[2][3] After graduating from Burlington's Cathedral High School in 1958, Burns earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Vermont.

[9] Burns was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination in the 1976 Vermont gubernatorial election, losing a three-way race to State Treasurer Stella Hackel.

[12][13] Burns was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1985 Burlington mayoral election, coming in second in a three-way race that was won by Bernie Sanders.

[16] While in this position, he also completed a Master of Public Administration degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

[18] According to investigators, Burns misrepresented his work hours on daily NERWA time logs and used $5,000 in federal funds to pay for an apartment and $7,000 for travel expenses, in addition to $30,000 in salary while attending Harvard.