Vermont's entire statewide animal welfare system runs on a single employee and a budget of $128,000 a year — most of which goes to her salary. Lisa Milot, the state's first ever Director of Animal Welfare, is doing the work of an entire division by herself. After her $99,000 salary, there is almost nothing left for investigations, education, outreach, or the infrastructure Vermont's animals desperately need.

In 2024, Vermont opened 507 animal abuse cases. Only nine resulted in arrests. Preventable neglect is widespread. Animals sit in abusive situations for months while courts sort out ownership. People trying to report abuse are bounced between town clerks, animal control officers, constables, sheriffs, state police, and game wardens — each pointing to someone else.

Milot handed lawmakers a detailed roadmap to fix all of this in January. They passed two modest bills and gave her no new money.

Vermont has a $2 surcharge on dog licenses funding this entire system. That is not a budget. That is an afterthought.

Animals cannot vote, but they are constituents too — and right now Vermont is failing them. Milot has already proven what is possible with almost nothing: she coordinated the rescue of 55 huskies from a Hyde Park barn using 40 volunteers and got every dog adopted. Imagine what a properly funded division could do.

We're calling on Vermont Governor Phil Scott and state lawmakers to fully fund the Animal Welfare Division in the next budget cycle and give Lisa Milot the resources she needs to do her job.