Lawmakers and the governor rely on the economists’ conclusions to inform their proposals for a state budget each year. But it shows “we’re holding the line,” Tom Kavet, one of the economists, told the board Tuesday. “It’s hard to overstate just how much better the economy could be” were it not for those actions at the federal level, they wrote. At the same time, Kavet told state leaders Tuesday, the impacts have been blunted by a handful of trends that are having the opposite effect. This story was first published by VtDigger and is republished with permission as part of the Vermont Journalism Trust’s Community News Sharing Project.