Vermont

Governor Phil Scott signed Vermont’s Extreme Risk Protection Order Act into law on April 11, 2018. The law went into effect on the same day it was signed. It was amended in 2023 to allow for family and household members as petitioners.¹

An Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) is a civil order that temporarily prohibits a person at risk of causing harm to self or others from purchasing or possessing any dangerous weapons, including firearms.²

There are two types of ERPOs: an ex parte ERPO, which lasts up to fourteen days, and a final ERPO, which is issued after notice to the respondent and a hearing and lasts up to six months, unless renewed pursuant to the law.³ In Vermont, a State’s Attorney, the Office of the Vermont Attorney General, or a family or household member (includes persons who are living together, are sharing occupancy of a dwelling, are engaged in a sexual relationship, or minors or adults who are dating⁴) may file an ERPO petition.⁵ For purposes of an ERPO petition, a health care provider may notify a law enforcement officer when the provider believes in good faith that disclosure of the information is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a person or the public.⁶

When the court issues an ERPO—ex parte or final—the respondent must relinquish any firearms in their possession to law enforcement, a federally licensed firearms dealer, or, if ordered by the court, a third party.⁷ All other dangerous weapons must also be relinquished to law enforcement.⁸

Vermont’s ERPO law includes ex parte ERPOs issued by judicial officers; a hearing where the respondent is provided notice and an opportunity to participate; the respondent’s right to counsel (at no expense to the government); and the requirement of substantial and credible evidence (e.g. the enumerated factors the judicial officer must consider) to issue an ERPO.⁹