The joint hearing of the House and Senate Appropriations Committee on the Governor's proposed restatement of his 2021 budget. I am Jane Kitchell, I chair Senate Appropriations and with me tonight are committee members Senator Nitka, Senator Westman, Senator Ash, Senator McCormick and Senator Starr. Thank you and I am Kitty Toll, I am chair of House Appropriations and as Jane said I would also like to welcome you all to the first of two public hearings and these hearings are critical in order for us to hear the concerns of the landers and I will introduce the appropriation members from the House. We have Representative Hooper, Representative Townsend, Representative Feltas, Representative Lanford, Representative Yacovoni, Representative Jessup, Representative Conquest, Representative Myers and Representative Fagan and Representative Fagan will now explain how we will proceed with testimony and timing. Thank you Representative Toll. So I've been asked to handle the timing duties and everyone should see a witness timer clock somewhere on the screen that you're looking at that will count down from two minutes to time up at zero. At 30 seconds you'll hear me come on and say 30 seconds please finish and then when it hits zero I'm going to say please finish up with your final statement. If for some reason or another someone is going too long then we may have to move you to a awaiting room but we certainly invite and ask everyone to please send in comments that you've made or that you haven't weren't you were not able to make via email to Teresa Utton at leg.state.vt.us all lowercase and it's t-u-t-t-o-n at leg.state.vt.us and we will trust me we read all of them together as a committee and we go through them and we we take each of them in part so please do that. Representative Toll. Thank you. Let's start with the testimony. Our first testimony will be from Beth Walsh and we will follow with Cole Edmondson. Beth is ready? I am ready. All right. Can you hear me? Yes. Great. All right. I'm Beth Walsh. I am the president of the Vermont State College's United Professionals. I'm also the director of career development at NVU Johnson. My history with Johnson started before I was born. My mother attended Johnson Teachers College and a few years ago she wrote an essay that told how Johnson changed her life. She wrote and I quote, I applied and was accepted only days before the school year started. Who knew that teaching and I would be a perfect match that I a private person would find joy and fulfillment spending my days learning with hundreds of children over the years and quote and at the Vermont State College as we continue to change our students' lives. I've testified in the past always with the same message. The VSC cannot survive without a substantial increase in state appropriations. Our tuition is too high. Our young people leave the state and our older students struggle to reach their goals because of the expense. I understand that the demographics of fewer college-age students in the northeast is not in our favor but the research of professor Greg Patrick has shown that our shrinking enrollment is tied to our growing tuition, not the demographics. The survival of our public college system is essential to the health and well-being of our communities, our businesses and our state. We're here for the public good for the benefit of Vermont. It isn't just the money. With a college degree, people are happier, vote more often, are more politically active and are more active in their communities. What I have realized is that it comes down to one question. Is it important that Vermonters have access to affordable public higher education? If it is, this isn't just a one-time bridge fund. It's a commitment to the system that is here for the good of Vermont. If your votes support funding, the budget of the VSC to at least the level of our neighboring states, then you will need to own that decision. You need to admit that you do not support you need to admit that you do not support affordable public higher education for Vermonters. You need to realize that this decision will send even more of our young people out of state, and you need to live with the fact that you have allowed the VSC to admit unities where we reside to suffer and struggle because of the lack of your commitment. The public good. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Beth. I know it's difficult, the two-minute timing, but we heard your message and thank you. I understand that Cole Edmondson is not in the waiting room, so we're going to move to Andrea Stander and then we will move to Jane. Andrea, you are muted. Sorry, I didn't realize I had control of that. Good afternoon. Thank you for the opportunity to offer comments today. My name is Andrea Stander. I live in Montpelier, and I'm a policy consultant for rural Vermont. Before I begin, I would like to express my deep appreciation for the hard work of both the Appropriations Committees and indeed the entire Legislature. Your jobs are difficult in ordinary times, and what we are all living through is surely the opposite of ordinary. There are two issues I would like to comment on. First, I urge both Appropriations Committees and the entire Legislature to support the Governor's proposal to allocate two million in state funds to provide parity in COVID relief for Vermont's immigrant residents, many of whom were deemed essential workers at the start of this pandemic, but who were also deemed ineligible because of their status to receive the federal COVID stimulus checks like the rest of us. This is an injustice that Vermont must rectify. Furthermore, I urge the Legislature to do everything it can to increase the amount recommended by the administration so that all Vermont immigrant residents, many of whom are spouses or children born in the US, are treated fairly. It is the least we can do in these times. Second, I ask that the Appropriations Committees accept recommendations that I believe will be forthcoming from your agricultural committees to make crucial technical amendments to the COVID relief funding programs that were created last June to help farms and other agricultural and food businesses. These enterprises, often run by just one or two extremely hardworking Vermonters, are the backbone of Vermont's food system, and they have struggled to continue to provide high quality food to us all in the face of enormous challenges. These changes will ensure that they too are treated fairly. In the early days of the pandemic, when the deep flaws of our national and global food supply systems were painfully revealed, Vermont farmers and food producers stepped up in unprecedented ways not only to feed those who sought more reliable locally produced food, but they also made huge contributions to our charitable food system, which continues to see unprecedented demand. Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you, Andrea. I see in a message that do we have Dana Kaplanet? Dan Richardson would be to follow. I see you there. I'm here. Can you see me? Yes. Well, I hear you. I don't see you, but we hear you. Okay. Do you want to see me? Either way. There you go. Thank you, Dana. Thanks for having me. Good evening. My name is Dana Kaplanet. I use he and him pronouns, and I'm the executive director of outright Vermont. I join you tonight with a clear ask. Please restore the full legislative appropriation of $60,000 to outright, so that LGBTQ youth have a chance to live.  The legislature already took a wide range of testimony and agreed that $60,000 needed to be allocated to see this priority through that the AOE would attempt to cut this relatively small for them amount of funding that goes a tremendously long way towards creating safer schools for everyone is beyond disheartening and honestly scary that they shared they had zero intent or ability to replicate the unique services that we provide. The legislator listened and acted beautifully by adding that money to the AOE base as a pass through grant to outright Vermont, expressly for the purpose of funding our work to create safer schools. I trust we've all seen the YRBS data and those numbers. Those are real youth. Those are the lived experiences of kids suffering, isolated in their remote towns, living with rejecting family members, being bullied at school and navigating poor health outcomes across every risk category we know of, all based on having to navigate a world, in case a state that is largely unaccepting and oftentimes violent and hateful towards them. And that was before COVID-19. Last week we ran our summer camp virtually. Youth wrote notes for themselves later in the year. One of them said 51 weeks out of the year, my identity is challenged, questioned and ridiculed. And while I've worked my butt off to find allies and build connections at home and school, it's hard. Now I know there are people out there who value and support me. I know. Calling out this money from the base is dangerous and puts our youth at further risk of failing at the hands of our education system. With no backup plan, it is not a matter of a choice to cut this money. Thank you for your consideration of restoring these funds so we can all get back to the necessary work ahead. Thank you, Dana. Next we have Daniel Richardson and Molly Dugan will follow. Very good. Thank you very much. Good afternoon, distinguished members of the Joint Appropriations Committee. My name is Dan Richardson. I am coming to you on behalf of the Access to Justice Coalition, which is a group that comprised of the Vermont Judiciary, the Vermont Bar Association, the Vermont Bar Foundation, the Vermont Law School, and a number of low-income legal service providers, including Vermont Legal Aid and Legal Services of Vermont. I'm here to advocate for the increase in funding in three areas for a total of $800,000 in new funding. These requests are a renewal of our previous request as a coalition that we had made to legislature earlier before the COVID-19 outbreak, but have become much more critical as we have seen the fallout from these events. The requests break down into three categories. We're looking for $250,000 in increased funding for Vermont Legal Aid to counteract the steady decline in revenue that it has seen. We're asking for $300,000 for a statewide rent escrow project that is going to become extremely critical in January when the eviction process resumes, and we are looking for $250,000 for a statewide family law clinic. Since July of this year, Vermont Legal Aid and legal services of Vermont have seen dramatic increases in the amount of demand that they are facing. Their call loads have doubled, and the legal services of Vermont, its web tracker, usually counts about 