Title 20, Title 20: Internal Security and Public Safety

§ 481. Duties generally (a) The Adjutant and Inspector General shall keep in good repair, and attend to the preservation, safekeeping, and cleaning of the ordnance, arms, accoutrements, ammunition, munitions of war, and implements of every description, whether the property of the…

§ 483. Instructions to commanding officers The Adjutant and Inspector General shall give instructions to the commanding officers of the separate units of the National Guard as necessary for the discharge of the duties of the unit and the Military Department under this chapter. (A…

§ 486. Provision for pay The Adjutant and Inspector General shall provide for the pay of each officer and enlisted Guard member for duty performed and authorized in accordance with chapters 21-39 of this title. The Adjutant and Inspector General shall adopt rules to carry out the…

§ 541. Board of Armory Commissioners; members The Governor, the Adjutant and Inspector General, and the senior commander of the Vermont Army National Guard shall, ex officio, constitute the Board of Armory Commissioners. The Governor shall be the Chair of the Board and the Adjuta…

§ 542. Acquisition, maintenance, and disposal of property for National Guard use In the name of the State, the Board shall be responsible for the real estate and personal property of the National Guard. The Board may acquire or purchase, maintain, and dispose of by sale or otherw…

§ 543. Location; plan of construction; contracts The Board may determine the location of armories and their plan of construction and may make all contracts necessary for the purchase, erection, and maintenance of the armories of the National Guard. (Amended 2021, No. 10, § 23.)

§ 544. Issuance of warrants Upon request of the Board, the Commissioner of Finance and Management shall issue warrants for sums as necessary to carry out the provisions of sections 541 and 543 of this chapter, subject to the limitations set forth in section 542 of this chapter. (…

§ 545. Use of armories; rules (a) The Board shall adopt rules governing the use and occupancy of the National Guard’s armories and property, which shall be posted in a conspicuous location in the National Guard’s buildings. A member of the National Guard who violates the rules sh…

§ 601. When and by whom National Guard called out (a) The Governor or, in his or her absence, the Lieutenant Governor, or, in the absence of both, the Adjutant and Inspector General, in case of riot, rebellion, or insurrection within the State, or in case of great opposition to t…

§ 603. Arms and equipment; pay and rations When the National Guard, or a part of it, is ordered out pursuant to section 366 or 601 of this title, the State shall furnish arms and equipment necessary for each officer, warrant officer, and enlisted person, and they shall be entitle…

§ 604. Failure of member of National Guard to report When ordered out, a member of the National Guard who does not appear at the time and place designated shall be taken to be absent without leave and be dealt with as in State active duty status. (Amended 1973, No. 223 (Adj. Sess…

§ 606. Control of National Guard assisting civil officer When a portion of the National Guard is called out to assist a civil officer in the service of legal process, it shall be under the immediate command of the National Guard member of the highest rank who is present. The Nati…

§ 607. State active duty death benefit There is established a death benefit in the amount of $50,000.00 for each Vermont National Guard member who dies while on State active duty or as the result of injuries incurred while on State active duty, provided the death or the injuries …

§ 608. Civilian leave option If any member of the Vermont National Guard is ordered to State active duty by the Governor, the service member shall have the right to take leave without pay from his or her civilian employment and shall be entitled to the protections and rights prov…

§ 609. Stay of legal proceedings because of service in National Guard (a)(1) If a member of the Vermont National Guard who is ordered to State active duty by the Governor is a party to a civil or administrative proceeding in any Vermont court, the proceeding: (A) may be stayed by…

§ 641. When and by whom called out Upon the request of the President of the United States, and in case of war or invasion, or to prevent insurrection or invasion, the Governor may call out as many of the Vermont National Guard as the circumstances require. The National Guard, whe…

§ 642. Failure to report Each officer, noncommissioned officer, and enlisted person ordered out, and every volunteer or drafted person, who fails to appear at the time and place designated, without rendering a sufficient excuse for the failure, shall be dealt with as provided by …

§ 701. Oaths of officers (a) A person commissioned as an officer or warrant officer of the National Guard, within the time designated by the Governor after the commission is tendered to the officer, shall take and subscribe to the oath as required by federal law and regulations b…

§ 702. Oaths of enlisted members (a) At the time of their enlistment, all enlisted members of the National Guard shall take and subscribe to the oath and contract prescribed by federal law and regulations before a National Guard officer or warrant officer who has taken and subscr…

§ 703. Duties of officers Commissioned officers shall obey orders received from superior officers; attend drills, parades, inspections, and reviews prescribed or authorized by this chapter; make returns pursuant to the direction of the Governor or rules adopted by the Adjutant an…

§ 704. Duties of enlisted members Enlisted members shall obey orders received from their officers to attend drills, parades, inspections, and reviews directed or authorized by this chapter, and perform the duties incident to their respective positions, subject to the rules adopte…

§ 822. Damaged or destroyed property When military arms, stores, uniforms, equipment, or property of any kind belonging to the State become damaged, partially or wholly unfit for use, or partially or wholly destroyed, the officer responsible for the property may request the Adjut…

§ 823. Storage of property Military stores belonging to the State not issued to the National Guard, and military property belonging to the United States in possession of the State and not issued to the National Guard, shall be stored in the State. The Adjutant and Inspector Gener…

§ 824. Uniforms and equipment The uniforms and equipment of organizations and members of the National Guard shall be as prescribed and furnished by the federal government. (Amended 2017, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § 126; 2021, No. 10, § 45.)

