Defender General tells House Judiciary Committee H.606 appears overbroad; urges explicit petition to restore firearm rights

Montpelier — Matt Valerio, Vermont’s Defender General, told the House Judiciary Committee on May 12 that H.606’s provisions restricting firearms for people subject to mental-health orders appear overly broad and may invite constitutional litigation unless the bill explicitly preserves a petition-based restoration process.

Valerio framed his testimony as legal analysis rather than advocacy, saying his office’s role is to “stand to defend the constitutional right to bear arms” and to test whether statutes pass constitutional muster. He warned the committee that court outcomes in this area are difficult to predict and often turn on the facts of individual cases.

The Defender General singled out categories covered by the bill — commitment orders, hospitalization orders, incompetence findings and similar mental-health interventions — as circumstances in which restrictions might be…