These news briefs were originally written for CT Politics, The Connecticut Mirror’s weekly newsletter providing updates on the 2025 legislative session. To sign up for CT Politics, click here.
Toddlers lobby for Diaper Bank funding
The tiniest lobbyists had a heavy task, trying to get the appropriation for diapers more than doubled after the Lamont administration and legislature’s Appropriations Committee have finished versions of the state budget.
The Diaper Bank of Connecticut, which provides diapers to Medicaid-eligible families, was not hesitant to play the cute card Thursday, having toddlers at the state Capitol as they lobby for more money.
This is the time of year when some legislators, overwhelmed by the requests for money, ofttimes for needs they would love to meet, are tempted to walk by the throngs of advocates with eyes fixed on some distant point. Hence, the mini-lobbyists, as well as robocalling using kids, to see if the $756,000 in the budget for diapers just might get bumped to, say, maybe $2 million?
Janet Stolfi Alfano of the Diaper Bank said she knows that some lawmakers might rank diapers behind even more basic needs like housing and food. “We don’t fit nicely into one of those buckets,” she said.
But she points to Yale research that found a top source of maternal stress was the availability and affordability of diapers, which she found shocking. “We knew it was significant,” she said.
The Diaper Bank is 20 years old, founded in 2004 after a social worker saw the need and some families who tried to the stretch the supply in ways potential harmful to the babies. The state put $150,000 in the budget in 2007, then nothing in 2008, when the bottom fell out of the economy and state finances. They’ve received hundreds of thousands since then each year, but it’s not enough to serve the need.
“As of now, we’re $756,000 a year, and we’re serving about 6,000 kids with that. But we know there’s about 70,000” more who could qualify using Medicaid eligibility as a standard, she said.
Efforts to make it covered by Medicaid have not gone anywhere. “While we’re glad it wasn’t cut, we know that we could be serving more families,” she said. “We could scale up very easily.”
— Mark Pazniokas, Capitol Bureau Chief
Inspector general transition
Gov. Ned Lamont announced Wednesday that Judge Eliot Prescott would assume the post of inspector general this summer.
The office of the Inspector General was created in the 2020 Police Accountability Law, and established in 2021. The inspector general’s role involves investigating deaths of incarcerated individuals in custody and incidents in which people are killed by police officers.
Inspector General Robert Devlin, who has held the post since 2021, only brought one single case to trial during his tenure – that of State Trooper Brian North, who was tried for manslaughter after shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane, who was the subject of a high-speed chase in 2020. North was acquitted in 2024.
Devlin said during a press conference Wednesday that the verdict in North’s trial has not changed the way he thinks about the way the office should operate.
“The statute’s very clear. If the inspector general determines that that shooting is not justified, we’re to bring it to court and present that case, and the fair-minded jurors in our state will make a decision about it. So it hasn’t changed my view of that at all,” said Devlin.
Lamont emphasized the importance of the inspector general’s role in establishing trust between the community and law enforcement. Prescott said he believed that if cases in which law enforcement found itself at odds with the public were handled fairly, it could lessen the controversy that surrounded them.
There are currently over 20 investigations pending in the inspector general’s office. The most recent report addresses a death while in the custody of the Wolcott Police Department that dates back to October 2023.
— Emilia Otte, Justice Reporter
Lamont talks transportation funding
The few hundred state transportation officials gathered in Hartford had an assortment of projects to ooh and ahh at: a newly-renovated State Pier, a well-regarded bus rapid-transit system and, of course, lots of highway construction.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials — led this year by Connecticut’s own transportation commissioner, Garrett Eucalitto — held its spring conference at the Connecticut Convention Center this week.
On Wednesday, Gov. Ned Lamont stopped by to deliver a keynote speech praising Eucalitto’s work and the federal money that is funding much of it.
“As Garrett and I go around the state, we’re christening bridges that are being replaced — a lot of movable bridges were built by William McKinley, Donald Trump’s favorite president,” Lamont joked. “We’re retrofitting, rebuilding and getting those going again.”
Lamont’s general message of optimism was tempered somewhat, however, when he cautioned the federal government — and by extension the Trump administration — not to be “spasmodic” about how they dole out money for transportation projects.
Under the Biden administration, Connecticut was pledged billions of dollars to upgrade its aging rail and highway infrastructure. Lamont has previously raised concerns that Trump could seek to halt some of that funding, leaving behind a string of unfinished projects.
