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| Rethinking Crisis Response Drills and Student Mental Health |
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| I want to invite you to an event I'm co-hosting with Moms Demand Action called Rethinking Crisis Response Drills and Student Mental Health. We will be having an open discussion about how we currently facilitate crisis response drills and what we can do to improve them. This conversation will also touch on Raised H.B. No. 6846: An Act Concerning the Implementation of Crisis Response Drills in Public Schools, which is a piece of legislation I introduced this session and was just voted out of committee on Friday. The event will take place on Thursday, March 30, 2023 from 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM at the Fairfield Main Library Rotary Room. |
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| For questions regarding the event, please email Julianna Goldfluss. I hope to see you there! |
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| Legislative Spotlight: An Act Concerning the Recruitment, Retention and Enhancement of the Teaching Profession |
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This was a big week for the Education Committee. We had our final public hearing of the session and heard testimony on:
- Raised S.B. No. 1198: The recommendations from the Indoor Air Quality in Public Schools Working Group that I co-chaired with Senator Kushner,
- Raised H.B. No. 6879: Improvements to both Teacher Certification and education prep programs,
- Raised H.B. No. 6881: Better pay for para-educators, and
- Raised H.B. No. 6884: which sets a minimum teacher starting salary,
- rewards teachers for their service during the pandemic,
- provides for play-based-learning in pre-k through grade 5, and lastly, would
- move the start date for kindergarten enrollment from January 1 to September 1, putting CT in line with 48 other states.
These are many really significant proposals and improvements to our education system and it's exciting to be part of this work. |
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| Wrong-Way Driving Public Awareness Campaign |
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| Governor Lamont recently announced that the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) launched a public awareness campaign that aims to raise awareness of the dangers of wrong-way driving as part of the state's larger strategy of reversing the catastrophic recent increase in wrong-way crashes and deaths. The theme, "One Wrong Move" demonstrates just how one movement and one decision can be fatal. |
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| WATCH: Video of "One Wrong Move" TV Advertisement |
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| The number of wrong-way driving crashes in Connecticut tripled in 2022, exhibiting just how necessary this campaign is. By raising awareness and educating the public, we can prevent these catastrophes from occurring.
Individuals who encounter a wrong-way driver should call 9-1-1 and report the location as soon as it's safe to do so. If a driver discovers they have entered a highway going in the wrong direction, they should immediately pull into the breakdown lane and change their direction when it is safe. |
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| More than 600,000 private-sector employees in Connecticut have no access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan. MyCTSavings was created by law to meet this urgent need. |
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| With this new program, employers can now offer their employees an easy way to save for their retirement in a convenient Roth IRA that employees can take wherever their career leads. You can learn more by clicking on the graphic above. |
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| PURA Orders Rate Decrease for Aquarion Water Customers |
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| On Wednesday, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) voted to order a rate decrease for Aquarion Water Customers. PURA's 200-day rate case included four public comment hearings, several days of field audits and inspections, seven days of evidentiary hearings, two days of late-filed exhibit hearings, oral arguments, and the insurance of several hundred discovery requests. |
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| The decision declined to incorporate certain operating expenses, equating to an annual revenue requirement reduction of over $10.7 million that Aquarion sought to recover through customer rates. PURA determined that Aquarion did not satisfy its evidentiary burden and that these expenses were not demonstrated to benefit ratepayers. Ultimately, the decision will decrease the average residential customer's total bill by approximately $67 per year. |
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| Fairfield Police Department's SafeReturn Network |
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| The SafeReturn Network is a computer database developed to assist emergency personnel in locating community members who suffer from conditions that make them susceptible to “wandering” and assists in safely returning them home. |
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| If someone in the community has a loved one or neighbor who suffers from a memory-affecting disease or has an intellectual or developmental disability, you can register them or learn more about this program by clicking here. |
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| Fairfield is accepting new applications for credits on real estate tax bills for qualifying elderly and/or disabled residents.
Qualifications:
- Must be at least 65 years of age (75 years old for the Deferral) or totally disabled (receiving total disability payments from Social Security or from any other government disability program) as of December 31, 2022
- See the table below with income caps
- The property for which the tax relief is claimed must be the legal residence of the applicant and occupied by them more than 183 days of each year
- Been a taxpayer of the Town of Fairfield and have paid taxes for at least one year as of October 1 of the current Grand List year
- Must have a qualifying total asset value (QTAV) not exceeding $650,000
Applications will be accepted through May 15, 2023 |
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| To submit, call the Assessor's Office for application instructions at (203) 256-3110.
What to Bring:
- Proof of income for the previous calendar year
- Complete copy of your 2022 income tax form 1040 or 1040A
- Copy of the 2022 social security form 1099
- All other 1099 forms whether taxable or not
- For those who do not file an income tax form - copies of all 1099 forms both taxable and non taxable are required.
*All income from all sources for the previous calendar year must be considered for any tax relief program. |
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| For more information on the program, please click here or call the Tax Assessor's Office. |
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| Fairfield Public Schools Green Team |
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| I also want to highlight FPS Green Team's Sustainability Tip of the Week. |
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| Lights Out Connecticut recognizes the urgent need to protect the millions of migratory birds that rest and nest in Connecticut each year. They work across the state to reduce the danger of unnecessary artificial lighting for migratory birds that can lure them off track into fatal window collisions and other threats. |
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| I'm committed to ensuring your voice is heard. Please don't hesitate to call my office at (860) 240-8585 or email me if there's anything I can do for you. Be sure to follow @LeeperForFairfield on Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date on everything I'm doing at the Capitol.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Leeper
State Representative |
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