The Intersection of Act 181 & Sugaring

Allison Hope, VMSMA's Executive Director, wrote an article for our Spring 2026 Newsletter highlighting specific information about Vermont's Act 181, including tier 3 designations and the "road rule". Shortly before sending the newsletter to the printer, it was clear that these portions of Act 181 would be repealed by the Legislature. While we wanted to highlight this important information and offer some background, we pulled it from the newsletter to make room for other emerging topics and chose to share it online instead.

Act 181, Tier 3, the “Road Rule”.....these were all hot topics in and around Montpelier this sugaring season. What does it all mean for maple operations in various parts of the state? Given that Vermonters hold a variety of opinions on Acts 250 and 181, you might find different information depending on where you look or who you talk to. VMSMA’s goal is to ensure you have access to trustworthy information on how we got here and where we’re headed. We’ll also make space for you to hear directly from Vermont’s Land Use Review Board, get your questions answered, and ultimately form your own opinions.

A complicated piece of legislation like Act 181 deserves closer scrutiny - it means that we all need to spend time learning more about the original goals for the legislation, how any new rules are enacted to meet those goals, and understanding areas that might offer good results and areas that might have adverse consequences that need to be addressed. We offer this article as the first step in a series of opportunities for sugar makers to learn about Act 181 and understand where the Legislature is in the process of implementation. While we can’t write a comprehensive article that takes into account every possible type, size and scope of sugaring operation and all of your specific questions, this is a starting place. 

For the second step, VMSMA is hosting a free online session on May 20th from 6-7pm with Alex Weinhagen, a member of the Land Use Review Board. He’ll have a presentation to share with us and will leave plenty of time for your specific questions. 

As a third step, VMSMA will also be hosting our 2nd Annual Maple Summit at Proctor Maple Research Center this spring with our Board and Committees, researchers, industry partners, and other invited guests to review the federal and state landscape, the latest research, and current economic forecasts. Alex will also present at the Summit, after learning more about sugar makers’ questions at our May online session. This day long meeting will be taped so we can share it with a broader member audience afterward (meeting capacity on the day is limited by available conference room space at Proctor).

What is Act 181?

Love it or hate it (or maybe you’re agnostic), Vermont’s Act 250 has been with us for the last 50 years. The Legislature passed Act 181 in 2024 to “modernize” Act 250, by reducing permitting bottlenecks to accelerate housing construction in designated growth areas while strengthening environmental protections for rural land (by expanding areas where Act 250 might have jurisdiction). Act 181 creates some new provisions, it also leaves portions of existing legislation alone. I’ll start with a broad statement: in general, agriculture and forestry operations are exempt from many provisions of Act 181, as they were in Act 250. If there are areas of Act 250 where some specific parts of your operation were not exempt, then it’s likely that the same is true under Act 181. 

At the same time, there’s nuance in the legislation. If your sugarbush is over 2500’ in elevation, you may have come under the purview of Act 250. That doesn’t change with Act 181. If you live on the same parcel of land where you have some of your maple operations, there’s definitely some nuance. If you’re thinking of setting aside parcels of your land for future generations or your retirement, there’s also nuance. We think it’s important to understand both the broader goals and regulations of Act 181 and also the areas where these regulations may impact you directly. The full legislation is 171 pages (granted it has pretty generous margins and spacing), one of many reasons it’s being phased in and requires professional insight from the Land Use Review Board to help enact it (along with tons of feedback from Vermonters). You can find the full text of Act 181 online here.

The Legislature included some provisions in Act 181 to work toward meeting goals of accelerated housing growth in designated areas, while protecting the rural landscape:

• The creation of Vermont’s Land Use Review Board (LURB). The LURB is a full-time, professional, 5-member board. Board members are appointed by the Governor and are selected for their expertise in planning, development, environmental science, and law. Currently, the Board is busy working on interpreting Act 181 as passed by the Legislature to create the associated rules and guidance. An important part of this work is presenting information to the public and taking comments. More on the role of the Board (which replaced the Natural Resource Board) on the state’s website here (with bios for current Board members). 
• Legislators also outlined a long-term approach to Act 250 jurisdiction using “tiers” or areas of jurisdiction. The Legislature charged the LURB with the development of rules and the review of regional plans and maps to implement the tiered framework. This work includes the approval of future land use maps developed via public engagement. 
  • Tier 1A/1B - Areas with capacity for growth where limited or no Act 250 jurisdiction will apply. Effective upon approval by the Board beginning in January 2026.
  • Tier 2 – All areas that are not tier 1 or tier 3. Existing jurisdictional thresholds will remain based on acreage, units, or lots created. Additionally, construction based on the length of roads and driveways will apply starting July 1, 2026.
  • Tier 3 – Additional jurisdiction for critical natural resource areas beginning December 31, 2026.
• Simplified Vermont’s Designation Program to encourage new development and redevelopment in designated areas with incentives, streamlined policies and technical assistance. The Designation Program is responsible for providing benefits to areas around our historic downtowns and villages in areas mapped by communities and regional planning commissions – e.g.,  Downtowns, Village Centers, Town Centers, Neighborhood Development Areas, and Growth Centers. Each of these designations offers incentives and benefits for communities, as these are areas where growth makes sense, while at the same time protecting rural areas. Designations can help with reviving Vermont’s town centers and downtowns, helping to meet the long-term wants and needs of their residents. If you want to do a deeper dive on Vermont’s Designation Programs, you can review the overview of these changes online. https://accd.vermont.gov/community-development/designation-programs
• Tasked Vermont’s Regional Planning Commissions to create Future Land Use Maps (FLU maps) based on new standards through a public process with a focus on equity, climate resilience, mitigation and adaptation. The FLU maps must utilize consistent land use categories across the state. Four of the categories – Downtowns, Village Centers, Planned Growth Areas, and Village Areas – coordinate with the Designations mentioned above.