So far at least, Lamont said that appears not to be the case. “The money that was promised to us seems to be flowing,” he told a reporter outside the convention hall, along with a small overture to the president.
“I’d like to think that President Trump’s a builder, he knows how important infrastructure was in and around his buildings ” Lamont said. “He was there knocking the doors of probably some AASHTO guys, saying, ‘I need this to keep my building going.’”
— John Moritz, Environment & Energy reporter
Shark-finning ban passes House
State lawmakers looking to crack down on any potential for “shark finning” in Connecticut waters voted to advance a statewide ban on Tuesday.
Shark finning refers to the practice — already prohibited under federal law — of catching a shark, removing its fins and dumping the rest of the animal’s body back in the ocean.
Because their fins are valued as a delicacy in certain overseas markets, sharks have become subject to overfishing that has put some species at the risk of extinction, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
House Bill 5012 attempts to close what some lawmakers have referred to as a ‘loophole’ in the state and federal protections for sharks by banning the possession of a dismembered shark fin in Connecticut. The ban would not prohibit anglers from catching sharks if they intend to use the whole body.
Even without a ban, the practice does not appear to be widespread in Connecticut. A review of the bill by the nonpartisan Office of Fiscal Analysis estimated that the state would collect less than $500 in fines each year as a result of a ban.
The bill passed the House unanimously on Tuesday and now heads to the Senate for further consideration.
— John Moritz, Environment & Energy Reporter
Working group on poverty
Lawmakers in the House of Representatives voted Wednesday evening to create a working group to study ways to alleviate poverty in the state of Connecticut.
Rep. Corey Paris, D-Stamford, told lawmakers that the working group would focus on things like universal basic income, targeted workforce training, and creating methods for “ measurable economic mobility” for the most disadvantaged.
According to the most recent report from United Way, 11% of Connecticut residents live below the poverty line, and 40% live below the ALICE threshold – a measurement of the basic cost of living in a geographic area.
The bill was met with pushback from Republicans, several of whom said that Connecticut already offered many programs to help residents. “We provide SNAP money, WIC money, diaper care, health care, dental care, housing, supplements, baby bonds, college supplements … and the list goes on and on and on. I would argue that we have done so much to look at poverty and we’re already doing much, much more than probably many of the states around us,” said Rep. Anne Dauphinais, R-Killingly.
Several Republicans also objected to the idea of introducing a Universal Basic Income proposal. “So we’re going to tax you, member of the state, and then we’re just going to give you a cash payment right back. Seems like a whole waste of time. Let the person keep the cash in the first place,” said Rep. Joe Canino, R-Torrington.
Democrats pushed back. Rep. Anthony Nolan, D-New London, noted that the high cost of things like health care, transportation and child care weigh particularly on low-income families.
“My soup kitchen in my district hands out about a million meals a year. That’s not SNAP. That’s because SNAP doesn’t cover it all,” added Rep. Susan Johnson, D-Windham.
The bill passed 110-37.
— Emilia Otte, Justice Reporter
Senate passes higher ed scholarship bill
Senate Bill 5, one of the Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee’s top priority bills, passed out of the Senate Wednesday.
The bill targeted better enforcement of the Roberta B. Willis Scholarship Program, a need-based and merit-based scholarship that provides Connecticut students between $4,500 and $5,200 to attend in-state higher education institutions.
In February, lawmakers said about two-thirds of the students, or around 16,000, who qualified for the scholarship did not receive funds in FY22. The proposed bill would require that need-based grants equal to $4,500 per student are fully funded and for the Office of Higher Education to notify universities of the amount of scholarship money they can expect for the following fiscal year.
Senate Democrats said the provisions would “help students weigh the benefits of enrolling in-state accurately.”
“The cost of higher education continues to grow, and our underfunded state scholarship program encourages students to seek education elsewhere,” said Senate President Martin Looney in a news release following the bill’s passage. “By investing in our students and giving them timely notice of the amount of their Roberta Willis grants, we are allowing Connecticut students to stay in this state to receive their education, enter the workforce, grow our economy and enjoy the high quality life we have built here in Connecticut.”
The bill passed unanimously.
— Jessika Harkay, Education Reporter
Student mental health bill passed by House
A bill meant to ensure more seamless communication between medical providers and schools regarding students’ mental health passed out of the state House of Representatives Thursday 105-42.
