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H 955

An act relating to next steps in transforming Vermont’s education system

2025-2026 Regular Session

Vermont would reorganize regional education governance into CESAs, pursue study-led formation of Unified Union School Districts, and study funding/structure for universal pre-K.

House message: Governor approved bill on June 18, 2026
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Bill Summary · H 955

Summary of H.955 (2025-2026) – Vermont

An act titled “next steps in transforming Vermont’s education system,” introduced by the House Committee on Education and referred to appropriations, with wide-ranging proposals to reorganize regional education governance, study district mergers, adjust timing for prior education reform acts, and advance prekindergarten funding and integration.

Sections below outline purpose, key provisions, affected parties, and timeline.

1) Purpose and overall intent

  • Establish a framework to advance Vermont’s ongoing education system transformation.
  • Clarify organizational restructuring by renaming and reconfiguring cooperative education service structures.
  • Promote study and potential formation of unified union school districts (UUSDs) via study committees and facilitators.
  • Adjust transition and funding mechanics related to 2025 Act No. 73 and related education reforms.
  • Initiate a contractor study to determine best ways to account for prekindergarten (pre-K) within Vermont’s education finance system.
  • Emphasize equal educational opportunities and regional considerations while preserving local voice.

2) Key provisions and changes

A. Cooperative Educational Service Areas (CESAs) and BOCES

  • Rebrands “Boards of Cooperative Education Services” (BOCES) as “Boards of Cooperative Education Services Educational Service Areas” (CESAs) and organizes supervisory unions into formal CESAs.
  • Establishes six to seven regional CESAs (as listed; examples include Champlain Valley North CESA, Chittenden Central CESA, Champlain Valley South CESA, Southwest CESA, Vermont Learning Collaborative, Northeast CESA, Winooski Valley CESA).
  • Creates articles of agreement/bylaws for each CESA, defining mission, services, membership terms, budgets, fees, withdrawal/exit rules, and governance.
  • Each CESA to provide shared services (educational programs, staff, facilities) to member supervisory unions, with a focus on cost-effectiveness and reduced duplication.
  • CESAs may employ an executive director; the board must annually evaluate performance and ensure compliance with licensing and retirement systems for staff.
  • Limit on the number of CESAs statewide (not more than seven); supervisory unions cannot belong to more than one CESA (though nonmember service requests possible).

B. Powers, governance, and finance

  • CESAs can provide: special education services (including tiered supports and high-cost/low-incidence needs), business/administrative services, and consultation for creating/facilitating union school districts.
  • Establishes an Education Cooperative Fund funded by member districts and grants/donations; requires audits, annual statements, and public access (website with board rosters, minutes, articles, and annual reports).
  • Requires procurement rules consistent with state law (including compliance with high-cost contracts) and grants authority to seek outside funds.
  • Board of directors per CESA: one representative from each member supervisory union board; annual chair and officers; minimum four meetings per year; mandatory quarterly updates to member boards.

C. Union school district exploration and formation

  • Creates a formal process (Sec. 13) for study committees to evaluate forming Unified Union School Districts (UUSDs) within VTLC regions.
  • VTLC to hire seven union school district formation facilitators plus a lead facilitator (by Oct 1, 2026) to organize and run study committees, per Sec. 13(a).
  • Study committees must group districts (based on guidance in Sec. 14) and conduct feasibility analyses; funding for study committees comes from General Assembly appropriations (some flexibility allowed for budgets).
  • Committees must address feasibility of a regional middle/high school, cost/educational impacts, and long-term viability.
  • If a study committee deems formation advisable, it must prepare proposed articles of agreement and report to relevant authorities by deadlines (final timeline includes reports due by Feb 1, 2027, and local votes by Nov 7, 2028).
  • If deemed inadvisable, the study committee must report its reasons and may pursue other district-forming options later.

D. Implementation timing and triggers

  • CESA transition: immediate organization steps within 30-45 days of enactment, leading to board elections and governance setup.
  • Effective date: July 1, 2026.
  • Some major structural changes contingent on other acts (e.g., Sections tied to 2025 Act No. 73) with staged effectiveness dates (July 1, 2028; January 1, 2029; etc.), depending on Congressional action and district boundary moves.

E. Prekindergarten (Pre-K) study and funding

  • Appoints a Joint Fiscal Office (JFO) contractor to study how pre-K should be accounted for in the education finance system.
  • Contractor to consider use of categorical aid or a pre-K weight in the foundation formula, with goals of universal access, equal standards, mixed delivery (public/private), and alignment with other reform research.
  • Report due to House/Senate Education and Ways and Means committees no later than January 15, 2027.
  • Initial Pre-K funding and structural guidance outlined (Sec. 21).

F. Miscellaneous

  • Codifies definitions aligning with CESAs for educators and teachers within CESA structures.
  • Optional virtual mergers for efficiency, with cost-benefit analyses required for inter-district collaborations.
  • Repeals/updates transitional language from prior acts (e.g., 2024 Act No. 168, Sec. 3 and Sec. 4 amendments).

3) Who would be affected

  • Supervisory unions, school districts, and boards of cooperative education services (now CESAs) across Vermont.
  • Educators, administrators, and support staff operating under CESA structures and potential UUSDs.
  • Students and families, through regionalized services and potential new district configurations, plus pre-K access and funding changes.
  • Agencies: Vermont Agency of Education, Vermont Learning Collaborative (VTLC), Joint Fiscal Office, State Board of Education, and local school boards.
  • Municipalities and taxpayers via revised funding, governance, and potential changes in district boundaries.

4) Procedural and timeline highlights

  • Enactment date: July 1, 2026 (overall act);
  • Within 30 days: each member supervisory union appoints a CESA director nominee.
  • Within 45 days: top-earning district convenes CESA directors to elect officers.
  • VTLC to hire facilitators by Oct 1, 2026; study committees formed by Dec 1, 2026; first meetings shortly thereafter.
  • Final study committee reports due by Feb 1, 2027; elections/board actions on UUSD formation by Nov 7, 2028.
  • State Board findings due by June 1, 2028 (for studies seeking UUSD formation).
  • Effective interdependencies with 2025 Act No. 73: certain sections take effect July 1, 2028 or Jan 1, 2029, contingent on prerequisites (e.g., district boundary changes, cost-factor foundation formula readiness).
  • Budget and funding provisions include start-up grants, ongoing facilitator funding, and executive director grants for each CESA (Sec. 17).

5) Notable fiscal provisions

  • Start-up grants: up to $10,000 per group exploring BOCES formation, with $70,000 appropriation in FY2025 (Education Fund).
  • Additional start-up funding: $30,000 appropriation in FY2027.
  • Study committee reimbursements: up to $10,000 per committee; up to $210,000 total appropriation in FY2027.
  • Facilitator funding: $442,000 (FY2027) for seven facilitators and one lead facilitator; admin costs allowed.
  • CESA executive director grants: $50,000 per CESA (FY2027); total $300,000.

This act lays out a comprehensive pathway for reorganizing educational governance in Vermont, advancing regional cooperation through CESAs, launching structured study processes toward potential unified district formation, and initiating prekindergarten funding analysis to better integrate early education into the state’s finance framework.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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