Council backs staff advocacy to Attorney General to preserve local pre‑charge restorative services under Act 180

South Burlington city officials briefed the council on Jan. 13 about the local Community Justice Center (CJC) and a recent funding and policy change under Act 180 that shifts responsibility for pre‑charge restorative justice programs from the Department of Corrections to the Vermont Attorney General’s Office.

Police Chief Sean Burke and City Manager Jesse Baker described how the CJC provides pre‑charge restorative justice, mediation and victim support services and said the shift in funding responsibility created uncertainty for centers across Chittenden County, which currently has four sites (Burlington, South Burlington, Williston and Essex). Chief Burke and staff said Chittenden County’s size and the different service mixes across centers complicate the Attorney General’s statewide review and that managers from three of the four manager‑led communities sent a letter asking the Attorney General’s Office to consider a two‑site model for the county: one manager‑led site that remains closely embedded with police departments and another structure to cover Burlington’s different model.

Chief Burke told the council the South Burlington model has been highly integrated with the police department, with officers regularly referring low‑level or first‑time cases to restorative processes. He said that, in the three manager‑led communities (excluding Burlington), CJCs have closed roughly 1,200 cases since fall 2019 and that about 79% of those screened in for services were successfully closed — a figure staff said illustrates the centers’ ability to divert some matters out of the formal criminal record and provide repair to victims as well as alternatives for people who commit low‑level offenses.

Baker said the relocation of funding to the Attorney General’s Office came with no dedicated appropriation and with a directive to examine geographic equity and to streamline services. The city’s managers and chiefs proposed a county approach that would preserve the local, manager‑embedded model that South Burlington favors; their letter asks the Attorney General’s Office to work with municipalities and explore two sites in the county so that restorative services remain near police departments where that model has proven effective.

Council discussion and staff comments

Councilors asked whether the council should expect a future request for funding and whether the city has capacity to serve as an administrative lead for a consolidated model. Baker and Chief Burke said the FY26 city budget includes municipal general fund dollars to help sustain operations at the South Burlington CJC for the coming year but that state appropriations and the Attorney General’s decisions remain uncertain until the state budget process concludes. Baker said staff would continue advocacy meetings with the delegation and the AG’s office and that any firm operational or funding commitments would return to council for approval.

Several councilors voiced support for exploring a leadership role for South Burlington and asked staff to continue engagement with the Attorney General’s Office and local representatives. Councilors signaled general support for the joint managers’ letter and for staff to pursue further conversations; staff said they would return with details and any formal partnership proposals that required council action.

Why it matters

Staff and councilors framed the issue as one of local service continuity and public safety strategy: pre‑charge restorative options can keep eligible matters out of the formal criminal system, avoid a criminal record for participants who complete agreed‑upon remedies, and provide victims with an active role in shaping resolutions. Because the AG’s statewide review includes a charge to consider geographic equity, local managers asked the AG’s office to preserve at least one manager‑led site that remains closely coordinated with police departments in Chittenden County.