COVID-19 Update – May 29

Gov. Lamont Releases “Roadmap for Reopening Connecticut”

In a press update earlier this week, Governor Lamont released a “Roadmap for Reopening Connecticut” document outlining Phases 2 & 3 of the state’s reopening strategy, as well as a progress report on the state’s reopening criteria (e.g. testing capacity, Personal Protective Equipment availability, etc.). The 44-page report is a little light on specifics and timing. The process is dependent on each preceding sector’s outcomes.

To access the document, please click here. Please, share your thoughts by responding directly to this email.

Barbershops and Hair Salons to Reopen on June 1

After delaying the initial reopening date, the state will allow barbershops and hair salons to reopen on Monday, June 1. Businesses planning on reopening will be required to follow strict cleaning and social distancing protocols. Please not that, even though your salon may open, it still needs to “self-certify” its protocols, and some may be limited by staffing issues. Please be sure to check before you head out.

Please click here to review the sector rules for the reopening of barbershops and hair salons.

House Republicans Call for Special Legislative Session

The House Republican caucus on Wednesday announced that its members would be petitioning for a special session of the House to address loose ends and the duration of some of Governor Lamont’s emergency executive orders. We believe that it is time to reintroduce the public process of legislative and local input to the full range of issues being addressed by our diverse and differently-affected communities. One size does not necessarily fit all.

I, for one, am terribly disappointed by the overall response, or lack thereof, from the Connecticut Department of Labor (CTDOL) and do not want to wait until 2021 to address its deficiencies, including its inability to self-correct. There’s no excuse for leaving hundreds of thousands of Connecticut taxpayers waiting, wondering and feeling abandoned by unending determinations and an inability to address errors, regardless of who made them. Unanswered phones and disappearing emails are no way to service someone who has been paying into the system all their life and now needs to put food on their family’s table.

I think their abandonment of customer service is cruel and just plain wrong. Thankfully, I’ve been able to intervene for hundreds and hundreds of our neighbors. As your state representative, I work for you. Being here for you is what I do, and I treasure being able to make things right for nearly every individual’s issue. But, nobody should have to be made to feel so alone by a state agency that’s funded by their tax dollars.

A potential special session would seek to address these concerns and other critical items like the state’s budget, shrinking revenues, spending and more that require our attention prior to the September 9 expiration of the governor’s emergency declaration.

In order to call the House into a special session, a majority of members must agree, effectively requiring House Democrats to join with Republicans.