Governor Phil Scott Announces His Short-Term Action Plan to Address Challenges in Burlington

Montpelier, Vt. - Governor Phil Scott today announced his short-term action plan to address some of the challenges facing Burlington. This plan, which was developed in coordination with community members, business leaders, service providers and partners at the state and local level, outline additional actions to hold individuals accountable and connect them with services they need, help revitalize the downtown Burlington area, and more.

This plan augments the collaboration announced previously with the Judiciary, State's Attorney, and Defender General.

"I believe this collaborative effort will help Burlington turn the corner, so residents, students, visitors, business owners and their employees feel safe, so they can enjoy all the attributes this historic city has to offer," said Governor Phil Scott. "We'll learn a lot from this initiative as we continue to break down silos, so the systems we have in place work better and could possibly be used in other parts of the state. I appreciate the collaboration with Mayor Mulvaney-Stanak, Interim Chief of Police Shawn Burke, and members of the City Council. I believe this is a model for how, despite differences in political party, we can put that aside and work together to solve problems and help people."

"This response plan is a good step forward for community health and safety in Burlington. A functioning legal system is crucial for community accountability, and the plan will help ensure that cases are resolved, that victims are supported, and that people are connected to services and provided opportunities for rehabilitation," said Mayor Mulvaney-Stanak. "This complements my administration's existing community safety strategies, which include rebuilding and better deployment of our police services, implementing our new City Circle and Situation Table, and investing in our local social service providers. In order for our communities to be safer for everyone, we must identify myriad responses to address harm and improve well-being. I am grateful for the productive collaboration with Governor Scott and his team, and I look forward to our continued engagement around both immediate and longer-term solutions."

The Governor's Burlington Short-Term Action Plan includes the following actions:

1. Using the list, generated by the Court Clerk, of individual offenders in Chittenden County with five or more cases, begin prosecutions and trials in a pilot docket in the Chittenden Criminal Division (Community Accountability Court).

1. To operationalize the pilot:
   
   1. Governor to appoint a Special Prosecutor in coordination with the Department of State's Attorneys and Sheriffs and Chittenden County State's Attorney
   2. Judiciary to assign a judge
   3. Defender General to designate a lead public defender
   4. Additional staffing as necessary to facilitate a functional court

1. Immediate implementation of Department of Corrections Pre-Trial Supervision in Burlington to work with the Judge and the Special Prosecutor on appropriate cases.

1. Immediately implement expanded substance use treatment (MOUD, therapy, group, recovery coaches) in certain DOC facilities; available when required by Court order.

1. Build and Staff a multi-disciplinary team (including the Agency of Human Services (AHS), the Department of Public Safety , the Burlington Police Department (BPD) and Burlington Service Providers) advisory to the specially assigned Judge, the Special Prosecutor, and the Lead Public Defender to assess individual needs and facilitate services.

1. Offer state law enforcement assets, in coordination with BPD Chief, for foot patrols, marked unit presence, and greater visibility in Burlington.

1. Enhance Burlington enforcement of city ordinances through ticketing and use of the City Attorney to charge violations and make referrals to Burlington's City Circle Program.

1. AHS will direct local service providers receiving State funding to utilize law enforcement when appropriate for violent and disruptive behaviors in and around their premises.

1. AHS and the Vermont Department of Health will partner with local syringe service providers to enact research-based best practices for syringe exchange, exploring both incentives and accountability for disposal of those syringes, and expand current collaborative cleanup efforts with the City.

1. Work with the University of Vermont (UVM) to bring online an additional mobile addiction treatment van and the staffing to address both opiate and stimulant disorders.

1. Direct the Department of Mental Health, in collaboration with the multi-disciplinary team, to enhance orders of non-hospitalization (ONH) to ensure compliance with treatment and follow up with non-compliance.

1. Offer the Agency of Transportation as a consultant for current construction and traffic projects to quickly revitalize the Burlington downtown.

1. The Governor, Mayor, City Council and business community to coordinate with UVM and city residents on a mass volunteer clean-up and beautification effort, and to encourage more downtown events.

1. The State, City and other stakeholders will engage in ongoing communication to review how the response plan is working, employing data to evaluate outcomes and determinants of success.

These response measures are meant to be short-term, immediate actions that can be operationalized over a 3-4-month period. The Governor will continue to propose and advocate for medium- and long-term solutions that will help address some of the systemic causes to the challenges we face, including continuing to push for significant housing and public safety legislation.

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