Legislative

2026 VTGC Policy Report: Overview of Session

alled one of the hardest sessions by many who have served and worked in the Legislature, the 2026 session and the 2025-26 biennium was marked by scarcity mindset, divisive party politics, and inertia in the face of an inability to find compromise. Governor Scott’s Administration continued to spotlight the differences between his ideals and the actions of the Legislature, making it hard for anyone to find agreement on policies that could determine the economic prosperity of our State including education, homelessness and health care. This environment has made it more difficult to pass legislation aimed at economic development and programmatic sustainability, as lawmakers focused their political capital on perceived crises and system change. In response to skyrocketing costs, threats to our local education systems and the proposed Tier 3 land use rules, we saw what some called “the revolt of rural Vermont” and a new advocacy group called “Rural Vermont Rising” was born. They pushed for the repeal of Act 181, a bill enacted in 2024 that updated Act 250 to encourage or discourage development through a Tier system. Not only were they successful in achieving the passage of S.325, which repealed Act 181, the Legislature also included a new protocol for any “nonminor amendments to future land use maps” that requires notice and public hearings to allow for the public to weigh-in before decisions are rolled out. VTGC monitored the uproar closely, because the ire of the group had been directed at shutting down public access to the VAST trail, with the intent of hurting Vermont economically and sending a message to decision makers.  

Turning our attention to the 2026 elections, we expect another sea change across all Committees as there are over 3 dozen lawmakers who will not be returning including 7 chairs of Committees, Phil Baruth, the Senate President Pro Tem, and Jill Krowinski, the House Speaker, both from Burlington. For a list of open seats Maidstone Public Relations has compiled a comprehensive list of retiring lawmakers, click here.

For a full session report on VTGC legislative activities, click here.

VTGC Long-Term Policy Goals

• Secure stable, consistent, and flexible funding for trail-based recreation, including support for the VOREC Community Grant program and for ongoing stewardship
• More effectively recognize and reward landowners who host high-quality, public-access trails, securing access to the 70+% of trails on private land and incentivizing new landowners to support our outdoor recreation economy
• Foster a complete, comprehensive, and quantitative understanding of the benefits trail-based recreation provides to Vermont, including those that improve public health, local economies, and conservation outcomes
• Improve the regulatory environment for trails to remove ineffective and onerous barriers to sustainable trail construction and incentivize high-quality, low-impact trails statewide
• Ensure trail-based recreation is fully and effectively leveraged as designated purpose and effective tool for permanent land conservation, including achieving Vermont’s 30×30 and 50×50 conservation goals

2026 Legislative & Policy Priorities

• Communicate the benefits of prior investments in trail-based recreation, specifically but not limited to the VOREC Community Grant program
• Engage the administration on current and long-term interest in supporting  VOREC and the VOREC Community Grant Program 
• Leverage the Recreation Access Recognition legislation (H.147 and S.79) currently in committee to a) better estimate the economic impact of public-access trails hosted on private land, and b) catalogue landowners’ motivations, concerns, and the implications/repercussions of specific policy outcomes (e.g. impacts on Limited Landowner Liability)
• Develop a scope of work for a modern economic and social impact assessment for trails in Vermont and pursue external (non-public) funding to contract the work
• Retain the status quo of Act 250 regulations for trails under Rule 71 and prevent the establishment of new triggers for Act 250 permitting for trails under Tier 3 rulemaking
• See trails effectively woven into the forthcoming Vermont Conservation Plan, both as a desired outcome of land conservation and as a tool to secure land for other primary purposes

2026 Activities

The VTGC pursues the goals above through the following activities:

• Cultivate relationships with legislative champions who can help inform our efforts, author legislation, and rally support for Council priorities
• Coordinate and provide testimony throughout the legislative session
• Gather impact stories from VOREC Community Grant recipients and integrate into advocacy materials
• Regular weekly meetings of our Legislative & Policy Committee, open to VTGC Members
• Active monitoring of relevant legislation, rulemaking, and other policy development
• Co-hosting the third annual Outdoor Recreation Day at the Statehouse, scheduled for 2/5/26
• Participation on the Vermont Conservation Plan Technical Advisory Committee
• Coordination with other key outdoor recreation stakeholders, including VOREC, ANR/FPR, the Vermont Outdoor Business Alliance, the Vermont Ski Area Association, and the Vermont Recreation and Parks Association

Contact Us to Learn More:

Nick Bennette, VTGC Chair, nick@vmba.org