Rebecca Martinez

Our two-year, $55.8 billion budget takes effect July 1. This bill reflects our shared values, marked by historic investments in children through expanded funding for special education and childcare. Our budget strengthens support for working families and ensures that the essential work of nonprofits is both valued and financially supported.

Our students will soon learn about three essential topics in the classroom: civics, media literacy, and Asian American and Pacific Islander history. Under two bills passed in 2022 and 2023, students will gain an understanding of what it means to be an active and engaged citizen, how to analyze the modern media landscape, and the rich history of the AAPI community in our state and the entire country.

Our elections will soon be more secure and transparent as video recording technology will be added to every absentee ballot drop box in our state. This new law will record the drop boxes from the first day that ballots are issued up through when the clerk retrieves the final ballots, and all of these recordings will be made available to the public. 

A novel, landmark bill supporting public libraries struggling to afford the skyrocketing costs of e-books and digital audiobooks will go into effect July 1. The bill bars libraries from entering into or renewing expensive contracts and licensing agreements with publishers. The measure positions Connecticut as a national leader in this arena and marks a significant step toward transparency, equity, and sustainability in how libraries acquire and provide digital resources to the public.

Many more bills are going into effect July 1, including one that reforms Connecticut's towing system, one that requires financial literacy instruction in school, and more.

You can click the link below for the full list of laws going into effect, and please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

As always, your calls, emails, and testimony at our public hearings directly influenced these new laws. Please continue to share your views and have your voice heard at the Capitol

Please be aware of several upcoming road projects affecting our community. Eversource will be running gas lines beginning in July and ending in October. You can read about the locations and type of project below:

• West Main Street (RT 372) from Whiting Street to Washington Street (RT 177) – Transfer all services from old main to be abandoned to the new main.
• Washington Street (RT 177) from West Main Street (RT 372) to Broad Street – Install new gas main and abandon existing main.
• West Main Street (RT 372) and Forestville Ave (RT 372) from Washington Street (RT 177) to roughly 21 Forestville Ave (RT 372) - Transfer all services from old main to be abandoned to the new main.
• From 21 Forestville Ave (RT 372) across E. Bartlett Barnes Hwy. (RT 72) on to East Main Street (RT 372) to the Bristol / Plainville Town Line - Install new gas main and abandon existing main.

Thank you to the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce for inviting me to the 2025 State of the Region, giving me the opportunity to talk about how the great work we accomplished this legislative session will impact the region. It is events like these that help in preparation for the next session, and I always appreciate hearing from residents about what their priorities are!

I wanted to share the 2025 Legislative Session Major Public Acts document with you. The document, composed by the Office of Legislative Research (OLR) with assistance from the Office of Fiscal Analysis (OFA), briefly describes the most significant, far-reaching, and publicly debated acts adopted by the General Assembly in the 2025 regular session. You can click HERE to read the full OLR report, or click the graphic below. 

If you're interested in more information on bills that passed and didn't pass this legislative session, please click HERE.