Vermont Governor Phil Scott delivered his budget address to a joint session of the legislature Tuesday, warning legislators they must rein in what he calls excess spending.
During his State of the State address on January 4th, Scott warned legislators that his upcoming budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2025 would be sobering and might appear to some to take an austerity approach. During his budget address the Republican reached back to that speech to remind legislators the importance of working together on the state’s challenges.
“Earlier this month, I reported on the state of the state, laying out three priorities: affordability, public safety, and at the center of it all housing," recalled Scott. "Solutions for these issues are within our reach, especially with the historic infrastructure investments we’re committed to. If we address them head on, we’ll restore the working class, refill our schools, and revitalize communities and neighborhoods in every county. But I also understand the realities of a supermajority, which means you don’t have to listen, or even consider, my priorities or objections.”
So, Scott said legislators should listen to Vermonters. He said his budget proposal addresses the problems they want fixed.
“This work, especially when it comes to affordability, starts with the budget I’m presenting which totals $8.6 billion across all funds: $353 million for transportation, $2.4 billion for education and $2.3 billion in the General Fund. I’m sure it’s no surprise to you I don’t support asking Vermonters to pay more," Scott said. "To me, it does matter how much money we have because every penny we spend comes out of the pocket of the people who live, work and invest in Vermont.”
Scott told legislators that despite a recent revenue upgrade, it will still be a tough budget year.
“Historic federal aid and the spending power it gave us has dried up," the governor said. "But we still had to fund last year’s 13 percent budget growth, which, as you know, I vetoed and you overrode. We had unexpected obligations. Before the pandemic we saw that disciplined budgeting without higher taxes resulted in organic revenue increases and with post-pandemic federal aid we’ve shown that smart, strategic investments can put us in a better position to grow and provide resilience in leaner times. This budget does both. It aligns with our fiscal reality and prioritizes the fundamentals.”
It remains to be seen how Democratic supermajorities that control the House and Senate will respond, but leaders have suggested they will not be bound to Scott’s recommendations.
