The picture for Connecticut’s November general election cleared with Tuesday’s primary.
The Election Day turnout of 20.37% cast ballots to determine who qualifies for the November election for one U.S. Senate seat, five U.S. House seats, and the state’s secretary of state and treasurer.
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The hospitality industry in Connecticut will be benefiting from new state funding.
Restaurants, hotels, transportation agencies, and other businesses will receive a share of $30 million in grant funding, Gov. Ned Lamont said, under the Connecticut Hospitality Industry Support Program.
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Veterans coming to Connecticut’s Rocky Hill campus will be seeing changes.
Gov. Ned Lamont announced Thursday the state will be performing $5.1 million in infrastructure upgrades to the Department of Veterans Affairs facility in Hartford. The funding was approved at last week’s State Bond Commission meeting.
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Connecticut is focusing on a workforce investment designed to place state residents from underserved communities into high-demand jobs.
Gov. Ned Lamont announced Thursday the state was awarded $23.9 million through the American Rescue Plan’s Good Jobs Challenge through the U.S. Department of Commerce. The funds will be invested into the Office of Workforce Strategy programs designed to place more than 2,000 residents into the workforce.
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Former President Donald Trump endorsed Connecticut Republican Leora Levy Thursday in her primary race for the U.S. Senate seat occupied by career Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal.
“Leora Levy is running to represent the Great State of Connecticut in the United States Senate,” Trump said in the statement regarding his endorsement.
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Preventing sewage pollution is the focus of a new investment in Connecticut.
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, who will be challenged by Republican Bob Stefanowski in November’s general election, says the state is pledging $580 million to shovel-ready municipal water pollution control projects around the state. The investment is designed to cut down on sewage pollution in the state’s waters.
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While the Connecticut General Assembly Conservative Caucus agrees, “Violent and threatening people should not possess firearms,” its members want to know why Governor Ned Lamont (D) and Democrat state lawmakers passed a law that is “automatically erasing many of the criminal convictions” that could now allow violent and threatening individuals to buy a gun.
In an op-ed published Friday at CT Examiner, the caucus members observed the hypocrisy of Connecticut Democrats crying out “something must be done” following the horrific shooting massacres that have recently plagued the nation, but then turning around to pass a law that automatically deletes many criminal convictions that would block a person from purchasing a gun.
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Connecticut’s primary election election day is eight days away.
Voters will turn out to the polls on Tuesday, August 9 to set the general election ballot in November for attorney general, and one U.S. Senate seat and five seats in the U.S. House.
The primary for the governor’s race has been canceled since only one candidate from each major party is running. Democratic incumbent Gov. Ned Lamont will face Republican challenger Bob Stefanowski in November’s general election.
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Patrons of the great outdoors in Connecticut could be seeing a myriad of improvements at state parks and other facilities.
The State Bond Commission on Friday is expected to approve $34 million in state funding on that will be used to improve and increase access for residents utilizing the aging state parks system.
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The primary election in Connecticut is just nine days away.
Voters will turn out to the polls on Aug. 9 to set the general election ballot in November for attorney general, and one U.S. Senate seat and five seats in the U.S. House.
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Former Connecticut state Representative Themis Klarides touted her 22 years as a state lawmaker and her support for abortion and gun control as she faced off against two conservative Republican candidates during a GOP primary debate for the U.S. Senate seat currently occupied by career Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal.
Klarides’ liberal positions on several issues, portrayed as what is acceptable for Connecticut Republicans, clashed with those of Greenwich fundraiser and former trader Leora Levy and immigration attorney Peter Lumaj.
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The Republicans Governors Association (RGA) slammed Governor Ned Lamont’s record on public safety, following a deadly week in the state.
Over the past days, multiple incidents left individuals in Connecticut in police custody or in the hospital due to gun violence.
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Connecticut on Monday launched a new loan program that aims to assist small businesses and nonprofits throughout the state.
The agreement is a new “public-private partnership that provides low-interest loans” to various organizations, with the goal of growing the two sectors in “low-income and historically underserved communities.”
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Car thieves in Connecticut will be seeing a swifter response from law enforcement.
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, up for reelection in the Aug. 9 primary, signed Public Act 22-115 into law this week. The measure updates criminal justice statutes in the state, while providing law enforcement and the courts to act quickly while more effectively responding to youth that are charged with repeated car theft violations.
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Federal funding to combat youth substance abuse is coming to Connecticut, U.S. Rep. John B. Larson says.
The veteran legislator announced the state has received $375,000 from the Drug-Free Community Support Program that will be used to assist three coalitions working to prevent substance abuse in Connecticut’s First District, serving Hartford, Litchfield and Middlesex counties.
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First Lady Jill Biden and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona visited Connecticut on Wednesday to tout summer education programs in the state.
The duo pointed to the American Rescue Plan, which provided funding to states to host the learning programs and make up for learning loss that occurred during the coronavirus pandemic.
