“Businesses like Beacon Industries, are the engines of economic growth. The state’s investment allows Beacon to move to Newington and create 60 new jobs,” said Nafis. “Governor Malloy is clearly focused on the needs of businesses and I want to thank him for his strong support.”

Beacon Industries, a leader in the precision aerospace machining field for 60 years, will acquire TECT Power in Newington, which makes similar parts for the aerospace industry. Beacon plans to invest $10.2 million to move its Bloomfield operation into TECT’s Newington building and lease 180,000 square feet.

Nafis said the consolidation and move ensure Beacon Industries will continue operations and retain all 165 employees. The project also gives the company the opportunity to grow. Beacon plans to add 60 jobs within six years.

“Anytime the state can invest in a project that preserves and creates jobs and at the same time quickens the pace of economy recovery here, it is worth celebrating,” said Senator Paul Doyle. “I am grateful to Governor Malloy for engaging in a smart job creation strategy by investing in Beacon Industries’ acquisition of TECT.”

“Sewage spills are a real threat to public health—causing millions of people to get ill every year from microorganisms and toxins contained in raw sewage. This bill makes sure that people are informed if there is a spill so they may take proper precautions to protect themselves and their children,” said Rep. Nafis.

Specifically the legislation requires the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) to post information on unanticipated sewage spills on the agency’s website beginning in July of 2014. The online notice will have details on the spill such as the date, time, volume, duration and steps taken to contain it as well as public health or environmental concerns and any public safety precautions that should be taken. In July of 2013, DEEP must begin posting information on anticipated sewer overflows resulting from storm events.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, between 1.8 and 3.5 million Americans become ill annually from contact with recreational waters contaminated by sewage. Currently there is no law requiring public notification if a sewage overflow has contaminated a local beach or waterway or entered a community.

The legislation, which previously passed the state Senate, now goes to Governor Dannel P. Malloy for his consideration.

“This is an important project for Newington and for Connecticut. Thanks to the efforts of State Representative Sandy Nafis, Senator Paul Doyle, many other state and local officials and residents, this beautiful parcel of land will be preserved as open space for visitors to continue to enjoy,” said Governor Dannel P. Malloy. “Balancing the needs of development and the preservation of green space is critical for Connecticut to maintain its integrity as a state with deep roots in conservation and a high quality of life.  This project will help Newington protect the mountain for future generations to enjoy.”

“Cedar Mountain is a local treasure. This money will go a long way towards stopping dangerous overdevelopment and preserving Cedar Mountain for future generations,” said Rep. Nafis. "We appreciate Governor Malloy's strong support for our town and for open space preservation.”

"I am pleased that we worked in conjunction with open space advocates, including the members of Save Cedar Mountain, and Governor Malloy, to achieve state assistance for this significant open space acquisition for Newington and Wethersfield," said Sen. Doyle.

Nafis said the funding will be used to offset the town’s cost of buying the 26-acre Marcap property on Cedar Mountain—the lower half of the Mountain—and preserving it as open space.

Developers had proposed building townhouses on the property, but withdrew the plan earlier this year in the face of strong opposition from town residents.

The State Bond Commission meets Friday, December 9 at 10:30 a.m. in room 1-E of the Legislative Office Building in Hartford.

“I’m honored to be recognized by the League of Conservation Voters,” said Nafis. “Protecting Connecticut’s air, water and open space is a real priority for me.”

Nafis is one of only 29 state representatives—less than 20% of the Connecticut House—to earn a rating of 100 percent.

The annual environmental scorecard grades state lawmakers based on how they vote on significant environmental legislation. This year the scorecard grades legislators' votes on twelve bills that came up during the 2011 legislative session.

CTLCV Co-Chair David Bingham said of the legislators who received high scores, “despite the pressures of economic distress, they upheld policies that are critical to providing clean air and water and make Connecticut an inviting state to do business.”

Formed in 1998, the bipartisan CTLCV works on laws that affect Connecticut's air, water, wildlife, open space, transportation, energy choices, and health.

“Small businesses create most new jobs. So we cut taxes for these smaller companies and are making $50 million a year available to local employers to grow Connecticut’s economy and get more residents back to work,” said Nafis.

“Job creation is the most important issue facing Connecticut today, so I am pleased to say we found a bipartisan approach to address it. This bill will cut taxes for small businesses and reduce burdensome regulations, while making new key investments in infrastructure and job training,” said Doyle.

Nafis said that the Jobs Bill (HB 6801) provides tax credits to firms that hire new workers, and companies that hire veterans, persons with disabilities or the unemployed will be given additional credits. It also creates the Small Business Express Package making $50 million a year available to small businesses through incentives, grants and loans. Additionally it shortens the timeframes for the state’s business permitting processes.

“To make sure we are preparing our students to meet the needs of the 21st century workforce, we are also expanding technology and manufacturing programs at the state’s vo-tech schools and community colleges,” said Nafis. “This will allow our students to get the education and training they need for good-paying jobs in the parts of our economy that are growing.”

Some of the other provisions of the Jobs Bill include:

• Reducing the business entity tax
• Remediating old industrial sites/brownfields
• Computer upgrades to foster seamless communication between business and the state
• Investments in local roads and bridges
• Replenishing the Manufacturing Assistance Act (MAA)
• Expanding the small town Main Street commercial centers improvement initiative

Rep. Sandy Nafis was named "Children's Champions" during a recent
ceremony at the State Capitol.

