A former top federal prosecutor for Vermont who is the state's new commissioner of the Department of Public Safety says he expects the state's opiate epidemic will be a top priority of his office.
Tom Anderson was sworn in on Jan. 5. He tells the Burlington Free Press that the department will support Republican Gov. Phil Scott's creation of an Opioid Coordination Council, to help ensure coordination among state and local governments to facilitate "opiate addiction prevention, treatment and enforcement action plans."
Anderson will be a co-chair of the council.
He also told the newspaper he hopes to improve policies for fair and impartial policing.
Anderson most recently served as general counsel for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington. He was appointed U.S. attorney for Vermont in 2006.
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