It looks like housing, flood resilience, and criminal justice will be among the top issues the Legislature grapples with in the 2024 legislative session, which is set to begin Wednesday.
This is based on responses to a survey the Rutland Herald and The Times Argus sent to lawmakers in Rutland and Washington counties asking them what their priorities would be in 2024. Their issues ranged from child care to gun rights but nearly all listed the state’s housing crisis as a top concern.
Unsurprisingly, criminal justice was an issue for Rutland County lawmakers while flooding concerns were on top of Washington County minds. Crime and public safety concerns have been a burning issue in Rutland City while Montpelier and central Vermont were among the most heavily impacted by the summer’s floods.
“One of the biggest concerns from the community that I hear constantly has to do with repeated offenses such as shoplifting or vandalism,” stated Sen. Brian Collamore, R-Rutland. “According to Rutland Mayor Mike Doenges, up to 30% of the retail thefts are being committed by the same individuals and 80% of those thefts are committed by known substance abusers.”
He said he’s introduced a bill that would allow a judge to consider the number of charges a defendant is currently facing when setting release conditions.
“Crime rates have been increasing, and we need to ask ourselves if we are doing enough to hold people accountable when they violate our laws,” stated House Rep. Jim Harrison, R-Chittenden. “Some areas to consider: Increasing penalties for multiple offenses; re-examine our bail laws; work to fill law enforcement vacancies; work to reduce court backlogs; improve access to treatment options for those addicted to drugs.”
Rep. Mary Howard, D-Rutland, said she plans to support law enforcement, specifically efforts to hire police and court staff.
“We need more troopers present in Rutland supporting our city police, the number of vacancies in the VSP have been too high for far too long,” she stated. “My priority is to make certain the governor grants the request for funding from our judiciary as they work to clear up the backlog of cases that grew out of the pandemic. This backlog is allowing too many offenders to remain on the street for too long with no accountability.”
She included probation and parole officers as among those who need support.
“I will also support the request of probation and parole officers to be trained to carry defensive weapons,” she stated. “I will propose legislation that will allow communities to capture more funding for public safety and neighborhood rehabilitation in high crime areas, holding absentee landlords accountable for investing in the communities we live in.”
Rep. Will Notte, D-Rutland City, sits on the House Committee on Judiciary and is the House Assistant Majority Leader of Development and Strategy. His committee is “preparing to take a comprehensive look at our criminal justice system to address challenges with crime that have been felt on the ground in our community,” he said. This will include bail reform and changes to the setting of release conditions, as well as addressing court backlogs.
The flooding the Montpelier-Barre area saw in July was comparable to Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, an event that the state grappled with for years. Representatives for the areas hardest hit in July said the local tax base can’t bear the burden on their own and will need help.
“My priority is to lobby for fulsome recovery support here in my district: Barre,” stated Rep. Peter Anthony, D-Barre City. “The broad focus is to cover the shortfall in property tax collections attributable to flood damage, and recoup the emergency expenditures Barre made during and right after July 10. Our city stepped in to clear roads, collect debris, (and) pump basements for weeks before any state or federal emergency effort arrived in Barre. Overtime and contractor hiring was expensive and crucial under these emergency circumstances.”
Rep. Conor Casey, D-Montpelier, also had flood recovery at the top of his list.
“My primary focus will lie in working with my colleagues to spearhead the recovery efforts essential for our communities’ well-being,” Casey said. “Municipalities in our region are grappling with strained budgets, poised to make significant cuts without the assurance of state aid. I will strongly advocate for direct appropriations, including comprehensive coverage for tax abatements, to alleviate the pressing financial burdens faced by our local governments.”
Lack of affordable housing is a concern nationwide, one that intersects with other issues such as criminal justice, climate change, and economic growth.
Casey stated that housing was among his priorities.
“Without accessible housing options, we risk transforming into a city where people work but struggle to reside,” he stated. “Additionally, we must prioritize transitioning from the motel voucher program, guiding unhoused families into secure permanent homes instead of returning them to perilous streets. Many individuals experiencing homelessness are not at fault, and our approach to their plight mirrors our societal values. I am committed to continuing my work from last session and championing initiatives that secure housing and dignity for all.”
The hotel program he mentioned is an issue the Barre-Montpelier area and Rutland share. It began during the pandemic as a way to keep the virus from spreading through congregate shelters, and to give shuttered hotels some economic relief. The program has carried on in one form or another to this day and has caused a strain on emergency and law enforcement services in some areas, notably Rutland City.
The program is slated to end in its current form come April.
“To date the administration’s plan for this transition is concerning in its incompleteness,” Notte said. “It would be inhumane to the individuals currently staying in these hotels to just dump them on the streets, and it would strain our communities to the breaking point to suddenly have a huge homeless population with inadequate support services and no place to shelter.”
The hotels need to go back to being hotels, he stated, but hundreds of people, many of them children, can’t simply be shown to the street, Notte stated.
House Minority Leader Patricia McCoy, R-Poultney, wasn’t able to respond to the survey but did speak to the Herald on Friday. She echoed her county’s representatives’ concerns about public safety, noting that’s an issue for the entire state, notably Burlington. The same goes for housing, she said.
“What we’re hoping to not get done is raise another half a billion dollars in taxes like we did last session,” she said. “I don’t think the state of Vermont can afford much more of the spending that’s gone on the last several years.”
She noted that many of the one-time funds for COVID relief are gone, so any program that depended on that funding has to find another source. She also noted the possible 18% increase in education spending forecasted by the Department of Taxes as being a big spending issue for the state.
“I’m hopeful that we can come together as a state regardless of what party we’re in and do what’s best for Vermonters.
Speaker of the House, Jill Krowinski, D-Burlington, said everywhere she goes in Vermont housing is part of the conversation.
Krowinski wasn’t surveyed. She spoke to the Herald on Friday.
“In this upcoming session we’re going to pick up where we left off doing more around access to affordable housing, and some landlord tenant policies, and some other things we can do,” she said. “Evictions have been through the roof, so we need to figure out what’s going on, and is there a better way to support people.”
Flood recovery and climate change, public safety and judiciary reform are all on the table, she said, noting the backlog of cases in the courts and a need to speed up the judicial appointment process.
Krowinski said that between January and September, Vermont saw 180 deaths from drug overdoses. The three average for that period is 148.
“This is a crisis, and we need to continue to find ways to address that,” she said. “So one of the first bills that we’re going to pass pilots some overdose prevention sites, and that’s one of the things we’ve been hearing folks asking for in different communities that are really struggling with substance abuse disorder, and so we’ll continue our work around substance abuse disorder prevention, so that’ll be one that moves quickly during the session.”
keith.whitcomb
@rutlandherald.com
