At VNRC, we advocate for land use guided by Smart Growth principles, balancing the needs of our environment, our neighbors and our local economy to create more sustainable, vibrant communities. VNRC worked with a broad range of partners to help develop and advocate for Act 181 to make needed updates to core state programs that build, support and revitalize sustainable communities for Vermonters.

Act 181 overhauls Vermont’s planning framework for coordinating state, regional and municipal land use. The new law does many things (see below!), but here’s the big picture:

• Updates regional future land use maps to guide development and align with state permitting and incentive programs; also creates new regional and municipal housing targets.
• Updates Act 250 (Vermont’s land use and development law) by implementing more context sensitive location-based jurisdiction – recognizing places that are planned and primed for growth, and those that require greater protection from harmful development.
• Updates how Vermont directs public investments to designated community centers to improve accessibility for small towns and efficacy.

Vermont’s land use framework is being overhauled – and your voice is needed!

Background:

As part of Vermont’s Act 181 that was enacted in 2024, the state’s regional planning commissions (RPCs) are updating their “future land use maps,” which identify land uses (for example: commercial, residential or agricultural) to help guide potential growth and conservation. Historically these maps have been largely advisory, but thanks to the new law, the maps— tied to Act 250—now have regulatory weight. These maps are also now tied to the State Designation Program, which provides financial benefits and technical assistance to towns seeking to improve their downtowns and village centers.

This is important, as the maps will help to:

1. Identify more land in and near our town centers to be opened up for much-needed housing, 
2. And add protections for our most sensitive natural resources, farm and forest land.

The work to update these maps has already begun. Here’s what the process looks like:

Get Involved!

VNRC will be providing expert input to ensure these maps represent local perspectives and smart growth goals – but we need your voice.

Each RPC process will be slightly different, but you can generally expect opportunities to engage at several points in the process:

• Attend the RPC’s meeting(s) with your local planning commission and/or selectboard, or submit comments to your local officials 
• Submit comments to your town’s RPC representative
• Attend the public comment period of the Community Investment Board’s meeting
• Attend a public hearing in your town – see the Land Use Review Board’s website for details

Find your Regional Planning Commission:

• Addison County Regional Planning Commission (ACRPC)
• Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC)
• Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC)
• Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission (CVRPC)
• Lamoille County Planning Commission (LCPC)
• Mount Ascutney Regional Commission (MARC)
• Northwest Regional Planning Commission (NRPC)
• Northeastern Vermont Development Association (NVDA)
• Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC)
• Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission (TRORC)
• Windham Regional Commission (WRC)

Want to know more?

Get the facts on how Act 181 and the HOME Act (passed in 2023) are supporting smart growth housing in Vermont:

Dive deeper into Act 181 in our detailed overview below: