State Capitol Update for the Week of August 29

September 2, 2022

Dear Friend,

This is my State Capitol update for the week of August 29th.

If you prefer to watch rather than read, click on the play button to hear about the issues contained in this newsletter.

maria

September has arrived.  The air feels a little crisper, and the leaves are looking a little crispy as well, accelerated by the drought as well as the weather.  My kids are all in their twenties now, but we still operate on the school calendar.  Two are home this weekend, and all three have made short trips home in the last week to touch home base, do some laundry, get some sleep, and eat some fresh local sweet corn before heading back to school and work.  Our dog Nelly, who does not understand why the five of us don’t end every day lying in one big communal heap, has an elaborate ritual of squeals and whirls each time one of them comes home.  I secretly think that’s one of the main reasons my kids come home regularly – well played, Nelly.
 
As my friend Maria Coutant Skinner, the CEO of the McCall Behavioral Health Network, put it in her recent (and excellent) newsletter, the season is bittersweet.  It’s the last blast of summer, maybe a family vacation, and the reminder of all the things you didn’t do this summer that you had hoped to do, a goodbye to summer rituals and to loved ones heading back to their own fall schedules. 
 
The bittersweet mood also characterized last evening’s annual Overdose Awareness Day Resource Fair & Vigil at Coe Memorial Park, organized by the Litchfield County Opiate Task Force.  It was a heartbreaking reminder of all those we have lost to this disease as their names were read out to those gathered.  But it’s also a moment of power and resilience, as we heard from people in recovery, many of whom have dedicated their lives and careers to helping others find a pathway out of addiction.  It’s always a reminder that there is hope in community and connection and an opportunity to renew our commitment to end overdoses and related mental health issues. 
If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction or the loss of a loved one to addiction, you can find resources
at www.liveloud.org or call 1-800-563-4086 any time, 24 hours a day.

Labor Day weekend also brings the annual Goshen Fair, with many agricultural and craft exhibits, rides, and all manner of excellent fair food.  I will be there at least on Saturday and Sunday, so maybe I’ll see you on the fairgrounds!

 

Here is a list of today's topics:

  • COVID-19 Weekly Update. Click here.
  • Energy Assistance Program Application Is Now Open. Click Here
  • Inaugural meeting of the Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention. Click here
  • CT wins federal approval to deploy $42.9 billion for broadband. Click here
  • Connecticut’s Annual 9/11 Memorial Ceremony. Click here
  • LGBTQIA+ Community Input Survey . Click here
  • Back to School Kit from Connecticut Children’s. Click here

 

COVID-19 weekly update

covid

 

 

For several additional graphs and tables containing more data, including a list of cases in every municipality, visit ct.gov/coronavirus and click the link that is labeled, “Data Tracker.”
 
Energy Assistance Program Application Is Now Open
 

If you are interested, there are several ways to submit your application: 

  • Online at ct.gov/heatinghelp/apply.
  • Call the office of your local community action agency and request assistance applying, or schedule an in-person appointment  
  • Download and complete the CEAP application, and mail the completed application with the required documents to your local community action agency. 

The contact information and addresses of Connecticut's community action agencies can be found here
 
Benefits are based on your household’s income and number of family members. Benefits are available for households with incomes up to 60% of the state median income, which equates to roughly $76,400 for a family of four. 

Typically, benefits are  paid directly to the utility company or fuel supplier. Households that heat with deliverable fuels like oil or propane may be eligible for multiple free tank fills.

Applications for the 2022-2023 winter season must be received by May 31, 2023.

 

Learn More Here

 

Inaugural meeting of the Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention

 

 

The State of Connecticut’s newly established Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention held its inaugural meeting last night. 

 

Established by legislation signed into law during the most recent legislative session, the commission is tasked with advising the Connecticut Department of Public Health on a new statewide community gun violence intervention and prevention program, which will provide state grants to community-based violence intervention organizations. The program is being administered by the Department of Public Health’s Office of Injury and Violence Prevention and was allocated $2.9 million in the fiscal year 2023 budget adjustment bill. The department will also begin a robust evaluation of best practices to assist organizations in spending these resources most effectively.

 

In addition to the investment in this program, the Connecticut Department of Social Services has launched a Medicaid benefit that enables violence prevention professionals to bill Medicaid for specific Community Violence interventions.

  

The commission’s members are appointed by the Governor; the bipartisan legislative leaders; the co-chairs of the legislature’s Public Health Committee; the executive director of the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity, and Opportunity; and the commissioner of the Department of Public Health.

 

CT wins federal approval to deploy $42.9 billion for broadband

Funding from President Biden's American Rescue Plan is helping Connecticut launch a program that will expand or improve broadband for 10,000 households and businesses.
 
CT won approval from the U.S. Treasury to use more than $40 million in ARPA Capital Projects Funds to deploy broadband infrastructure in underserved areas like the Northwest Corner. Working groups in several towns in the district will be able to apply for grants to help pay for their plans to improve access to high-speed internet for residents.

The grant comes from the U.S. Department of the Treasury as part of the American Rescue Plan Act’s Capital Projects Fund. This fund has a goal of carrying out critical capital projects that directly enable work, education, and health monitoring, including remote options, in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Learn more here: https://bit.ly/3RmYRAw
 

 

Connecticut’s Annual 9/11 Memorial Ceremony


 
Members of the public from across the state are invited to attend the State of Connecticut’s annual 9/11 Memorial Ceremony, honoring and celebrating the lives of those killed in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
 
This year’s ceremony will be held on Thursday, September 8, 2022, at 5:30 p.m. at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport. Family members of those who were killed in the attacks will participate, and the names of the 161 victims with ties to Connecticut will be read aloud.
 
The State of Connecticut’s official memorial honoring the victims of the attacks is located on a peninsula at the state park, where on a clear day the Manhattan skyline can be viewed across Long Island Sound. It features a memorial engraved with the names of the people with ties to Connecticut who were killed in the attacks. The state park was chosen as the site for the memorial because it is the location where, in the hours immediately following the attacks, many people gathered to observe the devastation on Lower Manhattan from across Long Island Sound. In addition, the site was used by the Connecticut National Guard as a staging area for Connecticut’s relief efforts to New York City in the following days.
 
Every year, the state purposefully holds its ceremony on a day prior to the actual anniversary in order to accommodate the family members and friends of the victims. Because Connecticut is in such close proximity to New York City, many people from the state who lost loved ones in the attacks also attend the annual ceremony that is held at the site of the World Trade Center on September 11.
 
For those who cannot attend in person, it is anticipated that the Connecticut Network will stream the ceremony live online at ct-n.com. An on-demand video will also be made available on the website shortly after its conclusion.
 
I will include information on regional 9/11 memorial events in next week’s newsletter.

 

The Litchfield County Opiate Task Force has developed an LGBTQIA+ Community Input Survey