Gary LeBeau

Senator LeBeau’s recent successes include working with others to shepherd four landmark, bipartisan bills through the legislature: the nationally recognized “Jobs Growth Roundtable” bill; “An Act Concerning the Preservation and Creation of Jobs in Connecticut” (also known as Senate Bill 1); a key bill providing expedited processing and regulatory relief in the environmental area; and legislation creating a Bradley Airport Development Zone.

All these recent bills are focused on helping to provide small- and start-up businesses with adequate funding and workforce, especially in the area of green energy. Senator LeBeau has also championed a transportation study of the Buckland Hills shopping mall area and a legislative taskforce on fatherhood.

Senator LeBeau serves as the Vice Chairman of the Economic Development and Labor Committee of the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) where he has made presentations and moderated discussions regarding state economic development and policy across the United States.

Other Public Service

Senator LeBeau has been a member of the East Hartford Lions Club for 25 years and has held all major offices in the club. He served on the East Hartford Town Council and is currently a member of the Blessed Sacrament/ Our Lady of Peace linked parishes, the East Hartford Historical Society, and the League of Women Voters.

Other professional experience includes founding the Synergy Alternative School for at-risk students and working as the coordinator for the Dropout Prevention and Drug Free Schools program for the East Hartford Public Schools. He has also served on the ERASE Board of Directors, the Capitol Region Growth Council Board of Directors, the Liquor Control Task Force Against Underage Drinking, the CT Economic Conference Board, the International Trade Council, the Cultural Heritage Committee, East Hartford Child Plan, and the Advisory Board to the Institute of Neurodegenerative Disorders (IND).

Personal

Born and raised in Easthampton, Massachusetts, Senator LeBeau was educated in public schools and graduated from the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a B.A. in Political Science, later a Master’s Degree in Education, a Sixth-Year Degree from the University of Connecticut, and Elementary Education Certification from Central Connecticut State University. A former public school teacher and administrator for 37 years, Senator LeBeau is now retired. He lives in East Hartford with his wife Joanne, their three children—Kara, Matthew and Christopher—and their chocolate Labrador Retriever “Hershey.”

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