Questions for Vermont LEO's

[Florida Smokey]

Hi everyone,

I just had a few questions about Vermont law enforcement. Hopefully, one of you will be able to answer them for me. I've been a Trooper in Florida for almost 11 years and promoted to Sergeant about 2 years ago.

I was in Vermont last week and really enjoyed the area. I have considered moving up there but I'm not really sure if I'll do it. At this stage in the game it is only a thought.

Is it difficult to get hired by the State Police? How is their pay in relation to the cost of living in Vermont? Is it difficult to get assigned to the area around Swanton/Alburgh? How does the scheduling work (i.e. 8's, 10's or 12's, rotating days off, midnight shift, etc)?

Also, my wife is currently a Deputy Sheriff in Florida and she has about 7 years experience. Are the local Sheriff's Offices difficult to get on? Do they make you start at the jail before working the road? How is their pay in relation to the cost of living?

Thanks in advance for any answers. Take care and stay safe!

[WHC166]

Hi everyone,

I just had a few questions about Vermont law enforcement. Hopefully, one of you will be able to answer them for me. I've been a Trooper in Florida for almost 11 years and promoted to Sergeant about 2 years ago.

I was in Vermont last week and really enjoyed the area. I have considered moving up there but I'm not really sure if I'll do it. At this stage in the game it is only a thought.

Is it difficult to get hired by the State Police? How is their pay in relation to the cost of living in Vermont? Is it difficult to get assigned to the area around Swanton/Alburgh? How does the scheduling work (i.e. 8's, 10's or 12's, rotating days off, midnight shift, etc)?

Also, my wife is currently a Deputy Sheriff in Florida and she has about 7 years experience. Are the local Sheriff's Offices difficult to get on? Do they make you start at the jail before working the road? How is their pay in relation to the cost of living?

Thanks in advance for any answers. Take care and stay safe!

There is quite a bit of competition for VSP. There are only about 300 troopers for the entire state. If you work nights you will be home by 2am (again at the barracks in my area). VSP does pay well compared to the cost of living.

Sheriffs Departments in VT do not run jails. All prisoners, pre and post conviction go to the custody of the VT Department of Corrections. Sheriffs departments for the most part do prisoner transports and contract traffic enforcement. With very few exceptions they do not do county wide patrols and do not do criminal work.

VT has many municipal department, most of which it seems are always looking for officers. You have to remember that most towns are very small, and in most places there is only one officer on duty at a time and the pay isn't that great. The bigger departments pay fairly well and are busy...by VT standards.

Another thing to think about is your political leanings. VT is one of the most liberal states in the nation and us with more moderate to conservative leanings are left frustrated most elections.

Hope that helps!

[Florida Smokey]

There is quite a bit of competition for VSP. There are only about 300 troopers for the entire state. If you work nights you will be home by 2am (again at the barracks in my area). VSP does pay well compared to the cost of living.

Sheriffs Departments in VT do not run jails. All prisoners, pre and post conviction go to the custody of the VT Department of Corrections. Sheriffs departments for the most part do prisoner transports and contract traffic enforcement. With very few exceptions they do not do county wide patrols and do not do criminal work.

VT has many municipal department, most of which it seems are always looking for officers. You have to remember that most towns are very small, and in most places there is only one officer on duty at a time and the pay isn't that great. The bigger departments pay fairly well and are busy...by VT standards.

Another thing to think about is your political leanings. VT is one of the most liberal states in the nation and us with more moderate to conservative leanings are left frustrated most elections.

Hope that helps!

Thanks very much for the answers. There was some good information in there. I never knew that there weren't any county jails in Vermont. Interesting.

[VtCO84]

VTDOC takes care of everything, which means if you pick up a drunk somewhere, you might be driving him for 20-30 minutes to a regional facility, sometimes longer.

I know Franklin County has a jail, but im not sure how it works. but it is run by the sheriffs.

The sheriffs in my area, are not paid well at all. (Rutland County). just my .02. I know Rutland City Police is always looking, 2nd largest city in vermont (still very small compared to florida) and it has a growing drug problem.

[Florida Smokey]

Does anyone know how the VSP pay plan works? It says they top out around 70,000 but it doesn't say how long it takes to get there.

I need to sit down and figure out how far my money will go in Vermont versus how far it will go in Florida. My problem is that I am making $42,000 in Florida after nearly 11 years and a promotion to sergeant. I think I could do a little better up there.

[WHC166]

If I remember correctly their payscale is 15 steps, which would I assume take 15 years to make it through. Again I'm not 100% certain as with my agency you get a raise after your first 6 months then after a year and every year after that until top out.

Again I would look at some locale agencies as well as some pay better than the troops get.