February 26, 2024
Dear Burlington Community,
I want to start by thanking all of you who have reached out to support our District leadership through this difficult budget season. I feel your love for our schools, support of the new BHS/BTC project, trust in the vision, and understanding of the pressures out of our control such as the CLA’s massive impact on our budget.
As originally written, the new Weighted Pupil Law, ACT 127, included a provision to cap the tax impact of district spending at 5%. (This is separate from the impact of the CLA.) I want you to know that at the end of February, the Vermont legislature fast-tracked a bill to repeal this 5% tax impact cap.
The good news in Burlington is that we planned for this. During our budget development process, we were worried the cap might be repealed. And we knew we could have to pay for added expenses down the road even after the cap went away. With that in mind, we developed our budget with the long-term impact in mind and specially worked to limit additional spending. As a result, our equalized tax rate is estimated to only increase from 5% to a maximum of 6.51%. (And this could go down a little if all other school districts scale back their budgets.)
Still, I know that a 15.6% tax impact is a big deal. It is not lost on me that nearly 76% of voters approved the BHS/BTC capital bond, and we are feeling that pressure now (myself included!). As the building rises along Institute Road, I am filled with hope that we are seeing the fruits of our labor, and gratitude for this community’s continued support. Thank you for your trust.
Tom
To learn more, see our updated one-page info sheet or all of our budget development work.
