Senator Gaston Leads Senate Passage of Bill to Expedite Life-Saving Organ Transport

Posted on April 28, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

Senator Gaston Leads Senate Passage of Bill to Expedite Life-Saving Organ Transport

Today, state Senator Herron Keyon Gaston (D-Bridgeport), Chair of the Public Safety and Security Committee, led Senate passage of a bill designed to help ensure that organs intended for transplant can be transported as swiftly and safely as possible.

Senate Bill 407, ‘An Act Authorizing the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles to Issue Permits Allowing Organ Transport Vehicles to Use Certain Lights’, authorizes the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles to issue permits allowing organ transport vehicles to use any combination of steady or flashing blue, red, yellow, or white lights, with the exception of lights exclusively reserved for use by police officers or DMV inspectors.

“When a life-saving organ is in route to a patient, every second counts,” said Senator Gaston. “This bill cuts through unnecessary barriers and gives organ transport vehicles the tools they need to move quickly and safely through our communities. No family should lose a loved one because transport was delayed.”

Organ transplantation is among the most time-sensitive procedures in modern medicine. Viability windows for transported organs can be extremely narrow, making rapid transit a critical factor in patient outcomes.

According to the Vice President of OPO Relations, Legislative Affairs, Quality and Safety for the Nationwide Organ Recovery Transport Alliance, Timothy Snyder, there are currently more than 100,000 individuals in the United States waiting for a life-saving transplant. Over 1,000 of those individuals are in Connecticut, approximately 900 awaiting kidney transplants, 150 awaiting liver transplants, and 50 awaiting heart transplants. These individuals depend on the donation and transplant community for a second chance at life. Equally important are the donor families who, in their time of profound loss, say “yes” to organ donation to save others. Organ donation has steadily increased over the past decade. At the same time, federal organ allocation policies now require broader geographic sharing of organs, often across state lines. This increases transport distances and time sensitivity.

The EMS system remains focused appropriately on 911 emergency response. Organ transport is secondary to emergency calls. There have been instances where transplant teams arrive at emergency departments with a heart or lungs awaiting transport, only for the responding ambulance to be diverted to a 911 call. These delays can jeopardize organ viability and ultimately impact patient outcomes.

SB407 brings Connecticut in line with the urgent, life-saving nature of organ transport by giving the DMV commissioner the authority to issue the appropriate lighting permits for these vehicles.

This legislation enhances efficiency, preserves organ viability, and supports patient safety while maintaining appropriate regulatory oversight.

SEN. KUSHNER HONORED WITH AFL-CIO HEALTH & SAFETY AWARD AT WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONY

Posted on April 28, 2026April 28, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. KUSHNER HONORED WITH AFL-CIO HEALTH & SAFETY AWARD AT WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONY

State Senator Julie Kushner (left) at the annual Workers Memorial Day Ceremony in Hartford, April 28, 2026.

HARTFORD – State Senator Julie Kushner (D-Danbury), who is Senate Chair of the Labor and Public Employees Committee, was honored today with the AFL-CIO’s “Legislative Health and Safety Award” for her “unwavering commitment to the health and safety of Connecticut workers, fair compensation for work-related physical and mental impacts, and financial support during periods of incapacity.”

Sen. Kushner’s award was presented at the annual Workers Memorial Day Ceremony in Hartford to honor the 41 Connecticut workers who lost their lives to work-related injuries in 2024; an additional 34,600 workers suffered on-the-job injuries or illnesses.

Each year on April 28, the labor movement observes Workers Memorial Day to honor those who have lost their lives on the job. During these ceremonies, we remember their sacrifices and the families they left behind, drawing strength and purpose from their stories.

“For me, it’s total privilege to be able to represent the labor movement in the State Capitol and to work every day to pass laws that will improve the lives, and improve the conditions, and save the lives, of working men and women,” Sen. Kushner told the crowd assembled in Bushnell Park.

