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Highlights of Data in the 2024 Compensation and Benefits Report

October 10, 2024

The Vermont League of Cities and Towns (VLCT) has been collecting compensation and benefits information from its member towns, cities, and villages every year since the organization was formed in 1968. In 2024 we received 189 responses, surpassing the number of responses to our 2023 survey for our highest response rate ever. We hope more of you will complete the survey every summer and that all municipalities will use the ensuing reports to assess their pay rates, develop their budgets, and compare budgets and benefits with similar communities. 

Survey Goals 

Our goal for the survey is to provide hard-to-find contextual and comparison data in a format that’s easy to use and understand.  

In the last several years we have radically redesigned the survey so VLCT members can contribute their data easily and quickly. These improvements include moving from a manual process to an online survey platform, working with NEMRC to incorporate automated reports for their users, extending the time for responding, reformulating questions to reduce the size of the survey, creating incentives to participate (i.e., giving a new iPad to one randomly selected responding municipality), and incorporating more contextual data (such as hiring and termination dates) to help communities compare positions more accurately. We hope that these changes increase not only the number of members that respond but also  the usefulness of the resulting data, which participants receive free of charge both as a structured report and as a manipulable Excel file. This year we reduced the overall size of the survey and have made the resulting data available for download via the Municipal Access Portal at vlct.org. If your municipality hasn’t participated in the last few years, we encourage you to complete the next year. 

The Data 

We collect a wide range of data related to municipal compensation and benefits. Sections include: 

  1. Municipal services and property information 
  1. Municipal offices’ election methods and eliminations 
  1. Payroll data for more than 50 position types (officials and staff) 
  1. Insurance and retirement benefits (costs, plans, etc. 

  1. Education and fringe benefits 

Below you’ll find a few highlights from this year’s report that we think might interest you. Notice that some survey respondents skipped some questions. 

Population of Responding Municipalities 

While the 189 municipalities that responded to our 2024 survey range widely in population, the majority are at the smaller end of the range.    

population chart

Range 

Count 

Percentage 

0-1000 

62 

32.80% 

1001-2000 

57 

30.16% 

2001-3000 

29 

15.34% 

3001-4000 

12 

6.35% 

4001-5000 

8 

4.23% 

5001-6000 

4 

2.12% 

6001-7000 

2 

1.06% 

7001-8000 

5 

2.65% 

8001+ 

10 

5.29% 

Total 

189 

100% 

Municipal Services  

We ask municipalities each year how they provide various services to their communities with an eye toward how they balance the need for cost savings with the needs and priorities of their citizens. The table below shows the means by which survey responders provide municipal services, and the one below it shows which services tend to be combined within municipalities.

municipal services chart

  

Municipal 

Private 

District 

Contract 

Village Utility 

N/A 

 

Percent 

Count 

Percent 

Count 

Percent 

Count 

Percent 

Count 

Percent 

Count 

Percent 

Count 

Electric 

1.68% 

3 

73.18% 

131 

2.79% 

5 

1.68% 

3 

6.70% 

12 

15.64% 

28 

Emergency 

33.15% 

59 

24.72% 

44 

13.48% 

24 

34.83% 

62 

0.56% 

1 

6.18% 

11 

Fire 

58.79% 

107 

16.48% 

30 

7.69% 

14 

18.68% 

34 

1.10% 

2 

2.75% 

5 

Police 

22.65% 

41 

7.73% 

14 

11.60% 

21 

45.30% 

82 

1.10% 

2 

16.02% 

29 

Library 

47.75% 

85 

23.03% 

41 

5.06% 

9 

3.93% 

7 

1.12% 

2 

21.35% 

38 

Sewer 

34.43% 

63 

34.43% 

63 

2.19% 

4 

0.55% 

1 

9.29% 

17 

26.78% 

49 

Solid Waste 

27.43% 

48 

33.71% 

59 

17.71% 

31 

13.71% 

24 

1.14% 

2 

12.57% 

22 

Stormwater 

34.55% 

57 

18.79% 

31 

2.42% 

4 

0.61% 

1 

1.82% 

3 

46.67% 

77 

Water 

30.05% 

55 

42.08% 

77 

10.93% 

20 

0.55% 

1 

10.38% 

19 

18.03% 

33 

combined services

Combined Services 

Percent 

Count 

Fire & Water 

2.70% 

4 

Water & Sewer 

29.05% 

43 

Fire & EMS 

33.11% 

49 

N/A 

40.54% 

60 

Other (Please specify) 