House Bill 7158 would require health care providers to share “safety plans” with schools for students who spend 12 or more days in a hospital for behavioral health concerns. The plans, which would consist of things like coping strategies and other recommendations to support the child, would only be shared with school counselors, nurses or other staff who would need the information to keep the child safe in class. The plans would be shared through a secure messaging system provided by the Office of Health Strategy, according to the bill.
Currently, safety plans can only be shared if a parent brings a physical copy to the school, said Rep. Patrick Biggins, D-East Hartford, who proposed the bill.
“This allows a way for the hospitals to communicate directly to school, which will make the second communication a little bit quicker,” Biggins said. “If the safety plan is shared with the school, then they would have knowledge of the steps to take in order to keep the child safe.”
— Jessika Harkay, Education Reporter
Bill aims to help towns reduce blight
The Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that would allow towns to put liens on properties where code violation fees have gone unpaid.
Senate Bill 1317 is the latest attempt from the Connecticut legislature to give towns more tools to combat poor rental housing conditions and reduce blight. Connecticut tenants, particularly those with out-of-state landlords, have long said they struggle to get repairs done and are living in unsafe housing conditions.
The New Haven delegation issued a press release in support of the bill after its passage. “When housing density is high, it only takes a few violations to impact entire neighborhoods,” said Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, in the release. “This bill empowers New Haven and other cities to take necessary actions to uphold housing standards and protect public spaces.”
The bill passed with bipartisan support and next heads to the House for a vote.
— Ginny Monk, Housing & Children’s Issues Reporter
Measure prevents discrimination against abuse victims
A bill regarding victims of human trafficking and sexual assault passed in the House 139-4 on Thursday.
The bill prohibits current or prospective employers and landlords from discriminating against victims of rape, sexual assault or human trafficking. Rep. Steven Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, said victims of rape, sexual assault or human trafficking cannot be penalized by their employer if they have to take time off work to attend court proceedings.
But Rep. Craig Fishbein, R-Wallingford, questioned why these protections did not extend to all victims – for example, if someone had their car stolen and was unable to get to work.
Fishbein also objected to the idea of an “affirmative defense” for human trafficking victims who commit misdemeanors directly related to being trafficked.
Stafstrom gave the example of someone who was a victim of human trafficking and ended up prostituting themselves. “It’s a crime. It’s a misdemeanor offense to engage in prostitution. But they did so because they were trafficked here from out of state, and essentially sold into committing that particular crime,” said Stafstrom.
But Fishbein said he didn’t feel that misdemeanors were only small crimes, adding that negligent homicide was considered a misdemeanor. “I’m concerned that someone is going to admit that they killed someone and make this claim of human trafficking, which may be very difficult to prove,” said Fishbein.
Rep. Tammy Nuccio, R-Tolland, said she felt the need to disclose to a landlord or an employer that a victim had been sexually assaulted or raped in order to be protected from discrimination was “revictimizing” the person, and noted that victims of sexual assault were still victims even if they chose not to press charges or to discuss what happened to them.
— Emilia Otte, Justice Reporter
Bear hunt is back
A controversial proposal to allow bear hunting in Connecticut was resurrected on Thursday, more than a month after being left for dead by state lawmakers.
In March, members of the legislature’s Environment Committee stripped language from Senate Bill 1523 that would have allowed the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to establish a hunting season for black bears, whose numbers have risen to an estimated 1,000 to 1,200 animals in the state.
When the bill appeared Thursday on the Senate floor, however, it came with an amendment adding the hunting language back in. The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Rick Lopes, D-New Britain, said the bill would leave it up to DEEP and the governor’s office to determine whether a hunt is necessary to address a growing number of conflicts with bears.
“At the point that if they feel that human-bear conflicts have risen to a level that endangers public safety they could start… to look into a hunt,” he said.
Opponents of a hunt said they were surprised by the sudden change in the bill. “There was no warning that this was being done,” said Lori Brown, the executive director of the League of Conservation Voters. “It’s because it’s so controversial, there’s been so much opposition.”
The amended bill passed the Senate on a vote 34 to 2, with senators Christine Cohen, D-Guilford, and Mae Flexer, D-Killingly, voting in opposition. It now heads to the House for further consideration.
— John Moritz, Environment & Energy Reporter