Newtown’s state legislative delegation, 112th District Rep Tony Scott, 106th District Rep Mitch Bolinsky, 28th District Senator Tony Hwang, and 2nd District Rep Raghib Allie-Brennan have all been busy working toward the end of the 2021 General Assembly session, which concludes at midnight on June 9.

One of the latest actions taken by Hwang was a vote in support of declaring racism a public health emergency, an effort “that intends to shine a bright light on racial inequity and its impact on public health,” the senator described in a May 18 release.

Hwang, co-ranking leader on the Public Health Committee, began the Senate chamber discussion by asking questions and evaluated the “strike all” amended bill that was released barely an hour before final debate and vote in the Senate. Due to the late public release, Hwang engaged in a near section-by-section review to provide clarity and explore the “legislative intent” of all provisions of this public policy.

“The magnitude and breadth of SB-1 present incredible challenges to maintaining transparency, collaboration, and communication,” Hwang related. “My legislative exchange on the Senate floor with the chair of the public health committee clearly demonstrated and engaged in pointing out policies where we could adjust and improve the bill for a better outcome, but overall I support the direction our state is taking with its approval.”

Nonetheless, Hwang added, “The rushed and opaque process of this amended policy is yet another example of one-party Democrat rule in Hartford, in which constructive input and concerns are too often left out of the final product.”

The senator, whose district includes Newtown, said elected legislators have an important obligation to represent the interests of constituents, and to evaluate and critically analyze every bill/concept and its policy impact and consequences.

“I aspire to represent the viewpoints and concerns of all residents, regardless of political affiliation, social economic standing and geographical demographics,” he said. “I ultimately supported this bill after it was critically challenged and questioned for legislative intent. I applaud and am eager to be a part of the process to fulfill the goal of equalizing comprehensive access to mental, behavioral, and physical health care in response to disparate results exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

As one of founding advocates of the Long Island Sound Blue Plan, Hwang also reflected on and lauded the state Senate passage of HJ-53, which legislatively recognized and accepted the finalized plan. The Blue Plan provides an inventory of the natural resources and uses of Connecticut’s Long Island Sound and establishes a spatial plan to guide future use of the sound’s waters and submerged lands.

The purpose of the Blue Plan is to facilitate a transparent, science-based decision-making process for the preservation of sound’s ecosystems and resources and the protection of traditional uses, while maximizing their compatibility and minimizing conflicts between them now and in the future. Senator Hwang offers the following statement of support:

“The [Blue Plan] has been a long time coming. I want to applaud the efforts by the early advocates, especially former public servants Lonnie Reed and Ted Kennedy, Jr. As the CT DEEP website notes, this is a constantly evolving process, not a plan, and I am proud to be part of this process from its very beginning. [HJ-53] is about protecting the sound in the face of climate change and recreational and economic demands. This formalizes a reference to emphasize proper protection and balancing existing human uses, economic activity and the sustainability of marine life and their habitats.”

Hwang said the resolution provides a catalog of newly accessible information about the Long Island Sound.

“Never has this extent and depth of information and research been gathered together, integrated, and mapped, providing a new, in-depth and usable picture for all of Long Island Sound, both Connecticut and New York,” he added. “I am also proud to say that this has been a bipartisan, transparent, collaborative process with extensive stakeholder and public input from the start and remained so throughout.

“The plan provides an assessment and understanding... that we’ve never had before and is favorable to both the economy and the environment. It will enable better decisions and protection for what we need and love about the sound in a dynamically changing world,” said Sen Hwang.

Bolinsky Backed Bills

Rep Bolinsky, whose district covers most of Newtown, recently announced his backing of a pair of bills aimed at health and human services initiatives.

On May 18, Bolinsky supported and cosponsored a bill to better protect and act upon the plight suffered by the often nameless, faceless victims of human trafficking. The legislation, HB-6577 will provide affirmative defenses for juvenile victims of human trafficking who commit other crimes as a result of being trafficked, and allows for vacatur of resulting criminal records, excluding class A and B felonies, unless the offenses are tied to human trafficking.

Bolinsky said, “This legislation will strengthen Connecticut’s existing human trafficking laws and provide awareness and support for victims of trafficking. Rehabilitating survivors of human trafficking by recognizing that many low-level crimes committed while under the influence, manipulation, and duress of those exploiting them required additional, compassionate consideration. That consideration must recognize these individuals are truly victims and may need a hand up on their journeys back to becoming contributing members of our community.”