100,000 unique visitors to its website. It is on track now for doubling that to 200,000. I think in 25 seconds. These are in Disha of a wave that is coming, and we thank you very much for your prior funding, and we look forward to working with you going forward. Thank you for your support, and good evening. Thank you, Dan. We have Molly Duganoff and Burke Hughes Music. Hello. Hello, Molly. Hello. Thank you. My name is Molly Dugan, and I work for Cathedral Square, and I'm the director of the statewide SASH program. SASH utilizes the network of affordable housing providers across the state, all funded by Vermont Housing Conservation Board of Investments in partnership with health and community provider organizations such as area agencies on aging and home health to provide support and care coordination to help approximately 5,000 vulnerable Vermonters stay at home throughout their lives. I respectfully request that you support the governor's recommended level funding for SASH in the Dale budget for state fiscal year 21. These funds provide critical backbone support and direct services to the SASH programs operating in every corner of our state. I am pleased to report that in early March, when the pandemic arrived in Vermont, the investment you all have made over the years in the statewide infrastructure for SASH provided a swift, thorough, consistent, and most importantly, compassionate response that helped keep our thousands of older Vermonters and adults with disabilities living in your communities connected, informed, and healthy. How did we provide this kind of response? I'll highlight a few ways. With our centralized administrative structure, we were able to immediately develop and deploy a COVID-19 resource and information section for SASH staff who are statewide internet. We also developed an individualized COVID-19 questionnaire and action plan that staff went through with each and every participant. Our partnership with Dale is strong and the funding is critical to us being able to provide this kind of consistent and effective support. Participants from across the state have reaped the benefit of this support. Lastly, I want to urge you to also support adequate reimbursement from Medicaid to cover the costs for licensed assisted living facilities, res care, and home care providers. I urge you to support an annual inflationary increase for these providers. Thank you very much. Thank you, Molly. Brooke Hughes-Muse and Floyd Nese will follow. Brooke is actually Timothy on the form. I think it got confused. I'm sorry, Tim. The wrong name was put on the form. I see you're Timothy, so welcome. Hi, thank you. So I'm Timothy Hughes-Muse, the owner and operator of Laughing Child Farm, where we grow 23 acres of organic sweet potatoes and ship throughout Vermont and surrounding states. I'm here to express support for the new state funding in the amount of $500,000 for the Vermont food banks to continue to build their Vermonters Feeding Vermonters initiative. I would like to tell you how the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters program provides security to farms, equity to Vermonters, and builds a local economy. Laughing Child Farm has been a past participant in this program, as well as a current participant. Each winter, the Vermont Food Bank requests bids for produce from farms and secures contracts with competitive prices for the upcoming growing season. Not many of our customers are able to provide us with these contracts, and having the security in an uncertain business is valuable to the health of us as business owners and to the health of our businesses. The security that this pre-purchase contracts provided to our farm has allowed us to expand and grow our business beyond the scope of just the product that we contract with to the Vermont Food Bank. This program has had big impacts on our farm and our community. Besides the lasting benefits that the Vermonters Feeding Vermonters program has to the farmers who grow the food, we are also grateful to this program for the way it addresses equity and hunger in Vermont. We have been on both sides of the food insecurity problem. Sometimes local food is thought of as inaccessible to all Vermonters, and this program is unique, and then it provides all Vermont residents equity in this market. And I know that Vermonters Feeding Vermonters has direct benefits for the families receiving the food, and also for the state of Vermont specifically, families see the better health outcomes when they have access to and eat local fresh produce. Ten seconds, Timothy. We love the way our soup potatoes are getting into the hands of so many people throughout Vermont and becoming nutritious everyday staple rather than just the food served at Thanksgiving. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today and for the support of this important program. Thank you, Timothy. We now have and bill half will follow. And if you see members looking down or looking to the side, we are taking notes that we are paying attention. So I just didn't want you to think that we were doing other things. Lloyd, Lloyd, you are muted. There you go. And it was so beautiful. So I am Floyd Neese, Executive Director of the Lemuel Family Center in Morrisville. And please be aware that I provided more background in the form of a longer testimony document and I urge you to take a look. This testimony concerns the administration's proposal to eliminate childcare subsidy eligibility specialists housed in community agencies. What follows is a summary of how bad an idea I think this is and why. What's being proposed here is not an effort to improve the effectiveness of government services. It is not an effort to help families with young children already struggling with low or no incomes improve their lives in the middle of a pandemic. It is not an effort to make sure that families with young children get the services they need when they need them. This is not just a budget cut. It's a major change in policy. In fact, this policy change flies in the face of the stated goal of the Child Development Division of the Department for Children and Families, which is, quote, to increase access to high quality sustainable services that are developmentally beneficial for children, strengthen families, and meet their needs. We do this in partnership with families, communities, schools, providers, and state and federal agencies. The administration's proposal would do exactly the opposite. It decreases access to high quality services for struggling families and abandons partnerships with families, community schools, and providers. With a wave of the hand, line 37 of the administration's budget proposal says it will, quote, complete work in house with existing state resources. Here's the work that those existing state resources are expected to replace. The 21 eligibility specialists that serve 350 to 400 families a year that process 10,000 applications a year. Each ES is an expert in local resources and services. So two important facts. Eligibility determination for child care subsidies was originally moved away from state offices and into community-based agencies because of the stigma experienced by families in need of child care subsidies. So I know how busy you are, but I urge you to read the background of this testimony that's been provided. This has been proposed before. This very change has been proposed before in 2011. Back then, you thought it was a terrible idea. You were right. It's a worse idea today, and I urge you to reject it again. Thank you. Thank you, Floyd. I understand that Bill Half is not in the waiting room, and so we're going to move to Olga Cruz, and I believe, let's see. Okay, we are ready. Welcome, Olga. Hola, Maria. I'm just trying to find the interpreters. They're not labeled the way I thought they would be. We're looking for Abel Luna. I see him. There you are. Okay, thank you. Abel, you will be interpreting, please. Will is not here, I guess. Hi, everyone. I'll be interpreting for Olga. Hola, mi nombre es Olga Cruz. Soy una ordenadora en una gran jalechera en Vermont. Estamos aquí porque nosotros durante la pandemia fuimos llamados esenciales por el gobernador, lo que significa que hemos estado trabajando todo este tiempo hasta el día de hoy sin ningún tipo de apoyo financiero. Hi, everyone. My name is Olga Cruz. I'm a dairy farm worker on a dairy farm here in the state of Vermont. We're here because during the pandemic we were deemed essential by the government, which means that we have been working all this time throughout the pandemic without any sort of financial support. At the beginning we were very happy to be called essential because we thought that we were going to be included in the federal and state financial support, but it was heartbreaking. It's a heartbreaking moment when we learned that we were excluded from all of this. Why weren't we recognized? What would have been, what would have happened if you were in a shoes? We're glad we're very glad to hear that they go from The governor proposed a $2 million to give out to the migrant communities here in Vermont, but that just ain't enough. We calculated that we need about $5 million to cover all migrant workers in the state, not just some, because while migrant workers continue to work day to day to earn just a little bit of money. Others are getting a government paycheck, government support payment throughout the entire pandemic. Sabemos que sí pueden hacer más y es importante que reconozcan que hay que ser equitativos con todos porque también lo merecemos. Somos humanos como ustedes son humanos hay que ver eso también es muy importante para nosotros que nos tomen en cuenta como personas. Quizás dirán esto se puede ayudar esto esto por ciertas cosas que porque esto no entran para nosotros es muy difícil oír estos que somos discriminados o excluidos de cualquier apoyo. We all know that we can do better than that and it's important to recognize that we need to be equitable with everyone. We are human too, and it's heartbreaking to hear that we're being excluded and that we're not being recognized because we deserve it to be deserve the support.  