2017 Vermont Statutes
Title 32 - Taxation and Finance
Chapter 5 - Budget
§ 310 Form of annual capital budget and 10-year capital program plan

§ 310. Form of annual capital budget and 10-year capital program plan

(a) Each biennial capital budget request submitted to the General Assembly shall be accompanied by, and placed in the context of, a 10-year State capital program plan to be prepared, and revised annually, by the Governor and approved by the General Assembly. The 10-year plan shall include a list of all projects which will be recommended for funding in the current and ensuing nine fiscal years. The list shall be prioritized based on need.

(b) The capital budget request for the following biennium shall be presented as the next increment of the 10-year plan. Elements of the plan shall include:

(1) Assessment and projection of need.

(A) Capital needs and projections shall be based upon current and projected statistics on capital inventories and upon State demographic and economic conditions.

(B) Capital funding shall be categorized as follows:

(i) State buildings, facilities, land acquisitions, major maintenance, renewable energy sources, and conservation;

(ii) higher education;

(iii) aid to municipalities for education, environmental conservation, including water, sewer, and solid waste projects, and other purposes; and

(iv) transportation facilities.

(C) The capital needs and projections shall be for the current and the next nine fiscal years, with longer-term projections presented for programs with reasonably predictable longer-term needs.

(D) Capital needs and projections shall be presented independently of financing requirements or opportunities.

(2) Comprehensive cost and financing assessment.

(A) Amounts appropriated and expended for the current fiscal year and for the preceding fiscal year shall be indicated for capital programs and for individual projects. The assessment shall indicate further the source of funds for any project which required additional funding and a description of any authorized projects which were delayed.

(B) Amounts proposed to be appropriated for the following fiscal year and each of the nine years thereafter shall be indicated for capital programs and for individual projects and shall be revised annually to reflect revised cost estimates and changes made in allocations due to project delays.

(C) The capital costs of programs and of individual projects, including funds for the development and evaluation of each project, shall be presented in full, for the entire period of their development.

(D) The operating costs, both actual and prospective, of capital programs and of individual projects shall be presented in full, for the entire period of their development and expected useful life.

(E) The financial burden and funding opportunities of programs and of individual projects shall be presented in full, including federal, State, and local government shares, and any private participation.

(F) Alternative methods of financing capital programs and projects should be described and assessed, including debt financing and use of current revenues. (Added 1989, No. 258 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; amended 2011, No. 104 (Adj. Sess.), § 32, eff. May 7, 2012; 2013, No. 51, § 34.)