§ 884. Exemption from arrest Officers, noncommissioned officers, and enlisted persons who are members of the Vermont National Guard and on federal or State active duty, except in the case of treason, felony, or breach of the peace, shall be privileged from arrest and imprisonment…

§ 885. Brevet rank When he or she deems it to be in the best interests of the Vermont National Guard, the Governor may, with the advice and consent of the Senate, confer brevet rank upon officers and enlisted members of the Vermont National Guard who have performed gallant, faith…

§ 886. Retirement of officers A member of the National Guard may be placed upon the retired list as provided pursuant to the provisions of 10 U.S.C. chapters 69 and 1225 and any applicable regulations adopted by the Secretary of Defense. (Amended 2021, No. 10, § 48.)

§ 941. Statement of policy on military justice An offense committed by a member of the National Guard shall be tried in civil courts and prosecuted by civil authorities except offenses of a purely military nature. This policy shall be executed and carried into effect at all times…

§ 942. Military courts for the Vermont National Guard (a) Except in organizations in the service of the United States, military courts in the Vermont National Guard are of three kinds: general, special, and summary courts-martial. (b) When practicable considering finances, person…

§ 942a. Structure of courts-martial (a) General court-martial. A general court-martial of the Vermont National Guard shall be convened only by order of the Governor. (1) A general court-martial may try any person subject to the military code of Vermont for a crime made punishable…

§ 942b. Expenses of military courts (a) The expense incident to and connected with the holding of military courts in this State under this chapter shall be paid out of the General Fund under orders and rules issued by the Adjutant and Inspector General with the approval of the Go…

§ 943. Sentence; warrant for commitment Courts-martial, including summary courts, may sentence to confinement in lieu of fines imposed, provided that such sentence of confinement shall not exceed one day for each dollar of the fine. The warrant for commitment to the custody of th…

§ 944. Execution of processes and sentences All processes and sentences of courts-martial shall be executed by civil officers of the State authorized to execute similar processes of the civil courts, and shall be returned to the court issuing the same. (Amended 2021, No. 10, § 52…

§ 945. Rules of the National Guard All matters relating to the organization, government, and discipline of the National Guard, including nonjudicial punishment similar to that provided for in the Uniform Code of Military Justice, not otherwise provided for by the laws of the Unit…

§ 961. Commanding officer nonjudicial discipline (a)(1) A commanding officer may impose nonjudicial discipline upon a service member for minor military offenses without the intervention of a court-martial in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter. (2) The commanding of…

§ 962. Service members subject to nonjudicial discipline (a) A service member subject to nonjudicial discipline under this subchapter shall, during the course of his or her disciplinary proceedings, have the right to: (1) consult with a judge advocate or with private counsel at t…

§ 963. Nonjudicial discipline panels (a) When a service member elects to have his or her case heard before a nonjudicial discipline panel as provided in section 962 of this subchapter, the panel shall be formed as follows: (1) The panel shall consist of three members, appointed b…

§ 964. Appeals from nonjudicial discipline decisions (a)(1) A service member disciplined under this subchapter who considers the discipline unjust or disproportionate to the offense may appeal to the next superior authority within 15 days after the discipline is either announced …

§ 965. Effect of nonjudicial discipline (a) The imposition and enforcement of nonjudicial discipline under this subchapter for any act or omission shall not be a bar to trial by court-martial or a civilian court of competent jurisdiction for a serious crime or offense growing out…

§ 1151. Organization and maintenance (a) Whenever any part of the National Guard of this State is in active federal service, the Governor may organize and maintain within this State any military forces the Governor deems necessary to defend the State. (b) The forces shall be: (1)…

§ 1152. Authority of Governor to adopt rules The Governor may adopt rules consistent with the provisions of this chapter and chapters 63 and 65 of this title governing the enlistment, organization, administration, equipment, maintenance, training, and discipline of the State Guar…

§ 1153. Equipment and facilities For the use of the State Guard, the Governor may request from the Secretary of the Army any arms, ammunition, clothing, and equipment that the Secretary of the Army, in his or her discretion and under regulations adopted by him or her, is authoriz…

§ 1154. Service outside State (a) The State Guard shall not be required to serve outside the boundaries of this State except: (1) Upon the request of the governor of another state, the Governor may, in his or her discretion, order any portion or all of the State Guard to assist t…

§ 1155. Military service of United States (a) Nothing in this chapter or chapters 63 and 65 of this title shall be construed as authorizing the State Guard, or any part of it, to be called, ordered, or in any manner drafted into the U.S. Armed Forces. (b) No person shall, by reas…

§ 1156. Uniform Code of Military Justice in relation to courts-martial Whenever the State Guard, or any part of it, is ordered out for active service, the Uniform Code of Military Justice applicable to members of the National Guard in relation to courts-martial, their jurisdictio…

§ 1157. When effective This chapter and chapters 63 and 65 of this title shall be effective upon a determination and proclamation by the Governor and the Emergency Board that a substantial part of the National Guard is not available for duty within the State, and shall be suspend…