Narrowed CT clean slate bill wins final passage
Kelan Lyons, CTMirror.org
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State Rep. Steven Stafstrom, D-BridgeportChristian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media
The House of Representatives voted 91-56 for final passage Thursday night of a “clean slate” bill, sending to a publicly noncommittal governor a measure that would automatically erase certain criminal convictions from a person’s record if they go seven or 10 years without committing another crime.
“This bill today is not about whether someone should face punishment or not,” said Rep. Steven Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, co-chair of the Judiciary Committee. “What it’s about is whether someone should face the collateral consequences of punishment for a lifetime for a crime they committed at some discrete point in time.”
In his latest move to promote outdoor activities as the state eases out of the COVID crisis, Gov. Ned Lamont has announced enhanced and fare-free transportation to some state parks and beaches this summer. The service, called ParkConneCT, will run from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend. Of the five parks selected for the pilot shuttle program, only two have beaches: Silver Sands State .
Progressives push for higher taxes as budget talks continue
SUSAN HAIGH, Associated Press
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As negotiations on a new two-year Connecticut state budget continue, the General Assembly s Progressive Caucus is putting pressure on Democratic leaders to include more revenue they say will be needed once federal COVID-19 relief funds run out.
Several members of the group appeared Friday at a news conference organized by the coalition Recovery For All CT, saying they believe the state needs to think long-term about addressing inequalities in education, health care, housing, local aid and workforce development.
Members of the statewide coalition of nearly 50 labor, community and faith organizations said they want lawmakers to extend their focus beyond the historic $2.6 billion in state recovery funds and other federal aid that is plugging holes in the next two-year budget.
Governor Ned Lamont joins Yahoo Finance Live to discuss state of Connecticut lifting COVID-19 restrictions, improving vaccine its vaccine distribution rate and outlook for the U.S. labor market.