According to public hearing testimony, part of the victimization of human trafficking involves forcing its victims to participate in criminal activity, often beyond prostitution.

Human trafficking, also called modern slavery or trafficking in persons, is a crime of exploitation. Traffickers profit at the expense of their victims by compelling them to perform labor (sometimes criminal in nature) or to engage in commercial sex, in every region of the United States and around the world. With an estimated 24.9 million victims worldwide at any given time, human traffickers prey on adults and children of all ages, backgrounds, and nationalities.

One week earlier, the Newtown lawmaker strongly supported a proposal he has co-sponsored to provide insurance coverage for diagnostic testing needed for early detection of breast cancer. That bill, HB-6626, aims to fix a loophole in current law that mandates coverage screening of dense breasts but did not include or require coverage of diagnostic tests and breasts procedures.

The bill expands required health insurance coverage under certain individual and group health insurance policies to include coverage for colorectal cancer diagnoses and related benefits, breast health and breast cancer benefits regardless of sex, diagnostic and screening (mammograms, comprehensive breast ultrasounds, and magnetic resonance imaging of an entire breast or breasts), breast biopsies, prophylactic mastectomies for certain insureds, and breast reconstructive surgery for certain insureds.

“Many women put off diagnostic testing for breast cancer because of the high out-of-pocket costs,” Bolinsky said. “This bill closes that loophole insurance companies have been using and requires coverage allowing more women to get the diagnostic tests needed for early detection of breast cancer. By passing this proposal, we can remove some of the financial pressures associated with diagnostic breast cancer testing and allow for early detection. Bottom line: like much of my own legislation, this bill will save lives.”

The bill passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives and now moves to the state Senate for further action.

Scott Takes Action

Newtown’s other two statehouse representatives, Scott and Allie-Brennan, also released details on legislation they are supporting.

Scott, whose district covers Monroe and overlaps numerous neighborhoods in southern Newtown, joined House members of both parties in approving a bill ensuring the future solvency of the state unemployment trust fund, a resolution to the looming crisis of unemployment debts facing businesses during the pandemic. In addition, Scott and other lawmakers unanimously approved a resolution enabling the legislature to review the future use of emergency powers by Connecticut governors.

On May 12, the House took up HB-6633, An Act Restructuring Unemployment Insurance Benefits and Improving Fund Solvency. House Republicans and business groups have long insisted reforms were needed to prevent unemployment tax and assessment hikes for employers after the fund was depleted during the pandemic. Republicans and Democrats on the finance and labor committees announced a bipartisan agreement on April 20, which was welcomed by the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA) and many businesses.

“I was pleased to join my colleagues in voting for this resolution, which was achieved with bipartisan buy-in and industry support. These reforms will not only ensure the trust fund remains solvent, but will also spare many businesses from unexpected tax hikes as they recover from the pandemic. As the session continues, I will look for more opportunities to secure much-needed tax relief for our local businesses in Monroe and Newtown,” Scott said.

The unemployment insurance (UI) trust fund has been insolvent for 48 of the last 50 years, resulting in higher unemployment taxes and fees for the state’s businesses. According to the Office of Fiscal Analysis, beginning in fiscal 2024, these reforms will save the unemployment fund $84.25 million annually while generating $130.9 million in new annual revenues.

Following the House’s action, the bill headed to the Senate for further review.

Scott and his colleagues also unanimously approved HB-5653, An Act Amending the Civil Preparedness and Public Health Emergency Statutes. For more than a year, the governor and various state agencies have issued dozens of executive actions mandating business sector rules, placing a moratorium on evictions, and more. Scott and House Republicans believe the legislature should be able to clearly define the limits of the governor’s powers in an emergency and enumerate the differences between civil preparedness and public health emergencies.

“The legislature and the executive need to be able to coexist in a state of emergency,” Scott said. “You should not have a situation like with COVID-19 where the people’s elected representatives don’t have a seat at the table in high-stakes decisions on public and economic health. While executive orders removing burdensome regulations helped enable the distribution of tests, vaccines, and supplies, the continuing eviction moratorium has not resolved a growing housing crisis for tenants and an equally great financial crisis for small landlords.”

