Hubert Delany

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I hope you and your family have been staying warm and healthy during these winter months.
 
This week, I have highlighted some of the educational policies I am working on, school resources that I have brought before our community, state elections, and programs and resources that I hope will be useful to you and your family.

To commemorate Black History Month, I was proud to stand with my colleagues as we championed bringing children’s books that highlight Black and Latino cultures in our Stamford schools.
 
These children’s books will be distributed to every K-3 classroom in Stamford. One of the books is titled, "I Love My Kinky Hair!" from Stamford mother and author Nadene McKenzie-Reid. During the event her daughter, Carlee Reid, had the opportunity to read the story to our Stamford Youth.
 
Click here for the full article on the books and Book reading event: https://brooklyn.news12.com/stamford-elementary-schools-highlight-black-and-latin-american-cultures-through-childrens-books

Earlier this month I spoke with our local news outlet on a bill I am co-sponsoring to support our Stamford schools. House Bill 5003. 

The bill would fully our Education Cost Sharing Formula, which is responsible for distributing state funds to our local school districts from Hartford. 

If the bill passes it would bring an additional $7.5 Million dollars to our school district next year. It will be an important step in making sure our community receives its fair share of education tax revenue to Hartford.

"This will address the fiscal cliff and we have had overwhelming support both from my colleagues but also from our advocates from the ground level," Delany said. "It's been a big push because it’s a big priority."

I am honored to announce that State Representative Elect Anabel Figueroa will be sworn into office on Monday morning at the State Capitol.
 
I am looking forward to serving alongside Anabel. She is a trailblazer, who will be serving our city and state as Stamford’s first Latina state representative! She has worked hard for more than 20 years as a member of the Stamford Board of Representatives, and I have spoken to so many people who have benefited from her years of advocacy and service. 

I also welcome new colleagues State Representative Elect Kai Belton from Middletown and State Representative Elect James Sanchez from Hartford!!

The program allows eligible families access to $300 per child for activities like swimming, music, art, sports, and the corresponding equipment.

Families are screened for eligibility based on household income and family size. Take a look at the picture below for more information.

I encourage all families, who are eligible, to take part in this wonderful program.
 

SNAP redetermination happens every six months. You will once again have to provide identification, your address, proof of income, and your social security information.

All households that are eligible for SNAP benefits will receive one payment starting in March. Those funds will arrive in the first three days of the month depending on the last name. Those in the program will receive their normal monthly benefit.

Households can now check their EBT balance in real-time by visiting www.mydss.ct.gov. On MyDSS, you can also update DSS with any case changes, complete renewals, view documents, or verify case status from a computer or mobile device.
 
To learn more as well as where to obtain resources for families dealing with the ending of the extra SNAP benefits, visit: www.ct.gov/snap/extracovidbenefits.