“When I started working as a union organizer, I was 24, in New York City, in the 1970s. And it was just a few years later when one of our members was killed at a corrugated box factory. And it was a really horrible, horrible death, getting caught on that machine. And it made a huge impression on me. This shouldn’t happen to anybody, ever. That could have been prevented, and there’s no way it should have happened, but it was because the employers were not taking care of their workers, they weren’t putting in the necessary, and sometimes costly, equipment that would have prevented that death,” she added. “These things leave a mark on you.”

Sen. Kushner was introduced as a longtime fighter for working people, where her legislative leadership is guided by principle and grounded in the real experiences of everyday working people.

Under Sen. Kushner, Connecticut has seen the expansion of PTSI coverage, acknowledging the very real mental health challenges faced by those who serve on the front lines. She has championed the firefighter cancer relief fund, standing with the brave men and women who risk their lives daily and ensuring that they are not left to face a devastating diagnosis alone. Sen. Kushner is also one of the main reasons why Connecticut has access to paid sick days and paid family and medical leave.

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SENATOR SLAP VOTES TO ENHANCE CONNECTICUT HATE CRIME POLICIES

Posted on April 28, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SENATOR SLAP VOTES TO ENHANCE CONNECTICUT HATE CRIME POLICIES

April 28, 2026

Today, State Senator Derek Slap (D-West Hartford) voted to enhance and improve Connecticut’s statutes for hate crimes, seeking to better protect the people of Connecticut against undue discrimination and hate.

“With hate crimes doubling nationally in the last decade and more than 100 hate crimes reported each year in Connecticut, we need to make sure our communities are free from hate and intimidation,” said Sen. Slap. “This bill will make it easier to understand the penalties and consequences of hate crimes and ensures intimidation, physical harm, damage to houses of worship and other offenses will be treated with the seriousness they deserve. I’m grateful to Senator Winfield and the Judiciary Committee for their work on this bill.”

Senate Bill 90 makes adjustments to hate crime statutes including combining protected classes (disability, gender identity/expression, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, color, ethnicity, alienage, national origin and age) into one protected social category.

It relabels and consolidates existing laws, including intimidation based on bigotry or bias and hate crimes causing physical injury or contact, better aligning the state’s hate crime laws and making them simpler and easier to understand and enforce.

The bill also creates a dedicated hate crime for damaging houses of worship, with higher penalties if damage exceeds $10,000, and labels threatening a house of worship or religiously affiliated community center as a hate crime.

It further extends persistent offender status to offenders committing hate crimes multiple times, allows for a hate crimes diversion program as a condition of probation under accelerated rehabilitation, extends the attorney general’s authority to investigate hate crimes and initiate legal action and expands the Hate Crimes Investigative Unit’s duties to incorporate all hate crimes.

Additional provisions include a requirement for the Connecticut Sentencing Commission to review the appropriateness of state hate crime penalties and report recommendations by January 1, 2027.

With the bill’s passage today, it next heads to the House for further consideration.

Senator MD Rahman Leads Passage of Bill Expanding Municipal Finance Board Eligibility

Posted on April 28, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

Senator MD Rahman Leads Passage of Bill Expanding Municipal Finance Board Eligibility

HARTFORD — Senator MD Rahman (D-Manchester), Senate Chair of the Planning and Development Committee, led the Senate’s passage Tuesday of a bill that will make it easier for Connecticut’s smaller towns to fill seats on their municipal boards of finance.

Senate Bill 444 creates a new exception to the existing state prohibition on municipal employees serving on the board of finance in the town where they work and live. Under the bill, employees who earn less than $10,000 annually from the municipality will be eligible to serve. The threshold is calculated on a rolling 12-month basis.

“Boards of finance are essential to how towns manage their budgets and serve their residents, and smaller communities sometimes struggle to find enough qualified people willing to serve,” Senator Rahman said. “This bill gives those towns more flexibility without creating serious conflicts of interest. Part-time municipal employees who earn modest wages should have the same opportunity to contribute to local government as anyone else. This legislation empowers communities to make the most of the civic talent they have.”

The change is particularly significant for smaller communities, which often have fewer eligible candidates available for civic positions. Expanding the pool of eligible residents makes it easier for towns to fill critical local government roles without compromising conflict-of-interest protections.

SB 444 will now head to the House of Representatives for consideration before the legislative session’s May 6 adjournment date.

