The Department of Corrections on Wednesday received a $1 million federal grant to help reduce the number of offenders who commit new crimes.
Vermont was one of five states to receive the recidivism reduction grant, along with Georgia, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota. Each state will be eligible for an additional $2 million over the next two years if they meet their targets for recidivism reduction, said DOC Commissioner Andy Pallito.
The money came from the U.S. Department of Justice via the federal law known as the Second Chance Act, co-sponsored by U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-VT. Leahy is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the most senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
He congratulated Vermont Wednesday in a press release.
“Reducing recidivism rates is a fundamental step to improving safety in communities around the country,” Leahy said.
He commended DOC for its work and said the grant will enable Pallito and his team to build on their success.
Pallito thanked Leahy and the rest of the Vermont delegation in Washington, D.C., who advocated for the state to receive this grant.
“It allows the DOC to focus on recidivism reduction efforts, which has been a stated goal of Governor Shumlin,” Pallito said in an email.
Pallito said Vermont will use the money to create “sustainable changes” in practices and policies to reduce the number of offenders who commit new crimes.
Reducing recidivism is one way the state can curtail its use of private prisons in other states, Pallito said recently. Currently, about 500 Vermont inmates are housed in for-profit prisons operated by the Corrections Corporation of America in Kentucky and Arizona.
The grant will be used for policy development, staff training, integrating case management among community organizations, increasing quality assurance, using “validated risk and needs assessments” and establishing an “evidence-based domestic violence program,” Pallito said in a news release.
