By Guy Page

Last Friday, eight Republican members of the Vermont House of Representatives voted for an education reform bill they said they don’t like to get it to the Senate, where – they hope – the upper chamber will write a better bill.

Before the vote, Republicans at a press conference said they opposed the education funding and governance system overhaul because it’s too expensive (about $15,000 per student instead of the $13,000 recommended by Gov. Phil Scott) and left the important task of setting the number of new school districts and drawing their boundaries to an unappointed summer study group of former principals and superintendents. A floor amendment Friday added four legislators to the summer committee.

The eight members – which include four chairs/vice-chairs – voted yes to insure its passage despite a Democrat defection. Notably, some of those who voted ‘against’ the party line said they did so because the proposed school funding formula benefits schools in their districts. 

H.454 passed on the third and final reading with an 87-55 vote – a not uncommon total except that both the Yes and the Nos weren’t party line, with both Republicans and Democrats splitting over the bill. 

These representatives voted yes, with the Republicans highlighted:

Berbeco of Winooski

Boutin of Barre City

Brown of Richmond

Burditt of West Rutland

Cooper of Pownal

Galfetti of Barre Town

Graning of Jericho

Greer of Bennington

Gregoire of Fairfield

Higley of Lowell

Krowinski of Burlington

Logan of Burlington

Marcotte of Coventry

McFaun of Barre Town

Ode of Burlington

Olson of Starksboro

Sheldon of Middlebury

Sibilia of Dover

Stone of Burlington

Arsenault of Williston

Austin of Colchester

Bartholomew of Hartland

Birong of Vergennes

Bishop of Colchester

Black of Essex

Bluemle of Burlington

Brady of Williston

Burke of Brattleboro

Burkhardt of South Burlington

Burrows of West Windsor

Campbell of St. Johnsbury

Carris-Duncan of Whitingham

Casey of Montpelier

Chapin of East Montpelier

Cina of Burlington

Conlon of Cornwall

Corcoran of Bennington

Cordes of Bristol

Critchlow of Colchester

Dodge of Essex

Dolan of Essex Junction

Duke of Burlington

Durfee of Shaftsbury

Eastes of Guilford

Emmons of Springfield

Garofano of Essex

Goldman of Rockingham

Goodnow of Brattleboro

Headrick of Burlington

Holcombe of Norwich

Hooper of Burlington

Houghton of Essex Junction

Howard of Rutland City

Hunter of Manchester

Keyser of Rutland City

Kimbell of Woodstock

Kleppner of Burlington

Kornheiser of Brattleboro

Krasnow of South Burlington

Lalley of Shelburne

LaLonde of South Burlington

Long of Newfane

Masland of Thetford

McCann of Montpelier

McGill of Bridport

Mihaly of Calais

Minier of South Burlington

Mrowicki of Putney

Nigro of Bennington

Noyes of Wolcott

Nugent of South Burlington

Pezzo of Colchester

Pouech of Hinesburg

Priestley of Bradford

Rachelson of Burlington

Satcowitz of Randolph

Scheu of Middlebury

Squirrell of Underhill

Stevens of Waterbury

Sweeney of Shelburne

Tomlinson of Winooski

Torre of Moretown

Waszazak of Barre City

Waters Evans of Charlotte

White of Waitsfield

Wood of Waterbury

Yacovone of Morristown

These representatives voted No, with Democrats highlighted:

Bartley of Fairfax

Bos-Lun of Westminster

McCoy of Poultney

Bailey of Hyde Park

Bosch of Clarendon

Boyden of Cambridge

Branagan of Georgia

Burtt of Cabot

Canfield of Fair Haven

Casey of Hubbardton

Charlton of Chester

Coffin of Cavendish

Demar of Enosburgh

Dobrovich of Williamstown

Dolgin of St. Johnsbury

Donahue of Northfield

Feltus of Lyndon

Goslant of Northfield

Hango of Berkshire

Harple of Glover

Harrison of Chittenden

Harvey of Castleton

Hooper of Randolph

James of Manchester

Kascenska of Burke

Labor of Morgan

LaMont of Morristown

Laroche of Franklin

Lipsky of Stowe

Luneau of St. Albans City

Malay of Pittsford

McCoy of Poultney

Micklus of Milton

Morgan of Milton

Morgan of Milton

Morrissey of Bennington

Morrow of Weston

Nelson of Derby

Nielsen of Brandon

North of Ferrisburgh

O’Brien of Tunbridge

Oliver of Sheldon

Page of Newport City

Parsons of Newbury

Pinsonault of Dorset

Powers of Waterford

Pritchard of Pawlet

Quimby of Lyndon

Southworth of Walden

Steady of Milton

Tagliavia of Corinth

Taylor of Milton

Toof of St. Albans Town

Walker of Swanton

White of Bethel

Winter of Ludlow

These representatives either did not vote, or were absent:

Surprenant of Barnard

Christie of Hartford

Cole of Hartford

Dickinson of St. Albans Town

Howland of Rutland Town

Maguire of Rutland City

Morris of Springfield

Wells of Brownington

Several members of both parties explained their votes from the floor.

