Disability advocates, Pathways tell House Human Services that housing changes harm people with disabilities; urge plain language, ombudsman, Housing First

Sarah Landerbilt, executive director of the Vermont Center for Independent Living, told the Vermont House Committee on Human Services on Feb. 20 that recent programmatic changes after the end of the public-health emergency have left many people with disabilities at higher risk of losing shelter.

Landerbilt said VCIL uses lived experience to help people with disabilities and that the organization has seen people “caught within a system that no longer was helping them as a priority.” She told the committee the organization supports the task force recommendations the panel received and urged lawmakers to adopt clearer, plain-language determination notices, multiple options for proving disability, and a required consideration of reasonable accommodations.

The testimony focused on three practical fixes Landerbilt said would reduce harm: improved communications and plain-language notices, stronger ombudsman support for people navigating shelter rules and appeals, and preserving access to permanent housing rather than steering people into more restrictive settings. She cited the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Olmstead integration mandate when warning against policies that could push people with disabilities into institutional settings rather than community housing. “We support the task force recommendations,” she said, and recommended no room- or day‑caps in emergency programs because caps create chaotic churn that endangers people’s shelter.

Representatives and committee members asked Landerbilt about an advisory board made up of people with lived experience; she supported an advisory body but cautioned that such groups should be structured to avoid power imbalances and ensure administrative supports (for accommodations and participation) are available.

Pathways Vermont described its Housing First permanent supportive housing work to the same committee. A Pathways representative said the program operates in eight counties and serves roughly 300 people statewide, using teams that pair landlord liaison work with long-term services. “Housing First permanent supportive housing” was the model the witness described; the program reported a housing-retention rate of about 85 percent and a desired staff-to-client ratio of about 1:12 (current ratios run closer to 1:15–1:18). The witness explained Pathways works through the HUD-coordinated entry system to receive referrals and that the service model is permanent rather than time-limited.

Pathways also presented cost-comparison data the witness said were drawn from earlier analyses (figures cited were 2021 daily rates): program services averaged roughly $60 per day versus hotel placements at about $150 per day, a difference the witness described as evidence of the economic efficacy of Housing First models.

Both witnesses described on-the-ground gaps: Landerbilt said VCIL staff have been acting as de facto extensions of emergency shelter systems to help people meet paperwork and communication requirements (for example, ensuring people who are deaf or hard of hearing can meet deadlines). She said some providers require repeated documentation (for example, asking people to redo a disability variance form annually) and that these procedures create barriers to shelter retention. The VCIL testimony urged statutory language aligning state definitions with the ADA and giving providers explicit direction to consider reasonable accommodations in determinations and appeals.

No formal committee action or vote was taken during the testimony; the session recorded questions from committee members and answers from witnesses. Committee members noted an existing bill on the agenda (H.91) and discussed how the testimony and task-force recommendations might inform statutory language and budget proposals going forward.

The witnesses identified several partners and supports they said are already involved or needed: End Homelessness Vermont (described as an on-the-ground partner and a practical ombudsman in recent transitions), the Vermont State Housing Authority (for vouchers and landlord coordination), local community-action agencies (for rental assistance and landlord supports), and Pathways Vermont (for Housing First services). Witnesses said additional, stable funding would be needed to expand Housing First teams beyond current counties and to sustain ombudsman and plain-language communications work.

The committee took testimony and asked clarifying questions; it did not adopt or modify policy text during the hearing. Lawmakers and staff will carry the testimony into future discussions about H.91 and other bills and budget proposals affecting emergency shelter, reasonable accommodations, and permanent supportive housing.