Vermont § 306 - Budget report

§ 306. Budget report

• (a) The Governor shall submit to the General Assembly, not later than the third Tuesday
  of every annual session, a budget that shall embody the Governor’s estimates, requests,
  and recommendations for appropriations or other authorizations for expenditures from
  the State Treasury. In the first year of the biennium, the budget shall relate to
  the two succeeding fiscal years. In the second year of the biennium, it shall relate
  to the succeeding fiscal year. The budget shall be based upon the official State revenue
  estimates, including the Medicaid estimated caseloads and per-member per-month expenditures,
  adopted by the Emergency Board pursuant to section 305a of this title. (1) As part of the budget report, the Governor shall: (A) develop and publish annually for public review a current services budget, providing
  the public with an estimate of what the current level of services is projected to
  cost in the next fiscal year; (B) provide an estimated cost of deferred infrastructure maintenance in the State’s transportation
  system; and (C) itemize current services liabilities, including the total obligations and the amount
  estimated for full funding in the current year in which an amortization schedule exists.
  These shall include the following liabilities projected for the start of the budget
  fiscal year: (i) pension liabilities for the Vermont State Employees’ Retirement System (VSERS) and
  the Vermont State Teachers’ Retirement System (VSTRS) and other postemployment benefit
  liabilities under current law and relevant Government Accounting Standards Board standards
  for these systems; (ii) child care fee scale funding requirements pursuant to 33 V.S.A. § 3512 to bring total year funding to current market rates and current federal poverty levels; (iii) Reach Up funding full benefit obligations, including the standard of need for the
  current fiscal year, reflecting the level of financial assistance necessary to meet
  a family’s ongoing basic needs in the current fiscal year as defined in 33 V.S.A. § 1101(13), prior to any rateable reductions made pursuant to 33 V.S.A. § 1103(a), which ensure that the expenditures for the programs shall not exceed appropriations; (iv) statutory funding levels from the Property Transfer Tax; (v) projected fund liabilities of the funds identified in the “Notes” section of the most
  recent Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), including the Workers’ Compensation
  Fund, the State Liability Insurance Fund, the Medical Insurance Fund, and the Dental
  Insurance Fund; and (vi) a summary of other nonmajor enterprise funds and internal service funds where deficits
  exist in excess of $1,500,000.00. (2) The provisions of 2 V.S.A. § 20(d) (expiration of required reports) shall not apply to the report to be made under this
  subsection. (b) The Governor shall also submit to the General Assembly, not later than the third Tuesday
  of each session of every biennium, a tax expenditure budget that shall embody his
  or her estimates, requests, and recommendations. The provisions of 2 V.S.A. § 20(d) (expiration of required reports) shall not apply to the report to be made under this
  subsection. The tax expenditure budget shall be divided into three parts and made
  as follows: (1) A budget covering tax expenditures related to nonprofits and charitable organizations
  and covering miscellaneous expenditures shall be made by the third Tuesday of the
  legislative session beginning in January 2012 and every three years thereafter. (2) A budget covering tax expenditures related to economic development, including business,
  investment, and energy, shall be made by the third Tuesday of the legislative session
  beginning in January 2013 and every three years thereafter. (3) A budget covering tax expenditures made in furtherance of Vermont’s human services,
  including tax expenditures affecting veterans, shall be made by the third Tuesday
  of the legislative session beginning in January 2014 and every three years thereafter. (c) The tax expenditure budget shall be provided to the House Committee on Ways and Means
  and the Senate Committee on Finance, which Committees shall review the tax expenditure
  budget and shall report their recommendations in bill form. (d) The Governor shall develop a process for public participation in the development of
  budget goals, as well as general prioritization and evaluation of spending and revenue
  initiatives. (Amended 1969, No. 75, § 4; 1973, No. 144 (Adj. Sess.), § 4; 1974; 1987, No. 243 (Adj. Sess.), § 58, eff. June 13, 1988; 2009, No. 1 (Sp. Sess.), § H.16, eff. June 2, 2009; 2011, No. 45, § 36j, eff. May 24, 2011; 2013, No. 142 (Adj. Sess.), § 56; 2015 No. 172 (Adj. Sess.), § E.100.7; 2017, No. 85, § C.117, eff. June 28, 2017; 2019, No. 72, § E.124; 2023, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § E.323, eff. July 1, 2024; 2025, No. 18, § 52, eff. May 13, 2025.)