Geraldo Reyes Jr

I’m proud that Waterbury will officially recognize Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as school holidays staring next year. The Muslim population has grown exponentially in recent years, and this move shows respect, acceptance, and tolerance in our community.

Your energy bill has gone out of control this year, and this unprecedented spike has caused hardship for hundreds of individuals and families in Waterbury. The House and Senate passed a new bill, which is designed to secure energy affordability, predictability, and transparency.

The House of Representatives and Senate passed an updated Environmental Justice bill, which was one of my top priorities in this legislative session. Waterbury is the poster child for environmental injustice, and this bill is designed to clean our air, protect our natural resources, and prevent more polluters from coming to our community.

The state is working on taking our landmark African American, Black, Puerto Rican, and Latino Studies course to another level. We are going to create an honors level class with the goal of eventually creating an Advance Placement college credit as well.

Our balanced, bipartisan state budget is delivering Waterbury historic funding for education and car tax reimbursements.

Our neighborhoods are receiving a massive boost to protect our environment by cleaning up abandoned brownfields. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing $3 million to the 75th district.

I applaud the passage of a proposal that will require students, starting with classes graduating in 2027, to take a half-credit course on personal financial management and financial literacy.

I fully support a new proposal that would include wage hikes for early childcare providers. The Office of Childhood has agreed to a successor contract with the bargaining unit comprised of childcare providers. The deal incentivizes quality of care through a tiered rate structure that encourages providers to obtain a license.