Vermont’s prison population has almost tripled over the last two decades. The Department of Corrections budget is at $130 million and climbing by more than 10% a year.
Last spring the legislature challenged the Department of Corrections to curb its budget growth by $4 million, and reduce the number of non-violent offenders in its prisons. This month, the department released a report on ways that might happen.
Jane Lindholm spoke with State Senator Dick Sears, Steven Jeffrey, Executive Director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns and Commissioner of Corrections Rob Hofmann about the study