Two parts of Act 181 have been frequent topics in the news this winter and spring: Tier 3 designations and the “road rule.” It makes sense that these are current topics: 1) they are areas where Act 181 has expanded where and when the Act 250 process may have jurisdiction to help ensure good development design in important resource areas, and 2) the legislation originally called for these portions to roll out this summer, which is right around the corner. 

What is Tier 3?

“Tier 3” means an area consisting of critical natural resources defined by the rules of the Board. The Board is required to create rules that at a minimum determine whether and how to protect river corridors, headwater streams, habitat connectors of statewide significance, riparian areas, class A waters, natural communities, and other critical natural resources. 

The Land Use Review Board has been meeting since April 2025, with a 25-member working group and in public meetings, to create rules relating to the Act 250 process in Tier 3 areas. Later this summer, the Board will finalize the proposed rules and host a public hearing to review them before they make their way to the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules by the end of September. You can find notes of all those meetings, as well as the “Tier 3 Map Viewer” (under the heading of “Materials and Resources”) on the state’s Act 250 website here. 

If you’ve used any of the state’s mapping functions, to find parcels of land or see wetland areas or specific soil mapping, the Tier 3 Map Viewer will look familiar to you. You can type in an address  in the box on the top right of the screen and get more details about any parcel in the state. Different colors on the map will highlight different Tier 3 classifications - headwater stream areas, habitat connectors, etc. - and you will be able to easily see if these classifications impact any of the parcels you are reviewing. Cross-hatched red lines will note “tier 3 exclusion areas”, which are generally those areas designated for growth, development and redevelopment. For example, in the Northeast Kingdom, a good portion of Lyndonville’s Designated Village Center and East Burke’s Village Center are tier 3 exclusion areas; when I move the map north toward Lake Willoughby, I see plenty of colorations noting tier 3 areas. I encourage you to look at the map to understand the potential classifications of any land parcels of interest to you. Certain types of development within a tier 3 area may be subject to the Act 250 process, depending on the nature and magnitude of the project. Maple sugaring operations will remain exempt below 2500 feet, as will other agricultural and forestry uses.

The “Road Rule”

I’m sure you’ve heard reference to 800’ roads and 2000’ driveways this winter and perhaps were unsure how it related to your property - do these lengths impact your road to the sugarhouse, the driveway to your home, the trails and access roads in your sugarbush, or anything else you might have planned for your property?

The Road Rule arises from Section 14 of Act 181 (only 20 pages into the 171 pages of legislation) with goals of reducing forest fragmentation and maintaining habitat connectors for animals. I imagine we can all agree these are laudable goals; how individual Vermonters feel about them will depend on what regulations are proposed to meet these goals and perhaps even where in the state you sugar and reside (and what your future plans are for your property).

This section of Act 181 comes into play when certain distances are met in Tier 2 or Tier 3 areas (as defined in the legislation):

Jurisdiction under this subdivision shall not apply unless the length of any single road is greater than 800 feet, or the length of all roads and any associated driveways in combination is greater than 2,000 feet.

As noted earlier, if you are creating or maintaining roads and driveways for your sugaring operation (or trails within your sugarbush), they are exempt from this process in the current draft of the Board’s rules (just as they are in Act 250). The same is true for other agricultural and forestry uses. 

Given that exemption, consider how you might plan to use some of your existing property in the future for non-agricultural or forestry uses. Accessory on farm businesses created for the storage and sale of a variety of products is exempt from Act 250 permitting. Some examples of Improvements that are not exempt: upgrades to host events, residential development, or creation of roads and driveways that are primarily used for non-agricultural or forestry uses. While the impact of Tier 3 designations on property values and future sale prices is unclear, your participation in Vermont’s Use Value Appraisal program (or “Current Use”) is not impacted by the Tier 3 mapping. Even if Tier 3 areas are mapped on your property, remember that the portions enrolled in the Current Use program will likely be exempt from Act 250 permitting, since they are managed for sugaring, other agriculture or forestry.

What’s Next?

• We had planned for a number of opportunities for sugar makers to learn more about Act 181 and its impacts, as well as get your questions answered. However, the Land Use Review Board recently suspended further work on Tier 3 as the Legislature has indicated that it will repeal this portion of Act 181. Senate bill S.325 as passed by the Senate on March 27, 2026, included an extension of the Tier 3 effective date to June 30, 2028. On April 14, 2026 the House Environment Committee indicated that they plan to revise S.325 to repeal the Tier 3 provisions of Act 181.  
• Do you have Act 181 questions or feedback for the Board? They encourage Vermonters to reach out to them at act250.comments@vermont.gov. They are your best source of information and a great resource for any of your questions!
• Read more about the latest Act 181 updates on the state’s website here.

Democracy is many things - a beautiful and often slow and messy process to achieve results that are beneficial for individuals, for communities, and for our wild earth. The one thing these results require is your engagement, so please engage - read up on Act 181, ask your questions, and share your feedback. While sections of Act 181 will likely be repealed this Legislative session, there are certainly other areas that will continue to be discussed and debated moving forward.