Vermont Payment Bond Claim — The VTrans Sworn Statement 90 Days After Final Acceptance, the One-Year Petition and Why Vermont Has No General Little Miller Act (19 V.S.A. § 10, 2026)
✓ Verified against Vermont statutes · Reviewed November 2026 · By Michael Evan — Founder · 50 states · 799 rules
Vermont mechanics lien deadlines at a glance
Preliminary Notice
None — N/A
Mechanics Lien
180 days — From last date of furnishing
Enforcement
180 days — From filing
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Vermont Is the Exception on Public-Work Bonds
On private work in Vermont, an unpaid sub or supplier protects itself with the Title 9 mechanics lien, a memorandum recorded with the town clerk and a court action with a writ of attachment, as covered in the Vermont mechanics lien notice guide . Public property is different. A town garage in Rutland, a UVM building in Burlington, a school in Montpelier or a VTrans bridge on Route 7 generally cannot be liened, so the unpaid claimant looks to a payment bond. Here Vermont breaks from almost every other state. Most states have a single Little Miller Act: one statute that requires a payment bond on all state and local public works and sets one notice rule and one suit deadline. Neighboring New Hampshire and Maine both do. In our review of the Vermont Statutes Annotated we found no general public-works payment-bond statute . The one provision that gives unpaid subcontractors and suppliers a statutory bond claim is 19 V.S.A. § 10(9) , and it covers Agency of Transportation construction projects only . The Mechanics Lien Management Method starts every Vermont public job with one question: who owns the project? If it is VTrans, you have a statutory claim on a fixed calendar. If it is a state agency, a school district or a town, you have whatever the contract and the bond form give you, and you need to read them.
The VTrans Bond Under 19 V.S.A. § 10(9)
Section 10 lists the duties of the Agency of Transportation. Subdivision (9) lets the Agency require any contractor on a project for construction of a transportation improvement to file an additional surety bond to the Secretary, for the benefit of labor, materialmen and others, executed by a surety company authorized in Vermont. The equipment language matters in Vermont. Rental houses supplying excavators, rollers and pavers on paving and bridge work are expressly covered, and so are trucking firms through “hire of vehicles.”
The Sworn Statement: 90 Days After Final Acceptance
To obtain the benefit of the security, the claimant must file with the Secretary a sworn statement of its claim within 90 days after the final acceptance of the project by the State . Tax and Labor Department claims run instead from the date the taxes or contributions became due and payable. Counting from acceptance usually gives a claimant more time than a last-furnishing rule would, but the date is set by the State and is easy to miss. A paving supplier whose last load went out in October may not hear that VTrans accepted the job the following summer. Ask the project office to tell you when acceptance occurs, and diary it.
The One-Year Petition in the Secretary’s Name
Within one year after the filing of the claim , the claimant must bring a petition in the Superior Court in the name of the Secretary , with notice and summons to the principal, the surety and the Secretary , to enforce the claim, or must intervene in a petition already filed. Two features stand out. First, the year runs from your own filing date , so filing the sworn statement early also starts the petition clock early. Second, the suit is brought in the Secretary’s name, much like a federal Miller Act suit “in the name of the United States.” When several claimants are unpaid on the same job, a later claimant may intervene in a petition another creditor has already filed rather than starting its own. The statute does not spell out every procedural step for the notice and summons. That is a good reason to involve a Vermont construction attorney once the claim is filed, rather than when the year is nearly gone.
State Buildings, Schools and Towns: Read the Bond
For public work that is not a VTrans transportation project, we found no Vermont statute that requires a payment bond for subcontractors and suppliers or sets their notice and suit deadlines. School construction aid under 16 V.S.A. § 3445 refers to a performance bond or irrevocable letter of credit and exempts projects under $50,000. It does not create claim rights for unpaid subs or suppliers. Public owners often require a payment bond by contract even where no statute demands one. If the owner on your job did, the bond form sets who may claim, what notice is required, and how long you have to sue. Many forms follow the federal pattern, with a 90-day notice and a one-year suit limit, but you cannot assume that without reading the form.
