Ceci Maher

SENATOR MAHER WELCOMES NEW GUN SAFETY STANDARDS, CHILDREN’S WELLNESS, WORKER SAFETY, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PREVENTION BECOMING LAW OCT. 1

After a successful 2023 legislative session in which the state legislature passed a number of bills, State Senator Ceci Maher (D-Wilton) welcomes a number of new laws going into effect on October 1 that will protect and support members of the community and improve public safety.

New laws will include prohibition on openly carrying firearms, places additional controls on handgun sales including limiting an individual to three handgun retail purchases in a 30-day period, and placing more stringent conditions on serious firearm offenders; ensures abused or neglected children will receive legal representation in court cases; requires employers to allow service workers to take mental health wellness days; and prevents a spouse whose partner is convicted of certain crimes concurrent with domestic abuse from having to pay alimony.

“All of the hard work done by legislators from January to June led to the positive results Connecticut will see on October 1, when these new laws go into effect,” said Sen. Maher. “I am looking forward to these new standards, which will support public safety in a variety of ways. They will make sure serious firearm offenders are treated accordingly, limit handgun purchases to reduce straw purchases and take other steps to reduce gun violence. They will support children’s safety and support workers’ mental health. They will prevent abusive partners from receiving alimony from their spouses as a form of financial abuse. Together, they represent the steps forward that the legislature can achieve in the course of its work; I’m proud to have played a role in and to have voted for these policies’ success.”

Among the new laws going into effect in Connecticut as of October 1:

Many parts of House Bill 6667, “An Act Addressing Gun Violence,” will become law, including prohibiting the open carrying of firearms; limiting the maximum number of handgun purchases in a 30-day period to three, in an effort to reduce straw purchases of handguns; extending firearm safe storage laws to all firearms people store or keep on their premises; increasing penalties for possession of large capacity magazines and expanding the list of disqualifying offenses for possessing/carrying a firearm to include family violence and domestic violence crimes; and setting more stringent release conditions for serious firearm offenders.

Language in Senate Bill 2 will ensure that in child abuse or neglect cases heard before Superior Court, the chief public defender’s office will assign counsel to represent a child and act solely as their attorney, including immediate appointment depending on need. Additionally, language in Senate Bill 2 will require employers to allow service workers to use accrued paid sick leave for a “mental health wellness day” to attend to emotional or psychological well-being. Certain food, health care, hospitality, retail and sanitation industry workers will be covered by this measure.

A section of Senate Bill 5 will prevent a spouse who is convicted of serious crimes including attempted murder, conspiracy, felony sexual assault and felony family violence from receiving alimony from a partner, preventing alimony’s use as financial abuse.