Yeah, and thank you for for giving us the time and the space to talk. And I'm not just here talking about myself but I'm here representing my community. And it's important to listen to our ask and listen to the things that we have to say and to our in our collective voice. This is really something that we'll need and it will be a relief to know that our ask has been heard and listen to. Por favor gobernador. Tratar de corregir el error. El error que el el gobierno federal está haciendo tratar de corregirlo por favor que también somos humanos. And please let's let's make up or let's fix the what the federal government couldn't because we're all human too. Gracias. Thank you. Thank you. We will move to I saw on the screen Jose Cordova. Welcome. Hola Jose. Si te estás en mute si quieres quitarte. Jose needs to unmute his microphone. Si. Si. Okay. Buenas tardes. Mi nombre es José. Soy un trabajador en un rancho lechero aquí en vermón y también soy parte de justicia migrante. El estado de vermuno fuera el estado que es ahora con nuestro trabajo el estado se ha enriquecido. Por qué nos dio la espalda del estado durante la pandemia. Cuando saben que sin trabajadores no hay producción. Sin nosotros no hay comida. Good afternoon everyone. My name is Jose. I'm a dairy farm worker in the state of Vermont and I'm part of migrant justice. The state of Vermont. Wouldn't be what it is today without us farm workers and migrant and the migrant community. With the hard work and labor Vermont has become a wealthier state. Why did it stay turn its back on us during the pandemic. When you all know very clear that without workers there is no production without us there is no food. Incluso hoy seguimos trabajando para llevar el alimento a todas las familias del estado arriesgando nuestra vida. El hecho de que se propusieron dos millones es un paso importante para reconocer que estamos aquí y que necesitamos el apoyo. Pero también es importante que reconozcan que no solo somos los trabajadores y lechería sino que somos miles de migrantes. Even today we continue to put food on the families living in this very state by risking our lives. The fact that two million dollars was proposed. It's an important step to recognize that we are here and that we deserve the support. But also it's important to recognize that it's not just very farm workers but thousands of other people of the migrant community maintaining and sustaining the state. Con los dos millones solo una parte de la comunidad calificaría pero el resto no es importante reconocer que todos tenemos necesidades y queremos que tomen conciencia de esto. Por esta razón estamos aquí porque verón no puede hablar de equidad hasta que todo la tengamos necesitamos que ustedes nos apoyen y aprueben un fondo de cinco millones. Gracias por su tiempo y esperamos ver acción y no exclusiones. We are here with the two million dollars only part of the community and only some will get the support but the rest want and we please we need to be conscious of that and we need to recognize that we all have needs. This is why we're here because we're month can talk about equity until we all have it. And that includes us. We need you. We need all of your support. And we need to approve a five million dollar fund to support all the migrant community. Thank you for your time. We expect to see action and no more exclusions. Thank you Jose. And we will move to Elizabeth Ramirez. Welcome Elizabeth. Hola Ellie entonces cuando estás lista. Great. Si te escuchamos. Hola mi nombre es Elizabeth y soy parte del Comité de Coordinación de Justicia Migrante. Quiero contarles un poco sobre cómo nos afectó la pandemia. Desde marzo que empezó la pandemia nos quedamos en trabajo. Yo con mi pareja solo vamos trabajando de poquito y lo que caiga día con día. Hola todos mi nombre es Elizabeth Ramirez y soy parte del Comité de Coordinación de Justicia Migrante. Quiero contarles un poco sobre cómo nos afectó la pandemia. Desde marzo que empezó la pandemia en vermán. My partner and I were left out with with our job. Only working here little by little here and there. He pasado todo mi embarazo muy preocupada sin saber qué hacer. Sin saber cómo vamos a comer o cómo comprar las cosas necesarias para mi bebé. Los ranchos no están no estaban contratando especialmente cuando eres mujer y estás embarazada. También conozco a más familias de la comunidad de que ahora mismo no tienen donde vivir. Por lo mismo de que los ranchos han cerrado. I have spent my entire my entire pregnancy very worried without knowing what to do. Without knowing how the three of us are going to eat or how we're going to buy the necessary things when my baby is born.  I also know all their families in the migrant community but right now have no place to live because they're. Durante estos meses también nos quedamos en un lugar donde vivir. Hasta el día de hoy aún no podemos encontrar un trabajo estable ni vivienda para poder recibir a nuestra hija cuando nazca. Por esta razón estoy aquí porque dos millones no alcanza para todos los inmigrantes debemos. Necesitamos cinco millones y por esa por esta razón necesitamos apoyo. All of these months during the pandemic we were left without a place to live. And up until today we haven't been able to find a stable job or a stable house to welcome my daughter when she's born. For these reasons we're here because two million dollars is not enough for all the migrant communities living here in the state of Vermont. We need five million dollars. Therefore we need all of your support. Thank you Elizabeth. Oh no were you finished no I'm sorry. Tienes más para agregar a. Por eso les pedimos por favor que no nos excluyan de la ayuda. Y que atiendan a nuestras suplicas porque necesitamos ese apoyo todos los trabajadores que estamos acá en vermo. Y les doy las gracias por habernos escuchado y por habernos permitido esta tarde estar con ustedes. Gracias. So please we ask all of you to not continue to exclude us. Please support us instead. Support all of the workers because we all need the help right now. So thank you for the time and thank you for the space. Thank you Elizabeth and thank you able and I apologize for interrupting but thank you for your testimony. We will move to you. Bill half is now in the room and then we will move to Janet hunt. Hi, I'm bill half I am a organic farmer up in Walden, Vermont. And I grow on about four acres and I've been involved in the farm to school program for about 10 years with Walden school Hardwick elementary school and more recently the same johnsbury school. And where the children have been involved basically in planting potatoes and harvesting potatoes and early on in the in the farm to school program I was involved in some of the taste testing that was going on with no when they were doing that more so. Other people are going to be talking about the funding my interest, of course is funding for the program but more importantly is to share with you some of the enthusiasm and excitement that not all the children but many of the children who have come to the farm over 10 years have shown and exhibited. And I just want to share some observations and anecdotes that that I recollected through the years. And some of the children say, Oh, is it okay to eat this carrot if it's dirty. Oh, it's really yucky when they're digging potatoes and they put their hands on the on the gushy mother potato. And it says, they walked by some spinach when they were washing some potatoes and they asked if it's okay to try it. And it's, I said sure. And one of the boys says, Oh, this tastes so good compared to that canned spinach that I'm used to eating built 25 seconds. Oh my goodness. Okay, I'll speed it up. And basically, you know the connection between the farm and the community is really important and and the experiences of the children have been really valuable, and the farm to school program is valuable because they some of the schools have gardens, and give some opportunities to come to farms. Thank you so much for supporting the programs. Thank you, Bill. And Jill Wilson. Janet. There you are. Welcome. Yes. Thank you. It's nice to see your familiar faces. My name is Janet Hunt. I'm the executive director for the Vermont Association of area agencies on aging. And there are five member area agencies on aging located throughout the state. Focus areas that I want to emphasize for your consideration with regard to the 21 budget. The first is with regard to home and community based provider funding increases and increase in funding for home and community based providers will ensure that older Vermonters have the flexibility and the care that they need to age in their homes with dignity and with health. These increases are needed for parity with nursing homes and annual increases, nursing home annual increases, especially during times like these. Now, more than ever, we need to be able to pay for our community providers to help care for our older adults, our parents, our grandparents, where they truly want to be, which is within their own home environments with their families and with their community members. If this parity issue is not addressed now, we will continue to see a workforce decline within our community provider network. And families will have no choice but to institutionalize their loved ones in more expensive long term care settings. The second part of the consideration that I'd like you to consider is the need to increase the nutrition home delivered on wheels programs. And as you may well know, these meals, including the delivery of the meal, the meal itself, promotes health and well being it delays adverse health conditions and reduces social isolation. We ask that you increase the funding by $1 million to more adequately cover the cost of providing meals and allow us to continue paying the increased rates through the end of the fiscal year. As we recover from COVID, these services are critical to ensure the older Vermonters have the support that they need to stay healthy. After funding has been helpful, but the state of Vermont needs to continue the commitment for nutrition programs for older Vermonters. Thank you very much for your consideration. Thank you, Janet. We now have Jill Olson and I understand you're by phone only so we won't wait for your video and then Jordan will follow. Welcome Jill. Thank you very much. I appreciate the time today. I have a few things I wanted to share with you. Are you, can you guys hear me? Yes. Okay, good. I'm sorry. I didn't see the timer go. I'm sorry I was concerned. So first I just wanted to say that the stabilization monies from the coronavirus relief fund are working and I wanted to just express our gratitude for those. We're not at this moment concerned that we're going to lose any of our home health agencies this year as a result of the coronavirus. So I wanted to share that. But I also wanted to say that, as I think you know, all those relief funds are one time monies with a lot of limited uses. And so they're really not dollars that we can use going forward to take care of Vermonters. One of the things in particular they don't cover is our losses from fundraising. So we've canceled all of our fundraising events this year. Fundraising usually brings us over the top from losses to positive