Reach Up is tasked with improving children’s well-being by providing for immediate basic needs, including food, housing, transportation, and clothing while parents work toward economic stability. Persistent underfunding of Reach Up and outdated eligibility guidelines keep thousands of Vermont’s children experiencing hardship known to be harmful to their health and development. An enrolled parent working to overcome barriers to employment, with two children, receives just $880 to cover basic needs, including a $268 housing allowance. This amount is less than 40% of what the Department for Children and Families has set as a subsistence-level budget. This policy choice endangers children and contributes to Vermont’s homelessness crisis. Persistent poverty also increases the chance that children are separated from their families and placed in foster care, which is both costly and traumatic. Unlike other safety net programs, Reach Up imposes an arbitrary asset limit when determining eligibility, which serves as a counterintuitive penalty against families saving for housing, education, training, or to buy a car – all investments in long-term financial security. 

The Alliance supports Voices for Vermont’s Children in their request that the Legislature fully fund Reach Up and eliminate the arbitrary asset limit to simplify eligibility. 

Lead Organization: Voices for Vermont’s Children for the Vermont Reach Up Coalition

Data and Talking Points

• The maximum Reach Up benefit for a family of three is just $880 per month, less than 40% of what is needed to cover basic needs and housing.

Result: Asset Limit repealed, No additional funding secured

Pre-session goal: Ensure that Reach Up grants fulfill their intended purpose by fully funding Reach Up and eliminating the arbitrary asset limit to simplify eligibility.  

Unfortunately, the Governor’s Recommended FY27 Budget once again built in a forecasted reduction in Reach Up caseload and used the resulting “savings” in other areas of his budget. The Legislature agreed with this proposal. However, the Budget passed by the Legislature does include language requiring the Administration to conduct a study of the Reach Up program generally, and that specifically includes an “actionable, phased plan that estimates the amount needed to remove the ratable reduction”.

The Legislature also took action to repeal the state’s asset limit for Reach Up recipients. Language in H. 657, approved by both the House and Senate, will remove the language from statute as of July 1, 2026.