2.70% 

4 

Justice, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging (JDEIB) 

Despite an overall reduction in the number of survey questions, we added a few human resources and equity related questions to this year’s survey. We found that many municipalities have committed themselves to enhancing justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging efforts in their communities whether through the adoption of inclusion statements, the formation of equity related committees, training, policies, or other means.  

equity actions

Equity Actions 

Percent 

Count 

Equity Committee 

12.03% 

19 

Inclusion Statement Adopted 

47.47% 

75 

Staff Training 

22.15% 

35 

N/A 

41.14% 

65 

Other (Please specify) 

5.06% 

8 

If you are interested in learning more about JDEIB, how VLCT and other municipalities are working toward more equitable communities, and ways that your municipality can expand its own equity efforts, refer to our Justice, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging Resources page. 

Report Access 

Responding members automatically receive, free of charge, access to the digital data along with one bound print of the survey report, and they can purchase an additional bound print at vlct.org/store (after checking the drop-down list to confirm that their municipality responded). The same online page allows VLCT members that didn’t take the survey to purchase a digital + printed set at a lower price than non-members can.  

If your municipality either took the survey or purchased the report, you are welcome to share it with other staff and officers within your local government, but please do not distribute the report to the public or others not employed by the municipality. 

Municipal Authority to Maintain Legal Trails is Challenged in Tunbridge

Member for

2 years 3 months
Submitted by Lisa Goodell on
hiking trail

In a case with widespread municipal importance, two Tunbridge landowners are seeking a declaratory judgment in the Orange County Superior Court that they, rather than the town, hold the legal authority to determine whether and how to build, maintain, and repair the legal municipal trail located on their property. Legal trails are defined as a “public right of way that is not a highway and that (A) previously was a designated town highway having the same width as the designated town highway, or a lesser width if so designated; or (B) a new public right-of-way laid out as a trail by the selectmen for the purpose of providing access to abutting properties or for recreational use.”  19 V.S.A. § 301(8).  Up until this point, it has been the uncontested conventional legal wisdom that selectboards have the exclusive authority to maintain the legal trails they are explicitly authorized to regulate. 

If the complainants are successful, selectboards will lose all authority to manage the physical state of their legal trails. This would undoubtedly impact most member municipalities, each of which has an average of at least two miles of legal trails. In total, there are 547 miles of legal trails in Vermont – see the Vermont Agency of Transportation General Statistics.  

Although towns vary in their use of trails, recreational uses are becoming more common. With such increased use comes incumbent maintenance and repair requirements. A negative result in this case then could cause lost recreational opportunities if landowners defer or prevent maintenance of trails passing through their properties. This case comes precisely as municipalities are seeking more options to increase their local recreational opportunities. Without the discretionary authority to manage their trails systems to desired standards, municipalities would indirectly lose their explicit authority to regulate the use of trails for hiking, cross-country skiing, biking, or ATV use. VLCT joins the Town of Tunbridge in support of their argument that you can’t have one without the other.  

At this point Tunbridge and their municipal attorney are vigorously defending their authority to maintain their legal trails at the superior court. The VLCT Board of Directors heard from the attorney in September, and voted to help gather information that could help Tunbridge prevail. Should the case reach the Vermont Supreme Court, the VLCT Board would consider sending an amicus curae brief in support of the town. 

Kail Romanoff, VLCT MAC Attorney I 

Municipal Budgeting Recordings and Resources

Event Date: 9/18/24

This annual training explains basic municipal budgeting principles, how to comply with legal requirements, and best practices for preparing the budget for town meeting. This year you’ll also learn about VLCT’s new government finance assistance, which is supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Rural Development (USDA-RD). Use this webinar as you embark on your budget development process.

Ordinance Adoption and Enforcement

Event date: 8/29/2024

Vermont law authorizes municipalities to adopt ordinances regulating certain subjects as legally enforceable local laws if specific statutory process is followed. Some of the more common civil ordinances regulate dogs, solid waste, parking, and speeding. Adopting, amending, and enforcing ordinances in accordance with the processes prescribed in state law is critical for avoiding legal challenges.  

Attend Town Fair to Get Maximum Value from Your Membership

August 06, 2024

If you’re reading this, you’re likely a member of VLCT. You’re one of more than 5,000 elected, appointed, or employed municipal officials here in Vermont. One of your greatest membership benefits is the VLCT connection to people facing similar challenges, similar opportunities, and similar head-slapping moments in the town office. You’re not alone, you don’t need to have the answer to every question, and there are people interested in your success. Come meet them at Town Fair 2024 in Killington on October 2nd.  

This year’s theme, “Making Connections and Sharing Solutions”, emphasizes the importance of coming together. Being in the same room with several hundred other selectboard members, top-level managers, clerks, treasurers, listers, mayors, and other colleagues is the best part of Town Fair. And let’s not forget the fun – from this year’s silent auction, to a packed exhibit hall, to an ice cream social and the grand raffle. The committee also put together some deep content in five different workshop tracks: Finance, Administration and Operations; Leadership; Building Safe and Healthy Communities; Elections; and the fifth track – which aims to create more space for networking, discussion, and dialogue – Facilitated Discussions. 

Facilitated Discussions  

At the suggestion of our Town Fair Planning Committee, we created an entire track that aims to create space to talk about what you want to talk about, not what VLCT thinks you should talk about. One of our board members likened this track to an “un-conference”. These loosely structured and lightly facilitated sessions will bring people together around a common topic for conversation. I’m personally most excited about our young municipal leaders session. What’s “young”, you ask? I don’t know for sure, but if you have to ask, you might not be young. We also have a new session focused on what different municipal officers do and a session dedicated to simply asking any question you want of VLCT lawyers or other municipal officials. It’s an experiment that I hope you’ll sign up to participate in.  

You don’t need to worry about which workshops are in which tracks. Bounce between tracks, sample a session from each, and follow your interests.

Finance, Administration, and Operations 

Some of the most popular content at Town Fair has always been the most practical. Designed to appeal to those in the town office every day – such as clerks, treasurers, listers, department heads, administrators, and managers – this track may also appeal to members of legislative bodies. This year you’ll find sessions aimed at helping you engage residents better, introducing you to the new procurement portal “VTBuys”, updating you on new property tax system changes, and helping you recruit and retain good people. 

Leadership 

In order to lead, municipal officials need a big-picture understanding of what’s happening throughout the state, how state policy changes could affect their communities, and what tools exist to help catalyze change in their communities. That’s why we’ve created sessions for this track about equity in land use, workplace culture, and one of the largest leadership challenges we’ve recently seen in municipal government: how leaders in Pawlet handled the Slate Ridge dispute. This track is intended for members of municipal legislative bodies, mayors, and managers, but anyone with an interest in these topics is encouraged to attend.  

Building Safe and Healthy Communities 

Designed to inspire and educate land use officials, mayors, selectboards, city councils, village trustees, and anyone who wants to use municipal authorities to improve the livability of their communities, this track features legislative updates, tips for good governance practices, and more. We included a session on the newly passed housing and land use bill that significantly affects Act 250 and municipal zoning, a session on civility and effective meeting management, and a session on cyber security (there’s money coming to help you tackle this issue).  

Elections 

Clerks! Clerks! Clerks! Featuring appearances from our Secretary of State’s office as well as our former elections director Will Senning (now a big wig with the federal office that oversees election security), this track is singular in focus: helping clerks prepare for this year’s election. VLCT couldn’t have offered this track without the help of the Vermont Municipal Clerks’ & Treasurers’ Association.  

Here's the best part of the workshop tracks being offered at Town Fair this year: you don’t need to worry about which workshops are in which tracks if you don’t want to. Bounce between tracks, sample a session from each, and follow your interests.  
 

But Wait, There’s More! 

My favorite part of Town Fair is presenting the annual municipal service awards – the Lifetime Achievement Award, the Municipal Service Award, and the Legislative Service Award. We’ll do that at lunch this year – where we’ll also hear from VTDigger CEO Sky Barsch about how the media and local government depend on each other. It’s not too late to nominate someone for a VLCT Municipal Service Award. 

