In This Issue:
From Paddi's Desk
CT Agency Corner
Municipal Roundup
From Inside The Golden Dome
Behind the Scenes
This Day in CT History
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Tick tock, tick tock…
As the work days get longer, time keeps flying by. The Connecticut legislature is 35 days away from adjourning the 2021 session. Most of the committees completed their work last week, with only the workhorse committees—the Appropriations Committee (APP) and the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee (FRB)—left to wrap up their work on the two year budget. Their task is unique: trying to plan ahead while Connecticut, like many other states, hasn’t yet cleared the hurdle of the pandemic, which has stymied economic growth for the past year. If not for the huge amounts of federal “bailout” funding flowing into our state, their job would be a lot harder.
Next week the Finance Committee will be the first to report its recommendations for changes to the Governor’s two year taxing plan. The Appropriations Committee will then follow up with its spending recommendations—which will not only include the ones related to the Governor’s plan, but also what the committee members think will make for a brighter future for Connecticut.
As we all heard Opening Day, the Governor did have a few strategic initiatives that were important to him, but he held strong on any new tax increases—except for some that are being pitched as “user fees,” which would shore up the state’s infrastructure needs. It will be interesting to see how the two committees work in the Governor’s desires, as well as his bottom line, and still meet the “wants” of a variety of special interest groups. The unions serving the state agencies and nonprofit organizations have been busy the past couple of weeks looking to shore up increased funding for personnel and service expansions. Towns have been active in ensuring that their funding stays in line with the anticipated needs of their local community, and the housing advocates have been diligent in advocating for increased inventory of low income and affordable housing.
Business organizations have been communicating through their members, asking them to reach out to their local legislators and voice opposition to the addition of programs and services increasing the financial burden on their industries and creating an environment where their hands are tied, in terms of jumpstarting growth. With the worrisome economic situation that Connecticut is still trying to dig out of and looking ahead, down the road, to the post-pandemic pressures, it’s critical for Connecticut to get this right.
The voices mostly being heard are coming from corporate leaders, who have been reminding legislators that a strong and friendly business environment is the ONLY way to get Connecticut back on track and they are strongly advocating for a pause on any new initiatives, regulatory burdens or workforce requirements. An example is this week’s action from the Senate when they approved a bill that restricts employers from requesting information about the dates and times of recent jobs and education credentials. Combine this with the restriction of information about previous salary status, many in the business world—especially small business owners—see this as a barrier to finding a candidate that fits the position, is compensated for the value they bring to the job and, more importantly, will be a long-term, valued member of their team.
One business organization made the comparison that it would be like a candidate for an elected office campaigning without disclosing details of their experience and skillset which would help them meet the challenges of their office. Maybe they kept switching jobs in a company every year or so and then hopped to another company to repeat that progression and never really accomplished what was on their “to do” list. One executive said, “It’s critical to find, hire and invest in a long-term employee due to the time it consumes, the lack of available references and quite frankly the expense to recruit, train and retain an employee. There are plenty of laws that protect potential workers from discrimination, it might be more productive to build stronger sanctions if found guilty of discrimination than to have employers driving through a snowstorm every time they try to expand or replace their workforce.”
Interesting.
So at the end of the day isn’t it really about creating a balance that provides a framework versus micromanaging how Connecticut moves forward, especially in regard to the business community? This will be the biggest challenge this session for the Democratic leadership—to find that balance and work with the Governor to grow and expand business in the next 1-2 years. As they say, you only get one chance to make a first impression and with the pandemic slowly becoming manageable, this is Connecticut’s time to redefine what kind of business environment it wants to be for the next decade.
Fingers crossed they get it right!
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Environmental Spillage Legislation Passes Senate in Response to 2M gallon Long Island Sound Leak
A bill requiring the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) to establish a "real time" public notification system of sewage spills within two hours of those incidents being reported to the state passed the Senate unanimously this week and heads to the House. The bill, which also requires the environmental protection agency (EPA) to begin annually publishing and making publicly available on its website summary information about sewage spills in Connecticut, is in response to a tragically large sewage leak that occurred close to the shoreline in the state.
The bill is being championed by Sen. Cohen (D-Guilford) who is hoping to accomplish having a concerted effort for reasonable notification requirements while also maintaining a realistic balance for what can be accomplished.
The electronic report must include a variety of information, including:
• The incident date, time, and location
• The estimated or actual time that the discharge ended, if known
• The geographic area impacted by the discharge
• The estimated discharge volume or rate and, once known, the final discharge volume
• The discharge treatment level
• Steps taken to contain the discharge, once known
• Any reasonable concerns about the environment or public health, safety, or welfare
• Any public safety precautions that should be taken.
Current law also requires a sewage plant or system operator to notify the chief elected official of the municipality where the spill occurred, with notice given within two hours of learning of a spill that exceeds, or is anticipated to exceed, 5,000 gallons.
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Sports Betting Revenue - Will Municipalities Get a Piece of the Pie?
One of the Governor's key proposals this year is SB 146 An Act Concerning Revenue from Gaming Activities, Grants in Lieu of Taxes for tribal Lands and Sale of Alcohol by Casino Permittees - . This gaming revenue bill would boost grants to cities and towns through an overhaul of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Fund payments in lieu of taxes on tribal lands. The bill would also fuel statewide tourism marketing; increase funding to the Arts, Culture and Tourism fund; and establish a debt free community college account.
