The CVSD Board focused on the following goals when setting the budget target for FY26:

• Maintain programs and roles that support CVSD’s mission and vision
• Operate within financial constraints to minimize taxpayer burden

FY means “fiscal year.” The CVSD Budget year begins July 1 and ends June 30. We are currently in FY25, and the proposed budget is for FY26, which begins July 1, 2025.

The FY26 budget is a 0.9% increase in expenditures from FY25. Major factors driving an increase in spending include inflation, salaries and a 11.9% increase in healthcare premiums. Factors that minimize this increase include the reduction of 38.85 FTE (full-time equivalent) positions across the district and numerous cost containment measures in operations and maintenance.

CVSD’s 0.9% increase in expenditures from FY25 to FY26 is significantly lower than the statewide average and last year’s increase. Last year’s CVSD budget represented a 5.8% increase, with a five-year average increase of 5.2%. Statewide, school budgets are increasing next year, on average, an estimated 6%. 

CVSD’s final proposed budget comes in at $102,724,062.

While this is still a 0.9% increase from the FY25 budget, the estimated average increase for Vermont school districts is an estimated 6%. For context, if CVSD had kept the same budget items as the current year (i.e. level service), our estimated budget would have been $106.9M, a 5.1% increase.

You can view a breakdown of the FY26 budget by function here, which details the expenditures in each category, as well as the change and percentage change from FY25 to FY26.

Champlain Valley School District (CVSD) encompasses six schools that serve the towns of Hinesburg, Williston, Shelburne, Charlotte and St. George. With about 3,600 students total, CVSD is Vermont’s largest school district.

Approximately 1,250 students attend CVU, the district’s high school, with another 2,350 students attending our PreK-8 sending schools: Allen Brook, Williston Central School, Shelburne Community School, Charlotte Central School and Hinesburg Community School.

CVSD has long been known as an educationally progressive organization that benefits from a community that recognizes the vital importance of public education. While our schools almost always rank at or near the top of academic achievement statewide, our most important measure is the engagement of our students and their capacity for giving back to the community at large—whether through work in the classroom or raising upwards of $40,000 annually for Special Olympics Vermont during the Penguin Plunge. 

At our high school, 93% of students agree or strongly agree that they can take courses and electives that they are interested in, while the same percentage agree or strongly agree that they receive support and have access to opportunities that will prepare them for plans after high school. These figures directly correlate to CVSD’s college placement and graduation rates, which significantly exceed statewide and national averages. 

CVSD student engagement extends beyond the classroom, too, with an incredibly robust and active offering of extracurriculars. Our six schools offer more than 150 clubs and afterschool programs and, district-wide, approximately 1,800 students participate on 89 sports teams, six of which earned state championship titles this fall.

CVSD students continue to do notably well, regularly exceeding statewide and national averages in rates for attendance, graduation and college placement, as well as scores on VTCAP, SATs and AP tests. Beyond this, CVSD’s continuous improvement plan demonstrates our dedication to improving outcomes in math, intervention and student voice and choice in education. 

Learn more about CVSD student achievement at www.cvsdvt.org/assessment-data.

Aligning with statewide trends, student enrollment at CVSD has declined recently. Between 2019 and 2024, this decline has measured approximately 7%.

Based on CVSD’s demographic projections, this decline is expected to continue.

Major factors driving an increase in spending include salaries and a 11.9% increase in healthcare premiums, which amount to approximately $3.2-million and $1.4-million, respectively. 

Factors that minimize an increase in spending include the reduction of 38.85 FTE (full-time equivalent) positions across the district and numerous cost containment measures in operations and maintenance. Personnel reductions account for approximately $3.6-million in cost containment.

Decisions around employee reductions were made using a collaborative approach between district administration and school leadership. CVSD developed a five-year plan to address the impacts of Act 127 several years ago—a plan that recognized the likely need for measured reductions each year. Under this plan, CVSD administrators began looking at student enrollment data for FY26 last summer and sent out a community-wide letter in September to solicit feedback. Using this feedback, enrollment data and the strategic mission as a guide, our school and district leadership teams closely collaborated and discussed reductions all fall to meet the Board’s budget target. 

