These are the Connecticut laws going into effect on July 1
Ranging from abortion rights to climate change; from prison cells to athlete sponsorships; the laws cover a wide area.
In addition to summer temperatures and vacations, new laws in Connecticut take effect on July 1.
Ranging from abortion rights to climate change; from prison cells to athlete sponsorships; the laws cover a wide area.
This is not a comprehensive list. For a full look at what is in effect this Friday, head here.
Minimum Wage
Beginning on July 1, the state's minimum wage will increase by another dollar, bringing the wage from $13 an hour to $14.
The increase is part of a five-year effort that began in 2019. The last increase was on August 1, 2021. The bill required that by June 1, 2023, the state’s set minimum wage will cap at $15 an hour until 2024.
Beginning on Jan. 1, 2024, the bill requires that the state’s minimum wage will become indexed to the employment cost index, which is calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). Meaning that for the first time in Connecticut, the rate will grow according to economic indicators like inflation.
Connecticut’s minimum wage is currently higher than the federal rate of $7.25 per hour. It is also among the highest rates in the United States at this time.
According to the DOL, Washington D.C. has the highest minimum wage at $15.20 per hour.
Connecticut’s set increase comes as inflation in the country is increasing.
According to the Pew Research Center, the country’s inflation rate after the first economic quarter of the year averaged just below 8%, the 13th highest rate out of the 44 countries the center examined.
Now, at the end of the second quarter and heading into the third, the DOL reported that inflation reached a new 40-year high at the end of May by jumping to 8.6%. The jump meant consumer prices have increased as well. At the end of May, “core” inflation, a measure that excludes volatile food and energy prices, climbed once more. It now sits 6% higher than one year ago.
Gas prices also have jumped up nearly double in price of what it was this time last year as well, on average, and food costs have also increased by 12% in comparison to 2021.
The rise is leading the Federal Reserve to likely increase interest rate hikes by its largest amount in nearly three decades.
Abortion Rights
Taking effect on July 1 are additional laws on abortion rights and access in Connecticut.
Earlier this year, Connecticut passed House Bill 5414, a pro-abortion bill that allows not only doctors, but nurses, midwives, and physician assistants to administer medical abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
The law also protects people from other states seeking and assisting with abortions from being sued or sent back to where abortion is illegal to face criminal charges.
Lamont signed the bill on May 5, two days after the court’s Roe v. Wade decision was leaked indicating that the court was prepared to overturn the precedent.
Abortion rights in Connecticut have been codified into state statutes for more than 30 years. In 1990, lawmakers passed a law giving women the legal right to abortion. Passed with strong bipartisan support, it was lauded at the time for being a rare compromise between abortion rights advocates and opponents.
It also repealed state laws predating Roe v. Wade that had made it a felony to have an abortion, or to perform one, and required patients under 16 years old to receive counseling about their options.
Connecticut’s new laws are taking effect a week after the decision from the court was finally handed down.
Roe v. Wade is the name of the lawsuit that led to the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision establishing a constitutional right to abortion in the United States. The majority opinion found an absolute right to an abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Attorney General William Tong, a Democrat, has vowed to challenge any attempt to nullify Connecticut’s abortion rights law.
“Let’s not mince words. They will come for us,” Tong warned abortion rights supporters during a recent news conference. “We will fight that effort tooth-and-nail. Any court, any place, Connecticut will be there and will fight.”
Connecticut’s newest laws limit the governor’s discretion to extradite someone accused of performing an abortion, as well as participation by Connecticut courts and agencies in those lawsuits.
There’s a discussion of possibly amending the state’s constitution to enshrine the right to abortion, making it more difficult to overturn, but that would be a multi-year process.
States neighboring Connecticut also have liberal abortion rights laws on the books.
New York has Roe v. Wade protections enshrined in state law. Advocates are urging lawmakers to start the process of passing a constitutional amendment protecting access to care in case a future legislature repeals the state law.
Rhode Island’s governor signed legislation in 2019 to enshrine abortion protections, preempting a Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe. The law says the state will not restrict the right to an abortion prior to fetal viability or after if necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant woman.
Massachusetts, despite having a Republican governor, has little chance of restricting abortion rights. While the Democratically led legislature clashed with Gov. Charlie Baker over abortion rights. Baker said he supports abortion rights, but the two parties differ on specifics. Despite the conflict, lawmakers passed “The Roe Act” which allowed abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy in cases where the child would not survive after birth and lower the age from 18 to 16 at which women can seek an abortion without parental consent. Following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, there’s still little chance that Massachusetts will restrict abortion rights.
Baker is in his final year in office, not seeking reelection. Both Democratic candidates said they support abortion rights. Geoff Diehl, a Republican candidate, stated that he believed in “the need to protect human life wherever and whenever possible.” Fellow GOP candidate Chris Doughty said he would “not seek any changes to our state’s abortion laws.”
Tax changes
Connecticut’s diesel tax will increase by 9 cents per gallon due to a scheduled rate adjustment calculated by the Department of Revenue Services. That means the tax, which is currently 40.1 cents per gallon, will increase to 49.2 cents per gallon.
The rate is currently scheduled to remain in effect until June 30, 2023.
A 2007 state law requires the diesel tax to be updated annually, based on a complex statutory formula. The fixed price tax was created to provide predictability for businesses. This year, however, it was unclear where the rate might land given rising diesel prices.
