More than 40% of Vermont state senators and at least one-third of House members draw income from retirement savings and Social Security, in addition to legislative pay, according to ethics disclosure forms filed by lawmakers over the past year.
By comparison, only 22% of the adult Vermont population is retired, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
As part of its Full Disclosure series, VTDigger compiled hundreds of ethics disclosure forms filed by legislators to build a database showing what they do — and how they make money — outside the Statehouse. Reporters then combed through the data, looking for trends.
Because the reporting requirements for legislators are limited, the number of retired legislators might be even higher. But the data does demonstrate what Vermonters have long known: The state’s “citizen legislature” does not always mirror its citizenry.
“It is an honor and a privilege to serve, but under our current structure, really only the privileged can serve,” said Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky, Chittenden-Central P/D, who runs a social work practice, working nights and weekends during the legislative session.
Vyhovsky said lawmakers tend to “intellectualize” issues such as affordable housing and the livable wage debate because they don’t have much first-hand experience. “The people that we’re talking about can’t afford to be here to speak to their experience,” she said.
Here are some other key takeaways from the ethics disclosure database.
Dozens of business owners, investments
While most lawmakers reported their day jobs as a source of income in the 2022 candidate disclosures, dozens also received some form of compensation from investments, company ownership and miscellaneous sources, such as settlements and inheritances.
Lawmakers also listed nearly 200 different service roles on boards, committees and other nonprofits throughout the state. But only House members were required to disclose whether they were paid for those roles in the 2023 ethics disclosures.
Those House forms show that about 45 service roles provided some payment, while 23 covered only expenses or provided a per diem stipend. Another 98 did not provide any sort of compensation, the forms showed. Among the organizations that provided remuneration were selectboards, school districts and boards of civil authority.
Where lawmakers worked
Of the legislators who did record some sort of employment in 2022 candidate forms, the most common categories included education, advocacy, and retail and hospitality.
The data is limited. Many lawmakers stated where they worked but not what jobs they performed, making their exact field unclear.
Seventy-six legislators listed the state of Vermont as an employer, but most did not specify whether they meant their legislative role or work as a state employee.
At least some legislators hold down day jobs with the state — including Sen. Andrew Perchlik, D/P-Washington; Rep. Kari Dolan, D-Waitsfield; and Rep. Rey Garofano, D-Essex Town.
And the most recent data, the 2023 ethics disclosure forms, only lists complete employment information for about half of House members because those records have different reporting requirements.
On the Senate side, the 2023 data shows that the top types of employment for working senators included education, real estate and retail jobs.
Legislators say there’s a reason so many are retired. Serving in the state’s part-time Legislature has never been a lucrative gig, and those who can afford it are often independently wealthy, self-employed or retired.
“When you have such a low number of people who can even serve, I think it means that you lose out on representing the average person,” said Sen. Becca White, D-Windsor. “And the majority of Vermonters have to work for a living.”
White previously worked at SunCommon and Efficiency Vermont during the legislative sessions. Though both employers were flexible about working around her demands as a legislator, White said, the arrangement still left her at a significant financial loss because she switched to part-time pay, no longer qualified for certain benefits and lost out on career opportunities.
She also found herself doing many hours of work outside of the session helping constituents.
“I was already doing easily 40 hours a week outside of the legislative session with constituent services because it is a full-time job for me,” she said.
White now works as a part-time cashier at the Upper Valley Co-op in White River Junction, a more flexible job that also gives her a discount on food.
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