As President Donald Trump expands his crackdown on immigrants across the nation, Vermont lawmakers are scrambling to find ways the state can be more protective and welcoming to undocumented residents.
Democratic and Progressive lawmakers have advanced legislation they hope will make Vermont, if not a sanctuary, at least a safer haven for people widely acknowledged to be a valuable part of the state’s economy and communities.
“I think we as a state need to, at a certain point, draw a line as to whether or not we are willing to use state resources to be part of ICE-sanctioned human trafficking, because that’s what is happening,” Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (P/D-Chittenden-Central) said last week during debate on one of the bills.
There’s only so much state officials can do. Federal immigration agencies —Customs and Border Protection as well as Immigration and Customs Enforcement — have the power to operate within state borders largely at will.
Republican Gov. Phil Scott has so far expressed reluctance to limit the state’s cooperation with immigration officials, meaning any such bills face long odds of earning his signature.
Administration officials say they understand lawmakers’ desire to protect people from increased federal immigration actions. But they warn that legislative overreaction could have unintended consequences — perhaps jeopardizing federal grants the state relies upon and harming the very people lawmakers want to protect.
Trump recently signed an executive order targeting so-called “sanctuary cities,” ordering the Department of Justice to produce a list of jurisdictions that “obstruct the enforcement of Federal immigration laws.” Any that do could face legal action and the suspension of federal funding.
Scott’s general counsel, Jaye Pershing Johnson, warned senators last week about the risks associated with countering immigration enforcement. “Some are so blinded by the emotion they are feeling about the administration in Washington, they have completely forgotten what would be best for Vermont,” she said.
It’s not clear which bills might make it across the fast-approaching legislative finish line, nor which ones the governor would be willing to sign. But several of the proposals enjoy the support of Democratic leaders and influential advocacy groups.
“The legislature has a number of bills in front of it right now that, if passed and strengthened, can make a meaningful difference to immigrant communities in this state,” said Falko Schilling, advocacy director of the ACLU of Vermont.
Here’s a look at seven of these bills.
No Alliance
Soon after Trump first took office, in 2017, Vermont passed a law limiting police agencies’ ability to aid ICE. The law requires that any agreements for local officers to help with immigration enforcement must be reviewed by the Vermont attorney general and signed by the governor.
There is a loophole, however. The law allows police and sheriff’s departments to strike such deals with the feds without the governor’s approval during a state or federal emergency.
S.44 would close that loophole. Trump declared an emergency on the southern border on his first day in office, and state lawmakers worry he could do the same with the northern border. If he did so, the bill would ensure the governor’s signature would still be needed on any cooperative agreements.
Lawful Detainer?
Vermont houses some ICE detainees in prisons, for a fee, under an agreement that will expire in August. Some lawmakers, angered by high-profile immigration enforcement cases in Vermont, say the state should cancel the contract altogether; Gov. Scott counters that that would only result in Vermonters being sent to far-flung ICE facilities in places such as Louisiana.
Lawmakers want a say in fashioning the next agreement — one that would allow ICE to use state prisons but prevent its agents from shuttling people from those facilities to detention centers elsewhere in the U.S. or other countries. They’re considering adding language to an existing bill to spell that out, but it’s not clear which one.
“There is great concern with Vermont becoming one of those facilities as a way station to move people ahead of judicial oversight,” Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth (D/P-Chittenden-Central) told colleagues.
Johnson, Scott’s legal counsel, has pushed back. She noted that lawmakers didn’t object when the detention numbers spiked under Democratic administrations. She also said the proposed restrictions could make it impossible for Scott to strike another detention deal.
“The legislative micromanagement of this agreement at this time I do not believe is appropriate,” she told lawmakers in unusually frank testimony.
Baruth said he understands the benefit of Vermonters being housed close to home. But it’s “mind-blowing,” he said, to imprison immigrants without due process, which he likened to sending people to a “gulag.”
He also chastised Scott for objecting to lawmakers’ ideas without proposing his own solutions.
“The governor is not going to be able to remain in this protective crouch forever,” Baruth said.
