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Senators consider H.270 to create confidentiality protections for emergency‑service peer support
Summary
H.270 would shield oral and written communications in employer‑based peer support sessions for emergency responders from public records inspection and bar disclosure in most judicial proceedings, while listing specific exceptions for imminent threats, abuse, admissions of intent to commit crimes and other safety concerns.
Senators reviewed H.270 on March 25, a bill that would create confidentiality protections for peer support communications offered to emergency‑service providers who respond to traumatic incidents.
The bill defines covered personnel broadly — including firefighters, licensed emergency medical technicians, law‑enforcement officers certified by the Vermont Criminal Justice Council, corrections officers, 911 call takers and a wide range of mental‑health professionals and crisis responders operating in a crisis setting. It also defines an "emergency service peer support specialist" as a person designated by an employer or recognized program who has received training to provide peer support for potentially traumatizing events.
Under the proposed law, peer support communications and written notes arising from peer support sessions would be confidential and exempt from public‑records inspection. Communications made in a peer support session generally would be inadmissible in judicial, administrative or arbitration proceedings and discovery, with explicit exceptions: threats of suicide or homicide; information about child or vulnerable‑adult abuse or other reportable conduct; admissions of conduct that pose a public‑safety risk; and admissions of a plan to commit a crime. The bill also allows communication among program staff and specialists and includes limited liability protections for programs and specialists unless conduct amounts to gross negligence or intentional misconduct.
Supporters told the committee the protections respond to a need among volunteer and career responders — especially in rural areas — for accessible, non‑stigmatizing peer support after traumatic incidents. Committee members asked whether the bill would require employers to create peer‑support programs (it does not), how the public‑records exemption would interact with existing law, and what entities qualify as emergency‑service providers. Members also flagged possible overlaps with existing employee wellness programs and asked the reporter to bring back details on scope and operational implications.
Next steps: the committee indicated it would seek input from the bill reporter, affected employer organizations and counsel for the public‑records statute before advancing the measure.
