Federal officials have approved a $33.2 million package that will let Vermont advance buyouts for at least 90 homes threatened or damaged by the 2023 and 2024 floods, moving many households closer to permanent relocation after months of uncertainty.
The award includes more than $27.6 million for residential buyouts and another $5.6 million for Vermont Emergency Management to administer the work and support future hazard-mitigation projects, according to a September 14 announcement from Vermont’s congressional delegation. Once acquired, structures are demolished and the land must remain open space, preventing new development in locations the state and communities have identified as unsafe.
The approval covers properties in floodplains, landslide-prone areas or places deemed irreparably damaged. It is the final major tranche of federal funding sought after the two disaster years and brings the vast majority of Vermont’s 243 pending buyout properties into the funded pipeline, Vermont Public reported Wednesday.
Where the money will go
Plainfield has the largest group in the new award, with 18 properties, while Starksboro has 14. Other approved acquisitions are spread across Huntington, Richmond, St. Johnsbury, Groton and additional communities. That distribution makes the award statewide in consequence even though each transaction will be handled locally.
The federal approval does not mean owners will receive checks immediately. Municipalities and the state still must complete appraisals, title work, environmental reviews, closings and demolition. Owners are generally offered the property’s pre-flood fair-market value, but participation remains voluntary. VTDigger’s account of the award notes that local officials expect the remaining work to take months.
For residents, the practical effect is a clearer exit route from properties where rebuilding could expose families to the same hazards again. For towns, however, every completed acquisition removes a parcel from the property-tax rolls. Starksboro officials told Vermont Public that losing 14 properties will be meaningful for a small municipality, illustrating the tradeoff between long-term safety and local revenue.
A program built after the 2023 floods
Vermont created a state-managed buyout program after the July 2023 flooding to reduce the administrative burden on towns and speed complicated transactions. The state’s 2025 Emergency Management annual report said 136 FEMA-funded properties were then in the closing or demolition stages, alongside 31 properties supported with state money. Vermont was also monitoring 208 sites acquired through earlier mitigation programs to ensure they remained compliant open space.
The new federal award expands that pipeline rather than ending the process. Property owners should expect direct contact through their municipality or state case managers as appraisals and legal work proceed; they should not assume the congressional announcement itself establishes a closing date.
The larger policy test will come after demolition. Removing buildings from repeatedly flooded ground reduces future exposure, but communities will still need plans for roads, utilities and tax capacity as formerly developed parcels become permanent open land.
