Representative Lanoue Testifies on Two Bills During Public Safety and Security Committee Public Hearing

HARTFORD- On Tuesday, State Representative Brian Lanoue (R-45), took the opportunity to testify before the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee during its first public hearing, on two of his top legislative priorities. Rep. Lanoue testified on behalf of the House Republican Caucus on H.B. No. 5178, An Act Concerning the Expansion of the CRISIS Initiative Pilot Program Throughout the State, and H.B. No. 5173, An Act Allowing a Personal Income Tax Deduction for Stipends Paid to Volunteer Firefighters and Volunteer Ambulance Members.

Dating back to his first term in the legislature, Rep. Lanoue has championed the expansion of the CRISIS Initiative Pilot Program throughout Connecticut. Initially, the program originated in the Connecticut State Police Troop E region, and Rep. Lanoue worked diligently to get CRISIS expanded into the Troop D jurisdiction in July. CRISIS functions as a collaborative effort between both state and local law enforcement, mental health professionals, and community partners to provide individuals battling addiction with treatment options. Additional training is offered to give law enforcement to give them advanced de-escalation tactics for calls related to mental health, overdose, and substance abuse related issues.

“CRISIS has been an incredible beacon of light that has brought together state, along with local police, mental health providers and community partners like Griswold PRIDE and United Services to combat mental health disorders, and the opioid epidemic that has been plaguing our state and nation,” said Rep. Lanoue. “I was thrilled to see CRISIS get expanded into Troop D this past July, and I am already hearing about the great strides it has made since that time. This expansion has built a very important chain of continuity in Eastern Connecticut, and I was proud to testify on Tuesday with Diane Manning, on behalf of the House Republican Caucus, to expand CRISIS throughout the entire State of Connecticut to combat this horrible epidemic,” he added.

Joining Representative Lanoue on Tuesday morning was Diane Manning, President/CEO of United Services, the local mental health authority in Northeast Connecticut. She gave her first-hand accounts of the success CRISIS has had on the community. “We have been working with Troop D leadership as well as our local police departments to develop protocol for working together to divert individuals who do not need police intervention into the treatment system,” Diane Manning said. “If the individual is not presenting a danger to themselves or others, trained clinicians can help in a variety of ways once they assess the needs of the person involved. They may work to get someone connected to treatments, back on medication, into safe housing, get them food, clothing or heating assistance – whatever it takes to help stabilize the person so police are not making repeated visits to respond to something they cannot fix,” she added.

Another bill that received a public hearing on Tuesday was H.B. No. 5173, An Act Allowing a Personal Income Tax Deduction for Stipends Paid to Volunteer Firefighters and Volunteer Ambulance Members. The bill, is aimed to help with recruiting and retaining volunteer Firefighters and EMS personnel, with the hopes of giving people more incentive to serve their communities. The concept was proposed as a bi-partisan bill during the 2021 legislative session, which passed through committee but never made it to the House Floor for a vote. The bill would exempt Connecticut taxes on stipends paid by a municipality to volunteer firefighters and ambulance personnel, up to $1,500 per year.

“Volunteer firefighters are the backbone of our small communities who have saved countless lives. The least we can do as a state government is exempt these stipend checks from state tax burden, and help to preserve our volunteer fire departments and our amazing groups of local heroes,” Rep. Lanoue concluded.

Last March, during a Public Safety and Security Committee meeting, State Representative Rick Hayes (R-51), advocated for this proposal and raised an amendment to correct the language in the bill to make the deduction $1,500 which was the original intent in the bill proposal. During Tuesday’s hearing, Rep. Hayes was again supportive of the bill and Rep. Lanoue’s persistent advocacy to help out volunteer first responders. “I have always been a supporter of emergency services in my community and across Connecticut. During my years as a police chief, I was able to see first-hand the commitment to the community by our volunteers. I feel strongly that this bill should have gotten over the finish line, and believe that both proposals by Representative Lanoue should get over the finish line this year,” Rep. Hayes said. “Not only will both bills benefit our first responders who selflessly protect our local towns, it will give people who need it the most the added resources to get the help they require. I am very supportive of these bills, and thank Representative Lanoue for all of his work on behalf of our community” he concluded.

The two bills are expected to be discussed further in the Public Safety and Security Committee over the coming weeks.

To view my opening remarks, click the image.

To view Diane Manning’s comments, with questions from the Public Safety Committee click here.