Safer.
Stronger.
Connecticut.
SECURITY
Responding to your public safety concerns
Deterring Crime
Create a new criminal charge focused on gangs that commit car theft or property crime
That the general statues be amended to prohibit criminal networks which include a person age 18 years or older conspiring with others including a person under 18 years of age as an organizer to engage in a course of conduct to unlawfully take or dispose of a motor vehicle or other property. Class C felony for first offense and Class B felony for second or subsequent.
Expand risk of injury charges to situations when an adult entices a minor to commit a crime
That section 53a-225 of the general statutes be amended to lower the age of eligibility from twenty-three to eighteen for the offense of enticing a juvenile to commit a criminal act, and to increase the penalty from a class A misdemeanor to a class D felony on a first offense and from a class D felony to a class C felony on any second or subsequent offense.
Enhance penalties for individuals who organize, or actively promote, so-called street takeovers
That subsection (c) of section 14-224 of the general statutes be amended to establish a penalty for organizing or actively promoting a street takeover as a class D felony for the first offense and a class C felony for any subsequent offense.
Preserve police officers’ ability to perform traffic stops for all motor vehicle violations
Allow police pursuits and consent searches
That (1) section 54-33o of the general statutes be amended to restore a police officer's ability to request consent to search a motor vehicle when the officer has a reasonable articulable suspicion that a weapon, contraband, or other evidence of a crime is contained within the vehicle; and (2) chapter 104 of the general statutes be amended to require the Police Officer Standards and Training Council to revise the model pursuit policy to allow police officers to pursue individuals suspected of committing certain property crimes.
Allow police officers to make investigatory motor vehicle stops due to the sight or smell of cannabis
That section 54-33p of the general statutes be amended to restore the ability of a law enforcement officer to use the odor of cannabis as a basis to support an investigatory motor vehicle stop or search of a motor vehicle or person in a motor vehicle.
Protect those who are required by a state agency within the course of their employment to interact with persons who have been released on probation and were convicted of a crime of violence or found not guilty by reason of insanity
That the general statutes be amended to modify supervision policies and require enhanced home visit and address verification.
Prevent further erosion of accountability within our state’s juvenile justice system
Prosecute as adults juvenile offenders who commit serious crimes such as car theft
That chapter 815t of the general statutes be amended to: (1) Expand the circumstances in which a juvenile is automatically transferred to the regular criminal docket, including commission of a serious juvenile offense; (2) reduce the age of eligibility for automatic transfer to thirteen if the offense charged is a class A or class B felony that constitutes murder, violent sexual assault or a violent crime involving a firearm; (3) require mandatory fingerprinting of a juvenile arrested for a felony, class A misdemeanor or any charge resulting from loss of life or serious physical injury, sexual assault or an offense involving the use of a firearm; (4) allow courts to find that releasing a juvenile offender to a parent or guardian who has no control over the juvenile to not be "reasonably likely to be effective"; (5) require delinquency proceedings involving juveniles charged with crimes of violence, larceny of a motor vehicle, sexual offenses or crimes involving the use of a firearm to be 14 adjudicated in the geographical area where the offense occurred; (6) give the court flexibility to order family support services interventions at the time of arraignment; and (7) permit judges to order the Department of Children and Families to investigate the family circumstances of a juvenile charged with an offense resulting from loss of life or serious physical injury, a sexual assault, a serious juvenile offense or an offense involving the use of a firearm.
Eliminate the Risk Reduction Credit program that helps criminals get out of prison early
That section 18-98e of the general statutes be amended to prohibit persons convicted of murder, persistent dangerous felonies, serious sexual offenses and family violence crimes from earning risk reduction credits.
Create a safer working environment for corrections officers
That section 18-96b of the general statutes be amended to repeal the mandated 4 hour outside cell period.
Allow courts to hold without bail, individuals who are a danger to the community
That the general statutes be amended to require the court to automatically revoke a bond for any crime of violence if the defendant reoffends with another crime of violence while awaiting disposition.
Require an accountability and safety audit of community group home system for criminal offenders
That the general statutes be amended to require the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection to evaluate the efficacy, safety and accountability of community group homes operated by the Department of Corrections.
