Vermont H 211: An act relating to recovery residences

Bill Text

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VT LEG #351112 v.1
H.211 1
Introduced by Representatives Killacky of South Burlington, Noyes of 2
Wolcott, Durfee of Shaftsbury, Houghton of Essex, Page of 3
Newport City, Stevens of Waterbury, Townsend of South 4
Burlington, Walz of Barre City, and Wood of Waterbury 5
Referred to Committee on 6
Date: 7
Subject: Human services; housing; substance use disorder; recovery residences 8
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to: (1) provide 9
certain residential rental agreement exclusions to recovery residences; 10
(2) require that recovery residences have certain policies and procedures 11
pertaining to residential agreements, temporary removal, separation, and drug 12
testing; (3) require a municipality to treat a recovery residence as a single-13
family residential home under its land use bylaws; (4) require the Department 14
of Corrections to submit a report to the General Assembly pertaining to the 15
number of individuals on furlough who reside in recovery residences; and 16
(5) establishes the Recovery Stabilization Study Committee. 17
An act relating to recovery residences 18

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VT LEG #351112 v.1
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 1
Sec. 1. LEGISLATIVE INTENT 2
It is the intent of the General Assembly: 3
(1) to support individuals with substance use disorder who are in 4
recovery; 5
(2) to reduce homelessness, trafficking, incarceration, and fatal drug 6
overdoses caused by the disease; and 7
(3) that any exceptions made to existing landlord and tenant 8
relationships in this act are limited solely to recovery residences operating 9
pursuant to this act, as these exceptions are intended to enable the expansion of 10
recovery residences throughout the State and ensure their accessibility to 11
individuals recovering from a substance use disorder. 12
Sec. 2. 18 V.S.A. § 4812 is added to read: 13
§ 4812. RECOVERY RESIDENCES 14
(a) Definitions. 15
(1) As used in this section, “recovery residence” means a shared living 16
residence supporting persons recovering from a substance use disorder that: 17
(A) Provides tenants with peer support, an environment that prohibits 18
the use of alcohol and the illegal use of prescription drugs or other illegal 19
substances, and provides assistance accessing support services and community 20
resources available to persons recovering from substance use disorders. 21

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VT LEG #351112 v.1
(B) Is certified by an organization that is a Vermont affiliate of the 1
National Alliance for Recovery Residences or obtains a preliminary 2
certification within 45 days of operation and adheres to the national standards 3
established by the Alliance or its successor in interest, including duty of care 4
standards. If there is no successor in interest, the Department of Health shall 5
designate a certifying organization to uphold appropriate standards for 6
recovery housing. 7
(2) As used in this section, “the illegal use of prescription drugs” refers 8
to the use of prescription drugs by a person who does not hold a valid 9
prescription for that drug or in an amount that exceeds the dosing instructions. 10
(b) Voluntary arrangement. 11
(1) The decision to live in a recovery residence shall be voluntary and 12
shall not be required or mandated by any private or public entity or individual. 13
(2) The State shall not subject any individual to incarceration, penalty, 14
or sanction based solely on temporary removal or termination from a recovery 15
residence. This subdivision shall not limit the ability of the Department of 16
Corrections to incarcerate an individual based on criminal activity or a 17
substantial threat to public safety. If a tenant who is subject to temporary 18
removal or termination from a recovery residence is at immediate risk of 19
significant harm, the Department of Corrections shall use its best efforts to 20

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VT LEG #351112 v.1
transition the tenant from the recovery residence directly to another safe 1
community setting and shall incarcerate the tenant only as a last resort. 2
(c) Terms of residency; compliance. 3
(1) Landlord and tenant relationship. A recovery residence and a tenant 4
have a landlord and tenant relationship that is subject to 9 V.S.A. chapter 137, 5
except as otherwise provided in subdivisions (3)–(4) of this subsection. 6
(2) Residential rental agreement. 7
(A) A recovery residence and a tenant shall execute a written rental 8
agreement that includes: 9
(i) the policies and procedures governing the tenancy; 10
(ii) a statement that the recovery residence and the tenant will 11
comply with the policies and procedures; 12
(iii) the consequences of noncompliance; 13
(iv) the identification of a verified location where the tenant may 14
be housed in the event of temporary removal, including at least one alternative 15
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