HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - A revised state budget, expanded gambling and stronger sexual harassment protections are among a host of issues that still remain on Connecticut lawmakers’ to-do list for this legislative session.
And they’re quickly running out of a time, with a midnight adjournment deadline approaching on Wednesday.
Some major bills already have cleared the House of Representatives or the Senate, and await final legislative approval. For example, legislation requiring two state agencies to request proposals for a possible $500 million casino passed the House, but its fate appears uncertain in the Senate.
Here’s a look at what’s left as of Saturday:
STATE BUDGET
Even though the General Assembly passed a two-year, bipartisan $41.3 billion state budget last year, lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy have proposed changes to the second fiscal year, which begins July 1. Besides having to cover the current fiscal year’s approximately $387 million deficit, there’s been a push to restore funding to various initiatives, including a program that helps Medicare recipients pay for premiums and co-pays.
It has appeared iffy in recent weeks whether Democrats and Republicans could reach an agreement on what changes to make. Last month, the legislature’s budget-writing committee debated dueling proposals and ultimately the Democratic version was sent to the House of Representatives, where it’s not expected to come up for a vote. Republicans have since released another version of their budget plan.
Democratic House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, of Berlin, said legislative leaders from both parties have met privately in recent days and he has grown more optimistic that a bipartisan agreement can be reached in time.
“We’re really, really close,” he said.
A recent surge in income tax collections could help the situation.
The state’s budget reserve account is now expected to have more than $1.1 billion, and there are discussions about using some of that money to cover the deficit. Some lawmakers also have suggested using some of that money to help financially shore up Connecticut’s main transportation account, which is facing insolvency beginning in fiscal year 2019.
If lawmakers don’t pass a budget deal by Wednesday, it won’t be an anomaly. Last year, it took them until October to pass the two-year budget, more than three months after the new fiscal year began.
GAMBLING
It’s now up to the Senate to decide whether to approve a two-part bill that requires two state agencies to develop and issue a request for proposals from developers for a new $500 million casino in the state. The agencies would then present those proposals to the General Assembly for consideration.
The bill narrowly cleared the House on a 77-73 vote this week, pitting southeastern Connecticut lawmakers against Bridgeport and New Haven legislators, who support building a casino in Bridgeport.
The southeastern Connecticut delegation claims the legislation will put the region’s two tribal casinos, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino, at risk, as well as the state’s share of slot machine revenues generated at those two facilities. Democratic Sen. Cathy Osten, of Sprague, a co-chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, has vowed to fight the legislation in the Senate.
Meanwhile, Osten hopes to pass legislation in the coming days to help the tribes - the Mashantucket Pequots and Mohegans - finally open a new, jointly owned casino in East Windsor to compete against a new MGM Resorts casino opening this summer in nearby Springfield, Massachusetts, this summer. The project has been delayed because the U.S. Department of Interior has taken no action on proposed amendments to the casino-revenue sharing agreements between the state and the tribes that are needed before the new casino can open.
Osten and the tribes want to strip that requirement from legislation the General Assembly passed last year which gave the initial go-ahead to the East Windsor casino.
Lawmakers also are still mulling whether to pass a study on gambling in Connecticut as well as legislation that would create a regulatory framework for legalized sports betting in case the U.S. Supreme Court overturns a 1992 law forbidding all but Nevada and three other states from authorizing gambling on college and professional sports.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT
The House of Representatives is expected to vote on legislation in the final days of the session that updates Connecticut’s sexual harassment and sexual assault laws in light of the #MeToo movement.
The bill expands sexual harassment training requirements for employers, eliminates or extends the statute of limitations for various sexual assault crimes, and expands the length of time to file sexual harassment complaints with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, from six months to a year.
This version scales back parts of the original proposal. For example, it no longer includes language barring settlement agreements that prohibit a party from disclosing information about sexual harassment and sexual assault.
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