Eleni Kavros DeGraw

Welcome back to all our students and teachers. I hope everyone is having a great start to the school year.

I've been really inspired by the applications to my Youth Cabinet that we have received so far—looking forward to seeing more between now and our upcoming event on Saturday, September 11th. Details below!

There's also been major movement on the car theft front with the legislative and judiciary branches working together. It's a great start and I look forward to continuing these discussions so that we can work together to ensure our constituents feel safe.

Have a great week!

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ADDRESSING CAR THEFTS AND BREAK-INS

As you may have seen on my social media last night, there is some breaking news regarding addressing car thefts: Starting today, September 1, the CT Judicial Branch will provide police departments with 24/7 access to juvenile arrest records to help curb car thefts and break-ins.

This change comes after speaking with police chiefs across the state who told us they didn’t have access to information on a suspect's prior arrests. Police will now have the information they need to secure detention orders for repeat offenders. This could be a gamechanger.

We have also been working on other fronts as well:

• We created a first-offense juvenile rehabilitation program, which involves first-time juvenile offenders attending 21 classes, working with social workers and psychologists to determine the psychological and social issues that may have caused them to commit a crime. The program helps address those issues to prevent the juvenile from reoffending.
• We made it a felony for an adult to entice a minor to commit a crime, including car theft.
• A bipartisan group of legislators and experts in the field have been meeting regularly to discuss how to effectively address the issue going forward.

This is an ongoing, complex social and criminal justice problem and I am committed to working hard for short-term and long-term policies.

EVERSOURCE KEEPING AN EYE ON TROPICAL DEPRESSION IDA

I'd like to include the latest update from Eversource regarding Tropical Depression Ida which is set to hit us with heavy rain and the potential for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

Operational Status: Monitoring

Overview & FORECAST

• Eversource is closely monitoring forecast models that show Tropical Depression Ida bringing very heavy rains and the potential for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes to Connecticut.
• Potential impacts may begin late Wednesday evening into Thursday, with the storm leaving the area  on Friday. Flash flood warnings have been issued throughout the region.
• Based on the forecasts, we are not expecting extensive damage, however we will have crews in place to respond. Line crews from our operations in New Hampshire will be moving into CT tonight.
• Eversource currently expects to activate our ERP at an Event Level 5 tomorrow morning, Thursday, 9/2, indicating no more than 125,000 customers without power and no more than 3,000 trouble spots on our system.
• The service territory has recently received significant rain and the ground remains saturated. We anticipate there could impacts from trees during this weather event.

RESOURCE PLANNING

• Eversource will activate our CT and MA electric and gas Incident Management Teams (IMTs) and Emergency Coordination Team (ECT) on Wednesday, 9/1.
• Gas Operations is increasing staffing across all flood-prone areas to monitor potential impacts to the system and will have additional staffing for increased real-time system monitoring. LNG facilities will be prepped for the storm and gas construction sites will be backfilled or plated.
• Internal staffing, material and resource assessments are underway.

YOUTH CABINET KICKOFF & ICE CREAM SOCIAL AT BEN & JERRY'S SEPTEMBER 11TH

As I mentioned in the e-update last week, I am launching a Youth Cabinet to give Avon and Canton high school students a bird's eye perspective on how the legislature works and more specifically, following how an idea can go from a concept to a filed bill and through the process of potentially becoming a law.

Any student who would like to participate can click here for more details on how to do so. You must fill out the application at the link to attend.

Our first event will be on Saturday, September 11th at 3:00 p.m. at Ben and Jerry's in the Canton Shops (most likely at the outdoor tables). Looking forward to working with these outstanding students.

OVERDOSE AWARENESS

Governor Lamont declared Tuesday August 31st as Overdose Awareness Day in Connecticut to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of the national problem surrounding opioid overdoses.

To learn more about opioid use and find resources in your community please click on the image below:

The opioid crisis has affected communities in Connecticut and across the country. Together, we can support those struggling with addiction and their families by understanding the disease and reducing the stigma of opioid use disorder.

THIS SEPTEMBER WE GO GOLD FOR CHILDHOOD CANCER AWARNESS MONTH

This month we recognize Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Did you know that Connecticut is overall sixth in the country for childhood cancer incidence rates? While this is a very concerning statistic, there is something we can do—raise awareness.
 
Many of you may know the Platt family and my friend, Morgan. When she was diagnosed with a brain tumor there were five other children in the area battling cancer. She created an awareness project for this month selling yard signs highlighting pediatric cancer. If you'd like to go gold this month and support her worthy cause that benefits families with a child going through a cancer diagnosis, please click HERE.

WISHING YOU WELL IN RETURNING TO SCHOOL

I'm hoping students and teachers heading back to school have a happy and healthy year ahead! And to all of the support staff and administrators and parents and everyone who helps keep everything running smoothly, wishing you a great year as well!