--- title: "Radon in Vermont Schools and Child Care: The Law" url: https://vermontradon.com/radon-schools-child-care-vermont/ description: "Vermont's 2021 law requires schools to test for radon and share results. What the Health Department tells schools, and what parents can ask for." last_reviewed: 2026-10-17 source: "Vermont Legislature; Vermont Department of Health; U.S. EPA; CRCPD; Vermont Department for Children and Families. Each fact is footnoted to its source below." publisher: "Vermont Radon, an independent guide, not affiliated with the Vermont Department of Health or EPA. Not medical advice." --- # Radon in Vermont schools and child care A 2021 Vermont law requires public schools and approved independent schools to test for radon and to make the results available to each employee and student.[^1] In 2022, the deadline to finish testing was extended to June 30, 2025.[^2] ## What the law requires Section 12 of Act 72 of 2021 says each public school and approved independent school must:[^1] - perform a radon measurement, following the ANSI/AARST protocol for schools and large buildings, on any facility that has not had a test completed in five or more years;[^1] - make the results available to each employee and student at the school.[^1] ## What the Health Department tells schools The Health Department’s guidance for schools includes:[^2] - Hire a certified radon measurement professional.[^2] - Notify parents, guardians and school staff before and after you receive results, and post results to your school’s website.[^2] - Install a radon mitigation system or adjust HVAC settings if any results are at or above 4.0 pCi/L. Consider mitigating or adjusting HVAC settings if any results are at or above 2.0 pCi/L.[^2] - Retest every five years, or whenever significant changes are made to the building’s structure or mechanical systems.[^2] ## How common is high radon in Vermont schools? According to the Health Department, about 12% of Vermont schools that have tested for radon since 2005 have radon levels above the EPA action level of 4.0 pCi/L, with some as high as five times the action level.[^2] ## What parents can do - **Ask your school for its results.** The law requires schools to make them available to each employee and student,[^1] and the Health Department tells schools to post them on the school’s website.[^2] - **Test your home too.** Unless you test for it, there is no way of knowing if radon is in your home or child care facility.[^3] At or above 4.0 pCi/L, the Health Department and EPA recommend reducing radon levels.[^3] ## Test your own home Order the Health Department Lab’s long-term kit for $25[^4] and leave it in place for 3 to 12 months, ideally including a heating season.[^5] **Want to see levels day to day?** A digital monitor measures and records radon continuously while it has power.[^6] Use it alongside the lab test, not instead of it: CRCPD says to check a consumer monitor’s results with an approved test.[^7] [Order the $25 long-term kit](https://vdh.webapps.aidcvt.com/water_supplies/radon) [See Airthings monitors](https://discount.airthings.com?aw_affiliate=eyJjYW1wYWlnbl9pZCI6IjEiLCJ0cmFmZmljX3NvdXJjZSI6InZlcm1vbnRyYWRvbi5jb20iLCJhY2NvdW50X2lkIjoyNDI1N30) (Affiliate link) If you buy through the Airthings link, Vermont Radon may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. [How we make money](https://vermontradon.com/how-we-make-money/) Enter `vtradon-10OFF` for 10% off at checkout. Airthings ships only within the US. The state lab kit is not an affiliate link. To order by phone, call 802-338-4736 or 800-660-9997.[^5] ## Child care A Vermont Department for Children and Families fact sheet says the second largest contributor to a child’s radon exposure is likely to be their child care facility.[^8] For centers, it says to hire a radon measurement professional certified by the National Radon Proficiency Program or the National Radon Safety Board.[^8] The Health Department’s guide for child care providers says to order a radon test kit for your facility, because unless you test for it, there is no way of knowing if radon is in it.[^9] Family child care homes are homes: [How to test your home](https://vermontradon.com/how-to-test/) covers the Health Department Lab’s kits. ## Common questions ### Do Vermont schools have to test for radon? Yes. A 2021 law requires public schools and approved independent schools to perform a radon measurement on any facility that has not had a test completed in five or more years, and to make the results available to each employee and student.[^1] In 2022, the deadline was extended to June 30, 2025.[^2] ### Can I see my child’s school radon results? The law requires each school to make its results available to each employee and student.[^1] The Health Department tells schools to notify parents before and after they receive results and to post results to the school’s website.[^2] ### What should a school do if radon is high? The Health Department tells schools to install a radon mitigation system or adjust HVAC settings if any results are at or above 4.0 pCi/L, and to consider it at or above 2.0 pCi/L.[^2] ## Next steps - [How to test your home](https://vermontradon.com/how-to-test/) - [Understanding your results](https://vermontradon.com/understanding-results/) - [Find a certified contractor](https://vermontradon.com/find-a-contractor/) - [Radon test results by town](https://vermontradon.com/towns/) ## Sources [^1]: **Vermont Legislature**. [Act 72 (2021), Sec. 12: Radon testing; school facilities (as enacted)](https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2022/Docs/ACTS/ACT072/ACT072%20As%20Enacted.pdf). Checked 2026-10-17. [^2]: **Vermont Department of Health**. [Radon in Schools](https://www.healthvermont.gov/environment/healthy-schools/radon-schools). Checked 2026-10-17. [^3]: **Vermont Department of Health**. [Guide for Parents and Caregivers](https://www.healthvermont.gov/environment/childrens-environmental-health/guide-parents-and-caregivers). Checked 2026-10-17. [^4]: **Vermont Department of Health Laboratory**. [Radon Test Kits (Health Department Lab webstore)](https://vdh.webapps.aidcvt.com/water_supplies/radon). Checked 2026-10-17. [^5]: **Vermont Department of Health**. [Radon in Your Home](https://www.healthvermont.gov/environment/healthy-homes/radon). Checked 2026-10-17. [^6]: **U.S. Environmental Protection Agency**. [Home Buyer’s and Seller’s Guide to Radon (EPA 402/K-24/001, March 2024)](https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2015-05/documents/hmbuygud.pdf). Checked 2026-10-17. [^7]: **Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors (CRCPD)**. [Consumer Digital Radon Monitors (CRCPD guidance, reprinted in The Radon Reporter, Q4 2025, p. 39)](https://aarst.org/TheRadonReporter/Radon-Reporter-December-2025/39). Checked 2026-10-17. [^8]: **Vermont Department for Children and Families**. [Radon in Child Care Centers (fact sheet, December 2022)](https://outside.vermont.gov/dept/DCF/Shared%20Documents/CDD/Safety/Radon-Child-Care-Centers.pdf). Checked 2026-10-17. [^9]: **Vermont Department of Health**. [Guide for Child Care Providers](https://www.healthvermont.gov/environment/childrens-environmental-health/guide-child-care-providers). Checked 2026-10-17.