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Ann Cummings: “We just can't afford to pay teachers to teach a class of 4…”

Featuring: Ann Cummings, Democratic | State Senator, Vermont

In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges

Published April 24, 2025 | Video Starts at 56:23

Act 60, we had a Supreme Court mandate that said you have to do something. We don't have any mandate except the voters that voted down all the school budgets last year. And just looking at. We just can't afford to pay teachers to teach a class of 4, 5, 6 students. But people like their small schools. They like. Change is hard, especially if it might, you know, impact your kids. My daughter was the first fifth grader to go over to the middle school in Montpelier. (56:23–56:32)

CLAIM

Asserts that it is financially unsustainable to pay teachers for very small class sizes.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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Ann Cummings

“We were told that it is. Is it over $40,000 a year for a family bronze plan on the exchange.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 04:08-04:19
“It costs $35,000 a year to have a kid in child care.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 26:59-27:04
“The governor did that. I believe we used some of that money to keep from putting 466 homeless children out on the street in two weeks.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 52:39-52:50
“We had [a foundation formula] in Vermont and it basically said you had to raise X amount which was on your local tax rate.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 01:00-39:29
“Those are the money committees and everything goes through appropriations that it involves spending.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 03:09-03:20
“We get involved when they need money or anything that raises money, anything that impacts revenues.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 03:19-03:27
“We have the education fund in property taxes amongst that.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 03:27-03:32
“It is on front burner this year. Yeah. And health insurance is on front burner in the morning.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 03:38-03:45
“I was mayor during [the 1992] flood.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 07:15-07:15
“I am on the VSAC board.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 08:21-08:24
“Yes, I am on [the Committee on the Future of Public Education].”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 08:27-08:28
“I was on the Central Vermont Community Action, which is now Capstone. I represented the city there for 10 years.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 09:46-09:53
“I was on the board of what is now Prevent Child Abuse Vermont and I ran their local support group.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 09:56-10:04
“I was on the city council.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 12:28-12:31
“Finance is responsible for anything that raises money, including taxes, fees, banking, insurance, securities, and utilities.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 15:47-15:52
“We lost a lot of experience and the experience I'm concerned we've lost.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 17:28-17:36
“There is a consensus revenue report done in July by the emergency board, which are the money chairs and the governor, and there's two…”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 18:50-19:07
“The governor builds his budget on those revenues.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 19:11-19:15
“The legislature has to use [the revenue forecast] to respond to the governor's budget.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 19:34-19:42
“There is more of a tendency to just say, well, we want to do this, so we'll raise taxes.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 20:03-20:11
“You don't want to spend all your tax capacity during good times because there will come a time, maybe sooner rather than later.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 20:16-20:28
“There are a lot fewer bills than normal. We have some staff shortages in our drafting department, and so things are coming out much slower.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 22:09-22:23
“We couldn't get to single payer because our pool is so small, the cost goes up per person.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 24:37-24:48
“We have an aging population that uses more health care.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 24:57-25:03
“We have a shortage in every professional. And part of that is tied to the cost of housing.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 26:27-26:34
“We have upped the subsidy, and we have up. We put on a payroll tax, and we have upped the state's contribution so that people that provide…”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 27:19-27:34
“A single paycheck could support a family. Those days are gone.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 28:33-28:39
“Bill, that any Senate bill has to be out of committee by tomorrow afternoon.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 29:18-29:26
“Anything that impacts the revenues of the state or utilities or banking will come through my committee.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 29:43-29:53
“Anything that spends money has to go through appropriations.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 29:52-29:57
“We invited the governor who has in the past given us a proposal in April.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 31:44-31:52
“This year he gave us a complete rewrite of the governance and financing structure.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 32:21-32:31
“The goal is to make sure that every kid gets the education that they need to be happy, productive citizens at a price that your average…”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 33:17-33:34
“The governor's people are putting out numbers. But it's based on the concept it would be 20, 28 numbers.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 33:56-34:05
“All he has actually talked about so far is consolidating into not five. I think. Yeah, that's districts.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 34:28-34:39
“The legislature is not actively considering doing away with universal school meals.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 36:06-36:13
“There's no inclination to expand school choice beyond what we have and what the Supreme Court has mandated.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 36:50-37:02
“We have three academies that are private academies that function as Public Schools.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 37:41-37:48
“The state didn't fund it. That led to the Brigham decision.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 39:43-39:49
“A penny on the tax rate on any town raises the same amount of money per student in that town.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 40:09-40:19
“Only one other state, I believe it's Wisconsin or Michigan, has a different thing other than a foundation formula.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 41:30-41:40
“The state makes that decision, not the local voters.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 42:36-42:41
“The state takes out all the sales tax revenue, the rooms and meals, all the revenue that's in. That's not property tax.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 42:48-42:59
“We have to meet Brigham.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 43:44-43:46
“They've also changed the income sensitivity, which gives me some concern because if you have a relatively low income but are living in a…”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 44:33-44:54
“We are phasing it in over five years.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 46:18-46:22
“The weights were done in 1950 or 60 and no one could find any rationale.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 47:01-47:08
“The governor's is 13,200 is his base foundation.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 47:39-47:49
“We know that there has been a huge spike starting in the early teens of depression, mental health issues in students.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 48:36-48:48
“It passed yesterday in the Senate.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 49:50-49:53
“Last year we passed it. I was on economic development when we did it.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 49:53-49:58
“The House put it on the Internet privacy bill and that one The Senate, you just don't do a bill that major the second year of a biennium.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 49:58-50:11
“The kids code didn't make it through the House because they stuck it on the bigger bill this year.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 50:21-50:29
“These are the children that are presently in the bad weather hotel program.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 53:02-53:09
“It ends March 31 and on April 1. There is no place we don't have the shelter capacity.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 53:16-53:31
“As the price of housing and the price of rent, we are pricing more and more people out of the housing market.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 53:52-54:04
“There are landlords who put out lower income people and paint everything white and rent it again for higher rent.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 54:05-54:14
“This is the worst I have ever seen with the number of. I mean, we've had things that were highly emotional, like civil unions.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 55:47-55:59
“Act 60, we had a Supreme Court mandate that said you have to do something.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 56:05-56:10
“We don't have any mandate except the voters that voted down all the school budgets last year.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 56:11-56:18
“We did confirm Zoe Saunders today.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 57:24-57:27
“The governor has proposed and we are now doing what the legislature is supposed to do.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 57:38-57:45
“We are not going to be doing the governor's proposal as it was presented.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 57:50-57:56
“We know we need to tell people what we think we're going to be doing.”
In-Depth Discussion with Senator Ann Cummings on Vermont's Legislative Challenges | Uploaded April 24, 2025 | 58:15-58:22