State Legislative Priorities
The Brattleboro Selectboard attempts to influence matters that, while falling outside of the Town’s jurisdictional authority, have the potential to significantly impact the Brattleboro community. These are big issues that Brattleboro, and other municipalities across the state, need help with and cannot do on their own. As part of having a State Legislative agenda, the Selectboard has requested to meet regularly with members of the Brattleboro Legislative Delegation.
The schedule of these meetings is as follows:
• Communicate Brattleboro legislative priorities to the Delegation in September.
• Hear an update mid-session in February or March.
• Meet with the Delegation in June or July to learn the results from the past session and to prepare for the next one.
Brattleboro preliminary priorities for the 2027 Vermont Legislative Session are:
Lower Property Taxes
- Regional equity balance payments to support regional hub towns
- Increase the local option tax distribution to municipalities
- Authority for municipalities to charge for road use (e.g., ez-pass) generating local transportation capital and maintenance funds without burdening residents
- County payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) required for county buildings
- PILOTs on state-funded non-profit programs in Brattleboro
- Cover the Town’s liquor license transaction costs by allocating a portion of the third-class liquor license fee to the Town
- Other authority that the state is willing to grant municipalities to fund municipal government while reducing the property tax burden
Build Housing
- Adequately fund the new comprehensive statewide program to address homelessness
- Continue to make funds available for housing
- Further limit appeals of housing projects within tier 1
Promote Public Safety
- Resources to support the accountability docket in Brattleboro
- Addition of a standing drug docket in Brattleboro
- Develop a comprehensive statewide plan to address addiction treatment, job training, and supportive housing gaps
- Allow property owners of multi-unit housing to trespass people threatening or engaging in illegal behavior while strengthening renters’ rights
- Supplement Medicaid payments to extend addiction treatment times
Prioritize Transportation
- Fully fund core municipal transportation programs according to need with a focus on bus, train, bicycle, and pedestrian enhancements
- Increase and diversify state transportation fund revenue sources
- Direct the full purchase and use tax on motor vehicles to the state transportation fund
- Provide a portion of registration fees and excess weight permit fees to the municipality where the vehicle is registered
2026 Annual Town Meeting Resolutions
- Create legislation permitting civil actions in Vermont courts to hold federal agents accountable for violations of legal or constitutional limits
- Ensure that a bill proposing to require the Governor to review every order to place a unit of the Vermont National Guard in federal active-duty status for service in a military conflict to determine whether that order was issued in conformance with the requirements of the U.S. Constitution be given a fair hearing in the state legislature.