Good morning, Mr. Chairman, members of the committee. Thank you for having me here today.

My name is Stephanie Yu.  I’m a policy analyst with Public Assets Institute here in Montpelier.  We’re a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public policy think tank that was established in 2003. Read more

“The vast majority of the most rigorous modern research on the impact of higher minimum wages—including robust increases to $13 or more—shows that these policies boost worker earnings with little to no adverse impact on employment.” Testimony to the Minimum Wage Study Committee from Yannet Lathrop of the National Employment Law Project on November 21, 2017. In other words, there is no credible evidence that minimum wage increases cause significant job loss.

The Congressional tax plans aren’t the only policies in Washington that could make life harder for working families and the middle class.

Possible changes to the federal overtime rules may also take money away from thousands of Vermonters.  A new analysis by the Economic Policy Institute shows that 19,000 Vermont workers could lose a combined $3 million in overtime pay if the Trump administration rolls back a 2016 rule change updating who’s eligible. Read more

This is the 11th year in a row that Montpelier has projected spending obligations will exceed state revenue projections going into the start of the legislative session. Maybe it’s time to acknowledge that the state’s revenue system isn’t keeping up with even modest budget growth. Read more

Income inequality is already growing in Vermont. And if Congress has its way on tax reform, that problem will get worse.

Analysis released yesterday by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy shows that, like the House plan from earlier this month, the newly released U.S. Senate’s tax plan helps Vermonters at the top the most.

Nationally, the plan is heavily tilted in favor of upper-income households and profitable corporations.  The top 1 percent gets around one-fourth of the total tax cuts and the top 5 percent receive half of the tax cuts. In Vermont, 60 percent of the benefits go to the top 20 percent of taxpayers.

Under the Senate plan, the top 1 percent of Vermont taxpayers would on average get a tax cut of $21,910, growing to $29,820 by 2027. Meanwhile, the bottom 20 percent of taxpayers would save an average of $100 in 2019 and $200 in 2027.

Gov. Phil Scott sets out some priorities in the fiscal 2019 State Budget Overview released Thursday. He doesn’t spell out goals per se; they’re more like areas of concern. Still, the budget process just seems backwards, especially when the stated goal of the budget, at least according to statute, is to address the needs of Vermonters.

The Budget Overview says the administration will measure progress by: “Growing the Economy,” “Making Vermont More Affordable,” and “Protecting the Vulnerable.” These are laudable goals, but there are no defined targets. For example, one metric is “[p]ercent of population living below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL).” But there’s no indication of what the percentage ought to be or what might be done to reduce poverty. “Wage growth—by region” is another metric, but again, no goal, no 5-year target.

It’s understandable. The Fight for 15 has a certain alliterative ring to it. But ultimately, the number itself matters less than the timing.

The debate about raising the minimum wage in Vermont has clearly been influenced by the national push for a $15 an hour minimum wage and actions taken in other states. But when will Vermont get to $15? That is the critical question in this discussion.

The current $10 minimum wage is slated to go to $10.50 next year and grow with inflation after that. It would reach $15 by about 2034.

Since July, the Minimum Wage Study Committee has spent a lot of time discussing the possible effects of raising the minimum wage.

Their time might be better spent discussing the effects of not raising it.

The Vermont Community Foundation and the organizing committee for the Con Hogan Award for Creative, Entrepreneurial, Community Leadership are pleased to announce that Holly Morehouse, Executive Director of Vermont Afterschool, Inc., will be honored with this year’s award.

The $15,000 award, to be used however the recipient chooses, will be presented to Morehouse at a reception on October 4th at the Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier.

Vermont made headlines last week when the U.S. Census released its latest statistics for 2016: We were the only state to show an increase in the poverty rate. That may have been an artifact of the Census survey sample. The poverty rate showed an unusual drop in 2015, and 2016 looks more like a return to normal than a real increase. Read more