Finally, to use your time as efficiently as possible, Town Fair 2024 is a densely packed one-day event. Register by August 31 to get the early bird price of just $79 for the entire day, which includes breakfast roundtables, lunch, and the ice cream social in addition to all the great sessions, exhibitors, and raffle prizes. To provide all that in one day, we will hold the annual meetings for VLCT, PACIF, and VERB in a hybrid fashion the day before, on October 1. It’s free to attend the annual meeting and critically important that every member has a representative there. Attend from your desk, your kitchen table, or your car (safely parked, of course). Our member-owned insurance trusts need your input. We’ll be voting on a new municipal policy to guide our work in the legislature next biennium. And we’ll be electing members to the VLCT Board of Directors.  

Once you’ve hit the lake one last time, gotten another cut of hay in the barn, or sent the kids back to school, we’ll announce our keynote speaker. Until then, get yourself registered for Town Fair. It’s one of the best benefits of being a member of VLCT.

Two Animal Control Statute Changes Took Effect on 7/1/24

Member for

2 years 3 months
Submitted by iminot@vlct.org on
photo of one pig running on a muddy country road
1. Domestic Animals Running at Large  

Act 160 (H.877) of the 2024 legislative session brings Vermont laws that govern domestic animals running at large into the 21st century by significantly increasing many of the statutory fines and providing explicit authority to municipal officials to enforce them, effective July 1, 2024. 

Act 160 also gives municipalities the explicit authority to regulate by ordinance the control of livestock running at large. Livestock, under Vermont law means “cattle, horses, sheep, swine, goats, camelids, fallow deer, red deer, reindeer, and American bison.” In response to these statutory changes, the VLCT Municipal Assistance Center will review and update our model animal control ordinance and resources in the coming weeks. 
 

2. Animal Control Officer Authority 

A section of Act 167 (2024) affecting the authority of Animal Control Officers (ACO) took effect on July 1, 2024. This separates ACOs into two distinct categories. 

Animal Control Officers who are contracted by or work for a municipality but whose positions are not organized within the municipality’s police department will no longer be considered Humane Officers as listed in 13 V.S.A. § 351(4).  

  • This group of non-Humane Officer ACOs will no longer have the authority to investigate animal cruelty cases as described in Vermont Statues Annotated Title 13 Chapter 8.   

  • They do retain the authority to serve as local Animal Control Officers enforcing local ordinances and the elements of Title 20 Chapter 193. 

Animal Control Officers who are employed by a local law enforcement agency and who attend the training developed by the Animal Cruelty Investigation Advisory Board (ACIAB) will be classified as Humane Officers and retain full investigative authority.  

  • The required training has not been released by the ACIAB. 
  • It is recommended that these ACOs partner with a law enforcement officer until the training is available and completed by the ACO. It is not yet known when this training will become available.
     

VLCT members with questions regarding Animal Control Officers should feel free to contact VLCT PACIF Law Enforcement Consultant, Trevor Whipple, at twhipple@vlct.org or 802-262-1929.  

Act 133 (S.55) Amendments to Open Meeting Law to Take Effect July 1, 2024

Member for

2 years 3 months
Submitted by iminot@vlct.org on
microphone

Act 133 (S.55) is a permanent amendment to Vermont’s Open Meeting Law that: 

  • permits “advisory bodies” – those that do not have supervision, control, or jurisdiction over legislative, quasi-judicial, tax, or budgetary matters – to meet electronically without a physical meeting location (i.e., remotely);  
  • requires all other public bodies (i.e., “nonadvisory bodies”) to record, in audio or video form, their meetings and post the recordings in a designated electronic location for a minimum of 30 days following the approval and posting of the official minutes of the meeting which was recorded; 
  • allows all public bodies to meet remotely in response to a state of emergency or “local incident”; 
  • requires all public bodies to provide local residents, members of the press, or members of the body itself electronic/telephonic or in-person meeting access options to a regularly scheduled meeting, if requested (unless it causes an undue hardship);  
  • requires a municipality to post on its website (if it maintains one): 
    • an explanation of the procedures for submitting notice of an Open Meeting Law violation to the public body or the Attorney General; and  
    • a copy of the text of 1 V.S.A. § 314; and  
  • imposes annual training requirements on selectboard chairs, town managers, and mayors. 

The training requirements take effect on January 1, 2025.

VLCT’s staff attorneys developed new Act 133 (S.55) Open Meeting Law FAQs in coordination with the Secretary of State and the Vermont School Boards Association. If you have any questions remaining after reading these FAQs, please direct them to vlct.org/askvlct, info@vlct.org, or 1-800-649-7915.

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