margins. And that is just not going to happen. And we can't use those dollars for that. This is all happening at a time when we actually have, I would say a more significant workforce crisis than the one we had in January. So we lost a lot of staff through the crisis in many agencies. And then our demand is is higher as other parts of the long term care system have less capacity because of their response to the coronavirus adult days closures. Nursing homes unable to take as many people because of the need for isolation and separation. So when we're really needing to ramp up, we're actually in a rebuild mode, even as caseloads are projected to get higher. So this is really a critical time to support this program. There's really never been a more important time to help keep people in their homes as long as they can, instead of going into nursing homes to the, to the greatest extent possible. Thank you. Thanks. We have Jordan Geoconia up and Kathleen Warner will follow. Wonderful. Good evening distinguished members of the committee and thank you for the opportunity to testify. I'm Jordan Geoconia with Vermont businesses for social responsibility. I will likely only cover just a broad swath of some of the issues that we're working on so I'll be sure to follow up the written testimony. So first, firstly, I just want to emphasize the need for increased supports for our hardest hit business sectors and sole proprietors Vermont businesses have been gravely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. And we support the most recent proposals to allocate additional grant funding to help these businesses endure through the crisis. In a recent survey conducted both by a VBSR and Main Street Alliance for Vermont, nearly 80% of the businesses reported that their highest percentage losses for any one month period since March were 30% or more. And 47 point or 46.7% of those businesses said that they had considered closing with that additional federal funds. And another 58.6% indicated they would have under a year before having to make this difficult decision. This stark picture really paints a need for continued economic relief, not only for a small business community, but also for additional support for everyday Vermonters who keep our businesses communities and economy running. Also want to thank you for the women minority on business program, but we'll flag that there are about 48 women owned businesses who receive false confirmation they would receive grants from the program so just want to stress that many of them have made financial decisions with this in mind and encourage the legislature to appropriate additional funds or transfer funds to make sure that they receive grant payments. Also want to stress the critical importance of our childcare system this is you know the pandemic is really brought to light the critical role that childcare plays in our society to the forefront, making clear that it's an essential form of infrastructure for a strong economy. In this case what we're really looking for here is additional supports for our childcare providers namely pay higher retention bonuses hazard pay professional preparation preparation and access to health insurance. Jordan 10 seconds, you got it and then additional that also want to make a plug for an expanded essential worker hazard hazard pay to capture the full breadth of Vermont's essential workers, as well as an appropriation of 972,000 to implement the global warming distribution act, should it pass out of the House and Senate. So with that, I thank you all for the opportunity to testify and I'll be sure to follow up with written. Thank you, Jordan.  Welcome Catherine. You need to. There you go. Okay, am I unmuted now you are. Thank you very much I don't see my video on the screen. Oh yes I do. Thank you. Good evening and thank you for the opportunity to be here my name is Kathleen Warner. I'm a woodland owner and certified tree farmer and Chittenden director of the Vermont Woodlands Association and for Montwood Works Council. I'd like to speak about the working lands enterprise initiative and it's important to the landowners and businesses I serve. I appreciate your steadfast support of working lands through the enabling legislation in 2012 and the continued funding of the program. I also appreciate the $8.5 million and COVID relief funding to help farm and forest enterprises that have suffered losses in the midst of the pandemic. I want to talk about the future funding for working lands for farm and forest businesses that have survived the pandemic and must redefine reinvent reinvigorate products and markets for healthy post pandemic futures. I anticipate that within the next 12 months, many will be ready to shift their focus from stabilization to growth. That's when they will need access to capital that helps them fund that growth. The working lands initiative has been a powerful tool for rural economic development. The governor's pre pandemic proposal had level funding of working lands at 595,000 with an additional 750,000 in time funds. The current budget removes the additional one time funds. Understanding the difficult environment we are in today, the working lands enterprise coalition is united in asking that you consider funding the program, or a total of $750,000. Kathleen. This is not nearly what we have previously felt was needed to make transfer, formational change. But it reflects a careful and realistic consideration of what's possible in our challenging times. This level of funding with will help to ensure that businesses keep their eye on the goal of growth and innovation, knowing there is support for their matching investments in Vermont's hurl economy. Thank you for your consideration of this request. We have Sue mentor up next and Linda Olson will follow. Good evening. For the record I'm Sue mentor executive director of capstone community action representing Washington LaMoyle and Orange counties. We're looking for V cap the Vermont community action partnership, all of the five community action agencies and we are united in our request that the legislature restore the cuts that the governor has proposed that would eliminate both the Vermont business development program and individual development accounts. These cuts would abolish to critical and proven economic stimulus and anti poverty programs that have been operating throughout our state. In 1988, helping economically disadvantaged entrepreneurs start and expand businesses over 2100 businesses have been initiated, creating thousands of jobs and leveraging over $15 million in funding. I'm so grateful for your past support of this program including in this session when your house commerce and human services and appropriation committees have restored this funding. We also appreciate the extra investment in cares act dollars towards these needs, it is up and running and being well spent. We are facing unprecedented and extraordinary times. You have weathered these times, these storms in the past, and I trust you will again. Of all times, this is not a time to eliminate successful anti poverty programs. It is not a time to undermine your community action agencies, which have been the first responders to low income for monitors during this pandemic. I'm going to do 23 seconds history periods of economic recession have been followed by historic increases in business development. Our micro business development program is a win win kickstarting economic recovery, creating jobs and economic opportunities to those most impacted by economic down time, and providing equity to our economic development platform as a state. We humbly request the restoration of these funds, and thank you so much for your time and dedication. Thank you, sir. Linda Olson and Michael boy T I hope I'm pronouncing it correctly will follow. Thank you for the opportunity. I'm sorry, let me start my video here. Thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight. My name is Linda Olson, I am a longtime faculty member at Catholic University, and I'm also a union officer for AFT Vermont. I wanted to thank you for listening to us today, but I also wanted to say that Vermont currently ranks 49 that of 50 states in terms of public support for higher education. And that means our students pay one of the highest tuition in the country, and that 40% of our students actually don't go on to post secondary education, right after graduation. The lack of state support has been difficult for us for a long time it's resulted in 33% of our staff positions being cut 25% of our professional staff positions being cut and 27% of our faculty positions being cut. This lack of funding has made us precarious and the best of times but it will destroy us because of coven if we don't get your support. In acting legislation in 1961 promise to support the VST and whore substantial part. I'm asking that the legislature honor this. And I asked that the legislature honor this for the benefit of Vermont. So, one thing that we always talk about is the benefit of a higher education for the individual, but actually, the higher education benefits the community as well. And a study by Brookings Institute found that those who hold a bachelor's degree contribute $278,000 more dollars to local economies in the state than those who have just a high graduate high school graduation. Linda 25 seconds. I think that's affordable is critical to the economic recovery from code and it's long term investment that will encourage Vermont students to go to college attend a public institution and stay in Vermont. So we were asking that bridge funding be given to us so that we can get through the year and figure out a way for. And we're also asking for more state support in the future to make our colleges as vibrant as they can be in the recovery from this pandemic. Thank you so much for your time. Um, Michael is not in the, in the waiting room we're going to move to Maggie. And then we will move to Mackenzie but so Maggie. Hi. Hi, my name is Maggie Rubick and I am an early childhood educator and I help lead the pre K program at North shard day school which is a community based childcare center in Bennington County. I am a farm to school advocate because I understand that farm to school systems support child development and strengthen communities. And I thank you for your previous support of our state farm to school program. And I ask that you continue to fund farm to school programs at the current rate and here are just a few reasons why. As a child development specialist, I know that very young children need access to nutritious food as many neuro biological systems are developing nutritious food means healthy brain development. In addition, I