The Senate Appropriations Committee signaled that the total spend across several bills with overlapping goals will need to be reduced, threatening cuts to the business recovery funding that the Vermont Chamber has been advocating for since the first day of the legislative session.

With other expensive proposals such as the Child Tax Credit still unaccounted for in the budget, the Vermont Chamber partnered with the Lake Champlain Chamber, the Vermont Arts Council, the Vermont Creative Network, and the Vermont Association of Wedding Professionals to collectively advocate for the most critical pieces of small business recovery heading into the final weeks of the legislative session. The coalition met with Senate leadership and members of the Senate Economic Development, Housing, and General Affairs Committee to urge support for $45 million in funding for the VEDA forgivable loans, relocation incentives and marketing, and creative sector recovery.

The Legislature can certainly do more for businesses outside of these three priorities, but these priorities constitute the bare minimum to address the workforce shortage and business and creative sector recovery. Read the coalition’s letter outlining these priorities, and contact the Vermont Chamber to share your thoughts.