Glenda Perez said she’d already sent in the paperwork needed to maintain her food stamps when she got a notice last month saying they were being discontinued. She called the state Department of Social Services, using the single phone number that everyone in the state who wants to reach a worker is supposed to use. […]
DSS modernization has made things worse, some say
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CT Hurricane Sandy victims can apply for homeowner grants
Washington — Nearly a year after Hurricane Sandy slammed into Connecticut, the super storm’s victims can apply for grants, in the amounts of between $10,000 and $150,000, to repair and fortify their homes. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy Friday said Sandy-hit homeowners can apply for assistance through the state’s “Connecticut Recovers” website. The money for the […]
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Connecticut Democrats hire labor liaison
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy playfully pretends he is unaware that 2014 is an election year, but the Connecticut Democratic Party signalled the opposite Friday by beefing up its staff: Jennifer Smith is the party’s liasion with labor. “Labor Day honors the great improvements union workers fought so hard for, and the victories on behalf of […]
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Justice Department to limit role in state marijuana laws
The federal government announced Thursday that it will not try to pre-empt laws in states, including Connecticut, that have legalized marijuana for medical or recreational use as long as the law is strictly enforced. The memo sent to all 50 states reiterated that the federal government still considers the drug illegal, but will not intervene […]
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DSS extends Medicaid, food stamps for 15,500 households
The state Department of Social Services announced Thursday that it would extend medical and food benefits for about 15,500 poor households at risk of losing them Sept. 1. The move is intended to prevent people from losing Medicaid or food stamps as the department deals with problems related to a major change in its handling […]
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Connecticut tax receipts on the rise in 2012-13
There are some new positive signs in state government’s finances. As officials prepare to close the books next week on the last fiscal year, preliminary estimates show that receipts from all major taxes were on the rise in 2012-13. Though the last budget technically ended June 30, receipts from several taxes continue to accrue through […]
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Report: Youth unemployment threatens state’s economic future
Growing youth unemployment coupled with persistent wage gaps along racial and ethnic lines threaten Connecticut’s long-term economic future, according to a new report released today by a New Haven-based public policy research group. The annual Labor Day weekend report from Connecticut Voices for Children recommends that state officials strengthen access to “high quality” elementary and […]
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State social services officials failed to notify auditors promptly of benefits fraud
State Department of Social Services officials notified law enforcement officials in timely fashion — but not the state auditors — while investigating three incidents of suspected benefits fraud between 2010 and early 2012, the auditors reported Thursday. In a letter to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Auditors John C. Geragosian and Robert M. Ward wrote that […]
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White House announces new gun-control measures
Washington — At a ceremonial swearing-in Thursday for the new chief of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Todd Jones, Vice President Joe Biden said the Obama administration will use its authority to implement two new gun control measures. One new policy would end a government practice that lets military weapons, sold or donated […]
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Split on Syria: Connecticut lawmakers disagree about use of air strikes
Washington — Congress is splitting into two camps — hawks and doves — on the question of whether the U.S. should launch air strikes against the Syrian government, and the Connecticut congressional delegation is mirroring that division. The Obama administration is seeking international support for air strikes on Syria in light of the reported use […]
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Easier enrollment process could mean thousands more with coverage under Obamacare, researchers say
Having a seamless, one-stop shopping process for state residents to enroll in health care coverage could ensure that an additional 26,000 people get insurance, and 36,000 avoid losing their coverage, according to research released this week.
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Burnishing his legacy, Lieberman to leave his official papers to Library of Congress
Washington — Former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman is spending his leftover campaign cash on efforts to preserve his legacy, including the organization of 1,500 boxes of personal and professional papers he has donated to the Library of Congress. Lieberman, who retired at the beginning of the year, has transferred nearly half a million dollars from […]
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Darien man named a White House fellow
Justin Finnegan of Darien, the co-founder of a social entrepreneurship program, was named Tuesday to the 2013-2014 class of White House Fellows, a program that offers direct experience working at the highest levels of government. His bio as provided by the White House: Justin Finnegan, Darien, CT, is Managing Director and Co-Founder of the Mountain […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Many out-of-state companies win in state’s commercial renewable energy program
The long-awaited list of energy companies that applied for and won clean energy projects through the state’s revamped commercial renewable energy incentive program shows a hefty chunk of the work could send a lot of the money out-of-state. (The lists are here: CL&P ZREC-LREC applicant.pdf, and here: UI ZREC-LREC applicants.xls.)
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Fundraiser sentenced to 38 months in prison in case that derailed congressional campaign
New Haven — Robert Braddock Jr., the chief fundraiser for former House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan’s ill-fated congressional campaign, was sentenced to 38 months in prison and fined $7,500 Tuesday for conspiring to trade Donovan’s influence for $27,500 in illegal campaign contributions. U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton said the sentence she imposed on Braddock, […]