see farm to school systems as important in addressing food access and equity issues in our communities, local procurement infrastructures can help to increase access and improve food security. I know the importance of family centered practice to and through farm to school practices, we can engage with families in a way that nurtures positive relationships and celebrates cultural diversity. My preschool students have daily experiences in our school garden that stimulate their curiosity about the natural world, help them develop healthy habits and feed their growing bodies and minds. This week, for instance, we're harvesting carrots and one of my four year old students has been checking his patch of carrots each day since April, monitoring their growth. A five year old student reminded me the other day that she goes to kindergarten soon so please can we pull the carrots out first. About our carrots built all summer long and this carrot growing experience helps children begin to develop so many important concepts ranging from understanding life cycles patterns and change to developing empathy, critical thinking skills and positive approaches to lifelong learning. Beyond its impact on individual children from to school and from to early childhood systems benefit families communities and local economies. Investing in farm to school now has an either greater positive impact in the future it pays to invest. Please consider and thank you for your time. Thank you, Mackie. Next we have Mackenzie bud and Chris will follow Mackenzie. Hello. Hello. My name is Mackenzie bud. I am a resident of Stratford in Orange County. My primary reason for calling in today is to support migrant justice in asking for the fall $5 million to be allocated to the immigrant families Relief Fund $2 million is great but we need the full 5 million. One of the other points I want to make is that I support alternative energy investment so as a motor vehicle driver. I would support a larger fuel tax if that meant it was going into solar or weatherization projects. I would support reparations to start to be in the budget for Abinaki community members whose land we live on black community members non white community members for their businesses for asset owning land owning economic opportunities. I would love to see a greater investment in mental health, as opposed to just the health category I think to up the mental health we are really going to need that in the next coming years. And I explicitly support rural Vermont's request I support outright Vermont's requests and would love to see the police and military budgets lessened in order to support all the things that I just mentioned. So thanks for having us tonight. And thank you for serving the people. Thank you Mackenzie. Next we have Chris. Welcome Chris.  I'm a resident of Hartford Vermont and I'm the librarian at Richmond Middle School, serving students from Hanover New Hampshire and Norwich Vermont. I'm here to urge you to reject the governor's proposed cut of $40,000 to outright Vermont and the AOE budget. Vermont is the only entity that provides services for LGBTQ plus youth in schools. In my job. I'm also one of the advisors for my school sexuality and gender equality group for the LGBTQ plus students and their allies. I'm one of Vermont's most vulnerable students studies have shown over and over they are more likely to be bullied and more likely to contemplate or attempt suicide than their peers. Vermont schools are small and a lot of them don't have any out LGBTQ plus educators outright Vermont is essential for supporting cis gender heterosexual educators like myself to become effective allies and advocates for their students. It's also important for the LGBTQ plus students to have mentors from their own community. They can help them find their voices and become at activists outright Vermont has provided training to my staff, my students and community members. Their workshops are incredibly informative and practical and have allowed me to be a good advocate to students like one seventh grader who is afraid to come out to their family, but has been able to find community and a safe space at school. 24 seconds. I'm particularly concerned that during remote learning students who are living in homes where their identity is not affirmed will be even more at risk. Vermont educators need rely on the valuable services that outright Vermont offers and our LGBTQ plus youth needs you to continue to fund that essential work. Thank you so much. David Mears is up and men wearing will follow. Thank you so much for this opportunity. My name is David Mears. I'm the executive director of Audubon Vermont. And I'm appearing on behalf of a number of environmental organizations that are represented in the force partnership and water caucus, most if not all of which you know well. I encourage your time and perspective or your attention on this late evening hearing. We are testifying in support of the governor's proposal and budget request for the agency of natural resources. As you know the agencies work in the programs that it administers are so vital to Vermont's economy. And we appreciate it at this moment in time, when the economy is facing such a challenging time that we need to maintain the investment in the agencies programs. So we encourage you to support the governor's proposal with that we know that it faces it has some reductions that frankly are a going to create a harder time for us when we get to FY 22 and I'll point out a couple of them. One, it relies heavily on vacancy savings that are not sustainable. There are too many positions that are vital and critical that have been left open, particularly at a time when the demographics of the agency are going to lead to further retirements and departures. Secondly, this is the third or maybe fourth by him in a row that the administration has not requested a fee increase to keep up with even the basic inflationary costs faced by the agency, much less the increased complexity challenges associated with our new obligations placed on the agency. So as we look forward, we're hopeful that the agency will work with the General Assembly to come forward with a more vision, a greater, a more thoughtful vision of how the state can invest in the protection of our vital natural resources and environment. In the same way that the state did in the 30s during the 22nd, during the Great Dust Bowl era and the Great Depression in which we invested in conservation as we've catalyzing our economy. We absolutely as we look forward need to find new and better ways to make those investments. Again, thank you so much for your time and attention. Thank you, David. Next is and men wearing and Sarah Kenny will follow. Oh, thank you very much and I want to say hello to Teresa, and to any number of my former colleagues. Hi. My name is and man wearing and I am the chair of the Deerfield Valley Communication Union District, where a collection of 15 towns in Wyndham and Bennington counties in southern Vermont. The communication union districts were created because the state of Vermont made a commitment to extend universal high speed access to the internet to every home and business in Vermont, focusing on the nearly 70,000 locations that are unserved or underserved. The standard for high speed is defined as a minimum of 100 megabytes upload and 100 megabytes megabytes download, which is accomplished by extending fiber to every home and business. This is as monumental a task as was building the highway system, or the electrification system, and just as likely to be economically rewarding to our state and its people. The highway system is publicly financed in its entirety, both in its construction and its ongoing operations electrification is privately owned, but it is publicly regulated. In contrast, broadband is delivered through a competitive market system that is unregulated. The market system is driven by a requirement for the highest possible return on financial investment. This is a feature of the market economy that has failed rural Vermonters and all rural Americans from participating in the 21st century economy, and indeed increasingly in everyday life of all of our citizens and 29 seconds. Thanks access to the Internet is no longer a luxury. It is a requirement for participating in today's economy. Because Vermont is the second most rural state in the country there is no public investment that will be more rewarding to Vermont's fiscal strength than the public money that will bring all of us into the 21st century economy. The public service department has estimated that will take 293 million from all sources to roll this out that task can be accomplished. Anyway, we support the $2 million included in this budget targeted to CUDs and ask that you direct these funds to assuring that the CUDs can become viable providers of broadband to all of our citizens. Thank you very much. Thank you, Ann. Sarah Kenny is up and Steve Howard will follow. Hello Sarah. I want to thank you all for the hard work that you've done in recent years and during the pandemic to support Vermont's early care and education system. The childcare stabilization program and the restart grants that you authorize set a standard for the nation and how to sustain this crucial industry. And we're hopeful that the additional 12 million that you appropriated this spring will also help these programs that are struggling to survive in a vastly different landscape now. Our state's recent efforts to address the current COVID-19 crisis have been complicated by the childcare crisis that predates the pandemic. We have to come together to address these immediate needs and to continue to build a high quality accessible and affordable childcare system that's founded on principles of sustainability and equity. We support the governor's proposal to continue to increase childcare financial assistance program reimbursement rates as a part of the five year redesign plan. However, those rates are still going to be out of step. We recommend asking CDD the child development division to update the market rate survey to reflect the increased cost of care in this pandemic. The governor, as you've heard, is also proposing to move CCFAP eligibility determinations out of community agencies and into the economic services division. We do not think that a change of this scale makes any sense in the midst of this crisis. We are also concerned that the governor's budget does not include funding for two urgent themes that we're hearing from the field and that we believe are allowable uses of CRF dollars. The governor's workforce supports, especially incentives for service during COVID-19 access to health care and professional