How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Vermont

INMATEAID EDITORIAL ARTICLE

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=> SOFTCOVER ONLY (explicit). Publications §1 Note: "Books will only be soft cover unless they are educational texts." Hardcover allowed only for educational texts authorized via facility Education Dept.

=> NO COD / NO "Bill Me Later" / no free-gift transactions (Mail Limitations §9.f; Publications §2.b.iii).

NOTE: Governing = VT DOC Policy #409.05 (eff. 12/6/2010; official PDF doc.vermont.gov) + Code of Vermont Rules 13-130-007. ID = inmate full legal name + facility. Vermont has NO county jails (all state-run facilities) - simplifies addressing. Source: publishers/commercial distributors only; staff may NOT provide personally-acquired publications; family/friends MAY order direct (the affiliate path). SOFTCOVER ONLY (educational texts may be hardcover via Education Dept). Magazines: each issue reviewed individually. DEFINING VT CONTENT NUANCE: disapproval centers on nudity / sexually explicit PICTORIAL depictions; rule EXPLICIT that "Written descriptions of sexual acts are NOT sexually explicit"; may NOT disapprove solely for religious/philosophical/political/socially-unpopular content; LGBT-rights-org materials PROTECTED unless depicting nudity/explicit acts; medical/educational/anthropological nudity excluded from ban. Other bars: threat to safety/security/order; STG materials; material advocating racial supremacy or attacking a racial/ethnic/religious group; escape plans; alcohol-brewing/drug-manufacture instructions; could-cause-harm-to-recipient. Whole-publication disapproval (no tearing out pages). Disapproval process: Recommendation (Att. 3) -> Security & Operations Supervisor -> Director of Security, Operations & Audits; Notice of Disapproved Publication (Att. 4) cites specific objectionable section; inmate appeals via grievance system (#320.01); publisher notified in writing + may appeal; disapproved-publications list applies system-wide. Property limit: general population <= 3.5 cubic feet in cell (not per-title). Forwarding: subscriptions + first-class newspapers forwarded on transfer; up to 60 days post-release. Money to inmates via inmate trust lockbox (bank check/money order), NOT loose in mail. No statewide mail-scanning vendor found for VT state facilities; books/mags go to the facility. Inmate-initiated orders route through caseworker (ability to pay / length of stay / compliance); family/friends order direct w/o that step. Vendor sites (vermontprisons.org, SureShot) align but less precise; relied on 409.05 + VT Rule.

How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Vermont

A book is one of the best things you can put in the hands of someone you love inside a Vermont prison. It fills the long, empty hours, it keeps the mind working, and it is a piece of the outside world they get to hold. Vermont's rules are clear and, in a few ways, more open than most states, but there are a couple of specifics you need to get right. Let me walk you through exactly how it works.

I am going to explain it the way someone who has done time would, plainly, so you get it right the first time and your money and effort actually reach the person you sent them for.

The Rules That Matter Most in Vermont

There are a few rules to lock in before you order anything. The good news is that Vermont explicitly lets family and friends order books and magazines for an inmate, so you are not shut out the way you are in some states. You just have to order the right way.

First, the book or magazine has to be sent directly from a publisher or a commercial distributor. You cannot pack up a book at home and mail it in yourself, and staff cannot hand your person a book you dropped off. It has to ship straight from a seller to your person at the facility. A major online bookseller counts as a commercial distributor, so your everyday options are open.

Second, books must be softcover. Vermont's policy is explicit that books will only be soft cover, with the single exception of educational texts tied to a course, which can be hardcover when the facility's education department authorizes them. So for any ordinary book, order the paperback edition. A hardcover novel will be turned away.

Third, you cannot use cash on delivery, a bill-me-later arrangement, or a free-gift promotion. The order has to be paid for up front. Get these three things right, order direct, softcover, paid in advance, and your book is on solid ground.

Using Amazon to Send a Book

Amazon is the easiest route for most families, and it works in Vermont because it qualifies as a commercial distributor. The key is to set the order up so it matches Vermont's rules.

The same approach works with any publisher's own website or a major bookstore's direct online sales: softcover, shipped to the facility, paid up front. Because Vermont has no county jails and runs all its own facilities, you do not have to untangle different county rules the way you would in many states, which makes addressing simpler.

Magazines and Newspapers

Magazines are a great fit for Vermont, and the state specifically allows family and friends to order them. They follow the same source rule as books, coming directly from the publisher or a commercial distributor, and a subscription is the cleanest way to handle that since it ships straight from the publisher by definition. It is also one of the most reliable, low-effort ways to keep your person reading, because once it is set, each issue arrives on its own and gives them something to look forward to without anyone having to act again.

What Can Get a Book or Magazine Rejected

Here is where Vermont is genuinely more open than many states, and it is worth understanding because it widens what you can confidently send. Vermont's content rules focus on pictures, not words. The main concern is material that features nudity or sexually explicit pictures, and the policy defines sexually explicit as a pictorial depiction. The rule states plainly that written descriptions of sexual acts are not sexually explicit, so a novel with mature written content is treated very differently than a magazine full of explicit images.