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A settlement has been reached with one public utility company, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said.
The state’s top law enforcement official announced a $1.8 million settlement has been reached with Eversource over the company’s alleged false and deceptive high-pressure tactics that were used to try to and encourage people to convert to natural gas.
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Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) has endorsed Connecticut Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, Leora Levy.
“I am excited to endorse Leora Levy to be Connecticut’s next United States Senator,” Blackburn posted to social media. “She is a barrier breaking woman and the clear conservative choice to help us FIRE Democrats this November.”
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A new Connecticut law will target the state’s motor vehicle theft issue, providing updated structure and procedure for law enforcement officials.
Public Act 22-115, which was approved on a bipartisan basis by the Connecticut General Assembly, takes aim at juveniles with a record at repeated theft attempts.
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A plan that would allocate federal funding to small businesses in Connecticut has been approved.
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, who is running unopposed on the state’s Aug. 9 primary, said the U.S. Treasury Department has greenlighted the state’s $119.5 million plan to assist small businesses in the state using American Rescue Plan Act funding. The funds will be placed into the State Small Business Credit Initiative.
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Neil W. McCabe, the national political editor of The Star News Network, interviewed Chief Warrant Officer 3 Fianna Litvok, a military intelligence technician in the Virginia Army National Guard, about her request for a COVID-19 vaccine mandate exemption, as well as how the mandate is affecting morale in the guard.
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A public hearing pertaining to rising health care costs is the focus of a new call from Connecticut’s Senate and House leadership.
Republican legislative leaders in both chambers renewed a call for a public hearing to be held at the Capitol that would focus on proposed health insurance rate filings next year for individual and small group markets.
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Live online casino gaming is up and running in Connecticut.
Gov. Ned Lamont said Evolution Gaming Studio is now operating in the state. The company is offering live dealer games on FanDuel and DraftKings iCasino on a limited basis for blackjack and roulette through a soft launch that transitions to full gaming at 11 a.m. Monday.
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“It’s time to retire Dick Blumenthal,” Leora Levy states on the home page of her campaign website, but the Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Connecticut says she is ready not only to take on the career Democrat politician, but also the “timid” members of her own party “who will abandon or betray us when it comes down to the important votes.”
“Drawing a strong contrast with Dick Blumenthal is the only way to win this Senate seat,” Levy says as she campaigns toward the Connecticut primary on August 9.
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Employees in Connecticut are now earning a minimum wage of $14, and one industry expert says the wage isn’t enough to support a family.
Connecticut increased its minimum wage on July 1 for the fourth time since 2019. Fred Carstensen, director of the Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis at the University of Connecticut, said many of the jobs available are lower-wage jobs that don’t offer benefits such as health care.
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A coalition of 20 state attorneys general, all Democrats, are backing a federal gun rule in court.
The Final Rule, as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives named it, would enable law enforcement officials to trace any homemade guns used in crimes. In addition, the rule limits trafficking the weaponry.
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A parent company and three additional electric companies will be exiting the market in Connecticut, Attorney General William Tong said.
A $3 million settlement, the attorney general announced, has been reached with Public Power to resolve litigation that the company did not publish next cycle rate information as required. The company also is to have alleged denying customers a chance to switch to another provider to avoid increased charges.
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While the media breathlessly covered the final two weeks of this year’s term at the U.S. Supreme Court, an important anniversary quietly came and went — the fourth year of freedom from forced union participation by public-sector employees.
On June 27, 2018, the justices banned mandatory union membership, dues and fees for government employees, overturning more than 40 years of court precedent that required government employee union participation as a condition of employment.
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Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) was at a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Waterbury, Connecticut, Tuesday to urge Biden Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to declare a “public health emergency” in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that returns issues about abortion to the states.
“We’re pressing President Biden to use whatever authority he has, to the maximum extent to explore the possibility of a national emergency that would enable telemedicine prescription, which could then result in medication abortion through the mail,” Blumenthal said, according to the Stamford Advocate.
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Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont’s (D) recent video pitch encourages businesses to relocate to his “family friendly” state where women are welcome to end the lives of their unborn babies, but neglects to mention his now effective 23 percent tax increase in diesel fuel is crushing businesses and consumers already reeling from unprecedented inflation and high gas prices.
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Connecticut residents will see an increase in their electricity bills beginning in July.
The Public Utility Regulatory Authority has approved a rare summer electricity rate increase for both residential and business customers, effective July 1 through Dec. 31.
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One Connecticut-based firearms industry trade group has spent more on lobbying than the National Rifle Association.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation, an industry trade association based in Newtown, has spent 40% more than the NRA lobbying Congress since 2019. For 2021 alone, OpenSecrets – a nonpartisan nonprofit tracking money into politics – reports an estimated $5 million spent by NSSF on lobbying; the NRA spent $4.92 million.
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Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont pitched companies to relocate to the state, if they are currently located in a state that may implement an abortion ban.