preparation through scholarship. We urge you to prioritize supports for this essential workforce that has stepped up since June and in many cases since the very beginning of the pandemic to provide care for children and allow Vermont's economy to reopen. Thank you. We hear daily from programs that are desperate to hire and retain staff from the verge of losing 500 slots in the last month in Chittenden County alone. And we also want to support the idea of one time investment in fully updating the IT infrastructure at CDD, which has been a major barrier during the pandemic and is critically important for our response. Thank you all very much. Thank you, Sarah. We have Steve Howard up and Sonia Booblion and Sarah Gleck will follow. Thank you, Madam Chair. My name is Steve Howard. I'm the executive director of Vermont State Employees Association. And I have just a few issues, but I want to start first with talking with you about opposing the BSEA opposes the recently announced privatization proposal for Woodside Rehabilitation Facility. You may be aware that the administration has proposed spending taxpayers' dollars to build a new building for a private corporation, a corporation whose record has not been fully vetted by the legislature. We are state employees who work at Woodside, want to provide the Woodside that Vermont wants them to provide. They're willing to learn any protocol that Vermont wants them to learn. And they understand that many people have a problem with the building that's currently there at Woodside. And that is why they're calling for the state to build a new building, a better Woodside to allow the public, to allow the folks who work there who are some of the heroes and heroines of state government to take care of the kids who they've done such a great job taking care of. Woodside was a nationally recognized program until Secretary Smith decided to privatize it. We're asking you to oppose that privatization. In the last three months, our members have had four managers. They've been thrown from one building to another, three different buildings in three months. They've had very little guidance from management, almost no training, and certainly no input into how the facility should run, what could be done to approve it. Steve, 29 seconds. We ask you to turn away from privatization because we know it doesn't work.  We look at Core Civic that is running our facility for us in Mississippi and hundreds of Vermonters who are now our COVID positive as a result of privatization. And we look at the Brattleboro Tree that now holds us hostage anytime they need more funding, because they can. So we ask you to oppose the administration's privatization proposal at Woodside. Thank you Steve. Sonya is not here so we will move to Sarah Lunderville. Sorry, I was cooking dinner for my children. So welcome. Thank you so much and good afternoon. My name is Sarah Lunderville. I'm the Executive Director of the Vermont Center for Independent Living. We're a statewide nonprofit organization with a focus on working with people with disabilities. So thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I'd like to ask your support for a few different programs. The first is to unfreeze the Fund for the Participant Directed Attendant Care or the PDAC program. Attendant support is essential for people with physical disabilities being able to live. Attendant support people with disabilities with specific activities like eating, toileting, bathing and meal preparation. And these are essential services for folks with disabilities and helps them be able to work, have families and participate in their community. The PDAC program is an equalizer. It's funded by the General Fund and because of that it allows for greater independence to the participants and it allows a person with a significant disability to have their basic needs met. And unlike the Choices for Care program, the PDAC program allows a person to work without worrying to have limits, their income, keep assets without fear of losing assistance. We're asking that the program be unfrozen and the money be restored that ensure that young people who are graduating from college this year have employment opportunities and they don't have to turn away career opportunities. We believe that employment is really important for folks with disabilities. And so we're also asking that you look at the vocational rehabilitation program right now. There are at least four open VR counselor positions throughout the state that cannot be filled and we'd like the hiring freeze for VR to be lifted. This is absolutely an extraordinary time of opportunity for employment. There are lots of issues, but there's also opportunity happening. Businesses are now more responsive to work from home options and flexible schedules, which are sometimes what will help a person with a disability be able to work. The pandemic has shifted a lot of folks with disabilities and it's very important that employment counseling is available so people with disabilities have assistance in navigating all the options and opportunities around employment. Sarah, please wrap up. Yes. And finally, we just want to highlight the designated agencies as of an increase of 3%. So thank you very much. Thank you, Sarah. We now have Sonya Raymond and Riley will follow Sonya. Good evening. Thank you. My name is Sonya Raymond and I am the executive director for Vermont's exact association for the education of young children and I also own a program, early education programs to Vermont. I think we can all agree that early education programs are essential, not only for our economy but for the families and children that we serve. So it's always been the case as is the fact that early education has been unfortunately woefully underfunded. When this legislative session began in January, I came and testified repeatedly about the critical need to support funding to maintain and expand scholarship programs, establishment of a loan repayment program and establishment of a wage supplement program including healthcare. The eight months since the session began, our needs for the early childhood workforce haven't changed. In fact, they've only intensified through COVID staff retention issues, dismally low wages, lack of healthcare, and an under qualified workforce continue to be serious problems significantly impacting the quality, affordability and access of early childhood programs. There are fewer early childhood programs available now than in January. Many early childhood programs have lost staff and are unable to hire the staff including them to decrease their capacity. And as of October 2020, there will no longer be scholarship funds for the 75 educators who are currently working toward their associates and teaching license needed for the positions they hold. In these 2020 Building Bright Futures Early Childhood Needs Assessment, it highlighted this situation regarding hiring staff. 91% reported the inability to pay enough as the problem, 87% indicated the lack of qualified candidates as an issue. The early education workforce rose to the challenge during COVID-19, stepping into support children of essential workers and then reopening to all in June. They nimbly and safely responded to support wellness for all children and families demonstrating the critical role they play in healthy Vermont-insured infrastructure and economy. A well-prepared, well-compensated early childhood workforce is essential to both healthy and our economy's prosperity. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you, Sonia. We have Tammy Riley up and Tom Donovan will follow. Hi, I'm Tammy Riley. I'm the executive director at Jeanette TV in the Manchester area and I'm the current president of the Vermont Access Network. Thank you so much for your hard work this session and your support of community media and peg access in Vermont. The peg study is now included in the governor's FY21 budget request. We wanted to bring this to your attention with the hope that you'd reiterate your support when you recommend your budget expenditures for FY21. The request on behalf of Vermont's 25 local community media centers and the communities we serve, we seek your committee vote for one-time request for $100,000 to fund a public educational and government peg access financing study that now appears in the governor's version of the FY21 budget. Here's a recap. The peg access study which is passed in June of this session is designed to identify revenue options meant to secure the future of public educational and government peg access television specified in H966 section 19. The fund was not covered with the COVID relief fund. The study was not covered with the COVID relief funds because upon review of the agency of commerce and community development responsible for the implementation of the peg study determined that the COVID funds were not an appropriate revenue source. At ACCD's request, the governor included the peg study in the FY21 budget proposal. The purpose of the study is as follows. The peg study seeks to hire legal and financial analysts to assess communications providers use of the public rights of way. In order to determine whether and to what extent communication services may be the subject to fee or right away assessment given the local state, federal laws, statutes and ordinances. Thank you. To survey examples from other jurisdictions and to prepare financial models and policy recommendations for revenue projections to support the 25 community media centers that serve Vermont communities and also to submit a report in December of 2020 which made draft legislation challenging this proposal. But thank you so much for your time and your consideration and we're available to provide additional testimony needed. Thank you, Tim. Tom Donahue is up and Tina's up. Hello. Welcome Tom. Hey everybody, thank you. I was just texting my friend Peter Fagan to say Peter, can you move me up there. He's Peter is my representative from Roland sitting over there. I'm representative from Darlin City District 5 one. So, I appreciate the time tonight folks I'm following zoom enters act there with my opposition and the opposition of Brock community action of the elimination of the $293,000 in the micro business development program, and the $170,000 in the Vermont managed savings and financial capabilities program. Those two programs were both were recommended for restoration by both the house commerce and house human services committees, just prior to the reset before all the fund began. And those programs have been supported by you folks for several years now since they dropped out of the governor's budget. I'll tell you what you guys have accomplished through us and just a couple of year snapshot for instance in job creation and business startup for low income folks in Vermont. 