If passed, beginning in 2024, the bill would require that $139.4 million be annually transferred to the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Fund from the General Fund. This amount is about 2.7 times greater than the 51.5$ million distributed to municipalities in fiscal year 2020. Also, the bill would require that $20 million in annual revenue generated by taxes on sports betting and online gaming be deposited into the statewide tourism account; and would require another $10 million be deposited into the arts, culture, and tourism fund.
Of course the potential for SB 146's success rests heavily on the legislature approving a different bill HB 6451 - An Act Concerning Gaming Agreements With the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe and the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut. This bill is a result of the negotiations between Governor Lamont's administration and the two tribes regarding gaming agreements. It will be very interesting to see how the debate over these two bills plays out over the last two months of the session.
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A bipartisan moment in the Senate for child safety
On Wednesday of this week, the Senate met to take up a number of bills that they’ve been considering, some with limited debate and others that were hotter topics. We saw the typical back and forth by the Democratic House Chairs and the Republican Ranking Members, where the Ranking Member tries to quiz the Chair on different aspects of bills before they are called for a vote.
But one bill in particular stood out as it had bipartisan and unanimous support from the chamber, SB 608 AN ACT CONCERNING THE SAFETY OF CHILDREN WHEN BUYING ICE CREAM FROM A FROZEN DESSERT TRUCK. This bill was raised by the Transportation committee and had a public hearing early on in the session where many legislators and members of the public testified in support.
The bill was brought to the general assembly after a tragic accident last summer when a young boy was fatally hit by an oncoming car while buying ice cream from an ice cream truck in a town in Connecticut. A similar accident that ended in severe injury to a child happened the summer prior as well. The bill proposes to regulate speed of traffic passing by, increase the truck’s visibility to other drivers, and warn drivers that children may be present in areas that ice cream trucks locate. After its approval in the Senate, this bill will head to the House for final action.
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Freshman Legislator Profile: Mary Welander (D-Orange)
Representative Mary Welander was elected this past November to represent the 114th House District, which includes the towns of Orange, Woodbridge and Derby. She hasn't wasted any time in getting right to work on some of the legislative initiatives she was hoping to address.
Rep. Welander feels lucky to serve on committees that match her interests and skill sets. She's the Vice Chair of the Children's Committee and a member of the Education and Regulations Review committees. She's happy to have these opportunities to help kids in our state and is really focused on the education and well being of children.
You may not have guessed that she is also the Blue Ribbon winner for her apple pie at the Orange Country Fair and has competed at the state competition as well. Rep. Welander started her career in technical theater as a Stage Manager and Master Electrician in Off Broadway theater/national tours, and met her husband when they both worked at The Julliard School. She has three younger brothers who are all combat veterans and is very proud of them.
One of Rep. Welander's priorities this session has been HB 6509, which would require the Department of Public Health to establish school-based mental health clinics (SBMHCs) for the purpose of expanding access to mental, emotional and behavioral health services for students. The bill would also evaluate where student access to mental health service isn't readily available and create a plan to help school districts integrate SBMHCs. She has a long history of working on topics concerning schools as a mother of three, and she currently serves as a member of the Orange Board of Education, and President of the PTA.
This bill was introduced by the Children's committee, and was approved but then referred to the Public Health Committee. We talked a bit about how often times, bills are referred to a second committee when there is reference to an agency that another committee has cognizance of, but any additional steps in the process can jeopardize its ultimate success.
Nevertheless, her bill HB 6509 cleared another major hurdle this week after it was approved by its second committee with a final vote of 32-1, and now awaits action by the full House.
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April 16th: Frederick Douglass & Social Media in Hartford, 1864
Carte-de-visite photographs were the hot social media of the mid-nineteenth century. These small portrait photographs, mounted on cards, were some of the first such images to be commercially reproduced, and they created a craze for collectible photographs. People collected carte-de-visite portraits of family, friends and celebrities and then mounted them in photograph albums. Celebrity cartes-de-visite were sold at stationer’s shops the way postcards and greeting cards are today.
This enthusiasm for curating one’s own album of interesting photographs reached its height in the 1860s, so it is no surprise that when the renowned abolitionist and black rights advocate Frederick Douglass visited Hartford in the middle of the Civil War a brand-new carte-de-visite image of him was made available to the public. Today in 1864, the Hartford Courant informed readers that: “S. H. Waite, No. 271 Main Street, has taken an admirable photograph of Frederick Douglass, which may be seen in the store window of Geer & Pond’s, where copies (carte de visites) can be purchased.”
That same day, Douglass spoke at Hartford’s Allyn Hall. His subject was Black civil rights, with a particular focus on the pay gap between Black and white soldiers in Civil War service. A reporter noted that Douglas thought “the distinction made in paying the colored soldier less than is paid the white recruit, when both share equally the burdens and dangers of the contest, very unjust; and in this few intelligent men will disagree with him. The color of the man who fights well should have nothing to do with his payment as a soldier.”
Here is a link to the full article - Provided by CT Humanities Council.
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Sullivan & LeShane, Inc.
www.ctlobby.com | (860) 560-0000
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