Legislators talk legislative session and what’s next
Student reporters in the Community News Service interviewed 15 Vermont legislators to talk about the legislature’s response to the pandemic and what the state’s future might look like.
UVM students speak with Governor Phil Scott. File photo courtesy of Glenn Russell.
Legislators felt they moved quickly to address the crisis
The Legislature responded quickly to the crisis, pivoting to on-line meetings and moving critical legislation forward, the legislators interviewed said.
“We immediately focused on what legislation needed to be passed in order to function and serve Vermonters,” said Charen Fegard (D-Franklin).
“Congress called to see how we did it. I know other states have called. We moved on almost without interruption,” said Sen. Ann Cummings, (D-Montpelier).
“It was a good stress test for our government and our systems,” said Sarita Austin (D-Colchester).
Legislators also highlighted how the Democrat-controlled legislature sidelined partisan differences between themselves and Republican Governor Phil Scott and worked together quickly to in the face of catastrophe.
“We were able to actually house every single homeless person in Vermont for the first time anyone can remember,” said Senator Becca Balint (D-Windham). “We think we’re an outlier nationally not just in being able to get everyone out of shelters and into some kind of housing, but we believe there wasn’t a single case of COVID-19 among the homeless population in Vermont because we moved so quickly.”
SHIFTING LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
“Three and a half months ago, everything was focused on global warming.” Cummings said. Concerns about climate change dominated the session. Those bills, even the most pressing and the most important, suddenly disappeared as coronavirus became an imminent threat, she said.
Addison County’s Senator Ayer agreed. “A lot of the minor nuts and bolts of running the government had to be put aside to deal with the crisis.”
Crisis has disproportionate impact on women, front-line workers and the elderly
Legislators expressed concerns about the how the crisis has impacted those who are the most vulnerable and how they need the most help.
“The pandemic has really highlighted where all the cracks are in the system,” said Sen. Becca Balint (D-Windham). For the first eight weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic Vermont legislators simply tried to get families relief money. “We were just trying to deal with getting people their unemployment checks and other safety nets because so many Vermonters do not have any money saved for an emergency.”
“Women have been disproportionately affected by the situation, and women comprise most workers in low-wage jobs,” said Rep. Mollie Burke (D-Brattleboro).
Finding hazard pay for essential workers became critical, said Senator Alice Nitka, (D-Windsor). “The people cleaning in the hospitals, many of the LNA's or support staff in hospitals…even though they were working in dangerous positions, they were not getting as much as the people who were not working or on unemployment,” Nitka said.
As one of the few farmers in the State House, Charen Fegard, (D-Franklin) became particularly concerned about the impact on agriculture, focusing attention, for example, on the increased demand on Vermont slaughterhouses and an inability to meet farmers livestock needs. (see recent VTDigger article).
Crisis shines light on areas of critical need
The pandemic uncovered Vermont issues that have been postponed for too long, several of the legislators said.
For example, the lack of broadband for school kids, highlighted disparities across the state. “The basis and foundation of schools is that everyone has access to equal opportunity,” said Sarita Austin. Students without internet access missed out on research opportunities, student-to-student communication, and access to class materials.
And one area that really suffered was being able to meet the demand for unemployment checks, legislators said. The unemployment system crashed because it was designed in the 70s and built in the 80s, said Representative Scott Beck (R-St.Johnsbury). When unemployment case filings went from 300 cases of unemployment to 30,000, the system could not keep up. Like other legislators, Beck stepped in to help fielding class and distributing information.
“We were able to help some people out. It was really rewarding,” Beck said.
Many are exhausted BY the constant Zoom
Although legislators felt they pivoted to on-line meetings and communications quickly, they are all sick of it.
“I spent all day looking at myself on Zoom and that’s cruel and unusual punishment,” said state senator and former Mayor of Montpelier Ann Cummings. “It’s like working with The Brady Bunch, just all the pictures.”
And it undercuts the intimate nature of legislative work, said Peter Conlon, (D-Cornwall).
“A significant part of the legislature, runs on the ability to talk with people at a moment's notice in the cafeteria, in the hallway in order to sort of move things along.” The lack of face to face interaction has “a significant impact on sort of the dynamics of a committee meeting when you're not all together or hearing from the public,” Conlon said.
Online interactions also limit the complexity of legislation, said Scott Beck. “We’re limited in the number of bills and complexity of bills that we can really work with,” Beck said.
“It is very difficult to not be able to interact with my colleagues face to face. I miss the excitement of being in the State House and all the various groups that pass through,” Burke said.
Communicating through technology is not perfect, said Martha Feltus (R-Lyndon). There can be a lack of internet connection, making it hard to understand the speaker and a host of other things can go wrong. “It just seems more tiring when you are doing this by just sitting at a desk and looking at a computer screen the whole time and trying to make sure you’re understanding people.”
“We’re all learning new skill sets,” said Representative Jim Harrison (R-Chittenden) while also pointing out that the lack of face to face makes for new challenges. “We lose some of the personal give and take to come to better understanding,” Harrison said.
