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03/14/2019 12:01 AMWinter is winding down, and the General Assembly is ramping up. Here are updates on some of the significant legislative initiatives I’m working on.
I’m committed to helping vulnerable populations in our district and in our state, and I’ve introduced several bills that are moving forward throughout the committee process.
The first of those bills is designed to help make certain that seniors in nursing homes receive appropriate care. The bill requires nursing homes to provide accurate staffing figures. All too often, nursing homes are understaffed, which leads to inadequate care and overworked employees. The oversight provided by this bill will help ensure that nursing homes report accurate staffing figures and maintain staffing levels key to providing care to our seniors.
Educating our children is central to the future of our communities. That’s why I’ve sponsored legislation that creates a path to reducing ever-rising student loan debt. The legislation establishes a debt-free college tuition program, which will help students achieve their education goals without resorting to onerous loans.
For recent graduates, I support legislation that gives tax breaks to employers who provide student loan debt assistance. This legislation achieves two key goals: first, it will help alleviate the significant debt many students face; and second, it will support Connecticut businesses that hire Connecticut graduates. Both of those goals are key to helping our state retain employees and support its business community.
I’m also supporting a bill that will help our towns and cities operate more efficiently. The bill creates a statewide Geographic Information Systems service. GIS is the technology towns use to survey land, create land records, and monitor changes to geography, among many other uses. Every town in Connecticut currently has to buy and maintain a separate system. By creating a unified statewide service, we can lower costs for cities and towns, while increasing operating efficiency.
These bills were recently discussed at public hearings. I’ll keep you posted on progress as they move through the legislative system.
If you’d like further information on any of this legislation, or you’d like to reach out to my office, you can contact me by email at www.senatedems.ct.gov/Needleman or reach my legislative aide, Brooke Parker, at 860-240-0428.