S 89 Vermont Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

An act relating to expanding survivor benefits

S.89, "Jessica’s Law," expands Vermont's survivor benefits to cover families of law enforcement officers, Department of Corrections employees (in direct security/treatment roles), Family Services Division staff, and employees at state-operated therapeutic communities or inpatient psychiatric hospitals who die while on duty or from work-related illnesses. The bill adds these groups to the existing definition of "emergency personnel" under Vermont law, ensuring they qualify for the same survivor benefits previously available to firefighters and emergency medical staff. Benefits would be paid to surviving spouses, then children, then parents if no immediate family remains, following current distribution rules. The law takes effect on July 1, 2025.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

House Passage

Apr 2026

Signed into Law

May 2026

Introduced Feb 25, 2025 Signed May 20, 2026

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What changed between versions

As Passed by Both House and Senate (OfficialOpens in a new window) → As Passed by Both House and Senate (UnofficialOpens in a new window) · 7 edits

MODERATE

The bill expanding survivor benefits for emergency personnel in Vermont was revised between its official and unofficial passed versions, with the session year updated from 2025 to 2026. The most significant changes include removal of the short title 'Jessica's Law,' a one-year delay in the effective date (from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026), removal of specific beneficiary payment hierarchy and Treasurer disbursement timeline provisions, and addition of new procedural requirements for the review Board including a unanimous vote requirement with a 60-day deadline and authority to retain medical experts.

SCOPE

The short title 'Jessica's Law' was removed from the bill.

TIMELINE

The effective date was changed from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026, delaying when the expanded benefits take effect by one year.

REQUIREMENT

Provisions specifying that benefits be paid to surviving spouse, then child, then parent (with no benefit if none survive) and that the Treasurer had up to one year to disburse funds were removed from the Board section.

ELIGIBILITY

Explicit eligibility language was added clarifying that survivors of newly covered personnel categories (law enforcement officers, corrections employees, family services employees, and medical employees in therapeutic/psychiatric facilities) may only request benefits for deaths occurring on or after July 1, 2026.

ENFORCEMENT

A requirement was added that decisions to award monetary benefits must be made by unanimous vote of the Board within 60 days after receipt of all necessary information.

The Board was given authority to request any information necessary for its duties and may initiate investigation of a claim before being requested by a survivor or employer.

FISCAL

The Board was given authority to pay reasonable fees from the Special Fund for medical experts and other services to review occupation-related illness applications, and the Fund section was updated to explicitly cover these expenses.

As Passed By the Senate (UnofficialOpens in a new window) → As Passed By the Senate (OfficialOpens in a new window) · 5 edits · May 1, 2026

MODERATE

The official Senate-passed version of S.89 (Jessica's Law) makes three substantive changes compared to the unofficial version: it moves the effective date up one year to July 1, 2025; broadens eligibility by removing the 'family services' and 'medical' qualifiers from two categories of covered employees; and adds new provisions specifying a beneficiary hierarchy (spouse, then children, then parents) and a one-year payment deadline for the Treasurer.

Scope change

Eligibility expanded slightly by removing job-class qualifiers ('family services' and 'medical') from two categories, potentially covering additional classified employees in those settings. The effective date was accelerated by one year.

TIMELINE

Effective date changed from July 1, 2026 to July 1, 2025, bringing benefits forward by one year.

New subsection (d) added to 20 V.S.A. section 3172 requiring the Treasurer to disburse funds within one year of receiving the claim.

ELIGIBILITY

Subsection (E) of the 'emergency personnel' definition broadened from 'classified family services employees in the Family Services Division' to 'classified employees of the Family Services Division,' removing the 'family services' job-class qualifier and potentially covering more positions within that division.

Subsection (F) of the 'emergency personnel' definition broadened from 'classified medical employees of State-operated therapeutic community residences or inpatient psychiatric hospital units' to 'classified employees of State-operated therapeutic community residences or inpatient psychiatric hospital units,' removing the 'medical' job-class qualifier.

REQUIREMENT

New subsection (c) added to 20 V.S.A. section 3172 establishing a beneficiary hierarchy: surviving spouse first, then surviving child or children equally, then surviving parent or parents equally. If no spouse, child, or parent survives, the Board shall not award a monetary benefit.