Since the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade, some states have enacted abortion bans, often correlated to when an infant’s heartbeat is detected.
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Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont on Thursday appointed Mark Kohler as the state’s new secretary of the state.
Kohler will take the place of former Secretary Denise Merrill, who announced her resignation in order to take time to care for her husband.
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Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill (D) announced she will resign Thursday in order to spend time with her husband who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease.
Merrill, 73, told the Associated Press (AP) trying to juggle her job with caring for her husband has grown too difficult.
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A children’s biography of LGBTQ activist and drag queen RuPaul was temporarily removed from the children’s section of the public library in Colchester, Connecticut, after a parent complained about a “sexually provocative graphic” in the book, town First Selectman Andreas Bisbikos (R) told The Connecticut Star.
Bisbikos explained the book, Who Is RuPaul?, has been temporarily removed until the Cragin Memorial Library director can assess the best location for it.
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Connecticut is set to raise its minimum wage from $13.00 per hour to $14.00 per hour in compliance with a law passed by the state’s leaders in 2019.
The legislation implemented a plan to raise the state’s minimum wage from $10.10 in 2019 to $15 over the span of five years.
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Connecticut’s top law enforcement official said Friday he would sue to prevent a nationwide ban on abortions.
Attorney General William Tong said following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, a 1973 landmark decision that prevented states from banning abortions, that if Congress tries to invoke legislation that would ban abortions across the nation, he would be the first to take court action.
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A $1.25 million multistate settlement has been reached in a data breach case, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said.
Connecticut is one of 45 states named in the settlement against Florida-based Carnival Cruise lines. The case was filed after a 2019 data breach revealed personal information for 180,000 Carnival employees and customers across the country.
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LEGO Group’s decision to spend $1 billion to build a new factory near Richmond, Virginia, has led economy and industry experts to raise questions about the status of the Denmark company’s Connecticut headquarters.
The global toymaker announced at a press conference with Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) its plans to build a new factory in Chesterfield, a move that would expand its production in the United States and create about 1,760 new jobs.
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Residents are being advised to research solar companies before entering into contracts, Attorney General William Tong said.
The state’s top law enforcement official and Michelle Seagull, commissioner of the Department of Consumer Protection, are warning Connecticut homeowners who are interested in installing solar panels on their property to perform research and be cognizant of misleading marketing and high-pressure sales tactics.
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Greater safeguards to personal data are the focus of legislation that has now become law in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said.
The governor announced Public Act 22-15 has been signed. The legislation creates a comprehensive set of protections designed to help consumers by creating a stronger ability to safeguard personal data that is collected with online businesses.
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A new tax will be hitting certain drivers in Connecticut, as the state’s tax commissioner announced an increase of the state’s diesel tax.
According to an announcement from the office, the rate will increase from 40 cents to 49 cents—a 23 percent increase for consumers.
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A new Connecticut program that aids residents with down payment assistance for home purchases is now open, Gov. Ned Lamont said.
The governor announced the Time to Own program offering down payment assistance to low- and moderate-income homebuyers is now accepting applications. The program is funded with $20 million the State Bond Commissioner allocated in December 2021 to help families purchase homes.
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Parents and school district officials in Connecticut are considering hiring armed security guards in schools in the wake of the recent shooting massacre of 21 children and staff in Uvalde, Texas.
“We are proposing, due to our concerns over police response time, and I don’t say that as a fault to the police, that’s simply just a matter of reality that the police can’t get to a school immediately,” said Ian Neviaser, superintendent of Regional School District 18, Lyme-Old Lyme.
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Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed SB 350 into law Friday which establishes Juneteenth Independence Day as an official, legal state holiday.
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An advanced coatings manufacturer is undertaking an expansion project in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said.
The governor announced Element 119, which currently employs 14 people, plans to add an additional 36 workers over the next two years at its production facilities in Thomaston and Cheshire.
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Connecticut’s nine planning regions will now be used by the U.S. Census rather than traditional counties when the next decennial county rolls around, Gov. Ned Lamont said.
The governor announced the state has received approval of a request sent to the U.S. Census Bureau that will allow each planning region, represented by a Council of Government, to be used for tabulating and disseminating census data. The planning regions will be used as a county equivalent.
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The Hartford Courant has reported recent polling shows the popularity of Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) – described as a “fixture” on television news programs – appears to be fading.
A recent Quinnipiac University poll showed Blumenthal, 76, with his lowest job approval rating, 45-43 percent, since being elected to the U.S. Senate nearly 12 years ago.
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Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill (D) on Friday issued an opinion regarding a new statute that expands absentee voting, emphasizing that voters need not themselves be sick or away all day to vote by mail.
Merrill said she issued the interpretation to “more closely conform” the law, which Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed on April 8, to Article Sixth, Section 7 of the Connecticut Constitution which states, “In all elections of officers of the state, or members of the General Assembly, the votes of the electors shall be by ballot.”
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