Ideas are ranging widely for how to strengthen the state of Vermont’s ailing finances.
The Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Committee this week has been taking proposals from the Douglas administration and from a range of Vermonters on how to address a budget shortfall estimated at 66 million-dollars for the current fiscal year. That shortfall could be as much as $200 million for the fiscal year to begin July 1.
Among the ideas floated so far: abolishing the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, allowing a casino boat to operate on Lake Champlain, and setting a fixed price for gasoline and allowing the state to reap a windfall when it dips below that price.
The panel is set to finalize an initial round of budget cuts Friday.