Courts, Corrections, and Administration
Rehabilitating
Offenders
Re-imagine and re-open the Juvenile Training School, providing better educational resources for high-risk pre-trial offenders and their parents
To require the state DCF to enter into an agreement with an approved non-profit agency to provide a secure site for the provision of intensive mental and behavioral health services to adjudicated high-risk youth within DCF custody.
Reform processes regarding mental health facility leave awards, criminal protective orders, and victim notification in casework associated with defendants found not guilty by reason of insanity
That the general statutes be amended to restrict/limit considerations for release/temporary leave for persons who were adjudicated as not guilty by reason of insanity and who are in the custody of the state DMHAS.
Ensure victims of crime are appropriately compensated for their loss
That the general statutes be amended to: (1) Expand eligibility to the victim's compensation fund to victims a) of crimes committed by juveniles, b) of motor vehicle theft, and c) other similar property crimes; and (2) allow the court in a juvenile matter to order restitution in motor vehicle theft cases.
Responding
to Victims
Protecting your pocket book
Protecting Your
Pocketbook
Prevent the erosion and any effort to repeal recently-enacted tax relief
That the state constitution be amended to protect the 2017 Republican fiscal guardrails that require the state to live within its means and enable it to pay off long term obligations, prioritizing any additional savings for tax relief not new spending.
Enact a first-ever state child tax deduction
That Title 12 of the general statutes be amended to establish a credit against the income tax in the amount of $2000 per dependent child.
Exempt children's clothing under $100 from the state's sales tax all year long.
That section 12-407e of the general statutes be amended to extend the "tax free week" for children's clothing so that the sales tax exemption applies for the entire year.
Reduce the sales tax on certain motor vehicles, helping middle class families adjust to rising prices
That CGS 12-408(1)(H) of the general states be amended to reduce the sales tax on motor vehicles having a value between $50,000 and $75,000, 7.75% to 6.35%.
Reduce the state’s mandatory family leave payroll tax
That subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 31-49g of the general statutes be amended to reduce the maximum employee contribution established by the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Authority from .5% to .4% and to provide that no law shall be enacted authorizing the resources of the Family and Medical Leave Insurance Trust Fund to be expended other than for the purposes of such fund.
Help small business workers by authorizing establishment of association health care plans
That the general statutes be amended to authorize self-funded and fully insured multiple employer welfare arrangements in this state.
Defending your from government overreach
Stop the electric vehicle mandate, protecting your choice to buy the car you want
That the general statutes be amended to repeal the state's existing emission standards that are based on California regulations and replace such standards with emission standards established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Slow down the phase-in for the full electrification of the state’s vehicle fleet, start first with constitutional office holders
That the general statutes be amended to require vehicles used by constitutional office holders to be replaced with electric vehicles when current vehicles are scheduled to be replaced and to extend the phase-in of electric vehicles for the state vehicle fleet.
Encourage reasonable housing solutions that balance community concerns and residents’ needs
That (1) subsection (k) of section 8-30g of the general statutes be amended to include in the calculation of the ten per cent threshold for the affordable housing appeals procedure any properties that are not deed restricted but are able to be purchased by individuals or families whose income is less than or equal to eighty per cent of the median income based on the prevailing interest rate and appraised values of properties in effect as of the prior grand list year; and (2) subsection (f) of section 8-2o of the general statutes be amended to remove the deadline for any municipality to opt out of the as-of-right allowance of accessory apartments.
Provide school districts, and local property taxpayers, relief from the state’s “Right to Read” bureaucracy
That section 10-14hh of the general statutes be amended to require the State Department of Education to grant a waiver from the requirements imposed by said statute to school districts that have demonstrated high or increasing rates of literacy.
Defending You From
Government Overreach
SERVICE
Make state government responsive, efficient, and accountable
Make State Government Responsive, Efficient, and Accountable
Bolster the integrity of our election process, targeting fraud in absentee ballot voting
Eliminate statewide use of absentee ballot drop boxes Require a mandatory minimum 1-year prison sentence for anyone convicted of a criminal election violation
Require state employees in human service roles to work on-site to better serve the public
That the general statutes be amended to require new state employee contracts to require state employees to work on-site.
