CT General Assembly begins
CRMA ready to advocate for retailers
CT COVID-19 update
News and notes from around the state
- In stark contrast to what took place in Washington D.C., the Connecticut General Assembly came together on Wednesday of this week to begin a new 2-year term with the swearing in of members and election of leaders in a peaceful, orderly way.
- Not that it was a normal ceremony – nothing is normal in this COVID-19 era. Members were sworn in outside the State Capitol. Later that morning, smaller groups of members moved inside where voting on rules and formal voting for the Speaker of the House took place.
- With the official beginning Wednesday of the “long session,” which runs through early June, things will begin picking up steam over the next couple of weeks. Legislative committees will get organized and members will begin filing bills.
- Along the way there will be critical deadlines that we will keep you updated on, and we will also keep you updated on key issues unfolding at the Capitol each week in our Friday Facts.
CRMA ready to advocate for retailers
- At CRMA, we are ready for this session. Well, about as ready as anybody can be under the circumstances.
- We know from our virtual membership meeting that took place in November, that Speaker Matt Ritter intends to hold down the number of big issues that Committees take up but that he also fully intends to hold as close to a normal session as possible.
- We expect that the first three months of the session will be fully virtually – we do not expect the Capitol complex will be open for in-person meetings.
- We are cautiously optimistic that by the middle of April, there MAY be some in-person meetings that can take place and that number will increase thru the month of May until adjournment day June 9.
- We are prepared and ready to continue our advocacy for retailers under these circumstances and we know that we can count on your help when we call upon you. Together, we will continue to be the voice of Connecticut’s retail community.
CT COVID Update
- Ned Lamont on Thursday announced 57 additional coronavirus-linked deaths, the most in a single day since May. The state has now recorded 6,287 COVID-19 deaths during the pandemic and 289 in the past week. The Hartford Courant reports the latest here.
- Connecticut ranks among the states having the most success in administering vaccine doses to vulnerable groups. The state is in the top 10 nationally in both the share of its doses it has administered and the percent of its population that has received at least one shot. The Hartford Courant has the state-by-state data here.
- The more infections strain of COVID-19 has been seen this week in two individuals in Connecticut, in Greater New Haven. CTNewsJunkie reports on that news here.
News and Notes from around the state
- State lawmakers are expressing confidence in security at the State Capitol, in the wake of the violence in Washington this week. CTNewsJunkie has details here.
- Due to health concerns, some state legislators were unable to attend Opening Day of the legislative session on Wednesday. And one Senator resigned earlier in the week in order to take a position in the Lamont Administration. The date for a Special Election to fill that vacancy has not yet been announced. CT Mirror has highlights here.
- Lamont expressed optimism about Connecticut’s future in his Opening Day address to legislators, describing 2021 as the year of the Connecticut Comeback. Fairfield County Business Journal has the highlights here.
- Business starts increased at the end of 2020, according to recent state data. New Haven BIZ reports on the latest numbers here.