Senate Democrats and Advocates Urge Bold Action on Housing and Call on Governor to Support Critical Funding in Budget Adjustment Act

MONTPELIER, VT – Today, Vermont Senate Democrats and housing and homelessness advocates deliver a clear, unified message: Vermont must take bold, immediate action to address the full spectrum of housing needs. They call on Governor Scott to support, rather than veto, the Budget Adjustment Act (BAA), which includes urgent funding for housing and shelter initiatives across the state. With Vermont facing a severe housing and homelessness crisis, this funding is critical to keeping people housed and expanding long-term solutions. Senate Democrats are urging the Governor to stand with them in addressing Vermont’s housing emergency.

Senate Democrats have led efforts to secure key housing investments in the BAA, including $8.6 million to the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board to expand affordable housing and shelter capacity, including improvements to manufactured homes, $2.8 million to pilot supportive housing for adults with developmental disabilities and $1.84 million to extend winter weather emergency motel housing (GA program) eligibility through June 30, ensuring vulnerable Vermonters have access to shelter.

Extending our GA program means more than just keeping school-aged children, families and elders housed through the cold weather – it prevents disruption of school schedules and gives more stability to vulnerable families. Through the GA program, a motel room costs $80 a night, while emergency room visits cost $1,300+ per night, incarceration costs $260 per night, and temporary congregate shelters cost significantly more while serving fewer people.  

Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale said, “It’s irresponsible to be pushing costs to our other overburdened institutions like shelters, municipalities, schools, hospitals, and correctional facilities. If we don’t meet the moment with our housing crisis, we are putting Vermonters in an incredibly untenable situation, because there’s nowhere for them to go.”

Senator Andrew Perchlik, Chair of Senate Appropriations said, “We can all acknowledge Vermont is in a housing crisis. The Senate has made limited but strategic investments in the BAA to address this crisis now. We provide funding to continue sheltering vulnerable Vermonters through June 30, which includes 1,400 families and 466 children. We have also funded longer-term, sustainable housing projects, and we know our efforts to alleviate our housing crisis cannot stop here.”

Brenda Siegel, Executive Director of End Homelessness Vermont, said, “The House and Senate’s BAA Vote demonstrates that both chambers take the needs of our most vulnerable Vermonters seriously: keeping people sheltered, while making investments that will maintain production and rehab of affordable homes. Last September through December, EHVT and other organizations across Vermont drained their resources to shelter people despite the brutal temperatures. Several EHVT clients lost their lives during this time, and we cannot allow this to happen again this spring. Thank you to the Vermont Legislature for taking this critical and lifesaving step for our state’s homelessness crisis.” 

Frank Knaack, Executive Director of Housing & Homelessness Alliance of Vermont, said, “Being an unsheltered Vermonter is harsh and alienating. In addition to the human harms, the economic costs associated with the failure to provide shelter - including on health systems, schools, and criminal legal systems, and other public services - fall on the municipalities and the state to cover. The $80/day cost for hotel/motel GA Program is substantially cheaper than the $260 daily cost to incarcerate someone in Vermont or the $1,386 average cost (pre-COVID) for an ER visit in Vermont. Extending the GA winter weather protections is not just the more humane, it is also fiscally wise.’’

Ellen Riley, mother of a 27 year old son with Down Syndrome, a Special Olympics Coach, and a member of Developmental Disabilities Housing Initiative, said, “Governor Scott told us housing was one of his four priorities in his Inaugural Address. For thirty years, there has been no attention or funding given to housing for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities. We have a crisis now, and over 600 units are immediately needed. The Champlain Housing Trust service-supportive peer residence project is currently the only Act 186 model that has not been fully funded and Vermont Senate Democrats have fought to include $2.8 million in the BAA for this project. Vermont needs housing options for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities immediately, before our children become part of Vermont’s homeless population. I urge Governor Scott to sign the Budget Adjustment Act and make good on his promise to prioritize housing for all Vermonters.”

Contact:

Erin Stoetzner

Vermont Democratic Party

Senate Caucus Director

estoetzner@vtdemocrats.org