Require the Department of Children & Families to report measurable outcomes of programs and services
That the general statutes be amended to strengthen the role of the Statewide Advisory Committee's oversight of the Department of Children and Families and require the Department to report outcomes of programs and services to the Committee. That the general statutes be amended to require the Department of Children and Families to report to the committee having cognizance of children's matters child fatality and near fatality data consistent with the Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA)
Revive the Program Review and Investigations Committee to provide lawmakers information on the performance and effectiveness of state programs
That the general statutes be amended to reinstate the Legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee
Reestablish the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority as a separate, independent regulatory agency
That the general statutes be amended to separate the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority from the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
Spur economic growth, strengthen workforce pipeline
Make it easier for those with advanced degrees to enter the field of teaching
That the general statutes be amended to provide a five-year waiver to state teacher certification requirements to persons that are not otherwise certified to teach but that hold a master's degree or higher in the field in which they propose to teach.
Help residents embark on new careers and retain jobs by reducing the cost of occupational licenses
That the general statutes be amended to limit the cost of occupational licenses to an amount equal to the costs of administering such license or $100, whichever is less.
Allow use of state scholarship dollars at professional technical and vocational colleges
That section 10a-173 of the general statutes be amended to expand the Roberta B. Willis Scholarship program to allow awards to be made to students attending private career schools.
Ease the nursing shortage by joining nursing licensure reciprocity with other states
That the general statutes be amended to require the state of Connecticut to enter into the Nurse Licensure Compact in order to allow licensed qualified nurses from other states with substantially similar licensing requirements to practice in Connecticut.
Encourage economic development by reducing small business filing fees
That title 34 of the general statutes be amended to reduce the fees for small business filings with the Secretary of the State.
Spur Economic
Growth, Strengthen
Workforce Pipeline
Support vulnerable populations
Support vulnerable populations
Protect our state's residents from fentanyl abuse and overdosing
(1) That title 53a of the general statutes be amended to establish a new crime of murder in the case of a person knowingly selling or distributing fentanyl to another person who dies from an overdose of such fentanyl, and (2) that chapter 420b of the general statutes be amended to increase criminal penalties for the unlawful manufacture or sale of a controlled substance.
Support our Peer Navigator Programs for persons struggling with substance abuse
Continue highly successful programs that provide state police de-escalation training for dealing with individuals who may be suffering from mental illness, expanding to critical areas of need
That the general statutes be amended to require the Division of State Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection to expand the pilot program known as the CRISIS Initiative (Connection to Recovery through Intervention, Support and Initiating Services) throughout the state by January 1, 2025.
Require more intensive DCF supervision in households where opioid abuse has occurred
That section 17a-90 of the general statutes be amended to require the Department of Children and Families to provide a heightened level of assessment, supervision, and care to children under the care and general supervision of the department where one or more of the individuals residing with said child has a history of opioid use, is currently an opioid user, or has been criminally charged with a crime involving the use, possession, or sale of opioids.
Improve DCF housing options for high-risk, high-needs children under agency care
That the general statutes be amended to require the Department of Children and Families to: 1) evaluate the current STAR Home housing model and its efficacy in supporting the welfare of children with significant behavioral health treatment needs, and 2) require the provision of housing options to consider providing greater resources for the retention of qualified staff, specialized training for clinicians and staff, and provision of structured prosocial, therapeutic, and clinical services.
Block legislative efforts to eliminate use of school resources officers
Implement Office of Child Advocate recommendations concerning legal representation of children under the care of the Department of Children and Families
That the general statutes be amended to require the Department of Children and Families to: 1) provide timely notification to attorneys and Guardians ad Litem of records whenever a new allegation of child abuse or neglect is made to the Department of Children and Families, whether or not such allegation is accepted for investigation, and 2) advise such attorneys and Guardians ad Litem of the disposition of the allegation and provide a copy of any investigation performed. That the general statutes be amended to require courts in child protection hearings to canvass the lawyer for the child to ensure that (1) the child has been seen, and (2) that the lawyer has independently gathered information necessary to advancement of the child's interests.