An act relating to gender equity within Vermont’s correctional facilities

New section amending 28 V.S.A. section 701b adds a five-day classification deadline after sentencing or commitment, requires inmates be addressed consistent with their gender identity, mandates searches follow the inmate's gender identity or facility designation based on search preference, and requires housing at a men's or women's facility based on inmate preference including eligibility for residential treatment programs.

The new section 701b amendment requires the Department to document and certify in writing a specific and articulable basis before denying any inmate's search or housing preference, and requires reassessment of housing placement whenever an inmate raises health or safety concerns.

The new section 701b amendment prohibits denying a search or housing placement based on an inmate's anatomy (including genitalia), sexual orientation, or the presence of other inmates at the preferred facility. It also adds furlough provisions allowing the Commissioner to place misdemeanor defendants on furlough based on completed classification.

All sections after the new section were renumbered by one (e.g., the definitions amendment moved from Sec. 2 to Sec. 3, the effective date moved from Sec. 13 to Sec. 14). The header changed from 'AS PASSED BY HOUSE' to 'BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE' and page count increased from 14 to 21 due to the added section and standard official formatting.

The bill expanded from 4 sections to 13 sections, adding entirely new statutory provisions for gender identification (amending 28 V.S.A. sec. 129), search policy (new sec. 130), classification and housing placement (new sec. 701c), PREA standards compliance (new sec. 820), peer support program amendments (sec. 127), segregation definition updates (sec. 701a), search policy review, PREA reporting, and gender-affirming care oversight.

The House version's detailed classification provisions in amended sec. 701b (including the 5-day classification deadline, specific search and housing preference language, and anti-discrimination protections) were replaced by a more distributed approach across new sections 129, 130, and 701c, with the multidisciplinary panel review process as a central mechanism.

New formal definitions added to 28 V.S.A. sec. 3 for 'gender-diverse,' 'gender identity,' 'gender pronoun,' 'honorific,' 'inmate,' and 'intersex,' providing statutory grounding for the bill's other provisions.

New section 701c requires the Department to make classification and housing placement determinations for transgender, gender-diverse, and intersex inmates through multidisciplinary review panels that consult with medical personnel, mental health professionals experienced in gender dysphoria or gender-affirming care, and trained personnel.

New section 820 requires the Department to comply with Prison Rape Elimination Act national standards (28 C.F.R. Part 115) as of January 1, 2024, covering 44 specific areas including zero tolerance, screening, reporting, investigations, and disciplinary sanctions, with annual reports to the legislature starting in 2027.

New reporting deadlines added: a search policy revision due to the Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee (section 10), a PREA standards report due December 15, 2027 (section 11), and a gender-affirming care report due October 15, 2026 (section 12).

New section 129 requires the Department to ensure staff and contractors receive gender-responsive training proportional to their level of interaction with individuals in custody, and prohibits housing placement denials based solely on anatomy, physical characteristics, or diverse gender expression.

The unofficial version omits the introductory legislative metadata: the list of sponsoring representatives, the committee referral line, the subject line, and the statement of purpose paragraph.

Header text changed from 'BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE AND SENATE' to 'AS PASSED BY HOUSE AND SENATE' and a tracking number 'VT LEG #389804 v.1' was added to page headers in the unofficial version.

Added a new definitions section (28 V.S.A. Sec. 3) creating statutory definitions for 'gender-diverse,' 'gender identity,' 'gender pronoun,' 'honorific,' 'intersex,' and 'transgender' within Title 28, expanding the bill's definitional framework beyond what was in the introduced version.

Removed the introduced version's amendments to 28 V.S.A. Sec. 801 (Medical Care of Inmates), which had required cultural competency in health care providers, added gender identity intake questions within the medical section, and required staff to use specified pronouns in communications.

Added a new section (28 V.S.A. Sec. 129) requiring the Department to ask each individual about gender identity, pronouns, and honorifics during intake in a private setting, prohibit discipline for refusing to answer, allow updates at any time, require gender-responsive staff training, and bar denial of accommodations based solely on anatomy, physical characteristics, or diverse gender expression.

Added a new section (28 V.S.A. Sec. 130) governing all lawful searches, explicitly prohibiting searches conducted solely to determine an individual's genital status and requiring individualized consideration of search preferences for transgender, gender-diverse, or intersex individuals.

Added a new section (28 V.S.A. Sec. 701c) requiring classification and housing placement decisions for transgender, gender-diverse, and intersex inmates to be made by multidisciplinary review panels that must consult medical personnel, mental health professionals with gender dysphoria experience, and personnel trained in nationally recognized gender-affirming care standards.

Added a new section (28 V.S.A. Sec. 820) requiring the Department of Corrections to adopt and comply with federal Prison Rape Elimination Act national standards (28 C.F.R. Part 115) as of January 1, 2024, covering zero tolerance for sexual abuse, supervision, screening, reporting, investigation, medical care, data collection, and audits. Requires annual reporting to legislative committees starting in 2027 and policy adoption by January 15, 2027.

Added a requirement that the Department consider on an individualized basis whether placement at a facility outside Vermont would best support an inmate's health and safety, and coordinate with out-of-state facilities to assess and reassess placement determinations.

Added specific reassessment triggers requiring the Department to reassess housing placement when an inmate requests it or raises safety concerns, or when an inmate engages in misconduct including conduct posing a safety risk.

Added three oversight provisions: (1) DOC must submit a revised search policy to the Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee by August 1, 2026; (2) DOC must report on PREA standard changes by December 15, 2027; (3) the Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee must review gender-affirming care practices and submit a report with recommended statutory language by October 15, 2026.

Changed terminology throughout from 'nonbinary' to 'gender-diverse' as the umbrella term, broadening the category to include 'gender expansive,' 'gender nonconforming,' and 'other culturally diverse identities' beyond just nonbinary identification.