2026 Legislative Agenda
Keep up with the VT 2026 legislative session with our Drug Policy Bill tracker:
Public Health Problems Require Public Health Solutions, not Prison Time
Vermonters with substance use disorder (“SUD”) should not be put behind bars, wasting taxpayer dollars to warehouse low-level, non-violent individuals who need treatment and support, not prison time. These laws impose lifelong consequences, trapping people in cycles of poverty and instability, making it harder to access housing, employment, and support, and increasing the risk of relapse, recidivism, and survival-driven crimes. In other words, even after individuals have served their time, a felony record makes it nearly impossible to live a stable and productive life.
The VHRA is calling for common sense sentencing reform through two bills this legislative session to break these cycles and advance public safety, health, fiscal responsibility and Vermonters’ ability to thrive.
The Price Of Incarceration: $230 Million & Counting
The Department of Corrections' FY2025 budget was $197 million dollars. Incarceration for low-level drug possession places additional strain on already short-staffed and overcrowded prisons, wastes taxpayer dollars, and diverts resources from addressing more serious crimes.
A Lifetime of Consequences & Closed Doors
Barriers to Employment:
Vermonters who have a felony on their record struggle to find employment for basic survival. They face the following:
Restrictions on employment options, occupational licensing, and internships.
Risk of termination or lost opportunities for promotion
Stigma that employers interpret as a character issue, regardless of circumstance, that can disqualify candidates the moment their application is reviewed.
Barriers to Education:
Felony records can restrict financial aid eligibility, campus housing, and academic program access. Education is the only viable path out of poverty, and for too many, that door is shut, ensuring a lifetime of struggle.
Barriers to Housing:
Federal and Vermont laws allow both public housing authorities and private landlords to deny tenancy based on certain criminal convictions, including drug possession, making it difficult to find secure housing and increasing the rates of homelessness.
In practice, many landlords rely on blanket bans that automatically disqualify anyone with a felony record. A 2025 study found that 13.6% of landlords denied housing for those with a felony possession on their record, and just over 12% reported denying applicants with any kind of felony.
Barriers to Recovery:
Illicit drugs are still accessible to inmates in jails and prisons, and the trauma of incarceration can actually make the need for self-medicating through substance use even stronger. After release, barriers to employment and employer-based healthcare make accessing treatment difficult.
Want a deeper look at the lifelong consequences of a felony conviction in Vermont?
Explore the full scope of state-level collateral consequences below.
Want a deeper look at the lifelong consequences of a federal felony conviction?
Explore the full scope of Federal-level collateral consequences below.
VHRA’s Legislation
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Reduce Low-Level, Non-Violent Felony Drug Possession from a Felony to a Misdemeanor: Felony convictions create lifelong barriers that make recovery and stability harder, not easier. A felony record can lock people out of housing, jobs, education, and even basic financial tools, pushing them deeper into poverty and increasing the risk of relapse or re-incarceration. Treating addiction and substance use as public health issues rather than permanent felony labels helps people rebuild their lives, support their families, and contribute to their communities, while also saving the state money and making our justice system more fair and effective.
Establish a Drug Use Health & Safety Advisory Board to define evidence-based personal-use benchmarks (“thresholds”)": Current possession thresholds are arbitrary and lack any basis in research or data. Establishing a panel of experts to determine appropriate thresholds will ground our laws in science, rather than the politics of fear.
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S.284 Supplement Element: Distinguishing between commercial distribution and noncommercial sharing of controlled substances ensures that legal penalties are proportional to intent and actual harm. This approach reduces unnecessary criminalization, supports public health–centered responses, and allows law enforcement resources to focus on conduct that poses the greatest risk to community safety