Every Vermont Public-Project Deadline in One Table
The Mechanics Lien Management State System calendars the VTrans sworn statement and the one-year petition from the dates you enter. Private-work rules are on the Vermont lien statutes page, and the calculator is on the Vermont mechanics lien hub . Work at Camp Ethan Allen Training Site in Jericho, the Vermont Air National Guard Base at Burlington International Airport and the White River Junction VA Medical Center runs under the federal Miller Act. The mechanics lien vs. bond claim page compares the systems. The federal rule is the one most Vermont public-project bond forms imitate.
Identify the Owner, File on Time, Petition on Time
Vermont Public Works Workflow Find out who owns the project and whether a bond was furnished. On a VTrans job, file a sworn statement with the Secretary within 90 days after final acceptance, then petition the Superior Court within one year of filing. On any other public job, follow the bond form’s own notice and suit rules. Pair it with these resources: Because the claim may end in a petition against the surety, connect early with a Vermont construction attorney through the Mechanics Lien Management network, or request a formal attorney review of the claim file.
On VTrans Work, the Clock Starts at Acceptance
The Mechanics Lien Management deadline calculator tracks the 90-day sworn statement and the one-year petition on every Vermont transportation job. Miss the deadline and you lose your claim rights entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Vermont have a Little Miller Act?
Not a general one. Most states have a single statute that requires a payment bond on all state and local public works and sets claimant notice and suit deadlines. Vermont does not. Its one claimant-protection bond statute is 19 V.S.A. § 10(9), which applies to Agency of Transportation (VTrans) construction projects. On state buildings, school districts and municipal work, whether a payment bond exists, and what deadlines it sets, depends on the contract and the bond form.
What is the deadline for a Vermont VTrans payment bond claim?
Ninety days after the State's final acceptance of the project. Under 19 V.S.A. § 10(9), to obtain the benefit of the bond, the claimant must file a sworn statement of its claim with the Secretary of Transportation within that window. The deadline runs from final acceptance, not from the claimant's last day on the job, so a supplier who finished early still has until 90 days after acceptance.
Who has to file the sworn statement on a VTrans project?
Every claimant that wants the benefit of the security. Section 10(9) does not split claimants into first-tier and remote groups the way the federal Miller Act does. The bond covers creditors for material, merchandise, labor, rent, hire of vehicles, power shovels, rollers, concrete mixers, tools and other appliances, professional services, premiums and other services used in carrying out the contract, so a first-tier sub and a sub-tier supplier both file.
When is the deadline to sue on a Vermont VTrans payment bond?
Within one year after filing the claim. Under 19 V.S.A. § 10(9), the claimant brings a petition in the Superior Court in the name of the Secretary, with notice and summons to the principal, the surety and the Secretary, to enforce the claim, or intervenes in a petition already filed. The year runs from the date the sworn statement was filed, not from final acceptance or last furnishing.
Is a payment bond required on every VTrans contract?
No. Section 10(9) authorizes the Agency to require the bond in such sum as it directs. The Secretary may accept other good and sufficient surety in place of a bond when that is in the State's best interests, and may waive the surety bond on contracts of $100,000 or less. Ask VTrans what security stands behind the contract before you extend credit.
What about a Vermont school, state building or town project?
We found no Vermont statute that sets claimant notice and suit deadlines for those projects. Many owners still require a payment bond by contract, and the bond form then sets the notice and suit rules. School construction aid under 16 V.S.A. § 3445 refers to a performance bond or irrevocable letter of credit and exempts projects under $50,000, but it does not create subcontractor or supplier claim rights. Get the bond from the owner and read its claim provisions early.
Can I file a mechanics lien on a Vermont public project instead?
Generally no. Vermont's Title 9 mechanics lien is a private-property remedy, and publicly owned property is generally not subject to it. On a state, town or school project, look to the payment bond and to your contract claim against whoever hired you. Federal work, such as at Camp Ethan Allen Training Site or the White River Junction VA Medical Center, runs under the federal Miller Act instead.