,000 Vermonters currently over the age of 65 and the additional tens of thousands of family members and caregivers who are part of the system of aging in Vermont. While there are many ways you can and do accomplish that, here are these three ways are ones that have risen to the top as we've talked to Vermonters across the state. First, we would like to oppose the governor's $2 million cut to long-term care and instead ask you to invest to close the gap in funding for these services. The system needs $31 million to cover the cost of actually delivering services. That's $13 million in base funding. We're asking you to make a significant step towards closing that gap. Secondly, we support adult days at the Medicaid reimbursement rate of $25 an hour. We've lost six programs in the last three years and we need these programs to stay in our community. Please bring them up to $25 an hour. $2133 is less than they pay at the Burlington Bagel Factory as a side note. Finally, we ask that you support SASH. This system helps over 5,000 older adults and those with disabilities across the state every year. Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you very much. Next, we have Amanda Haas, followed by Rich Holstich. Hello, everyone. My name is Amanda. I work as a teacher for Central Vermont Adult Basic Education at the Montpelier Learning Center. We have six learning centers in Washington, Orange and Lamoille counties and are one of the four statewide nonprofit organizations in the adult education and literacy network. I'm here tonight to ask you to support our network's request for an additional appropriation of $1.5 million added to base funding to address historic underfunding, increasing enrollment, and rising costs. Our network serves Vermont's most vulnerable adults and teens who need help with basic skills and obtaining a high school credential. We also are serving more immigrants than ever, doing our best to open opportunities for them to have jobs, have a better family life, be able to do basic skills for themselves, and integrate into their new communities. For example, a student of mine from Afghanistan came to the U.S. with his family to escape the violence there and provide a better life for them, especially his new daughter. His beginning English skills made him a little bit shy at first, but now he has improved his language skills and self-confidence. Through our lessons, Shaw was able to buy a car by using the skills he learned to negotiate with car salesmen in English, navigate bank loans, and create a budget. Having a car has given him and his family freedom. As a result of better English skills, he's also been promoted at his job and is now on track to return to school and become a teacher to impact others as I have him. Our services has helped him and his family integrate well into our community and gain agency in their life here. We will do this for over 90 immigrants this year. Thank you so much for listening. You're welcome. Thank you. And our final speaker is Richard Holsch, and I'm sorry if I'm mispronouncing your name too, but please go ahead. Holsch you. I would like to thank the chair and committee members for staying here on here tonight. Thank you for your time. I am called Rich. It's good to see you tonight. I am chair of the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs. We came into existence in 2010 in our current iteration and we are here as nine members to serve the members of the Native community in the state of Vermont, those in the recognized tribes, other tribes and unaffiliated people. We've been operating for the last 12 years with that charge, that responsibility with a simple per diem compensation, but our job has grown. We're looking for funding, simple straightforward to the tune of $150,000 in an annual amount, an annual appropriation so that we can continue to meet our responsibilities. They have grown. As the community has matured, as relationships have continued and have grown larger, we are now being asked through legislation passed by this body to sit on up to six different councils and commissions in an advisory capacity, and the job is getting bigger. We're looking for a little help with that. It seems an achievable goal, $150,000 for one year in an ongoing manner, and with that we can staff, we can compensate our commission members a little bit and can do some outreach to deal with the situations, lack of awareness, education, participation, inclusion. Appreciate your consideration of this matter. Thank you for your time tonight. Thank you very much, and that concludes. Thank you. Thank you for all the participants. I'm not too sure if he's out there listening right now, but I just, I also want to extend my thank you to the community to rally to have a voice within this screen. And Senator Hitchell, do you have any final remarks? And we will close out. No. Just thank everyone for persevering and hope you don't have to travel far tonight considering the weather. So thank everyone. And obviously we have a lot of work to do and many difficult decisions to make as we move forward on the budget.