The Appropriations Committee is meeting with state agencies on their agency proposed budgets. The Committee then is divided into workgroups for different agencies in which they can further discuss their needs for staff, programs, and projects mandated by the federal and state government for their agency (such as Human Services, DEEP, Transportation, and Public Safety). As the legislature prepares to settle on a budget, there is the spend and tax concern. In respect to last month, those projections have improved by $8.4 million dollars in the general funds
The House was in session this past Wednesday and approved for an eight-year reconfirmation for a number of superior court judges, including Judges Albis, Goodrow, Huddleston, Johnson, Kamp, Lobo, Moukawsher, Roraback, Seeley, Truglia, and White, and Judge Cynthia Swienton as a senior judge; state referees approved by the House were Judges Blue, Lee, Cohn, and Kenefick. These judges went before the Senate on Monday, March 1 for its approval.
Special elections are scheduled for March 2 in Stamford and Darien to elect a replacement for Sen. Carlo Leone who has taken a position with the Department of Transportation and on April 13 in Monroe and Newtown to replace Rep. J.P. Sredzinski.
Attorney Bob Clark, Governor Lamont’s general counsel, is a nominee for the Connecticut Appellate Court and was approved 34-1 during a public hearing of the Judiciary Committee this past Wednesday. His nomination now goes before the full legislature. Meanwhile, Governor Lamont has appointed Nora Dannehy as his new General Counsel. Attorney Dannehy has previously served as assistant US Attorney and as Connecticut Deputy Attorney General.
The 15 new judicial nominations will be going before the Judiciary Committee in the next few weeks.
A number of the governor’s initiatives for this session are entering the public hearing stage. Cannabis was heard before Judiciary Committee on Friday at a 14-hour public hearing. In the next week, the governor’s proposed bills on Public Health, Human Services, and Education will have public hearings as the Appropriations Committee will also have hearings on the budgets for higher education, human services, and elementary education.
COVID-19
Connecticut remains in the top five in the country for providing efficiency in vaccinations. Seventy-three percent of those ages 75+ and 44 percent of those ages 65-74 have been vaccinated. This week, the state will receive 30,000 doses of the recently approved Johnson and Johnson vaccine and those 55+ can begin making vaccination appointments.
LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR
The calendar of the legislature is available daily to view scheduling of committee meetings and public hearings. View the daily calendar with committee agendas, attend virtual committee meetings, hear the discussion, and note the process.
JUDICIARY COMMITTEE INFORMATIONAL FORUM
The Judiciary Committee will hold an Informational Forum on Judicial Branch Family Court Reform Initiatives on Wednesday, March 3 at 10:00 A.M. via Zoom. The committee will hear from invited speakers only.
PUBLIC HEARINGS, DAILY BILLS, and INFORMATIONAL FORUMS
Public Hearings and Committee Forums and Presentations listings can be found on The Bulletin’s website as underlined links at the top of the webpage. Note that bill numbers can be entered into the Connecticut General Assembly’s Basic Legislative Document Search, which allows you to note who introduced the bill and view the present state of the proposed bill or concept. Each CBA section receives a weekly update of the bills being monitored for that section.
The Judiciary Committee is planning three meetings per week over the next three weeks. Prepare your testimony.
COMMITTEE MEETINGS and PUBLIC HEARINGS
Public hearings will be held in the following legislative committees this week: Banking (foreclosure mediation), Public Safety and Security (sports wagering, casino gambling, online lottery and keno, greyhound racing), Environment (Big Six, hemp, streamlining DEEP programs), Judiciary (UCERA, land use appeals, collateral source payments, guns), Public Health (Office of Health Strategy), Transportation (automated driving vehicles), Energy and Technology (climate change mitigation, solar projects, fuel cell projects), Housing (protections for victims of family violence or sexual assault, sealing of eviction records, right to counsel in eviction proceedings, consider the criminal record of prospective tenants), Labor (non-competes, technical changes to the Workers Comp Act), and Planning and Development (extending the time of expiration of certain land use permits, restrictions on pet shops), plus public hearings in Higher Education, Children, Education.
The following committees will meet this week to raise and/or JF bills: Aging, Energy and Technology, Human Services, Planning and Development, and Higher Education.
Legislator committee assignments are here.