Former plaintiff calls Vermont hotel housing class-action lawsuit “a necessary first recognition”

There is new information regarding the Vermont Legal Aid class action lawsuit against the state of Vermont, although the lawsuit is currently paused. The lawsuit relates to a June government decision by Governor Phil Scott to tighten eligibility requirements for homeless Vermonters for emergency shelters in hotels and motels.

“I think (the class action) is a necessary first acknowledgment that there have been some areas where policies and procedures and legal procedures have not been followed,” Tina Gray-Rand said Friday.

She was due to lose her shelter earlier this month until an injunction on Wednesday put an end to it. Tina lives at the Pierre Motel in downtown Barre.

“I can’t work full-time right now,” she says. “After entering the hotel process, PTSD was triggered. There was – it’s a lot of stress, in addition to rebuilding your own life. “

Tina and about 700 other Vermonters with disabilities in hotel accommodations need the state to officially certify their disability. In this case, your stay will be extended for a further 12 weeks.

Tina let that happen on Thursday. Your stay at the Pierre Motel has been extended to at least September 23rd. But that also means that she is no longer a plaintiff in the class action lawsuit. Her name was on the court records.

“The old criteria of living – I think it’s probably out of date and archaic,” Tina said. “This could be a good time to see what could really work.”

In late June, Vermont legislators passed a bill to put in place a stronger enforcement system for rental property safety. This system would have included the creation of a nationwide registry for rental units.

On Friday, Governor Phil Scott vetoed this measure, writing in part:

“Most agree that we are facing a critical housing shortage for middle-income, low-income, and homeless Vermonters, but the solution is no longer regulation. Instead, we have to invest in new and refurbished living space in all corners of our country. “

Tina says she supports the governor and knows full well that his government needed to act quickly and decisively during the pandemic. Even so, she is concerned about the direction of the state.

“I don’t think it’s good for our society to say we fight homelessness and then kick people out and build tent cities like we are,” she said.

Local 22 & Local 44 News has also reached out to the Vermont Agency of Human Services – the defendant in the class action lawsuit – for comment. At the time of this writing, the Agency officials had not replied.