Senator Honig Votes to Preserve Public Ownership of Torrington Transfer Station

Posted on April 28, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

Honig Votes to Preserve Public Ownership of Torrington Transfer Station

HARTFORD — Senator Paul Honig (D-Harwinton) voted Tuesday in favor of Senate Bill 521, legislation that would convey the Torrington Transfer Station to the Northwest Resource Recovery Authority (NRRA), preserving the facility as a publicly owned option for municipal solid waste and recycling across northwest Connecticut.

“Towns across our region have been pooling resources and running shared services for years because it saves money and it works,” Senator Honig said. “The NRRA brings that same approach to solid waste. Without a publicly owned facility, private operators set the price and municipalities have no real choice but to pay it. This bill keeps that from happening, and I’m glad the Senate passed it.”

The Torrington Transfer Station has served the region for nearly four decades, originally conveyed to the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) following the state’s eminent domain action in 1987. Following MIRA’s dissolution, the property transferred to the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services, which has been operating the facility on a temporary basis. SB 521 would convey the property to the NRRA, a municipal solid waste authority established to provide sustainable, regional management of waste and recycling services for participating municipalities.

Under the bill, the property must be used to operate a public transfer station, and the NRRA must retain ownership without leasing or the property reverts to the state. The conveyance is subject to State Properties Review Board approval.

The bill drew broad regional support, including from the Northwest Hills Council of Governments and the Connecticut Council of Small Towns. The NRRA has also secured a $350,000 grant from the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection for organizational and operational development.

The bill now moves to the House for consideration.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Hugh McQuaid | hugh.mcquaid@cga.ct.gov |

SENATOR LESSSER VOTES TO PASS BILL REINING IN ICE ABUSES IN CONNECTICUT

Posted on April 27, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. LESSER WELCOMES EXTENSION OF LAND CONVEYANCE TO SHILOH BAPTIST COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

MIDDLETOWN – State Senator Matt Lesser (D-Middletown) announced that the state Senate has approved a state land conveyance bill that allows the Shiloh Baptist Community Development Corporation of Middletown until June 30, 2029, to start work on their plan to build moderate-income housing and recreational facilities in town.

The bill was necessary because Shioloh Baptist was originally given until June 30, 2029, to complete their planned projects.

“There’s been an ongoing effort by Shiloh Baptist for many years to complete these projects. Of course, the local land use boards will be the final arbiter, but it’s a laudable goal to build more community housing in Middletown, and this bill helps them do that,” Sen. Lesser said. “Congratulations to Bishop Cotten and the entire team at Shiloh. I wish them the best!”

Senate Bill 518 passed on a bipartisan 34-2 vote and now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration.

SEN. KUSHNER VOTES TO PRESERVE CONNECTICUT’S CURRENT VACCINE STANDARDS FROM TRUMP INTERFERENCE

Posted on April 26, 2026April 27, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. KUSHNER VOTES TO PRESERVE CONNECTICUT’S CURRENT VACCINE STANDARDS FROM TRUMP INTERFERENCE

HARTFORD – Amid frequent changes to federal vaccine policies, state Senator Julie Kushner (D-Danbury) and the Connecticut State Senate today passed legislation preserving a standard of care for immunizations and protecting state public health from the Trump administration’s federal rollbacks on essential, common-sense health guidelines.

House Bill 5044, “An Act Establishing Connecticut Vaccine Standards,” establishes a standard of care for immunizations in Connecticut. Its changes are simple: although vaccine access is often tied to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), Connecticut’s vaccine standard will now also incorporate recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the American Academy of Family Physicians.

This will effectively allow Connecticut to retain its current vaccination standards regardless of what the Trump administration attempts to dictate.

“The Trump administration and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have gutted the vaccine experts in the federal Centers for Disease Control and essentially replaced them with science deniers,” said Sen. Kushner. “I have zero confidence that the actions of Washington, D.C. are in the best interests of Connecticut residents and our health and the health of our children, so I proudly cast my vote today for vaccine independence from the Trump administration.”