Safe Health Care
Some immigrants are so scared to venture out in public that they’ve essentially gone into hiding, Jill Martin Diaz, executive director of the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, told lawmakers. One even reported skipping chemotherapy treatments out of fear of getting pulled over and deported, she said.
S.148 would prohibit Vermont law enforcement from cooperating with immigration officials in cases that involve medical care. Proponents say undocumented immigrants should feel safe to seek care and report medical emergencies, including overdoses, without worrying that immigration officials would be notified.
The bill would also impose a sweeping restriction preventing local law enforcement from providing resources or information to aid federal immigration cases.
Johnson said the state already limits such cooperation without running afoul of federal law through its fair and impartial policing policy. The bill would upset that balance and would “expressly violate federal law” requiring some information sharing — exposing the state to huge risk of lost federal funding, she said.
Vyhovsky expressed skepticism that existing rules offer enough protection.
“When I hear witness testimony that people are skipping cancer treatments because they are afraid, I don’t know that the fair and impartial policing policy is working,” she said.
Rental Protections
Undocumented immigrants often lack Social Security numbers, which many landlords require on rental applications. That can severely restrict their housing options. H.169 would require landlords to accept alternative IDs, such as a green card or a passport. The bill would also make it illegal for landlords to discriminate against those who are undocumented.
Rep. Marc Mihaly (D-East Calais), who chairs the House Committee on General and Housing, said there was “a lot of head-scratching” among committee members grappling with the bill.
Lawmakers don’t want to make landlords’ jobs harder or make it tougher to perform background checks on potential tenants. But they also want to make it clear that Social Security numbers should not be required to rent.
“We’re trying to educate people that there are other ways to do this,” Mihaly said.
Safe Schools
Will ICE show up at schools? H.511 anticipates that agents might and would require all schools to exclude ICE from nonpublic areas of a school without a judicial warrant.
Supporters cite growing evidence that ICE agents are presenting warrants that are not signed by a judge, known as administrative warrants. The bill would clarify when agents could enter schools.
Some have argued that the bill is unnecessary and confusing. Pietro Lynn, a Burlington attorney whose firm represents many Vermont school districts, said schools already have such a requirement.
“We do not, in any circumstance, want to be in a position where we are allowing ICE officers to enter our schools,” he said.
He also expressed concern about a section of the bill that purports to grant immunity to school staff who deny ICE entry. Vermont can only grant immunity from state charges, not federal ones, he noted. This could lead school officials to believe, wrongly, that their actions were fully protected.
Office of
New Americans
In March, the Senate passed a bill that would consider the creation of an Office of New Americans. The bill, S.56, proposed an eight-member committee that would explore whether the independent office makes sense in the current political climate. The group would include members from AALV, formerly known as the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, and Migrant Justice.
The committee would have to submit a report by September 2026 outlining health and economic data about new Americans, the government services they use, and whether those services could be more effectively and efficiently delivered.
Sen. Martine Gulick (D-Chittenden-Central) told colleagues that there is “a real existential worry” that funds to aid refugees could be in jeopardy given the federal threats. An Office of New Americans could expand services beyond the refugee community to the broader immigrant community and better coordinate those services, said Tracy Dolan, director of the Vermont State Refugee Office.
Kid Code
Hundreds of Vermont families are headed by undocumented parents. What happens to the kids, many of whom were born in the U.S. and are therefore citizens, when parents are detained or deported? They’re currently at risk of being placed in the custody of the Department for Children and Families until they are 18.
“Nobody wants that. Parents don’t want that. DCF doesn’t want that,” Barbara Prine, a Vermont Legal Aid attorney, told lawmakers.
H.98 would establish a way for undocumented parents to designate a trusted adult to be their child’s guardian in the event they are detained or deported. DCF officials support the proposed changes, noting that children’s well-being is better served when they have safe arrangements with people they know.
The original print version of this article was headlined “Safer Haven? | Lawmakers are considering several bills to make Vermont a more secure place for migrants. Gov. Scott opposes some of them.”
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This article appears in May 7-13, 2025.
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