Thank You Avon Senior Center, Eversource, Bottle Bill Update, Happy New Year

December 27, 2023

*|MC_PREVIEW_TEXT|*

Dear Neighbor,

We’ve made it through most of the holiday season and are rapidly hurtling to 2024! Two of the New Year traditions I’ll be honoring this year are baking the traditional Vasilopita cake that’s served at midnight on New Year’s Eve (hoping that I’ll be the one to get the good luck coin!) and for New Year’s Day dinner, I’ll be making the good luck dinner of pork, black-eyed peas, and sauerkraut. While the dinner isn’t Greek, it’s certainly delicious!

We had a great event at the Avon Senior Center with Eversource last week. In addition to receiving a lot of information on how to receive assistance on their utilities, we also learned how to lower our utility bills, and several constituents received direct help on specific issues.

In this week’s news, I’ve also included some updates on new laws taking effect on January 1 as well as some updated holiday hours for our town offices.

Wishing you and wonderful, healthy, and happy 2024!

Eleni

Thank You Avon Senior Center, Eversource

Thank you to Joanne Whistnant, Jonathan Ferrigno, and Mark Massaro of Eversource for partnering with me at the Avon Senior Center last week. Our event, “How to Lower Your Energy Bill,” was both well-attended and very useful.

Joanne did a great presentation both on how to lower your utility bill as well as did an excellent job explaining the many assistance programs that are available to anyone needing assistance with their utility bill.

As I have often shared in the past, you can shop your supply rate and choose a new supplier by visiting EnergizeCT.com. Because of legislation passed in 2020, you are not locked into a supplier contract meaning on a Monday you can choose supplier x, and on Tuesday, if you found a lower rate, you can switch to supplier y.

If you need assistance paying your bill, OperationFuel.com may be able to help. And, to explore the many ways Eversource can help you save both energy and money, click here.

Bottle Bill Adjustment Effective January 1

With the passage of Public Act 21-58, An Act Concerning Solid Waste Management, Connecticut has undergone the most significant transformation of its beverage container redemption program – also known as the Bottle Bill – since the program was first implemented in 1980. The most significant changes in Public Act 21-58 included 1) an increase in the handling fee paid to retailers and operators of redemption centers; 2) an expansion of the types of beverages covered to include several new item categories – including sports drinks, energy drinks, and juices – beginning on January 1, 2023; and 3) an increase in the deposit amount from $0.05 to $0.10 beginning on January 1, 2024.

Reminder: New Laws Going into Effect January 1

As a reminder, some new laws will become effective on January 1 that were passed during the 2023 legislative session addressing key issue areas including early voting, health and mental health, and online privacy and data protection.

There will also be an increase in the minimum wage effective January 1 from $15.00 to $15.69 made possible through

legislation passed in 2019, which implemented five incremental increases in the minimum wage followed by future adjustments that are tied to the percentage change in the federal employment cost index.

For a complete list of the new laws set to take effect, please click the button.

New Laws Taking Effect January 1, 2024

Holiday Hours for Town Offices

In Avon, Town Offices, Library, Senior Center and Public Works will be closed on Monday, January 1st.

The Library will also be closed on Sunday, December 31st. On Saturday, December 30th, the Landfill will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and the Library will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

In Canton, town offices and the library will be closed on January 1.