§ 4306. Municipal and Regional Planning and Resilience Fund
(a)(1) The Municipal and Regional Planning and Resilience Fund for the purpose of assisting
municipal and regional planning commissions to carry out the intent of this chapter
is hereby created in the State Treasury.
(2) The Fund shall be composed of 13 percent of the revenue deposited from the property
transfer tax under 32 V.S.A. chapter 231 and any monies from time to time appropriated to the Fund by the General Assembly
or received from any other source, private or public. All balances at the end of any
fiscal year shall be carried forward and remain in the Fund. Interest earned by the
Fund shall be deposited in the Fund.
(3) Of the revenues in the Fund, each year:
(A) 10 percent shall be disbursed to the Vermont Center for Geographic Information;
(B) 70 percent shall be disbursed to the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development
for performance contracts with regional planning commissions to provide regional planning
services pursuant to section 4341a of this title; and
(C) 20 percent shall be disbursed to municipalities.
(b)(1) Allocations for performance contract funding to regional planning commissions shall
be determined according to a formula to be adopted by rule under 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 by the Department for the assistance of the regional planning commissions. Disbursement
of funding to regional planning commissions shall be predicated upon meeting performance
goals and targets pursuant to the terms of the performance contract.
(2) Disbursement to municipalities shall be awarded annually on or before December 31
through a competitive program administered by the Department providing the opportunity
for any eligible municipality or municipalities to compete regardless of size, provided
that to receive funds, a municipality:
(A) shall be confirmed under section 4350 of this title; or
(B)(i) shall use the funds for the purpose of developing a municipal plan to be submitted
for approval by the regional planning commission, as required for municipal confirmation
under section 4350 of this title; and
(ii) shall have voted at an annual or special meeting to provide local funds for municipal
planning and resilience purposes and regional planning purposes.
(3) Of the annual disbursement to municipalities, an amount not to exceed 20 percent of
the total may be disbursed to the Department to administer a program providing direct
technical consulting assistance under retainer on a rolling basis to any eligible
municipality to meet the requirements for designated neighborhood development area
under chapter 76A of this title, provided that the municipality is eligible for funding
under subdivision (2) of this subsection and meets funding guidelines established
by the Department to ensure accessibility for lower capacity communities, municipal
readiness, and statewide coverage.
(4) Of the annual disbursement to municipalities, the Department may allocate funding
as bylaw modernization grants under section 4307 of this title.
(c) Funds allocated to municipalities shall be used for the purposes of:
(1) funding the regional planning commission in undertaking capacity studies;
(2) carrying out the provisions of subchapters 5 through 10 of this chapter;
(3) acquiring development rights, conservation easements, or title to those lands, areas,
and strictures identified in either regional or municipal plans as requiring special
consideration for provision of needed housing, aquifer protection, flood protection,
climate resilience, open space, farmland preservation, or other conservation purposes;
and
(4) reasonable and necessary costs of administering the Fund by the Department of Housing
and Community Development, not to exceed six percent of the municipality allocation.
(d) Until July 1, 2027, the annual disbursement to municipalities shall:
(1) prioritize funding grants to municipalities that do not have zoning or subdivision
bylaws to create zoning or subdivision bylaws;
(2) allow a regional planning commission to submit an application for disbursement on
behalf of a municipality; and
(3) not require a municipality without zoning or subdivision bylaws to contribute matching
funds in order to receive a grant. (Added 1987, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 4; amended 1997, No. 156 (Adj. Sess.), § 41; 1999, No. 1, § 97b, eff. March 31, 1999; 1999, No. 49, § 80; 1999, No. 62, § 263; 1999, No. 152 (Adj. Sess.), § 271d; 2003, No. 115 (Adj. Sess.), § 84; 2003, No. 164 (Adj. Sess.), § 14, eff. June 12, 2004; 2015, No. 11, § 29; 2021, No. 182 (Adj. Sess.), § 26, eff. July 1, 2022; 2023, No. 47, § 14, eff. July 1, 2023; 2023, No. 181 (Adj. Sess.), § 62, § 76, eff. June 17, 2024.)