According to Scott, the public health and civil preparedness emergency statutes first invoked by Governor Lamont in March 2020 and renewed multiple times on party-line votes have “effectively allowed the executive branch to govern by executive order, shuttering businesses and enforce social distancing protocols in group gatherings. Under the bill, future emergency declarations would be limited to a duration of 60 days if the legislature is in session, and 180 days if it is not. It would also require that redeclaration of an emergency receive a majority vote of both chambers, and it establishes a bipartisan commission to review and recommend changes to the two emergency statutes.

“We need a thorough review the scope of these powers and get to work codifying necessary executive orders into law,” Scott said. “I was glad to see this much-needed reform receive overwhelming support from members of both parties in both chambers,” Scott concluded following the Senate’s approval of the measure on Thursday in concurrence with the House.”

Following its passage in the House and Senate, the bill was sent to Governor Lamont’s desk for consideration.

Addressing “Red Flag” Law

On May 12, Allie-Brennan, whose district overlaps several neighborhoods in western Newtown, voted to support the first substantial update to Connecticut’s “red flag” law since its adoption over 20 years ago. The bill passed 93-55. According to the lawmaker, Connecticut enacted the country’s first red flag law in 1999 following a mass shooting at the Connecticut Lottery.

This law, also known as a risk warrant or a risk protection order, established a legal procedure for the temporary removal of firearms from a person who may pose a danger to themselves or others.

Major changes to the law include allowing family members and medical providers to initiate an investigation into a person they are worried may be a danger to themselves or others. Currently, two police officers or a prosecutor are required in order to seek a warrant to seize firearms.

The bill would add a provision allowing risk warrants to prevent someone from purchasing weapons. Currently, the law only considers firearms that are already in a person’s possession.

The proposal also changes the duration of the risk warrants, making them persistent until the affected person applies to have the order vacated by a court. Under current law, the order lasts for one year with no ability to extend it or terminate it early.

A judge still has to deem the person an imminent risk; the gun owner is still guaranteed a hearing within 14 days. They can also go back to the judge in 180 days.

“I want to thank Bethel resident Jenn Lawlor and her family for their powerful testimony during the public hearing process,” Allie-Brennan said of his constituent, whose daughter was murdered by a former boyfriend in 2018. “We have a duty to protect our residents from gun violence. The temporary removal of firearms from a person who may pose a threat to themselves or others plays a critical role in preventing unnecessary gun deaths. With the passage of HB-6355, the House has moved to bolster current statute to protect and save lives and avoid tragedies before they happen.”

On May 6, Allie-Brennan, vice-chair of the House Energy and Technology Committee, brought out House Bill 6571, An Act Concerning the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy Program, and urged his colleagues to support the legislation.

“Eliminating barriers for employers to invest in zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and resiliency measures will also help the state reach its greenhouse gas reduction targets and meet its zero emission vehicle deployment goals,” said Allie-Brennan.

HB-6571 offers businesses a tool to pay for zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and resiliency measures and makes certain projects eligible under the Green Bank’s Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) program. It exempts the projects and zero-emission vehicle refueling infrastructure from certain program standards and requires the Green Bank to develop separate eligibility criteria for resilience projects.

A zero-emission vehicle is defined in the bill as a battery electric vehicle, hybrid electric vehicle, range-extended electric vehicle, and any vehicle certified by the California Air Resources Board executive director to produce zero emissions of any criteria pollutant under all operational modes and conditions. Examples of resilience measures include mitigation against sea level rise, coastal degradation and inland flooding; the use of sustainable building materials, practices, and landscapes design; green roofs and tree canopies; and urban farming and community gardens.

House Bill 5592, An Act Redefining Veteran and Establishing a Qualified Condition Review Board, will allow Connecticut to provide veterans’ benefits to those who were deemed ineligible based on their sexual orientation. Estimates have found more than 100,000 American veterans received less-than-honorable discharges from the service for their sexual orientation between World War II and the repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

“The brave Americans who served this nation deserve to be treated with dignity and respect and deserve the benefits they earned,” said Allie-Brennan. “Who you are or who you love shouldn’t have an impact on the care you receive. This bill will correct an incredible injustice.”

Benefits the legislation would restore include insurance, education, and employment opportunities, and the right for burial in a military cemetery. All of the public hearing testimony on HB-5592 supported this legislation, including that of Veterans’ Affairs Commissioner Thomas Saadi.

“I want to thank all those involved who supported these important measures, which I co-sponsored, and I am also grateful to my constituents for entrusting me with the people’s business,” said Allie-Brennan. “On to the Senate.”

Associate Editor John Voket can be reached at john@thebee.com.