In terms of which specific individuals are affected by reductions, contracts outline the process for determining how reductions in force occur, and this process is based on seniority.

38.85 FTE (full-time equivalent) positions across CVSD are being impacted by reductions. These reductions include the following breakdown of staff and faculty by category and are detailed by position lower on this page (see "CVSD Reductions").

• CVU Faculty: 8.15%
• K-8 Faculty: 7.46%
• District & Campus Admin: 9.38% 
• Support Staff: 2.35% 

Negotiating the contribution amount that teachers and staff make to health insurance costs and the level of insurance plan provided (e.g. platinum, gold, silver or bronze) used to be handled by the local school boards as part of the contract negotiation process. Starting in 2019, that bargaining is conducted on a statewide basis by a commission of 10 people appointed by the Vermont School Board Association (5) and the Vermont teachers union (5). They negotiate benefits and then pass the costs onto all school districts.

The CVSD board has no direct involvement in that process as a local school board.

Universal school meals are paid out of the state education fund, which all Vermont property tax payers pay into. Vermont law H.165 requires all public schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students. By providing universal school meals, Vermont schools including CVSD are addressing food insecurity, eliminating income-based stigma in cafeterias and, most importantly, investing in student well-being and academic success.

In short, the school board did not “add money” back to the budget upon learning of projected tax rate decreases due to several reasons, including the cumulative tax rate increase over multiple years, declining district enrollment, and the complex nature of the state funding mechanism wherein each district’s education property tax rate is impacted by every other district’s spending decisions.

CVSD began the FY26 budgeting process in spring 2024. There are many inputs that determine final tax rates but only one that the school board has significant control over: education spending. As such, in October, the board tasked administration with coming up with a $103M budget, which would reflect a 1% increase in spending and we expected would lead to single-digit tax increases across the district.

Throughout December, additional information provided by the state allowed us to forecast tax rates that were lower than what we’d projected for all CVSD towns. While these rates are favorable, the Board decided not to “add money” back to the budget for several reasons, including the following:

• All CVSD towns experienced tax increases—as high as 20%—this year. Even with decreases forecasted for FY26, the cumulative tax increase is still significant. 
• The long-term trend of declining enrollment across the state and here in CVSD necessitates budgeting decisions that consider class sizes moving through the system and external enrollment data, setting up proper staffing now and into the future. 
• Since the passing of Act 127 in 2022, the school board and CVSD have recognized that the district would need to make changes to how we deliver education to students over a five-year period (from FY25 through FY29). Recent legislative changes have accelerated the need to make those changes and, under current legislation, will continue to impact CVSD over the next three years. Any positions added back in would likely need to be removed the following year. 
• Vermont funds education through a statewide process. If districts throughout the state decided to “add money” back to their budgets after determining projected tax rates, these rates would then increase statewide.
• Finally, and most importantly, the proposed FY26 budget continues to support CVSD students as we move toward our mission and vision.

On or before Tuesday, March 4, voters will be asked to approve one budget for all public schooling in Champlain Valley School District (CVSD). CVSD includes Charlotte, St. George, Williston, Shelburne, and Hinesburg. This ballot and vote is separate from each town’s municipal budget.

The ballot will include two articles: Article VII and Article VIII. 

Article VII will ask if voters approve the school board to expend $102,724,062, which is the amount the school board has determined to be necessary for the ensuing fiscal year, is the amount detailed in these FAQs and represents a 3.3% increase in per pupil spending. 

Article VIII will ask if voters authorize the school board to allocate its current fund balance as revenue for future budgets.

Ballots will be available for early and absentee voting beginning February 12. You can request a ballot by phone, email or in person at your town office, or you can request your ballot online at https://mvp.vermont.gov/. When selecting the date range, enter 01/01/2025-12/31/2025. 

Ballots will not automatically be mailed.

