Dear Neighbor,
The past year has been difficult for everyone in our community. The legislation we passed during the 2021 legislative session will empower and support our district in our efforts to rebuild and reconnect. This session, we passed a $46.4 billion biennium budget with a $2.3 billion surplus that has no tax increases, provides relief from COVID-19, helps jump-start our economy, and invests in our towns, nonprofits, and working families. We also kept our commitment to funding local schools – ensuring we give towns predictability by honoring our formula for state grants, and ensuring no town receives less than it did the year before.
Our 2022-2023 Biennium budget:
- Rejects tax hikes on gasoline and insurance policies
- Includes tax relief for restaurants and certain businesses for FY 22
- Increases the state’s earned income tax credit to 30.5% of the federal credit
- Eliminates the admissions tax as of July 1, 2021
- Maintains our historic balance in the state’s $3.5 billion Rainy-Day Fund
- Increases town aid and fairly funded Education Cost Sharing (ECS)
- Expands healthcare for 40,000 residents and families
- Expands workforce training so that we can get people back to work
- Fully funds debt-free community college
I am confident that these state investments will see our community not only recover but thrive. In this newsletter, I have included some highlights of our legislative work this year. I am always happy to hear from you and want to be of support. Please feel free to use my phone, email or website to contact me anytime!
Sincerely,
Supporting Local Business & Growing Our Economy
- Created a tax-free week for restaurants (SB 1202)
- Cut red tape and made outdoor dining a permanent option for bars and restaurants (SB 1202)
- Restored the research and development tax credit to attract entrepreneurs, foster startup business, and promote private sector investment (HB 5102)
- Cut permit costs for nonprofit and private clubs (like the Army-Navy Club and VFW) (PA 21-10)
- Created a competitive program for fuel cell projects that favor CT-made equipment and the redevelopment of brownfields and landfills (HB 6524)
- Legalized cannabis use for adults 21 and older (PA 21-1)
Pushed And Secured
- $75 million grant to create the Danbury Career Academy to address overcrowding
- $10 million grant for the widening of Interstate 84 between exits 3 and 8
- $2.6 million grant for the Sandy Hook Permanent Memorial
- $635,000 grant for the expansion of Clarke Business Park in Bethel
- $75,000 grant for Danbury Youth Services
- $75,000 grant for Friends of the Bethel Library to establish an after school youth program
Protecting People
- Expanded workers’ comp for PTSD to cover many workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic (SB 660)
- Lowered prescription drug costs by requiring manufacturer discounts go to the consumer and not the insurance company (PA 21-14)
- Limited over-prescription of dangerous drugs (HB 6588)
- Increased property tax breaks for volunteer firefighters and first responders (HB 6420)
- Improved sexual misconduct reporting, data collection, and response on CT college campuses (PA 21-81)
- Strengthened the state’s Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) to prevent more families from the excruciating pain that comes with gun violence (PA 21-67)
- Put community violence prevention programs on a path to sustainable funding and growth in our state (PA 21-36)
Zoning Decisions Should Be Local Decisions
I voted against HB 6107, An Act Concerning the Reorganization of the Zoning Enabling Act and The Promotion of Municipal Compliance. Affordable housing is one of the most important issues facing our towns and has been a priority for me since 2019. Throughout my time in the legislature I have introduced legislation to incentivize towns to adopt affordable housing plans and convened a community roundtable to discuss these issues with Housing Commissioner Mosquera-Bruno.
I support promoting housing choice and economic diversity in housing. To do that will require collaboration and partnership with local governments and all local stakeholders without Hartford imposing cookie cutter requirements.
Energy And Environment
- Created higher renewable energy standards for heat and electric utilities (HB 6527)
- Leading the country with Equitable Broadband (HB 6442): assessment of state-wide access to the Web, grants to cities and towns for broadband projects, state-level industry regulation, requiring internet providers to cover part of the state’s costs
- Raised bottle deposits to 10 cents, applied deposits to more products and provided more money to towns and redemption centers to ensure these products don’t wind up as litter or in a landfill (PA 21-58)
- Required more biodiesel in home heating oil and greater transparency for consumers (HB 6412)
- Regulated the harmful chemical “PFAS” in firefighting foam (SB 837)
- New Utility Protections for Residential Customers (HB 6526), consumer-friendly notifications, banned unpredictable variable rates and cancellation fees by electric companies
Expanding Voting Rights
While other states are making democracy less convenient and accessible, I’m proud that Connecticut is moving in the opposite direction. This past session, I worked with my colleagues to pass a variety of reforms. Due to the way our state Constitution was written, some of those reforms are now headed your way in the form of a referendum on the ballot.
EARLY VOTING
- This session we approved a resolution that lets voters decide if CT will join 43 other states in allowing early voting. The question will appear on the 2022 ballot.
NO EXCUSE ABSENTEE VOTING
- A question on the ballot in 2024 will ask if ALL registered voters should be allowed to vote by absentee ballot, without needing an excuse.
MAKING SURE EVERY VOTE COUNTS
- Guaranteed two hours off from work to vote in state and federal elections
- Paved the way for permanent absentee ballot drop boxes
- Created a secure, online portal for absentee ballot applications. Ballots would still be delivered in paper format through the mail.
PROTECTING OUR DEMOCRACY
- Ended prison gerrymandering – the practice of counting inmates as registered voters in the town where they are incarcerated. Inmates will now be counted as residents of the town where they had been living prior to incarceration (PA 21-49)
- Restored voting rights for individuals in community facilities or on parole (SB 1202)
- Protected voters’ personal information (SB 1202)