1 of 51
Vermont State Sen. Becca Balint, D-Windham, takes the oath of office for a new term at the State House, in Montpelier, on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. Balint is the first woman and first openly gay person to be elected as the Vermont Senate president pro tempore.
Kristopher Radder Brattleboro Reformer
Outgoing Vermont Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman talks with a member of the Vermont Legislature at the State House in Montpelier, Vt., during the first day of the new session on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021.
Kristopher Radder Brattleboro Reformer
A nearly empty Vermont House of Representatives chambers at the State House, in Montpelier, because of the COVID-19 pandemic during the first day of the new session on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021.
Michael Tonn
More than 1.6 million people worldwide have died of COVID-19 so far this year; more than 300,000 of them were in the United States, and 100 were in Vermont. The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the U.S. economy. It s driving up rates of depression, anxiety and overdose deaths, and causing record numbers of parents, mostly women, to leave the workforce to care for their kids. And the pandemic has isolated us from friends and family when we need them the most.
All of this has been taking place amid a bitter partisan battle for control of the federal government. Consequently, crucial relief measures that thousands of Vermonters rely on are scheduled to expire at the end of this month.