Entering Summer 2020 many were feeling great. Connecticut had done a terrific job of managing its way through the many storms of the COVID-19 pandemic. But soon enough we learned of horrific events that eventually led to multiple showdowns here in Connecticut and elsewhere in country between "Blue Line" and Black Lives Matter supporters. After weeks of wrestling with how to make meaningful changes to police accountability, the legislature returned to Hartford and held a historic virtual special session where they approved sweeping changes to police protocols and accountability-including the controversial "immunity clause." The House made an interesting strategic move to adjourn, which gave the Senate no other choice but to take up or down votes. The Senate approved the measures, with the majority of Senators voting "yes," but with reservations.

We finally got past that storm, but then more clouds came creeping in a few days later when residents began opening their monthly electric bills, only to find out that their rates had skyrocketed. The chickens were finally coming home to roost after the legislature and state's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) approved significant rate hikes early in spring with little to no fanfare at the time.

There was plenty of outcry from the same folks in government who did not heed the warnings of consumer and environmental groups that said the "Millstone Sweetheart Deal" would make electric bills cost a small fortune. Calls from residents and pleas from legislators to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) were heard and, in another historic move, Eversource was ordered to roll back its new, PURA-approved rates. PURA is now going to investigate the same rate formula they just approved two months ago because of consumer discontent. Really?

Dominion has stayed silent on the deal that significantly jacked up their Millstone Plant's profits and the same legislators who swore that ratepayers would have LOWER rates thanks to the deal are now pointing fingers at Eversource (who may not always be innocent in their operational financial dealing) for mismanagement.

The state's primary is this coming Tuesday, August 11^th and that has not been without controversy either. There's several dozen contested primaries for State Senate and House seats and the date change from March to August, at the time, seemed to solve all the problems set by the pandemic. But then the Secretary of the State's decision to send absentee ballot applications through a third party mail house blew up last week.

AND THEN Connecticut got caught up in something it could not control...Isaias. Hurricane weather usually hits the eastern seaboard but Connecticut doesn't usually worry about it until September or October. Until last weekend we thought it was going to miss the state, but as the days rolled by it was pretty clear that we were going to be in for some wild weather. Even up until last Sunday, when torrential rain hit much of the state, we didn't think it was going to be a doozy. Come midday Sunday, folks were calling for us to "batten down the hatches" and make supply runs to grocery stores.

The Governor started to issue warnings and the meteorologists were predicting a lot of rain and strong winds, but no one mentioned tornado level winds until Monday. Then came Tuesday and our fourth, and hopefully last, major crisis hit the state. 750,000 lost power and three days later there's still 500,000 residents without power. The fingers are once again pointed at Eversource.

So once Connecticut weathers this latest storm, we're sure there will be intense investigations for both the rate increase and Eversource's preparedness and reaction to the tropical storm. Our economy is already so fragile and these continual hits on residents, businesses and governments are forcing us into continuous challenging times. The Governor declared a second state of emergency and the President approved his ask for federal funds, which will be used to help folks dig out. You can bet the 2021 legislature will have emergency preparedness back on its to-do list and will have to take action to address the financial impacts these continuous storms have left on the state budget.

One thing can surely be said about Connecticut residents-we're a resilient, gritty group. When life tosses us a boulder, we put our heads together and figure out how to turn it into gravel. That's really something, considering the amount of boulders that have rolled through Connecticut the past seven months.

So as I said in last week's column, the dog days of summer are coming...NOT! Keep the faith Connecticut, the sun has to come out at some point.