Maria Horn

I began my day with an in-person meeting in Torrington, at the Northwest Connecticut Foundation for Community Health. 

Yesterday, the House had the first of three session days this week, which included a vote on HJR 58, a resolution proposing a state constitutional amendment to allow no-excuse absentee voting. That measure passed, but I was disappointed that it passed only by a simple majority, and not the supermajority necessary to place it on your ballot in 2022.

Session days are multiplying, and we had another productive day yesterday, including a resounding vote in favor of establishing early voting in Connecticut.

I joined an emergency meeting of the Litchfield County Opiate Task Force on Monday night, following a heartbreaking and disturbing spike in the number of overdoses in our region.  We are facing a tsunami of mental health challenges: the mental and behavioral health epidemic predated COVID-19, but has been severely exacerbated by it. 

Yesterday, during a light, warm spring rain, I visited three different state parks in Torrington alongside a dedicated group of Torrington residents devoted to their preservation and maintenance.  The first was the 715-acre John A. Minetto State Park – an immense, beautiful and wild area with many great options for picnicking, fishing and hiking. 

I started my morning with my second COVID vaccine shot at Sharon Hospital, an event I have been very much looking forward to.  The group of us with appointments this morning (for either first or second shots) spanned a wide range of different approaches to vaccination.

Yesterday I ended my Earth Day with a quick hike up Lion’s Head in Salisbury (an offshoot of the Appalachian Trail and a family favorite) to take a little time to appreciate the incredible natural world we are blessed to share with each other and other wild creatures. 

Around 3:00 am this morning, after 16 hours of debate, the CT House voted (by a bipartisan 90-53) to eliminate the religious exemption from mandatory vaccinations for public and private schools, while grandfathering in any children currently enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade, and expanding the medical exemption