Lamont has come under criticism from his Republican opponent Bob Stefanowski for not working to suspend the increase. The governor has said he doesn't want to give a tax break to out-of-state truckers.
The new state budget, however, does extend the 25-cent-per gallon tax holiday for gasoline through Nov. 30. It was originally set to expire Thursday. It also includes a new, lower cap on local motor vehicle taxes, affecting 75 communities. Meanwhile, legislation increasing the state's earned income tax credit from 30.5% to 41.5% of the federal credit for working people of modest means takes effect.
The budget also includes a new $2,500 personal income tax credit, effective Friday, for taxpayers who’ve had a stillborn child that would have been claimed as a dependent. An estimated 100 families are expected to be eligible.
Solitary Confinement
Starting July 1, new laws regarding incarcerated individuals will be in effect.
Specifically, one law that advocates said isn’t enough to tackle the issue it addresses, which is solitary confinement.
Part of the new law, Senate Bill No. 1059, addresses different ways prison staffers must go about addressing an incarcerated person in solitary.
Staffers at the Department of Corrections (DOC), before sending an incarcerated person to solitary confinement, are required to attempt to defuse the situation with de-escalation methods and less restrictive measures. Only if those measures fail to defuse the situation will the DOC be allowed to hold a person in solitary.
Under the law, within 24 hours of putting a person in solitary, the DOC will be required to ensure a physician and therapist will conduct a physical examination and a mental health evaluation to determine whether or not the person is a member of a “vulnerable population”.
Officials also will not be allowed to hold any person in solitary confinement for 72 hours straight or for more than 72 hours during any 14-day period.
It also restricts lower-ranked staff members from ordering a person into solitary confinement.
The law also requires each incarcerated person, other than those on “restrictive housing status” to have the opportunity to be outside of their cell for at least 6.5 hours a day. Beginning July 1, 2023, those with “restrictive housing status” will also be required to have 6.5 hours out of their cells a day.
At the beginning of the 2022 legislative session in February, protestors rallied outside the state capitol building to push for an end to solitary confinement.
A bipartisan bill was initially passed, but Lamont vetoed it. Instead, he issued an executive order in September 2021 which expanded the required amount of time a person in solitary confinement should spend outside of their cell to two hours.
Name, Image, Likeness -NIL
Student-athletes in Connecticut will now be allowed to use their school’s names, logos, trademarks, mascots, and other defining insignia in their endorsement contracts.
Last year, Connecticut put forth a law that allowed student-athletes to make money from using their name, image, and likeness (NIL), but the law did not permit the use of school logos in the details.
UConn asked for this extension of the bill, according to the governor. The university argued that it would align state policies with policies in other states and help them with student recruitment.
Some of UConn's student-athletes have already signed endorsement deals in the past year.
Women's basketball star Paige Bueckers has signed many endorsement deals, including with Gatorade and Chegg.
UConn's Azzi Fudd signed a contract with Stephen Curry's SC30 brand last December.
Schools will be required to create a policy for the use of their logos as part of any sort of endorsement deal and would need to approve any use of a logo for a student-athlete's deal.
Additional Laws Police accountability, paid family leave, and cannabis
Police accountability
Current state law requires police officers to use body cameras while interacting with the public in a law enforcement capacity if they’re sworn members of state police, a local police department that received state grant money for them, or a college/university special police force.
Now, the act expands the body camera requirement to all sworn members of law enforcement units and members who perform police duties.
The law also now requires each police unit to use dashboard cameras with a remote recorder in each patrol vehicle. The officers must now use the dash cameras according to their unit’s adopted policy.
Paid Family Leave
Employers are now required to notify their employees at the time of hiring and every year after about their entitlement to family and medical leave. Employers must also tell the employees about the opportunity to file a benefits claim under Family Medical Leave Insurance. Employer retaliation against an employee for requesting, applying for, or using family medical leave if they’re eligible is prohibited. Employees must also be told that they are able to file a complaint with the labor commissioner for any violation of the FMLA or the family violence leave law.
Cannabis
Hotels, motels, and similar lodging places are to now prohibit the smoking or vaping of cannabis anywhere at the establishment, effective July 1. They are also prohibited from banning cannabis use or possession in any non-public area of the establishment.
Also beginning July 1, residential landlords and property managers are prohibited from refusing to rent to, or otherwise discriminate against, an existing or prospective tenant based on a past conviction in Connecticut for possessing cannabis. For residential rental properties, it generally prohibits landlords and managers from banning cannabis possession or use, however, they are allowed to prohibit smoking or vaping cannabis.
The act also prohibits landlords or property managers from requiring renters to take drug tests.
The provisions do not apply to those rending a room and not the full home, residences incidental to detention or medical, geriatric, educational, counseling, or similar services; transitional housing or sober living facilities; and situations where failing to prohibit use or possession, or failing to require drug tests, would violate federal law or cause them to lose a federal financial benefit.
People may also not use cannabis on state lands or waters managed by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). Those who violate the provision can face a fine of up to $250. Only DEEP agents can enforce this provision.
The Department of Correction (DOC) will ban cannabis possession in any DOC facility or halfway house as well.
Starting July 1 as well, a person’s drug test that yields a positive result solely for THC will not be interpreted, without any additional evidence, as proof that the person is under the influence or impaired by cannabis.
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Jennifer Glatz is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jglatz@fox61.com.
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