206 business startups and expansions just over a two year period at the five community action agencies now that's $463,000 invested but that's divided by the five community action organization. You've created 206 business startups and expansions 159 new jobs created for low income for monitors. You've leveraged over $2 million in additional capital for those businesses additional capital, you've leveraged over $2 million of that investment, and you've invested per job only $3,748 per job. And I have before I got to lead a community action organization to help low income for monitors in crisis and with a path forward, and I love being here. And I'm honored to be here to assist these people and in the plight of low income for monitors in Vermont and those living in poverty. I want to tell you that I spent $27 set 27 years in economic development prior to this. This is 12 seconds. Thanks Peter, you said you'd add on another 10. Okay, listen, this is a great investment for your money and we appreciate the fact that you've supported this please continue to support it, the micro business development and Vermont match savings ought to be part of Vermont's economic recovery strategy. Why we're eliminating programs that provide economic opportunity to low, low income for monitors I don't know. Let's continue to lift low income for monitors out of poverty. Please consider, consider restoring these programs for us, we'll get the job done for you. Thanks, Peter. Thanks. Thanks committee. Appreciate it. Tina is not here so we will Tracy show and following Tracy will be way thick Bay or Hi Tracy. Hi. Good evening thanks for having me. My name is Tracy show and I am president for conservation at Vermont land trust. Today as a co chair of the Vermont Housing and Conservation Coalition, a collection of 50 businesses and nonprofit organizations that partner with the to be to continue investments in our rural communities. On behalf of the entire coalition, I want to start off by saying a very sincere thank you for the sustained investments in the BHCB. Thank you for your hard work. These recent months, the fiscal CRF bills you passed in June were important. They included real resources for homelessness prevention and the working land sector, and our local service groups are very busy now turning those funds into economic activity and improvements for Vermonters. We believe in and value the BHCB conservation program support Vermont's rural communities. The conservation of farms and forests supports the viability of working land enterprises in the communities that depend upon them. They also host critical natural assets that provide opportunities and solutions to some of the vexing challenges we face in climate change flooding and water quality. These last six months have really shown a light on our need for food security and the importance of local farms and food, as well as the solace and safety our local trails parks and swimming holes provide. These are good investments before COVID-19 they have proven critical during COVID-19 and they will be vital to our economic and community recovery going forward. As it relates to fiscal 21 budget, we asked that you make one minor revision to the BHCB allocation and additional $75,000 for ready the rural economic development initiative. We did not fund this program. This program helps small communities with grant writing to pull in grant funds and over the last three years the program has brought in more than $4 million to these communities. We have a strong pipeline of community projects that will invest in boosting recreation local food production and saving special places so thank you again for your time and your commitment to our rural communities. Thank you Tracy. Wayfik, Bayor is up and following will be Sage Barber. Yeah, good evening everybody. Good evening. Good evening everybody. My name is Wafiq Fahour. I'm Palestinian American and living in Richmond, Vermont. I'm here in support of the voices we heard earlier, the people who don't have a voice of how to survive in the state of Vermont voices like Olga Cruz, Elizabeth Martinez, and Jose we heard earlier. I know and I know that the farms in Vermont wouldn't survive without those migrants farmers who are living here that they are keeping Vermont agricultural economy and tourist economy because we know the bankruptcies of many farms that they don't have enough labor force. But I see the migrants are a community that they don't have a voice of their future and their present now while COVID is hanging like cloud over our head. I recommend to you that to increase the budget from two millions what the governor proposed to five million. And I will remind you that the United States of America can go overseas and talk about the human rights and equal rights but here at home. The people of colors and the people who has no voice, our sisters and brothers in the migrant communities, they need the help the most and it's essential for their health for their education we should treat them as a resident as a member of our community and you have the power to do such thing. So please reconsider and increase the budget from two million to five million at least and support the safety of our community of migrants. I appreciate your work and thank you very much. Thank you very much way back. We say it is not in the waiting room so we're going to move to fx Flynn. Yes, hello. Thank you very much. For the record I am fx Flynn, the initials are for Francis Xavier and I'm the chair of the governing board of a Vermont municipality, East Central Vermont telecommunications district, the first of its kind in our state. We do businesses EC fiber delivering wicked fast internet to rural towns. In 2019, the Vermont legislature and executive branch established a strategy for solving the state's world broadband crisis. Follow the EC fiber model. For will in kind months finish spending the $41 million it has borrowed over the past four years to build about 1400 miles covering 22 of its original 23 towns, converting almost 20,000 premises to symmetrical 100 megabit per second internet availability. Next year, easy fiber will be finished building the last of its original 23 towns Hartford, which I represent on our board. We admitted new towns in May and July, and we hope actions you take in this session will make it possible for us to build these new towns in 2021 as well. This leaves the state with some 63,000 locations to get out of crisis over 20% of all locations in Vermont. 39,000 of them are in towns that are members of the new cuts. Another 22,000 are in town designated as study areas to meet Vermont's goal of solving the broadband crisis in the member towns of all new cuts by 2024. The new cuts will need to spend 43 million a year starting right now. In fact, to even be in a position to start building next spring, $10 million needs to be spent by the end of the coming winter by mid March 2021. $2 million, Governor Scott has put into the budget to satisfy Vita's 10% match requirement will unlock the full $8 million Vita has to loan to cuts. So this initial $10 million is in place if you say yes. To the extent that we can find ways to spend additional cares money on accelerating our response to the needs our citizens have for telemedicine distance learning and the ability to work from home. We can do even more and sooner. The state strategy and sound tactically we need to spend more money faster. Keep in mind, every dollar can be repaid over time if needs wrap it up. That's the EC fiber model. Thank you for the opportunity to appear today. More detailed version of this testimony has been emailed to you. Thank you effects. We have hard man up and Hannah. Hello. Good evening committee members and thanks for the opportunity to testify. My name is a heart Monica for the record, representing Vermont affordable housing coalition. And I also want to start off by thanking you for your extraordinary work and that of your colleagues on your policy committees over the last six months collectively. You and we all in the community organizations that are members of our association. We have a lot to be proud of. This is a great example of all branches of government and community providers are working together what what has been achieved, in terms of keeping the height of the pandemic, approximately 2000 homeless for monitors monitors who are precariously safe with using taxpayer dollars, but we saw no deaths from COVID among homeless for monitors and only one known person test positive. This is really an achievement to be proud of the housing investments that you made through CRF and other cares act dollars, bring relief to renters and homeowners that are hard pressed that bring additional housing improved housing. That are helping to provide a transition for homeless for monitors in many instances to permit housing. One thing that COVID made clear is that you can't stay safe at home. If you don't have a home, and that housing everyone makes all of us safer so I want to thank you for incredible, incredible work that you and your colleagues and all the community partners did it really has been extraordinary. COVID also made clear that the lowest income for monitors people with disabilities, seniors other vulnerable for monitors new Americans people of color are the most affected and will remain the most affected when the pandemic subsides. There were numerous. Let me skip to a couple of specific asks that remain in spite of all the successes that have been achieved through the COVID through the funds made available by the federal government one is mobile home infrastructure needs remain. There was $750,000 in S to 37 the Senate's housing bill that was stripped out and I would hope that in looking at one time funds, you could relook at that and bring that back into the budget. Also, I hope you can still find money for justice reinvestment to and the investments that are needed there to stabilize folks coming out of prison for their housing and community support needs. I just wanted to say quickly that we're very relieved that the emergency housing proposal that was in the governor's original budget is going to be delayed and I'll follow up on that and other issues in writing. Thank you. And Hannah Harrington is up and earth time is next will follow. Welcome. Hi, everyone. Thank you for having me. My name is Hannah Harrington I work for feeding Chittenden of our month largest direct service hunger relief organization we also host a food shelf that serves over 11,000 visitors a year so I'm here today to express my support for new state funding in the amount of $500,000 for the Vermont food bank to continue building their remanters feeding remanters program. I want to talk about this program from the point of recipients and food actual vegetable produce distribution. This is really important for our work as we are seeing such an increase in demand right now. We have a lot of folks we've had lines out the door every day this week at our food shelf and the calls the phones have been ringing off the hook for the last couple months here people really in need of food and during this pandemic that food insecurity and Vermont and really highlighted. And we have the chance right now to invest in providing healthy nutritious food that will invest in Vermont local economy but also will share this fresh delicious produce with those who really need it. The big takeaway that I want to impart on this is without this program the produce that we offer is usually some pretty second rate we're doing a lot of food rescue or picking up a lot of produce from grocery stores that isn't selling. And through this program we're able to offer really good produce that's very usable in day to day cooking. We're supporting local or local Vermont economy so I'm seeing this this we've been a pilot and a participant in this program for years past and it has such an incredible impact on providing good healthy food to those in need so thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Hannah. Herb Tomei and Jesse Gustafson is up next. Follow will follow her. You are muted. Or if you are muted. I'm nudging Madame chair. Okay.  