As Passed By the Senate (OfficialOpens in a new window) → As EnactedOpens in a new window · 7 edits

MODERATE

The enacted version of Vermont's S.89 (renumbered as Act No. 102) pushes the effective date back a full year from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026, narrows eligibility for two categories of workers by specifying 'family services employees' and 'medical employees' rather than all 'classified employees,' and adds a new temporal limitation requiring that deaths of law enforcement officers, Department of Corrections staff, family services employees, and therapeutic community/psychiatric hospital employees occur on or after July 1, 2026 to qualify for benefits. The short title 'Jessica's Law' was dropped, and new procedural rules were added for the review board including a unanimous vote requirement and a 60-day decision deadline.

TIMELINE

Effective date changed from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026, delaying the entire program by one year.

ELIGIBILITY

New temporal limitation: survivors of law enforcement officers, Department of Corrections employees, family services employees, and therapeutic community/psychiatric hospital employees may only request benefits for deaths occurring on or after July 1, 2026. Firefighters and emergency medical personnel are not subject to this restriction.

DEFINITION

Family Services Division eligibility narrowed from 'classified employees' to 'classified family services employees,' and therapeutic community/psychiatric hospital eligibility narrowed from 'classified employees' to 'classified medical employees.'

SCOPE

The short title section designating the act as 'Jessica's Law' was removed from the enacted version.

ENFORCEMENT

New procedural requirements for the Emergency Personnel Survivors Benefit Review Board: decisions must be made by unanimous vote within 60 days of receiving all necessary information, and the Board may initiate investigations on its own without a request from a survivor or employer.

FISCAL

The Special Fund is now explicitly authorized to pay reasonable fees for medical experts and other services to assist the Board in reviewing occupation-related illness claims.

REQUIREMENT

Provisions specifying the beneficiary hierarchy (spouse, then children, then parents) and the Treasurer's one-year payment deadline were removed from the enacted text of Section 3172.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 20, 2026

Signed into law

Senate Message: Signed by Governor May 19, 2026

executive

May 20, 2026

Signed into law

Signed by Governor on May 19, 2026

executive

May 5, 2026

Introduced

Senate Message: House proposal of amendment concurred in

lower

May 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

As passed by Senate and House

upper

May 1, 2026

Introduced

House proposal of amendment concurred in

upper

May 1, 2026

Introduced

House proposal of amendment; text

upper

May 1, 2026

Introduced

Unfinished Business/House Proposal of Amendment

upper

Apr 30, 2026

Introduced

Unfinished Business/House Proposal of Amendment

upper

Apr 29, 2026

Introduced

Unfinished Business/House Proposal of Amendment

upper

Apr 28, 2026

Introduced

House proposal of amendment

upper

Apr 24, 2026

Introduced

House proposal of amendment

upper

Apr 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

House message: House passed bill in concurrence with proposal(s) of amendment

upper

Apr 22, 2026

Introduced

Read third time and passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

Report of Committee on General and Housing agreed to

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

Rep. Dickinson of St. Albans Town recommended for the Committee on Appropriations

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

Rep. Burrows of West Windsor reported for the Committee on General and Housing

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Introduced

Action Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

lower

Apr 17, 2026

Introduced

Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Appropriations per Rule 35(a)

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Introduced

Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

lower

Mar 26, 2026

Introduced

Read first time and referred to the Committee on General and Housing

lower

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations, as amended, agreed to

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations amended as moved by Senator Vyhovsky

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported favorably by Senator Perchlik for Committee on Appropriations

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read 2nd time, reported favorably with recommendation of amendment by Senator Vyhovsky for Committee on Government Operations

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Introduced

Recommendation of amendment to be offered by Senator(s) Vyhovsky

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report by Committee on Appropriations

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report with recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations

upper

Mar 19, 2026

Introduced

Recommendation of amendment to be offered by Senator(s) Vyhovsky

upper

Mar 19, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report by Committee on Appropriations

upper

Mar 19, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report with recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations

upper

Mar 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report by Committee on Appropriations

upper

Mar 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report with recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Appropriations per Senate Rule 31

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable report with recommendation of amendment by Committee on Government Operations

upper

Feb 25, 2025

Introduced

Read 1st time & referred to Committee on Government Operations

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors