State preservation officer: FEMA has committed buyout funds for Julian Scott house; Johnson must decide whether to pursue alternatives

Laura Tishman, the State Historic Preservation Officer, told the House Corrections & Institutions committee on May 15 that FEMA has already committed buyout funds to the town of Johnson for the Julian Scott house, a historic property affected by the 2023 floods.

"We concurred with FEMA's finding that it was eligible," Tishman said, describing the office's initial determination that allowed the property to proceed on the FEMA buyout path. She said the application reached the preservation office in December 2024 and staff signed off in January 2025. The office conducted an interior site visit in March 2026 at the town's request, which prompted staff to reassess whether the property retained individual National Register eligibility because of later alterations.

The eligibility finding matters because, as Tishman emphasized, "if it were not eligible, there would be no funding from FEMA." She said the preservation office has not formally rescinded the eligibility finding because doing so would remove the buyout funding pathway; FEMA has already provided money to the town for this project.

Tishman described the current mitigation approach as a coordinated effort with FEMA and Vermont Emergency Management. Rather than taking only individual photos before demolition, she said the agencies are working on a larger mitigation and documentation project for multiple buyouts from the 2023 floods to preserve historic information across affected districts.

Committee members pressed for procedural details: Johnson has a 90-day decision window to act on the buyout, Tishman said; if the town notifies Vermont Emergency Management that it wants a different route (for example, to move or elevate the building), that would start a new application process and a new review clock with FEMA. She outlined general review timelines referenced by staff: 30 days and 10 days under certain emergency provisions for local steps, and a roughly 45-day FEMA review period when applications are complete, while noting practical variability in those timelines.

The committee asked whether historically significant properties ever receive more money than market buyout value. Tishman said her office does not handle buyout payments and does not have evidence that listing or eligibility produces higher payments; she added the office has processed about 230 buyouts since July 2023, with mixed local outcomes.

Tishman also explained the local options if the town seeks alternatives: the town could choose to keep, sell, move, or elevate the building, but to pursue those options Johnson would likely have to return the initial buyout funds and submit a new application through Vermont Emergency Management and FEMA. She warned that elevating or moving the structure to meet flood-adaptation standards would require placing the building at base flood elevation plus three feet, a change that could further compromise historic integrity.

The committee asked whether adopting House Resolution HR18 — a local-support resolution the committee is considering — would obligate the state to provide funding or change mitigation. Tishman said HR18 would be a statement of support only and would not place monetary responsibility on her office or alter the mitigation path.

A selectboard meeting in Johnson scheduled for Monday will include a presentation by Stephanie Smith from Vermont Emergency Management, Tishman said; committee members asked two representatives from Johnson to update the committee after that meeting. The committee planned to reconvene Tuesday to assess whether HR18 remains necessary based on information from the selectboard meeting and Vermont Emergency Management.

Details the committee requested but that were not specified in testimony include the exact dollar amount of the buyout; Tishman said she was not involved in the payment details and could not provide that figure.

Next steps: Johnson's selectboard is expected to discuss the town's preferred track at its Monday meeting; the committee will await that local decision before advancing or withdrawing HR18.