Act 46 Explained
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- Created on Tuesday, 08 December 2015 18:52
- Written by Alex Paduch
VERMONT - All too often, legislature that affects a community is hidden under bill names and docket numbers, leading to confusion and misinformation. In recent months, murmurs of “Act 46” have been creeping up during school and selectboard meetings, but what exactly is it? In its purest form, the legislation mandates that school districts with fewer than 900 students must consolidate with other districts.
“Act 46 looks at governance structures within supervisory unions in the state of Vermont and it only effects the governance structures. We’re not closing schools”, says Michael Clark, the Essex County Superintendent. “These mergers mean we need to consolidate the governance of the schools into one.”
For most, the law’s time frame isn’t a pressing issue, as school districts who fall below the student population mark have until 2019 to solidify a resolution.
Under the law, there are three different routes school districts can make in order to comply with the new regulations. The first is an accelerated merger, which will create a new supervisory union where one had not previously existed, or will create a single “governance structure” from the existing schools.
If residents in affected areas chose this option, they would have to approve the new union by July 1, 2016.
Second on the list is the creation of Regional Education Districts, or “RED’s.” With this option, individual districts will become a larger, singular regional district. In this case, the minimum of students in attendance must be higher 1250.
The last voluntary merger option towns have is the conventional merger. Simply put, two or more independent school districts will become a supervisory district.
The new law has many implications—from financial, to logistical.
“Imagine what would happen if we hired our special teachers at the district level,” said Clark. He noted that physical education and art teachers would be easier to employ at the district level, and would give students a better chance to learn more specialized skills, such as robotics, computer programming, and an array of foreign languages.
While Clark is supportive of the measure, others are not as keen.
“I see this being possibly clunky. Leadership could be stretched, resources could be stretched just because of geography alone,” said Peachem board member Mark Clough.
In addition, the mergers could affect taxes. “I’m concerned for taxpayers. You got some towns that are very poor and you have other towns that do alright. You got some boards who squeeze budgets till they scream, and you still can’t pass a budget in your town,” said Judy Clifford, a Walden school board member.
These discussions are still in their early stages, and more and more school boards are putting this topic on agendas as 2016's town hall looms a few months in the distance.
