Maria Horn

This is my State Capitol update for the week of August 15.

If you prefer to watch rather than read, click the image below to hear about the issues contained in this newsletter.

As some of you know, COVID finally caught up with me this week, so I am stuck at home, and had to cancel a lot this week.  I had a good four-plus years outrunning it (which my family couldn’t quite believe), and am not experiencing anything too severe, so I can’t complain.  I’m hope to be fully up and running again next week, and I thank you for all the good wishes I’ve been receiving.

This week’s video gives some deeper explanation of what’s going on with our utility rates as many are experiencing punishing increases, which are particularly alarming for those on a fixed income.  There’s been a lot of misinformation out there, so I hope some clarity about the causes for the increase, as well as what we can do about it in legislative session next year, is helpful. The cost of energy in CT is something we are consistently focused on but it’s an issue for which there are no quick solutions.

If you are struggling to pay your utility bills, there is help available from your power supplier, the state, and nonprofits.  Please reach out if we can help you navigate through that. 

• CT DEEP Issues Notice of Public Meeting and Request for Information for Solar for All. Click here.
• Small Business Grant Now Open. Click here.
• DOL Paid Sick Leave Seminar. Click here.
• Upcoming Federal Grant Opportunities. Click here. 
• Prevent Gun Violence During SMART Week. Click here.
• Deep Releases First 20BY26 Progress Report. Click here. 
• Reminder - Tax Free Week is Next Week. Click here.
• DOT Update. Click here. 
• Upcoming Events. Click here.

More details on the funding timeline, Project SunBridge application, upcoming opportunities for community and stakeholder engagement, and questions for stakeholders and community members can be found in the Notice of Public Meeting and Request for Information.
 

More information on Ignite can be found here. Additional information on Child Care Business Opportunity Fund Grants can be found here.

• Who is a covered employer on January 1, 2025, and who will be a covered employer in the coming years?
• Are any employers exempt?
• What employees are covered and are there any exempt employees?
• Which employees are considered “seasonal”?
• What are the reasons for which paid sick leave may be taken? 
• Who is a family member?
• How is sick leave accrued?
• How much paid sick leave may be accrued in a year?
• What are the notice requirements for both the employer and the employee?
• What documentation may the employer require?

About the Speaker:
 
Heidi Lane has worked in the Connecticut Department of Labor’s Legal Division for 32 years and has led the division for the last 6 years; prior to that she worked for the state as an agency attorney specializing in consumer protection law. She guided the implementation of the state’s paid sick leave law in 2012 and brings that expertise to the 2024 paid sick leave expansion.
 
To register for this seminar, please click here.

• The United States Department of Agriculture has announced that $25 million is available through the Broadband Technical Assistance Program to help local organizations, cooperatives, and Tribes expand affordable, high-speed internet projects in rural communities.
• The BTA program provides funding to help communities and organizations receive or deliver broadband technical assistance and training that will expand high-speed internet into rural and Tribal communities. This includes providing funding for feasibility studies, network designs, hiring efforts, application development assistance and more. Additional information can be found here.
• Applications are due on August 20^th, 2024.

$850 Million available through the Inflation Reduction Act Methane Emissions Reduction Program:

• This funding announcement makes funds available to a variety of stakeholders for the purpose of mitigating methane emissions from MCWs and other oil and natural gas assets; accelerating the commercialization, scale-up, and application of innovative methane emissions reduction technologies; and advancing the characterization and reduction of methane emissions through multi-scale, measurement-informed data collection and analysis. More information can be found here.
• Applications are due on August 26^th, 2024.

$25 Million available through the Department of Commerce’s Good Jobs Challenge

• The grant program will support sectoral partnerships that bring together diverse stakeholders including employers, labor unions, educational institutions, training organizations, community-based organizations, and others to develop high-quality training programs that lead directly to a good job.
• The Economic Development Administration, the group in charge of the grant, anticipates making 5-8 awards ranging from one to eight million dollars.
• The FY 2024 Good Jobs Challenge NOFO is targeted at jobs that advance industries critical to U.S. economic competitiveness and the competitiveness of the applicant’s region, including jobs that do not require a four-year college degree. Applicants must implement training for jobs that advance key technology focus areas as established by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which include advanced energy, biotechnology, robotics, and semiconductors. EDA will prioritize applicants that include worker voice through partnerships with labor unions or worker-serving organizations, support for workers at all levels of certification and degree status and prioritize workers that are adversely impacted by changes in technology.  
• Applications for this grant program close on September 27^th, 2024. More information can be found here.

The Department of Transportation Announced over $600 million dollars available for the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program

• Applications are open for the Reconnecting Communities Pilot (RCP) Program for both capital construction and community planning grants. This continues the stream of investment from the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law flowing to communities across the country as part of our Infrastructure Decade.
• Last year, the Reconnecting Communities Pilot was combined with the Neighborhood Access and Equity (NAE) program, joining two initiatives created through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to help revitalize and reconnect communities cut off from opportunity by past transportation infrastructure decisions, with a combined $3.3 billion in funding that supported projects in 130 communities. To date, 176 communities have benefited from RCP and NAE funding. The full Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) can be found here.
• Applications are due on Monday, September 30^th, 2024.

• Securing all guns in homes and vehicles
• Modeling responsible behavior around guns
• Asking about the presence of unsecured firearms in other homes your child visits
• Recognizing the role of guns in suicide
• Telling your peers to Be SMART. 

Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the U.S. Today, 4.6 million children in the U.S. live in homes with guns that are both loaded and unlocked - and almost every day, we see the consequences of kids and teens getting ahold of unsecured guns, including unintentional shootings, youth suicides, and gunfire on school grounds and/or kids bringing guns to school. 
 
How you can participate:

• Post on social media using the hashtag #BeSMART. Find the social media toolkit here.
• Attend a SMART Week event in your community. Find one here.
• Talk to friends, family, neighbors, and anyone in your community about the importance of secure gun storage and Be SMART. How to Ask (English)  How to Ask (Spanish)

During this tax holiday, most clothing and footwear items priced less than $100 are exempt from Connecticut's 6.35% sales tax. The exemption applies to each eligible item costing less than $100, regardless of how many of those items are sold to a customer in the same transaction. It applies to purchases made in-store, online, mail-order, and over the phone.

Click here for a list of exempt and taxable items. 

Shop smart – and locally whenever possible to support small businesses – to save during Connecticut’s Sales Tax-Free Week!

The Goshen Recreation Summer Concert Series is underway. Bring your family, friends, snacks, chairs, blankets, and come have a good time!!!

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Maria Horn
State Representative