The following are each town’s polling place on Town Meeting Day, which is Tuesday, March 4, 2025:

Charlotte - Charlotte Town Hall
Hinesburg - Hinesburg Town Hall
Shelburne - Shelburne Town Center, Gymnasium
Williston - Williston Armory
St. George - St. George Town Hall

Residents will vote by Australian ballot at their local polling places (see above) on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, or you can request a ballot early by phone, email or in person at your town office, or online at https://mvp.vermont.gov/. Ballots will not automatically be mailed.

Voted ballots are brought to a central location and co-mingled (all ballots are mixed together) before being counted by officials from each town’s Board of Civil Authority. One of the agreements in our Act 46 consolidation that was signed by the Vermont Secretary of State is that we will co-mingle the ballots before they are counted. It is therefore not possible to separate the counts by town.

Join us for the CVSD Budget Informational Meeting on Monday, March 3, at 5 pm at CVU. It will also be possible to join remotely via Zoom.

Residents of CVSD’s five towns can expect the education component of their tax bill to decrease next year by an estimated, on average, 3.8%.

Each town will see the following estimated decreases in the education portion of their property taxes based on the information available to us today:

Charlotte: -2.2%
Hinesburg: -4.9%
Shelburne: -4.0%
St. George: -4.1%
Williston: -4.0%

The Common Level of Appraisal, or CLA, adjusts the locally assessed property values to the estimated fair market value. The CLA ensures that each Vermont town is treated equally and uniformly, regardless of when they last appraised. The CLA is determined by the state, not by the school district. 

Towns assess property values at different intervals, which causes town-by-town variability between assessed property values and fair market values. The CLA therefore varies by town, which is why tax rates vary by town, even within the same district.

Property tax rates are based not on the district’s budget increase but on the change in the “cost per weighted pupil.” Because we have a statewide education finance system, the tax rate is also based on statewide education spending.

Local tax rates are also influenced by the CLA or Common Level of Appraisal. The CLA adjusts locally assessed property values to estimated fair market value. The CLA ensures that each Vermont town is treated equally and uniformly, regardless of when they last appraised. The CLA is determined by the state, not the school board.

Your property tax bill includes a municipal component and an education component, which comprises the majority of your tax bill. See the Vermont Department of Taxes FAQs page for more information.

You may be eligible for property tax relief if your household income is less than $115,000.

To apply for a tax reduction, contact the Vermont Department of Taxes at www.tax.vermont.gov/property/property-tax-credit or call 802-828-2505.

Vermont Public’s video explainer and glossary of terms is a great place to start. Here are additional resources from the state:

• Education Tax Rate FAQ
• Frequently Asked Questions About Pupil Weights in Vermont's Education Funding Formula and Act 127 (2022) Changes

Vermont’s unique system of education funding combines a statewide formula with local property tax administrations—48 states fund their schools differently. In Vermont, school boards set local budgets that voters approve or reject, and state agencies and the legislature set the education tax rates and property tax adjustments that guarantee the total sum of approved education spending in the state. Residents then pay into this fund through property taxes, with other revenue including sales and use tax also contributing. 

In short, each district’s education property tax rate is impacted by every Vermont district’s spending decisions.

Act 127, as passed in 2022, was designed to provide more resources to schools to support students with higher needs, in particular multilingual students, those experiencing poverty, smaller schools, and rural schools.

• It does this by giving more “weight” to students in these categories in the calculation that determines our education taxes.
• Districts with comparably higher percentages of students in these categories are “tax-advantaged” by the new law, those with fewer, such as CVSD, are considered “tax-disadvantaged” by the law.
• Due to H.850’s recent passage, CVSD will receive a 15¢ “discount” this year pre-CLA because we’re tax-disadvantaged by the law. That discount will decrease by 20% yearly for the next three years. CVSD is the second-highest impacted district in the state.

The Vermont legislature sets education tax rates based on how much money is required to generate enough property tax revenue to support the state’s school budgets as approved by voters after all other sources of revenue to the education fund are accounted for. 

Learn more from Vermont’s Education Tax Rate FAQs.

School boards set local school budgets, and voters and taxpayers vote on these local budgets and pay education taxes. 

State agencies and the legislature set education tax rates, calculate property tax adjustments and estimate the fair market value of real estate (the CLA).