Candelora, Cohen Applaud State Bond Commission Award Settling Reimbursement Issue for North Branford

HARTFORD—State Rep. Vincent Candelora and state Sen. Christine Cohen on Wednesday applauded a State Bond Commission Decision to award $54,000 to North Branford for body-worn cameras used by police, capping their bipartisan work to have the state reimburse the town for equipment it purchased in 2018. “This is great news for North Branford, which saw its effort to receive full reimbursement through a state grant program fall victim to a timing-related technicality,” said Candelora, Deputy Republican Leader, who serves the 86th House District. “Municipal budgets are tighter than ever, and local property taxpayers can pay a heavy price when their communities fail to receive money they expected from the state. I’m happy to have worked with Senator Cohen to help North Branford avoid a real headache.” A few years ago, the legislature expanded a grant program that reimburses municipalities for body cameras by offering 100 percent reimbursement for those purchased in FY17-18. The reimbursement rate dropped to 50 percent for cameras purchased in FY18-19. North Branford officials entered a camera contract in FY17-18 and budgeted for the full reimbursement, but the state’s budget office denied the town’s reimbursement request because it paid for the contract in the first month of the next fiscal year. The town, however, operates on an annual accrual schedule like any other and booked the camera expense in FY17-18. Cohen and Candelora during the 2019 legislative session successfully pushed legislation (HB 6754) that clarified when a town is eligible for reimbursement under the program. The bill was supported by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which told state lawmakers that “municipalities should not be penalized because of a financial timing or accounting issue when seeking reimbursement for the Body Worn Equipment purchase program.” "With financial timelines not coinciding with state reimbursement deadline, North Branford found themselves footing 100 percent of the bill for the cost of body-worn, police cameras. Representative Candelora and I sought to relieve this financial burden by introducing legislation to extend that deadline for the town. Today, the State Bond Commission approved $54,707 for North Branford", Sen. Cohen said. "I am proud that we were able to deliver for North Branford’s police and its taxpayers. We worked in a bipartisan manner to ensure this legislation crossed the finish line unanimously, helping the people of North Branford. This is truly a state government success story."