Months after rising property taxes caused chaos for Vermont school budgets, the state teachers union is pushing lawmakers to fund education using an income-based tax in place of the confusing — and, they say, unfair — current system. Leadership of the 13,000-member Vermont-NEA briefed lawmakers on Thursday about a three-step proposal that would help phase in these changes over time. The meeting came shortly after the November 5 election, which saw state Republicans, who blamed Democrats for Vermont's rising affordability crisis, make historic gains in the legislature. Dems appear to have gotten the message. At a caucus meeting last week, senators pledged to make soaring property taxes their top priority during the upcoming legislative session, which begins in January. At Thursday's briefing, VT-NEA political director Colin Robinson acknowledged that Vermonters are both confused and frustrated by education funding, noting the large number of school budgets that voters rejected last Town Meeting Day. He said that recent polling done by a national firm indicates that seven out of 10 Vermonters think that funding public education is highly important. But seven out of 10 Vermonters also report that their property taxes are too high.  [content-3] The NEA enlisted the Public Assets Institute, a Montpelier-based nonprofit advocacy organization, to help devise a new path forward. Step one, which would be implemented next year, would increase the number of Vermont homeowners whose income qualifies them for a property tax credit. Currently, around two-thirds of Vermonters already pay education taxes based fully or partly on their income, but the metrics used to determine who qualifies haven’t been updated in 16 years. Furthermore, under the current system, many homeowners hit tax “cliffs” — or thresholds where an additional dollar of income or a jump in property value can dramatically increase what they pay in education taxes. The proposal would adjust eligibility guidelines to address inflation and the cost of housing. Currently, homeowners who make $90,000 or less pay taxes based on income, but also pay a property tax on any portion of their home site value above $400,000. Under the NEA plan, homeowners with a household income of up to $130,000 and a home site worth less than $1 million would pay taxes based on income. A partial property tax credit would also be available. The move would provide “targeted property tax relief to over 50,000 middle class homeowners” but would require an additional $50 to…