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Vermont Human Rights Commission warns staffing squeeze as HUD payments stall
Summary
The Vermont Human Rights Commission told the Senate Judiciary committee that federal HUD cooperating payments have not arrived, leaving the agency to request a small budget adjustment for FY26 and a conservative three‑position increase for FY27 to sustain core enforcement work.
Big Hartman, executive director and general counsel of the Vermont Human Rights Commission, told the Senate Judiciary committee on Feb. 5 that the commission is operating with nine staff and continuing to face heavy caseload pressure even after two positions were added in fiscal 2026.
Hartman said the commission added an intake coordinator and a fourth staff attorney/investigator last year but that both new hires began with large backlogs: “I handed him a 100 open intake files,” Hartman said, describing an intake coordinator who started in August. The office continues to decline more investigations than it accepts each week because of capacity limits.
Hartman showed committee members that the commission’s average case age at completion dropped to…
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