Vermont is also clear about what it will not reject. A publication cannot be disapproved simply because its content is religious, philosophical, political, or socially unpopular. Materials from gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender rights organizations are specifically protected as long as they do not depict nudity or explicit acts. And nudity that is medical, educational, or anthropological in nature is excluded from the ban, so an anatomy reference or a National Geographic style publication is fine. What does get rejected, beyond explicit images, is the predictable safety list: material that threatens the security or order of the facility, security threat group content, material advocating racial supremacy or attacking a racial, ethnic, or religious group, escape plans, and instructions for brewing alcohol or manufacturing drugs.

If a publication is flagged, Vermont reviews it through a defined chain rather than letting one officer decide. A staff recommendation goes to the Security and Operations Supervisor and then to the Director of Security, Operations and Audits, and a publication is either approved or disapproved as a whole, since staff are not allowed to tear out a section to make it acceptable. If it is disapproved, your person receives a written notice identifying the specific objectionable content, and they can appeal through the inmate grievance system. The publisher is also notified in writing and may appeal. It is a careful process, and it means an ordinary book or magazine is very unlikely to be turned away.

A Note on Quantity

Vermont does not cap the number of books or magazines by count. Instead, a person in general population can keep up to three and a half cubic feet of property in their cell, which is the practical ceiling on how much reading material they can hold at once. The takeaway is not to flood your person with more than they can store, but to send a steady, manageable flow, a few good titles and a subscription, rather than a large pile at once. If your person transfers to another facility, subscriptions and newspapers are forwarded, and mail is forwarded for up to sixty days after release, so a subscription keeps working through ordinary moves.

Lean on the Library

Here is something families overlook. Vermont prisons have libraries, and using them is free. Encourage your person to use the library heavily and to request the titles they want, since that often puts a book in their hands faster and at no cost than a shipped order. For a family watching every dollar, the library does the heavy lifting, and your money can go toward a magazine subscription and the occasional softcover book your person most wants to own. Vermont also runs the Community High School of Vermont, so a person enrolled in coursework can receive educational texts through their teacher, which is another no-cost channel for the right materials. Many people inside read far more than they ever did on the outside, simply because there is time, so a steady library habit paired with a subscription can carry someone for years. Between the library, educational materials, and a directly shipped book or magazine subscription for the titles they really want to keep, your person can read widely without large costs. We keep current pointers to programs and resources that serve Vermont on our Vermont reentry resources page, which is a good place to check as procedures change.

Staying Connected

Reading is one thread of staying close, but it works best alongside steady contact. Vermont handles letters, supports phone calls and visits, and lets you put money on your person's account through the inmate trust lockbox, and keeping up regular contact makes the books and magazines you send land in a fuller relationship rather than arriving cold. One quick note on money, since families sometimes confuse it with sending publications: deposits must go through the trust lockbox by bank check or money order, not as cash tucked into a letter, which gets returned. Think of softcover books, magazine subscriptions, and the free library for reading, and letters, calls, and visits for staying connected.

Get It Right the First Time

Here is the whole thing in a breath. In Vermont, family and friends can order books and magazines for an inmate, as long as they ship directly from a publisher or a commercial distributor like Amazon. Books must be softcover, except for educational texts, and orders must be paid up front with no cash on delivery or bill-me-later. Magazines work beautifully as a publisher-direct subscription, reviewed issue by issue. Vermont's content rules focus on explicit pictures rather than written content, and the state protects religious, political, and socially unpopular material, so an ordinary book or magazine almost always gets through. Keep the flow modest to fit the property limit, and lean on the free library and educational channels to round things out.

Get it right and you become the person who reliably gets good books to someone who needs them. On the inside, that means more than you can know from out here.

FAQ

**Can I order a book for a Vermont inmate myself?** Yes. Vermont specifically allows family and friends to order books and magazines for an inmate, as long as the item ships directly from a publisher or commercial distributor, is paid for up front, and is not on the disapproved publication list. You cannot pack and mail a book yourself; it has to ship from the seller.

**Can I order from Amazon?** Yes. Amazon counts as a commercial distributor in Vermont. Order the paperback edition, have it shipped directly to your person at the facility with their full name, and pay in full at checkout, since cash on delivery and bill-me-later are not allowed.

**Can I send a hardcover book?** Generally no. Vermont's policy states that books will only be soft cover, with the one exception of educational texts tied to a course, which can be hardcover when the facility's education department authorizes them. For ordinary books, order paperback.

**Does Vermont allow novels with mature content?** Often yes. Vermont's rules focus on pictures, not words, and the policy explicitly says written descriptions of sexual acts are not sexually explicit. What gets rejected is material that features nudity or sexually explicit images, not a novel with mature written passages.

**How do magazines work in Vermont?** A magazine subscription ordered directly from the publisher is allowed and is the cleanest option, since it ships straight from the source. Address it with your person's full name at the facility and pay up front. Each issue is reviewed individually, so a single problem issue can be held, though mainstream titles rarely are.

**What happens if a publication is rejected?** It goes through a review chain ending with the Director of Security, Operations and Audits, and it is approved or disapproved as a whole. If disapproved, your person gets a written notice naming the specific objectionable content and can appeal through the inmate grievance system. The publisher is also notified and may appeal.

**Is there a limit on how many books my person can have?** Not by count. A person in general population can keep up to three and a half cubic feet of property in their cell, which is the real limit. Send a steady, manageable flow rather than a large pile at once, and remember subscriptions are forwarded if your person transfers.