2023 Vermont Statutes › Title 10 - Conservation and Development › Chapter 15 - Vermont Housing and Conservation Trust Fund › § 325u. Vermont Land Access and Opportunity Board

§ 325u. Vermont Land Access and Opportunity Board
(a) Creation. There is created the Vermont Land Access and Opportunity Board to promote improvements in access to woodlands, farmland, and land and home ownership for Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities who continue to face barriers to land and home ownership. The Board shall be attached to the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board for administrative purposes.
(b) Organization of Board. The Board shall be composed of:
(1) the Executive Director of Racial Equity or designee;
(2) one member of Indigenous heritage, appointed by the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs;
(3) one member, appointed by the Vermont NAACP;
(4) one member, appointed by the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance;
(5) one member, appointed by Liberation Ecosystem;
(6) one member, appointed by the Vermont Every Town project;
(7) one member, appointed by the National Association of Social Workers, Vermont Chapter, who shall be a social worker with expertise in antiracism;
(8) one member, appointed by the Pride Center of Vermont, who shall be LGBTQ;
(9) one member, appointed by the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants Vermont, who shall be a member of a refugee or immigrant community or shall have experience representing refugee or immigrant communities, or both;
(10) one member, appointed by the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council; and
(11) one member, appointed by Vermont Psychiatric Survivors.
(c) Member terms; priority.
(1) A member of the Board shall serve a term of three years and until their successor has been appointed.
(2) In the event of a vacancy occurring during a member’s term, the vacancy shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment.
(3) When selecting members of the Board, appointing authorities shall give priority to, and shall seek to appoint, Vermonters who satisfy one or more of the following:
(A) are a member of a historically marginalized or disadvantaged community;
(B) represent the interests of Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities; or
(C) have expertise regarding access to housing, land, agriculture, or credit.
(4) A member may serve not more than two full terms. A member who is appointed to fill a vacancy occurring during a term may serve two full terms in addition to the unexpired portion of the term during which the member is first appointed.
(d) Compensation. Board members shall be entitled to per diem compensation and reimbursement of expenses pursuant to 32 V.S.A. § 1010 for meetings as deemed appropriate by the Board within the appropriation provided. These payments shall be made from monies appropriated to VHCB for the support and administration of the Board.
(e) Meetings. The Executive Director of Racial Equity or designee shall call the first meeting of the Board to occur on or before September 1, 2022.
(f) Powers and duties of the Board. The Board may do the following:
(1) Advise VHCB, the Vermont Housing Finance Agency, the Vermont Economic Development Authority, the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation, and other affordable housing and land access stakeholders regarding policy development and programs to promote racial, social, economic, and climate justice for Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(2) Retain wealth, financial, and real estate advisors who are Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities and use the services of those advisors to provide education and guidance for Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(3) Retain Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities with expertise in agriculture, agronomics, and natural resource and land management to provide regenerative natural resource services to Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(4) Work with VHCB; the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets; the Departments of Financial Regulation and of Housing and Community Development; the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund; the Vermont Housing Finance Agency; the Vermont State Housing Authority; the Vermont Economic Development Agency; and other State entities to:
(A) develop metrics relevant to historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities to understand disparities and track progress in addressing disparities and improving opportunities; and
(B) develop strategies and plans to more effectively reach out and provide access to resources that can overcome structural barriers to housing and land ownership, including an examination of:
(i) debt-to-income ratios;
(ii) impacts from redlining;
(iii) the impact of algorithmic systems of decision making, including the impact of credit scores and criminal background checks;
(iv) the impact of shared equity programs and homeownership programs on wealth disparity; and
(v) other practices that increase discrimination, disparities, and inequities in land access, property ownership, and wealth acquisition.
(5) Work with the Department of Taxes to recommend options and opportunities to provide advantageous tax treatment to properties owned by Vermonters who come from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(6)(A) Review, monitor, and recommend options and opportunities to redress State policies, procedures, practices, laws, and rules related to racial and social equity in property ownership for the benefit of Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(B) Collaborate with VHCB and other affordable housing stakeholders to recommend programs and related rules to provide loans, grants, and financial assistance to individuals from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(7) Develop one or more programs with associated rules and procedures to distribute grants, to the extent funds are appropriated for the purpose, for:
(A) community-based groups and programs that will improve land and housing access, safety, and health for historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities; and
(B) individual and collective property and home ownership or housing improvements to support safe and sustainable residences for historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities.
(8) Identify, examine, and make recommendations to redress the limitations and problems associated with existing laws, rules, programs, and services related to property ownership for Vermonters from historically marginalized or disadvantaged communities. (Added 2021, No. 182 (Adj. Sess.), § 22b, eff. July 1, 2022.)