Corrections staffing takes hit
Probation and parole offices lose staff to buyout
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By Thatcher Moats Times Argus Staff - Published: September 11, 2009
BARRE – As the Department of Corrections has cut positions in the last two years, jobs on the front lines at probation and parole offices have largely been spared. But that may be about to change, corrections officials said this week.
Around the state, people who work in the probation and parole unit of the Vermont Department of Corrections were among the 24 Corrections employees who accepted the state's early retirement offer, part of an effort to reduce the state budget in response to declining revenues because of the recession.
The loss of probation and parole officers and community corrections officers will mean there are fewer people monitoring convicts who are serving their sentences in Vermont communities.
Those boots-on-the-ground positions could still be filled, but officials remain non-committal when asked whether the departing employees will be replaced, and they left open the possibility that those positions would remain vacant.
"The essence is that while all these other cuts have happened across state government and other agencies, we've been fortunate to almost entirely spare probation and parole," said Rob Hofmann, the secretary of the Agency of Human Services, which includes the Department of Corrections. "But as the state revenues decline, it's going to be increasingly difficult to
continue to do that."
Out of the 24 early retirements in Corrections, eight positions will remain vacant, but as of now, it's unclear which positions those will be, said Corrections Commissioner Andy Pallito.
In Barre, two probation and parole officers left their jobs at the end of August.
In Rutland, a community corrections officer retired early, which leaves the field office there with two vacant positions in that category after another community corrections officer quit, said Michael O'Malley, the district manager in Rutland. An administrative assistant also retired early, said O'Malley, and the office has lost a secretary, a program manager and a victims advocate to layoffs.
In addition, the top three managers at the probation and parole unit of the department of Corrections retired early, taking a combined 102 years of experience with them, said Pallito. They are already recruiting to fill the top management position at probation and parole, said Pallito.
The cuts come at the same time the number of incarcerated prisoners in the state has increased by about 100 in the last year, said Pallito.
The number of probation and parole cases in the state has increased as well after a roughly 20 percent decline in the past five years, said Pallito.
The reductions faced by Corrections are occurring as the front end of the criminal justice system in Vermont – law enforcement — has been, in some cases, exempt from similar cuts or armed with new tools.
A sweeping new sex-offender bill that was passed last spring created new laws and rules. The bill also funded special investigation units dedicated to sex crimes. If the legislation works as intended, this could mean new people under the supervision of the Department of Corrections.
In addition, sworn police officers in the Vermont State Police were protected in the recent round of layoffs, and police around the state got a $1.3 million federal grant last month, more than $800,000 of it going to the Vermont State Police's drug task force unit.
Corrections officials, however, say they will be able to handle the extra load.
"I'm not overly worried," said Pallito.
Pallito acknowledged "the more staff we have, the more public safety we can deliver," but said that as long as Corrections doesn't violate the statute that limits the number of cases probation and parole officers can manage, the department should be able to fulfill its mission of keeping the public safe.
As for the loss of experienced managers, Pallito acknowledged it left a vacuum, complicated by the fact that it has happened all at once.
"Any time when you have that much knowledge walk out the door, there is a little bit of a gap," said Pallito.
But he said people are stepping up to the plate and the department will be fine in the short and long term – as long as the economy bounces back.
JoAnne Pereira, who has worked at the Barre office for 26 years and been manager for 16, is hoping the two vacancies are filled, but said the Barre field office will be able to manage even if they aren't.
"Folks are going to be a little busier than they were before, but we're covering it," Pereira said.
Barre probation and parole officers Bonnie Hotchkiss and Ray McCormack opted for the retirement incentive and left their jobs at the end of August, said Pereira. Their departure leaves 11 probation officers at the Barre office and seven community corrections officers.
Probation and parole officers manage cases while the community corrections officers augment that casework, keeping an eye on offenders in the community and sharing information with police, said Pereira.
Hotchkiss managed about 40 high-risk offenders while McCormack managed about 100 low-risk offenders, said Pereira. The cases they were managing have been dispersed among the remaining 11 probation officers in Barre, Pereira said.
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