Klarides-Ditria posts new laws effective today

With the legislative session over and the governor signing - and even vetoing - bills almost daily, I wanted to highlight several, and provide a full list of new laws that take effect on July 1st. You can find a list of all bills that passed the 2025 session by clicking the red button below. The Cost of Energy A major piece of legislation we took up concerned the high cost of energy in our state.  Senate Bill 4 is a comprehensive plan that creates savings of more than $100 million in the public benefits, places $100 million of Covid debt on bond, and securitizes storm costs which is projected to save about $90 million off the bill providing an overall decrease of about $300 million from ratepayers’ bills. It also requires the Office of Consumer Council (OCC) to study the public benefits charges. While not the comprehensive energy policy overhaul I would have liked, I did support the bill and hope to see even more positive changes to help save you even more money in the future. Housing and HB5002 Following an 11-hour debate and despite strong bipartisan opposition, the House passed an omnibus housing bill that has the potential to undercut local zoning and take away local control in favor of Hartford mandates. House Bill 5002, priority legislation for the majority party, creates unrealistic fair share housing requirements for each town, requires town zoning to allow for as of right conversion of commercial lots for certain residential development, prohibits towns from including minimum parking requirements on certain housing developments, and allows developers to recover attorneys’ fees from towns in certain circumstances in 8-30g appeals, among other concerning provisions.  It also combined various bills and sidestepped normal procedural requirements for consideration of legislation. I voted against this bill because it’s another massive overreach from Hartford. Zoning requirements should be set locally, and not be forced onto our towns by Hartford mandates. I'm pleased to note that Governor Lamont vetoed this bill, and I look forward to debating a substantially different proposal during a fall special session! Bills Passed 2025 Several new laws will take effect July 1st that could have an impact on you, your business, or our community. I have highlighted some of them below. AN ACT CONCERNING THE FALLEN HERO FUND I supported this bill so that the surviving family of a firefighter killed in the line of duty shall be paid a death benefit from the Fallen Officer Fund. With the eligibility now expanded from only law enforcement members, the fund will be renamed the Fallen Officer and Firefighter Fund. This new law will also provide health insurance coverage to the survivors of a firefighter killed in the line of duty. AN ACT IMPLEMENTING RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE BIPARTISAN DRUG TASK FORCE This bill is aimed at reducing drug prices, and includes a feasibility study about importing prescription drugs from Canada. It also states that the insurance commissioner must require health carriers to annually report on pricing offered to, and profit generated between, the carrier and any pharmacy benefits managers (PBM) or mail-order pharmacy doing business in Connecticut. AN ACT CONCERNING THE ILLEGAL USE OF CERTAIN VEHICLES AND STREET TAKEOVERS Municipalities with more than 20,000 residents will be empowered to adopt an ordinance allowing for the destruction of vehicles seized during so-called street takeovers (large groups of vehicles blocking roads or intersections) after holding them for 30 days. There are some restrictions, including that a reasonable effort be made to contact the owner. If the owner did not know the vehicle was used for such an event, that person has the right to collect the vehicle within 90 days. AN ACT CONCERNING ASSORTED PROPOSALS TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR THE MILITARY SERVICE OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES AND VETERANS IN CONNECTICUT This bill makes technical changes in a statute related to veteran's affairs, including the appointment of a manager to administer an Office of Advocacy and Assistance. The office shall include 8 to 14 veterans' service officers, who are veterans! Other major acts include: An Act Concerning Bleeding Control Training and Kits An Act Implementing Recommendations of the DMV An expanded list of those that will take effect on July 1, along with summaries, can be found here. Feel free to share this information with anyone who may benefit from it!

Sincerely,

Klarides-Ditria outlines new laws effective Oct. 1

I just wanted you to know that several new laws will take effect Tuesday, Oct. 1, that could have an impact on you, your business, or our community. I highlighted some of them below. 

An expanded list of those that will take effect, along with summaries, can be accessed here. 

AN ACT SUPPORTING CONNECTICUT SENIORS AND THE IMPROVEMENT OF NURSING AND HOME-BASED CARE. - Public Act No. 24-39 (Sec. 1-5, 7-9, 15-19, 21-23) AN ACT PROMOTING NURSING HOME RESIDENT QUALITY OF LIFE. - Public Act No. 24-141 (Sec. 8-9) AN ACT ESTABLISHING A PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION FOR VETERANS WHO HAVE A SERVICE-CONNECTED PERMANENT AND TOTAL DISABILITY RATING. - Public Act No. 24-46 (Sec. 1) AN ACT CONCERNING THE USE OF POLICE BODY-WORN RECORDING EQUIPMENT. - Public Act No. 24-15 (Sec. 1) AN ACT CONCERNING AUTHORITY TO DECLARE THAT A FIREFIGHTER, POLICE OFFICER OR EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE PERSONNEL DIED IN THE LINE OF DUTY. - Public Act No. 24-16 AN ACT REQUIRING RESTITUTION WHEN A POLICE ANIMAL OR DOG IN A VOLUNTEER CANINE SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAM IS INJURED OR KILLED. - Public Act No. 24-65 AN ACT CONCERNING DOG RACING. - Public Act No. 24-1

