Vermont Governor Phil Scott’s focus this legislative session is moving legislation forward that addresses housing, education, public safety and affordability. During his weekly briefing today, he focused on the intersection of public safety and public health.
While a formal public safety bill has yet to be introduced, Scott noted that the judiciary committees in the House and Senate have begun to consider parts of the bill based on language that his administration has drafted. Scott says Vermonters have made it clear that communities must be made safer. But the Republican added that legislation must also address public health and the addiction crisis.
“We need to create a culture of accountability and end the policies we’ve seen where people with dozens of offenses are once again released on conditions and then re-offend sometimes on the very same day. But it’s crucial that Public Safety and Human Services continue to work together to solve the challenges we face. By working to reduce the number of addicted Vermonters we can help those get back on their feet and on a path towards a lifetime of recovery which results in safer and healthier communities.”
Commissioner of Public Safety Jennifer Morrison said the omnibus bill that will be introduced recognizes the links between public safety and health.
“We’re focusing on behaviors. So we need to be able to address a broad spectrum of behaviors that are harming our communities, contributing to the atrophy of our downtowns and creating chaos in public places. We know that a small number of individuals are having an outsized negative impact on communities. We need tools to address those whose behaviors are not curtailed by the usual processes. Regardless of the underlying cause of the behaviors, we need interventions that are certain, swift and proportionate to protect the community from ongoing harm.”
Components of the public safety omnibus bill include provisions to repeal the Raise the Age for 19-year-old offenders, bail revocation reform and limiting the discretion of the court to suspend or reduce the sentences of repeat violent offenders.
While the main focus of the briefing was on public safety, there were some questions about school choice provisions in Governor Scott’s education revision proposal.
“The two basic premises for doing this is to give our kids a better education, a more equitable education, across the state no matter where they live. So if we can create this system, that we believe is better than we have today, we’re not going to have to worry as much about school choice because every school will be giving a high quality education and we won’t have to worry about them wanting to go to a different school based on the quality of education. And that’s what we’re trying to do. Because not all schools are providing an equal education as we see it today. They don’t have the programs that some schools do. And we’re trying to make it so that they can get a high-quality education right in their own backyard.”
As for federal affairs, Scott noted that the state would assist ICE if it is seeking an individual who had entered the U.S. illegally and committed a violent crime. In regard to non-violent immigrants, he would adhere to a 2017 state law that prohibits state and local law enforcement from helping federal agencies detain anyone based only on their immigration status unless the action is authorized by the governor in consultation with the Vermont Attorney General.
