Cathy Osten

Sen. Osten Calls for Informational Hearing with Transportation
Committee Amidst Connecticut Port Authority Leadership Changes

HARTFORD, CT – Today, in response to recent changes in leadership at the Connecticut Port Authority, State Senator Catherine Osten (D-Sprague) has called for an informational hearing with the legislature’s Transportation Committee to discuss how the state’s Port Authority will navigate these changes and its plan for moving forward with important projects.

The request for this informational hearing comes after the Connecticut Port Authority’s Executive Director was placed on administrative leave and the Chair of the Board resigned. The state’s Port Authority was established five years ago by the legislature in order to best position the state to make good on economic development opportunities at the state’s ports. According to the letter, an agreement to develop and deploy wind energy projects at the State Pier in New London has not been signed amidst the Port Authority’s leadership changes, one of the factors prompting the need for this informational hearing.

“We cannot allow job-creating opportunities to fall by the wayside as the Connecticut Port Authority searches for a new Executive Director and Chair of the Board,” said Sen. Osten. “This informational hearing will provide us with an opportunity to learn more about how the Port Authority is managing these leadership changes and ensure this important project, and many others, move forward.”

The Chair of the Board stepped down after media reports that she paid her daughter $3,000 in agency funding to purchase professional photographs and have them hung in the Port Authority’s Old Saybrook office. The Port Authority has not provided a reason for the Executive Director being placed on administrative leave. The letter is attached.