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Police, fire chiefs warn of staffing strains; council budgets temporary support for outreach and justice programs
Summary
Police reported 25% officer vacancies and rising incident volumes; the Community Justice Center faces an uncertain state funding shift, so the FY26 proposed budget includes city general‑fund support to keep local pre‑charge restorative services operating while legislature resolves funding changes.
At the Dec. 12 budget retreat, South Burlington police and fire leaders described a mix of persistent staffing pressures and programmatic changes that the council must consider as it finalizes the FY26 budget.
Police Chief Sean Burke said the department responded to 12,799 incidents in FY24 — an 11% increase — and recorded 798 arrests. He said property crime and stolen-vehicle incidents are up and warned the department is operating with a high vacancy rate: “Today, as I sit here, we're 25% vacant. We've got 10 openings,” Burke said. He told the council recruitment and retention are the department’s top priorities and that the city is boosting recruitment advertising and screening more…
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