HB 5044 creates a Vaccines for Adults program, which will provide free vaccines to uninsured and underinsured adults ages 19+ through free clinics, municipal health departments, and other eligible providers, allowing Connecticut increased supply chain flexibility.

HB 5044 clarifies what the General Assembly intended in 2021 when it voted to allow only medical exemptions from state vaccination policy, thereby ensuring there are no such exemptions in schools, childcare and college. With about 495,000 schoolchildren currently attending Connecticut schools, HB 5044 preserves Connecticut’s vaccine status quo and keeps children safe from preventable illnesses.

Connecticut currently has a best-in-the-nation vaccination rate of 98.2%. Just .02% of Connecticut students have non-medical exemptions compared to 3.4% nationally.

HB 5044 also requires individual and group health insurance policies to cover immunizations on the standard of care and allows pharmacists to administer any vaccine on Connecticut’s own immunization schedule, preserving and expanding access to vaccinations regardless of federal action.

With today’s Senate passage, the bill now heads to Governor Lamont’s desk for his final signature into law.

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SENATOR CABRERA VOTES TO CRACK DOWN ON CONTRACTOR THEFT IN CONNECTICUT

Posted on April 26, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. CABRERA VOTES TO PRESERVE CONNECTICUT’S CURRENT VACCINE STANDARDS FROM TRUMP INTERFERENCE

HARTFORD – Amid frequent changes to federal vaccine policies, state Senator Jorge Cabrera (D-Hamden) and the Connecticut State Senate today passed legislation preserving a standard of care for immunizations and protecting state public health from the Trump administration’s federal rollbacks on essential, common-sense health guidelines.

House Bill 5044, “An Act Establishing Connecticut Vaccine Standards,” establishes a standard of care for immunizations in Connecticut. Its changes are simple: although vaccine access is often tied to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), Connecticut’s vaccine standard will now also incorporate recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the American Academy of Family Physicians.

This will effectively allow Connecticut to retain its current vaccination standards regardless of what the Trump administration attempts to dictate.

“We’ve seen Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. strip the CDC of its vaccine expertise and replace its members with yes-men and vaccine skeptics. That’s no way to run a national health care system,” said Sen. Cabrera. “Connecticut has to protect itself from the bad health care decisions of the Trump administration, and that’s what this bill does.”

HB 5044 allows the Public Health Commissioner to develop respiratory virus vaccine requirements in nursing homes, which already allow non-medical exemptions. Schools, higher education, childcare centers and family care homes, among other agencies, will retain current requirements.

HB 5044 clarifies what the General Assembly intended in 2021 when it voted to remove the non-medical exemption from state vaccination policy, thereby ensuring there are no such exemptions in schools, childcare and college. With about 495,000 schoolchildren currently attending Connecticut schools, HB 5044 preserves Connecticut’s vaccine status quo and keeps children safe from preventable illnesses. Connecticut currently has a best-in-the-nation vaccination rate of 98.2%. Just .02% of Connecticut students have non-medical exemptions compared to 3.4% nationally.

With today’s Senate passage, the bill now heads to Governor Lamont’s desk for his final signature into law.

SENATOR CABRERA VOTES TO CRACK DOWN ON CONTRACTOR THEFT IN CONNECTICUT

Posted on April 26, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. CABRERA VOTES FOR CONSUMER PRIVACY BILL TO PROTECT PERSONAL DATA IN CONNECTICUT

HARTFORD – State Senator Jorge Cabrera (D- Hamden) today voted for a bill that will safeguard Connecticut residents’ personal information from exploitation by data brokers, surveillance technology companies, and federal agencies.

“Artificial intelligence advancements and energy-sucking data centers seem to be expanding by leaps and bounds every week, all with one goal in mind: to capture, sell, and profit from your personal information. We need a better system than that, and that’s what this legislation does,” said Sen. Cabrera.

Senate Bill 4 “An Act Concerning Consumer Privacy and Protection,” addresses a broad range of emerging privacy threats and introduces comprehensive privacy measures that address new threats to consumer data. The bill tackles critical privacy concerns, including the lightly regulated sale of geolocation data and facial recognition technology and the exploitative practices of data brokers.

Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff submitted written testimony on SB 4 and explained how his friend and colleague, Minnesota Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman, and her husband, Mark, were assassinated last summer. Although this terrible tragedy was widely reported in the news, what most people do not know is that the murderer, Vance Boelter, obtained Speaker Hortman’s residential address through data broker websites. For just a few dollars, anyone can gain access to personal information, including home addresses, phone numbers, and even photos of a legislator’s home and license plates.

“We do not need to be concerned about becoming an Orwellian state,” said Sen. Duff. “We are already there. “Big Brother” is listening, and if we do not act immediately, we may lose our inherent rights to privacy forever. I am proud of my colleagues today for passing this important piece of legislation that works to protect our community from those who profit off our most sensitive personal information.”

Senate Bill 4 targets the following specific threats to consumer privacy:

Data brokers: Consumers may request, at no cost, the deletion of any personal data collected by a data broker.
Facial recognition: Businesses using facial recognition in public spaces must disclose it at each entrance and provide a process for consumers to request removal of their images.
Dynamic pricing: Strict disclosure requirements apply when businesses use algorithmic pricing to increase prices.
Geolocation data: Controllers and processors are banned from selling or sharing precise geolocation data.
Genetic Testing: Consumers would have the right to their own genetic data when using direct-to-consumer genetic testing services, and create more transparency in their policies.
Volume of Ads: Streaming platforms cannot transmit the audio of any commercial advertisement at a volume that is louder than the volume established by the Federal Communications Commission for television commercials.

Senate Bill 4 passed the Senate today on a bipartisan 31-4 vote and now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration; the 2026 legislative session ends on Wednesday, May 6.

SENATOR LESSSER VOTES TO PASS BILL REINING IN ICE ABUSES IN CONNECTICUT

Posted on April 24, 2026 by sdozapier@senatedems.ct.gov

SEN. LESSER VOTES TO PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF DISABLED CT RESIDENTS FROM THE ABUSES OF THE TRUMP REGIME

HARTFORD – As the Trump regime slashes decades of disability rights advancements at the federal level, state Senator Matt Lesser (D-Middletown) and Senate Democrats today took action to ensure that those historic rights will continue to be available to disabled residents living and working in Connecticut.

Today, the Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 430, “AN ACT CODIFYING THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT,” which incorporates those historic federal protections into Connecticut law, and allows anyone aggrieved by an alleged ADA violation to file a complaint with Connecticut’s Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities instead of at the federal level.

“Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency took a wrecking ball to the federal staff who were in charge of enforcing the ADA. Now The National Federation of the Blind, the American Association of People with Disabilities, Deaf Equality, and others are suing the Trump administration over this,” said Sen. Lesser, who is Senate Chair of the Human Services Committee. “With this bill today we’re fixing a very important piece of federal law where you no longer have to appeal to Washington, D.C. if you believe your ADA rights have been violated; now you can appeal any violations directly and locally through Connecticut’s CHRO.”

The Trump regime has been systematically dismantling various federal ADA protections for the past year.

In March 2025, the Department of Justice withdrew 11 pieces of guidance related to the ADA, including information on accessible parking, fitting rooms, and effective communication in hotel and hospital settings. The DOJ cited the move as an effort to reduce regulatory burdens on businesses. Disability rights advocates argue that removing ADA guidance leaves businesses without clear information on how to accommodate, which may lead to a decrease in accessibility standards.

Trump executive orders targeting Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the federal government have been seen as direct attacks on accessibility, potentially removing support for disabled federal employees and altering workplace accommodations.

A July 2025 Trump executive order encouraging the involuntary commitment of individuals with mental health disabilities was criticized for potentially violating the Supreme Court’s Olmstead decision and the core tenets of the ADA. The Court held in 1999 that Title II of the ADA requires public entities to administer services in the “most integrated setting appropriate” to the needs of qualified individuals with disabilities.

Advocacy groups have also raised alarms about reduced staff and funding in federal offices tasked with enforcing disability civil rights, including the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education, and proposals to cut Medicaid funding are viewed as a threat to the independence of people with disabilities, potentially forcing them into institutions rather than allowing them to live in their communities.

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