Sincerely,

Klarides-Ditria lists new laws in effect as of today, Jan. 1

Friends and neighbors, Several new laws will take effect January 1 that could have an impact on you, your business, or our community.  I have highlighted some of them below. An expanded list of those that will take effect on January 1, along with summaries, can be accessed here. The new year also brings the start of a new legislative session - the second year of the biennium which is known colloquially as the "short session" - which begins on February 7, 2024.  Due to the truncated timeline of the short session, only bills that come directly from one of the legislative committees will make it to the full General Assembly. However, individual legislators are still able to introduce concepts, and I welcome your ideas and input on any state issue. A summary of some new laws include: TAX CUTS The state budget, adopted in June, cuts the bottom two marginal income tax rates for all filers from 3% to 2% and from 5% to 4.5%. Income taxes on the first $50,000 in taxable income will be lowered for single filers and married people filing separately, $100,000 for joint filers, and $80,000 for heads of household. January 1 is also the start of easing the cliff on income tax exemptions for retirement income. The new budget adds a tax deduction schedule for retirement income above the full exemption threshold. BOTTLE BILL The deposit cost for certain beverage containers will increase from $.05 to $.10 on January 1. Initially passed during the 2022 session with a phased roll out, the cost of deposits on (generally) hard cider, plant water or plant infused drink, juice or juice drink, tea, coffee, kombucha, sports or energy drinks, and any beverages identified as one of these products with letters, words, or symbols on their labels will increase. SUPPORTS FOR THE I/DD COMMUNITY Several provisions of a comprehensive bill concerning resources and support services for residents with an intellectual or developmental disability (I/DD) take effect in the new calendar year. More businesses could be eligible for credits for hiring the disabled. The Connecticut JOBSCT Tax Rebate Program will lower the threshold for businesses who hire 25 new full-time employees, down to 15 to retain eligibility for 50-percent income tax rebates for the new employees, if one employee has an intellectual disability. The new law also requires annual reports from the Department of Social Services on the size of the waiting list for the Medicaid waiver program for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Public Act 23-137 also requires the state to create and acquire sensory kits for emergency services workers to give to autistic children and adults to help them during emergency encounters. ONLINE DATING SAFETY We passed a bill last session to bring some safety measure to online dating. Under the new law, online dating companies will be required to have safety centers and reporting procedures to respond to unwanted behaviors, links to report sexual harassment, and safety advice for online dating, including alerts to romance scams. Other major acts include: An Act Concerning Maternal Health An Act Concerning Adoption of the Recommendations of the Task Force to Study Cancer Relief Benefits for Firefighters An Act Ensuring Timely Scheduling of Temporary Financial Support Hearings in Divorce and Custody Proceedings Please feel free to share this information with anyone who may benefit from it.

Sincerely,

Klarides-Ditria outlines new laws effective Jan. 1

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

With 2022 coming to an end, I wanted to make you aware of new policies affecting Connecticut taxpayers and businesses taking effect Jan. 1, 2023.

Some of these new laws will take more money out of your pocket, including an expansion and increase to the “bottle bill,” and a new “highway use tax” assessed on delivery trucks carrying goods into and out of our state that will inevitably lead to higher prices when the cost of the tax is passed down to consumers. 

One piece of legislation allows previously convicted individuals to apply to have their criminal records erased, another will automatically erase past criminal convictions for certain misdemeanors including drug possession after seven years, and certain felonies after 10 years. I opposed these measures.

The new laws, and portions of previously enacted legislation that become active, include: AN ACT CONCERNING A HIGHWAY USE FEE. Public Act No. 21-177 imposes a highway use tax (HUT) on every “carrier” for the privilege of operating, or causing to be operated, certain heavy, multi-unit motor vehicles on any highway (i.e., public road) in the state.
AN ACT CONCERNING SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT. Public Act No. 21-58 (Sec. 1) expands the list of eligible containers and increases the bottle deposit rate from $.05 to $.10.
AN ACT CONCERNING REQUIRED HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR BREAST AND OVARIAN CANCER SUSCEPTIBILITY SCREENING. Public Act No. 22-90 expands coverage requirements under certain commercial health insurance policies for specified procedures used to treat or prevent breast or ovarian cancer.
AN ACT CONCERNING RESPONSIBLE AND EQUITABLE REGULATION OF ADULT-USE CANNABIS. (Criminal Record Erasure) Public Act No. 21-1 (Sec. 9-10) establishes a process to erase records of certain criminal convictions after a specified period following the person’s most recent conviction. It provides for automatic erasure of convictions within a certain period for possessing less than four ounces of cannabis or any quantity of non-narcotic or non-hallucinogenic drugs. Certain Misdemeanors are subject to erasure seven years after the person’s most recent conviction and certain felonies are subject to erasure 10 years after the most recent conviction. PA 21- 32 excludes from erasure (1) family violence crimes and (2) nonviolent or violent sexual offenses requiring sex offender registration.
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A HATE CRIMES INVESTIGATIVE UNIT WITHIN THE DIVISION OF STATE POLICE AND REQUIRING DEVELOPMENT OF A REPORTING SYSTEM, BEST PRACTICES AND A MODEL INVESTIGATION POLICY FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT UNITS REGARDING HATE CRIMES. Public Act No. 22-9 (Sec. 4) requires all law enforcement units to use POST’s standardized form or other reporting system to submit a notice and report to the Hate Crimes Investigative Unit within 14 days after receiving a notice, information, or a complaint of certain crimes involving intimidation based on bigotry or bias.
AN ACT REDUCING LEAD POISONING. Public Act No. 22-49 (Sec. 1-4) generally lowers the threshold for blood lead levels in individuals at which the Department of Public Health (DPH) and local health departments must take certain actions.

New legislation effective dates are typically Jan. 1, July 1, and Oct. 1 throughout the calendar year. These new laws may have an impact on you, your business, or our community. I encourage you to take a look at the full list, which can be accessed by clicking here.

Please pass this information along to those who may benefit from knowing what to expect in the New Year.

Sincerely,