The organization selected Nafis for this recognition because of her support of legislation during the 2011 session of the General Assembly aimed at improving the educational, health and emotional well-being of young children in Connecticut.

“Early childhood education and development programs help ensure that more children begin their school fully prepared to learn and succeed. I’m honored to be recognized by the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance for my work on these issues,” said Nafis.

"The CT Early Childhood Alliance is honoring Representative Sandy Nafis for her strong commitment to making children’s issues, including early learning, health, safety and economic security, a priority here at the Capitol and within her home district," said Maggie Adair, CT Early Childhood Alliance Executive Director. "We, along with the children and families in Connecticut who benefit from their actions, thank her for that commitment."

The Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance is a group of organizations and individuals committed to improving developmental outcomes in the areas of learning, health, safety and economic security for children ages birth to eight. Member organizations provide care and education for nearly 20,000 children. The Alliance’s goal is for all children born in Connecticut to enter kindergarten healthy, eager to learn, and ready for school success.

“Citizens should not lose their ability to vote just because of a disability,” said Nafis. “This bill ensures that everyone will have an opportunity to exercise their constitutional rights and a cast a ballot.”

The bill (SB 939) would permit the automatic mailing of absentee ballots at election time to permanently disabled voters. Voters would have to file an absentee ballot application together with a doctor's certificate stating that they have a permanent disability and are unable to appear in person at their polling place if they want to be added to their town’s list for automatic ballots.

Nafis  introduced the legislation because one of her constituents, a Newington woman, has difficulty making trips to town hall, because of a disability.

Rep. Nafis added “This is the fifth year that I introduced legislation like this, and I’m elated that we finally passed this bill. Now it will be so much easier for my constituent and other voters throughout the state to cast ballots.”

The bill is supported by the League of Women Voters and Secretary of the State Denise Merrill. The bill now heads to the governor for his signature.

Nafis, who co-chaired the Task Force on the Reduction of State Agency Paper and Duplicative Procedures, said the bill (HB 6600) will improve efficiency at state agencies and make it easier to do business in Connecticut.

“These changes will go a long way towards streamlining and making government more user-friendly and efficient,” said Nafis. “We have simply updated state law to reflect changing technology by removing some outdated rules requiring paper copies of documents at state agencies and here at the legislature. These common sense fixes will save taxpayers money and make it easier for the public to interact with the state.”

The Task Force, whose members came from both the public and private sector, held a series of meetings and public hearings over a five month period to hear from state agency staff, business owners and members of the public. The end result was a final report which identified various ways that the state could reduce its reliance on paper and enhance technology. Many of the suggestions of the report did not require legislative approval and in fact were shared with the governor's office earlier in the year for implementation by the executive branch. Some items, such as those include in this bill, did require legislative action and resulted in this bill.

The legislation, which now heads to the state senate for consideration, will permit more state documents and reports to be distributed and filed electronically. It also allows agencies to respond to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests electronically and reduces the number of copies of reports that must be filed with the State Library. Bills and amendments will also now only be required to be posted to the legislative website, replacing an archaic statute that currently requires all bills and amendments be placed on legislators' desks before they are voted on by the General Assembly.

The task force was created by the Majority Leaders’ Job Growth Roundtable legislation passed last year, which is designed to jump-start job creation, while laying a foundation for long-term economic growth. Incentives for entrepreneurship and innovation, infrastructure, and education are all contained in the legislation.

This national committee studies legal, technical and political issues affecting redistricting of state legislative and congressional districts, including demographic trends that impact state policymaking. It also deals with the conduct of elections and the regulation of campaign finance. The committee is the conduit for state legislative communication with the U.S. Census Bureau and the Voting Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.

“I’m looking forward to working on these issues with legislators from around the country,” said Nafis. “It is essential that we have strong leadership at the state level if we want to impact federal policies.”

House Speaker Donovan said, “I’m confident that Sandy will work successfully with lawmakers from all 50 states to put the best ideas and solutions into practice.”

NCSL is a bipartisan organization that serves legislators and staff of the nation’s 50 states. NCSL provides research, technical assistance and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues. For more information, visit www.ncsl.org.

Every 10 years, after the federal census, Connecticut’s Reapportionment Committee meets to redraw the boundaries of the state House of Representatives, state Senate and U.S. Congressional districts.

“Sandy’s extensive leadership and experience made her the natural choice for this committee,” Speaker Donovan said. “Sandy has demonstrated a real passion for public service and a willingness to serve our state.”

“Redistricting isn’t about politics—it’s about ensuring that every Connecticut resident is fairly represented in Congress and at the state house,” said Rep. Nafis. “Although we must draw districts based on the census data, I’m looking forward to hearing from citizens from around the state about ways we can improve district boundaries.”

Although Connecticut will keep all five of its seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, the boundaries of the five districts will have to be redrawn as a result of information gathered during the 2010 census to create districts of relatively equal population that will provide fair representation for all state residents.

The bipartisan committee, which is composed of eight state lawmakers—four Democrats and four Republicans, must submit a redistricting plan to the full General Assembly for approval by two-thirds of the members by September 15, 2011.

Rep. Nafis will also serve on the Appropriations, Education, and General Law committees. The entire membership of the General Assembly will be sworn into office on January 5th at the State Capitol in Hartford during the opening day ceremony of the 2011 legislative session.

Representative Sandy Nafis was first elected to the Legislature in November 1998 to represent Newington’s 27th Assembly District.