ONLINE LEGISLATING MEANS Greater Transparency
While operating remotely has created challenges, it has also created several positives, ones that may outlast the pandemic, legislators said. The greatest benefit is significantly increased access to legislative meetings, Addison County’s Peter Conlon said. Citizens interested in legislative work, but unable to make the trip to Montpelier can now watch legislators at work from the comfort of their homes.
“It's made it so much easier for folks who are interested in what we're doing but can't necessarily travel to want to see what's going on.” Conlon said. “We'll be able to take advantage of all this technology to give the public greater access to our work even when we return to the building.”
In Crisis, there is opportunity
Legislators talked about the opportunity to use federal COVID-19 relief funds to address long-standing state policy challenges.
“We have drawn up a statement of principles that should be used to inform the disbursement of money: racial equity, gender equity, and economic equity,” said Mollie Burke. Vermont legislators should use this moment to focus on those in low-wage jobs, and figure out ways to rebuild, to not only fix current problems, but to bring attention to issues that have been ignored for years, the Windham County legislator said.
Burke’s fellow Windham county legislator, Sen. Balint agreed, seeing an opportunity to learn lessons from those who got left behind in the emergency. “Our goal now looking ahead over the next few years is not to rebuild systems the way that they were before the pandemic.” Balint pointed towards programs to incentivize saving and increase the minimum wage as first steps towards bolstering Vermonters’ safety nets.
Addressing the COVID-19 crisis now is essential said Rep. David Yacavone (D-Lamoille) but it is important to also look to the future. “The patient has a fever. You've got to give the patient an antibiotic to make them feel better, and that's important, no doubt about it, but we have to be looking ahead. How do we change for the future?”
And key to how Vermont moves forward is how the state spends the federal COVID-19 relief funds. “We have to use this to seize the moment, especially with the additional federal funds we've been given to lay the groundwork for what the next 30 to 50 years look like to make Vermont a place where people want to stay,” Yacavone said.
One positive potential outcome, said Sen. Cummings, is that the pandemic may increase the number of people who want to live outside of metropolitan areas. Current events are promoting Vermont as a safe, desirable place to live, something the legislature and the Governor have been trying through policy measures. And increases in telecommuting highlight the potential for people to drive less and live in rural areas, Cummings said. (See VT Digger article on telecommuting).
And for Rep. Fegard, one positive aspect of the pandemic is that it highlights the critical importance of Vermont farms. “What has been made more clear to the average person is how important local food sources are. I hope that people don’t forget once they get out of this, and go back to shopping for what’s cheapest. Food sovereignty is regional security,” Fegard said.
And first year legislator, Becca White, D-Hartland, who started the session focused on legislation related to transportation and climate change sees both opportunity and challenges to fundamental change. “We could really use this as an opportunity, a jumping off point to totally change the way we think about transportation and what value we place on how we get from point A to point B. That is what I wish we were doing. There is an inability to do that with the way we are legislating right now,” White said. .
And Rep Hal Colston (D-Winooski) believes that Vermont must do better when it comes to tackling racial injustice in the state. “There are so many disparities in our state based on race and ethnicity that we must address.” Colston said. While every citizen has a role in advocating for social justice, Colston said much of the burden of dismantling systemic racism rests on the shoulders of those that have instigated it for centuries; white people. “Many of our leaders in this state, who are typically white men, need to become aware of how institutional racism affects them personally and professionally and how they can take responsibility,” he said. Substantial changes will only come when Vermont’s white population looks within, reflects on their privilege, and shifts their attitudes and beliefs, Colston sad. “I look to my white brothers and sisters and ask, ‘What are you doing about this?’” Colston said.
Looking ahead
And when will things return to normal in the legislature? “It’s really not clear, but as a senator running for reelection for my fourth term I know that the upcoming session is going to be the hardest one financially that any of us have ever dealt with in our careers,” Balint said. “but also probably not since the Great Depression. So, you have to love your job to stick with it because it’s a lot of heartache.”
Even though the meetings are long and the pandemic is ongoing, Representative Feltus also plans to continue. Vermont is doing the right thing in terms of containing the virus and trying to keep the public safe. “But, that has obviously come at the price of dramatically interrupting the economy and making things very, very difficult for a lot of people,” Feltus states. The Caledonia County legislator wants to keep working.
But some legislators are stepping down. After 19 years, Rep. Myers, (R-Essex) has decided to turn in her legislative pass. “It has been a wonderful nineteen years of my life. I have made wonderful friends and met a whole bunch of very interesting people,” Myers said.
CNS reporters contributing to this article are: Lilly Young, Sarah Tringali, Olivia Nye, Jenny Koppang, Katie Wynn, Indigo Glaza, Rutvik Patel, Sara Molho, Andrew Jerome, Sidney Bewlay, Shanti Boyle, Jonathan Barthe & Anna Morrill.
Legislators interviewed: Alice Nitka, Claire Ayer, Becca Balint, Kristi Morris, Linda K. Myers, Charen Fegard, Rebecca White, Sarah "Sarita" Austin, Harold "Hal" Colston, David Yacavone, James Harrison, Peter Conlon, Martha Feltus, Scott Beck & Mollie Burke .