NO – Rep. Ashley Bartley, Republican of Fairfax – “A constituent asking me to vote no said it best. ‘We can do better but few can do more. H.454 has been touted as a step forward. In reality, it’s a baby step when Vermonters need a leap. This bill does not rectify the mistakes of the past. It doesn’t address the deep economic injustices that our students have endured for decades. And it certainly doesn’t reflect the urgency of the moment. We were elected to this body, and it is our duty to uphold that responsibility. It is unacceptable to expect another body to correct our mistakes.” 

YES – Rep. Daisy Berbeco of Winooski (D): “I’m voting yes for Winooski kids and educators and families. More than 20 languages are spoken in our school by the only minority-majority student body in the State. Multi-lingual supports are essential to us. I’m voting yes because my community has hope that these will be protected in the evolution of this legislation.” 

NO – Rep. Michelle Bos-lun of Westminster: “I come from a rural community that will lose vital small wanted local schools, both public and independent, if this bill moves forward in its current form. School districts of at least 4000 students will not solve our problems but will result in a loss of local control and civic engagement, especially in rural communities. I voted no to preserve small local schools in my rural community.” 

NO – Rep. Michael Boutin, R-Barre City: “Madam Speaker: I voted yes, but I did so because I want this bill to advance to the Senate, where I hope they will take a more bipartisan approach in drafting a compromise version. I also have to note that the funding model in this bill is favorable to Barre. That being said, what began as a bold and immediate reform proposal by the Governor – one that prioritized student outcomes over political advocacy – has become a lackluster and meandering plan. It will inevitably require us to revisit this third rail in a few years, much like Act 46. I am deeply disappointed where we landed and hope the Senate can make it better.” 

YES – Rep Jana Brown, D-Richmond: “I voted yes today for a hopeful, sustainable future for all Vermont students – the students in my district now and the students in the small rural Vermont district where I attended public school from kindergarten through high school. I want to thank all the members of the education field who testified and supported this bill. We appreciate their commitment to helping us get it right together and the incredible work happening every day in schools across Vermont.” 

YES – Rep. Tom Burditt, R-West Rutland: “I want to be crystal clear. Even though I voted yes for H.454, I do not support this version of the bill. I am reaching across the aisle and voting yes to form an alliance to help keep this bill alive and with it the hopes of Vermonters. My hope is the Senate comes through with their promise of a bipartisan bill with an affordable education system Vermonters told us they wanted in the 2024 election season. Over the last few years I’ve heard a message from the majority party asking where is your plan? A well thought out plan that would have benefited Vermonters was put forth and the parts that would have given Vermonters the most property tax relief were ignored in this bill.” 

YES – Rep. Jonathan Cooper, D-Pownal: “I am voting yes because this bill positions Vermont for a future that is already underway: our structures are over-built, our educators are overstretched, our students are under-resourced. This bill acknowledges the spatial and social realities of our State’s mountains, valleys, and borders, and provides the commonsense need for people to take time to make sound decisions.” 

YES – Rep. Gina Galfetti, R-Barre Town: “Madam Speaker: It is with great resistance that I am voting yes on this version of the bill. However, if we do not pass this bill out of the House, the opportunity to reform education finding and stabilize property taxes will be lost. It is my hope that the Senate majority will work with their Vermont Republican counterparts to return a bi-partisan bill as their leadership has already promised. Phil Scott Republicans are the party of now and compromise, not the party of NO!” 

YES – Rep. James Gregoire of Fairfield: “Madam Speaker: I do not vote yes today because this bill represents a good faith effort to work collaboratively or in a bipartisan way toward real and lasting solutions. Collaboration and bipartisan have been used as buzz words today. I’d urge everyone who used those terms to self-reflect on what they actually mean and what that work actually looks like – this is not that. Instead, I vote yes to move the bill to the Senate where we have a commitment to actually work collaboratively to get to a bill that serves the best interests of Vermonters. Vermonters deserve better, far better, and if we choose to truly work together, we can deliver a bill by the end of the session that everyone can be genuinely proud of regardless of party or whether we live in urban or rural areas.” 

YES – Rep. Mark Higley, R-Lowell: “I voted yes, only to move this process forward in hopes that the end product will yield more choices and opportunities for our children, and create an understandable and stable property tax.” 

YES – Rep. Mike Marcotte, R-Coventry “I reluctantly vote yes. Three committees, three 7-4 votes. The passing of the amendment from the members from St. Albans and Essex Junction gives me a glimmer of hope that we can start working in a bi-partisan manner. The November election sent us a clear message from Vermonters – work together and fix the problems.” 

NO – House Minority Leader Rep. Patti McCoy of Poultney: “While I appreciate the work of the Education and Ways and Means Committees, and you Madam Speaker, to get this bill to the floor, I cannot support the bill at this time. I look forward to receiving this bill back from the Senate with language I can support. Vermonters, and especially our children, deserve nothing less.” 

YES – Rep. Topper McFaun of Barre Town: “Madam Speaker: I voted yes to keep the prospects of education reform alive. If this was the final bill, I couldn’t vote for it. My constituents and Vermonters voted for balance in November. It is my hope that the Senate will return to us a bipartisan bill that most of us can vote for and the Governor can sign. That is in the best interest of the children it will impact.” 

YES – Rep. Carol Ode, Democrat of Burlington: “Today, in H.454, we start where we are, not where we wish to be. H.454 moves our education funding system to the future, with a more fair, stable, predictable funding model for Vermont schools and Vermont taxpayers and with a greater chance for equal educational opportunity for Vermont schoolchildren.”