New push to solve weatherization workforce woes in Vermont

BARRE, Vt. (WCAX) – There’s a new push to solve weatherization workforce woes in Vermont. A new training center in Barre may make it easier for you to find someone to button up your home. But finding a qualified workforce is only half the battle.

A house on Bailey Street aims to help more Vermont families slash their heating bills, up to the tune of 30%.

“It’s clear these investments are huge for the Vermonters that we serve,” said Chris Winters, the commissioner of the Vermont Department for Children and Families.

The state of Vermont, Efficiency Vermont and North Carolina-based Everblue are launching the Vermont Innovation, Efficiency and Weatherization (VIEW) workforce training center where people can learn the ins and outs of home heating efficiency and installation, funded by a $2 million grant from the feds. It’s also to help prospective business owners learn about financing, staffing, running the books and more.

“This center is all about service and impact,” said Jon Boggiano, the chief innovation officer at Everblue.

Training more people to do weatherization work could allow more Vermonters to partake in weatherization programs and, in turn, help meet our climate goals.

The opening of the VIEW center comes as state lawmakers in Montpelier grapple with what role weatherization should play in our pollution reduction requirements and how best to fund them.

Vermont’s new Climate Action Plan, adopted last month, shows we have to weatherize 79,000 homes. To meet that goal, more funding is needed to subsidize the work.

Over the last decade, we’ve done about 2,000 homes annually. An influx of federal stimulus money brought that to 4,000 in 2024. But that money is coming to an end.

“My view is we need more of what Vermont is doing in Washington,” said Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont.

So far, the effort to pass a state-based program to fund weatherization is still a moving political target in Montpelier.

Without more funds, experts say the number of weatherized homes will decrease in the coming years.

“We know the pace we’re working on now and what’s needed to grow that is combined consistent funding and the workforce we acknowledge and support every day,” said Peter Walke of Efficiency Vermont.

A push to get more people into the trades and bring down the cost of your heating bill.

Copyright 2025 WCAX. All rights reserved.