Should we move to Jesse and come back to I'm here. Here you are. Good. Okay. And there. I apologize for the technical confusion. Starting again. Mine for the record my name is herb Tomei I'm a 45 year resident of Norwich. And from November 2012 through May of this year I had the privilege of serving as chair of EC fiber Vermont's first communication union district. I'm here to second the comments of and men wearing and of FX Flynn in support of the governor's proposed $2 million for distribution to the CUDs. And I believe that would go primarily to our many younger siblings the newer CUDs that are attempting to follow our path. I would also begin like to thank all of you on the appropriations committees for the, your hard work in finding and walking the very elusive fine line between what's allowable what's not allowable for cares money. Anyway, I want to emphasize the value of that $2 million in overcoming the initial bootstrap ish part of a CUD. House 966, as it was together. No, sorry. House 513 early last year, provided for Vita loans but requires that the first 10 that 10% of a project be funded from other sources. 365 or had six years to raise about $6 million from a variety of private investors, mostly in small amounts incidentally, and that got us to where we could go out to the bond market and seek municipal bond financing as we're 27 seconds. Thank you. We don't have that time in the state as a whole cove it has made all the urgent for the whole state for all of the rural economy. That's why this money is so important. That's why we support that. And also, I would add that I point that I don't think and married men wearing got to speak to contributions in kind money spent by the CUDs between now and next spring should be counted toward the 10% that they need to bring to a Vita loan. Thank you. Thank you. Jesse is not here but we're going back to sage you are here by phone welcome sage. Is it my is it sage barbers turn to speak. Yes it is welcome. Oh, I'm sorry the technical things are not I'm not familiar with it. Anyhow. My name is sage barber and I have been working with capstone community action for about five years to develop my business. I was in their micro business development program and the financial capability program, which included the idea Vermont match savings program and I worked with Liz sharp and Margaret Ferguson for these last five years. I was able to speak about my experience. In these programs.  And I took the in that time I took the financial classes which with Liz which helped with, I learned how to read my credit card bill like I didn't even know how to do that and I learned about retirement and all these things that like, you know, I'm young person I never even thought about that and I've always made so little money that I never even think of putting it to retirement until that class. But the biggest thing I got out of the, my work with capstone was my need for support encouragement and progress. Because the idea match program as a program where you guys might know this I saved $1,000 and then, then was matched with 2000 so that I have $3,000 and savings to put towards my business. I was holding, what's that 11 seconds 10 seconds. Okay, so anyhow, all that being said, it's kept me focused for the last five years as I've raised my I had two other children in like, not having to handle cards and now I'm spending the money and so I you know it's just, it's just kept me encouraged all that time sorry I'm running out of time. I guess I'm saying is it's a huge, it's a huge program to support people who are like low income in a small in a family and don't have a big amount of money to go forward it gives them something to look forward to. So I'm spending it now and I don't have to handful of cards and I can now offer free shipping because and expand my business outside of Vermont because it's only been in Vermont. So, thank you. Thank you. And we have the final person up is Laurie pencil. Welcome Laurie. Can you hear me now. Yes, we can. Okay, I'll try to be quick. I'm going to echo what Floyd testified earlier I'm Laurie Pacino and I thank all of you guys for your hard work I know this is really something to for your work right now. I work at Sunrise Family Resource Center and that's our parent child center here in Bennington. So, three years ago proposed to take out the childcare financial assistance position out of the state and move it into community partners and in an effort to save money. And so in the end there were lots of meetings and they decided to move that position into sunrise that was almost 20 years ago now. State employee salaries and benefits are more expensive than what you see in community partners so it made sense to move it out. Now, the budget proposes to put that money back, or move that position back into the state of Vermont. So I'm curious to understand how they moved it out to save money, and now they're going to move it back into save money. And the move would be very detrimental to families. And with the childcare system where it is right now and so much fluctuation to make such a huge move just would stress families, the childcare system as it stands. It makes little sense. We're welcoming home like setting plenty of parking. There are no armed officers at the door that have to go through the diaper bags of people there's no metal detectors. And if this this move happens, then families may not feel like they can even go to the state office complex and get the services they need because of the stigma that it might have. It could be an easiness it could be for families after they get in the door and get through the metal detector then they have to fight flights of stairs. And it's just a move that doesn't make good sense, and I hope that you will strongly look at this and think about the children the families and the early childhood professionals. Thanks for the work you do. Thank you Laurie. You're welcome. Teresa, is there anyone else in the waiting room. We do have Amanda Garces from Human Rights Commission who was scheduled for tomorrow but is here now. Through another link. It's up to you. You want to think we're here and is that all right with the others if we take one more for two minutes and tomorrow. So Amanda Garces. You need to unmute yourself. You ready Amanda. Yes, hi how are you thank you so much for having me. Can you hear me well. Yes we can. Great thank you. So my name is Amanda Garces I am the director of policy education outreach with the Human Rights Commission. We are in difficult times and as such we understand all the decisions that you need to make to fund them and it needs our state currently has. And I thank you for all your work. I'm here to tell you that we are applauding the governor for proposing $2 million for the immigrant relief fund. The governor does not care about immigration status and our state should not either. As we listen to the farm workers today. One thing that Olga mentioned was key, and it is that that it is a government task to take care of all. And not just some. And we know how much farm workers and immigrant workers do for our state. We estimate behind a $5 million price tax. We estimate that there are 3500 to 4000 eligible adults and 500 to 1000 eligible children to get our estimate for adults we calculate at 1250 undocumented dairy workers. We estimate done by migrant justice, UVM researchers, the UVM extension program that generally range between 700 and 1500 1750 undocumented adult outside of dairy. This is extrapolated from a 2016 report by the new American economy that counted 1,979 total undocumented immigrants in Vermont. And it was drafted 234 that the report counted in agriculture and rounding off, and then 500 citizen and legal permanent residents who file taxes with undocumented spouses. Take in from the 2017 report by the American immigration council which counted 1000 US citizens living with undocumented family members. I'm going to send you this. So, I just also two things we really encourage the funding for outright Vermont. And so I'm funding for the act one, the Vermont. The act one social equity and working group which is doing really amazing work. Now that we're talking about equity and education we really need to put the money where our mouth is. And I think we're saying in all our statements that this work is really important we really need to fund it, at least in this minimum at this year, a minimum of $20,000. That's, thank you Amanda. The number for the for the undocumented, the immigrant relief fund with really we encourage that you taking consideration our families that are suffering right now. So thank you. Teresa, is there anyone in the waiting room or everybody waiting room has been heard. Okay, and I don't believe there's. Are there any closing remarks, Senator Kitchell that you wanted to make it this time. No, other than to thank everybody who participated tonight and we'll. This is the first time at this kind of hearing and I think it went really well so thank everyone and all the people behind the scenes to make it work. Thank you. Thank you, and we'll be back at one o'clock tomorrow to continue. Thank you.