Hartford — With inflation causing prices to rise, we are paying more for everything from food and fuel to clothing. Saving money is more important than ever, especially with school only a few weeks away. I want to remind you to take advantage of the upcoming “Sales Tax Free Week” on clothing and shoes, from Sunday, August 20 through Saturday, August 26.

Now is a great time to save on back-to-school wear, both in stores and online.

This one-week event eliminates Connecticut’s 6.35% sales tax on most…

Temperatures over the next several days are expected to be very hot and humid. Governor Lamont is directing Connecticut’s extreme hot weather protocol to be activated and in effect through 8am on Sunday, July 30.

While enacted, a system is set up for state agencies, municipalities, and other partners to coordinate with United Way 2-1-1 to make sure that information regarding cooling centers is available statewide, providing a location to get some relief.

Cooling centers are opening statewide. Anyone…

Since the start of this month, Monroe Police received more than a dozen complaints from residents victimized by a scam in which someone fraudulently applied for unemployment benefits from the Connecticut Department of Labor using their names and information.

Connecticut and eight other states are currently experiencing a new uptick in fraudulent unemployment applications.

There was a spike in unemployment claims submitted using stolen identities across the country during the pandemic and that fraudulent…

Hartford– The 2023 General Assembly Session has concluded, with over 300 pieces of legislation passed by both the House and the Senate.

A contentious zoning reform proposal, known as ‘Fair Share’, calculating affordable housing needs was going to be mandated, but the bill narrowly approved in the House turned it into a study. This bill was brought out shortly before midnight on the last Friday of session as an amendment to an unrelated bill. The state will now assess the need for affordable housing,…

Several new laws will take effect July 1st that could have an impact on you, your business, or our community. I have highlighted some of the public protection laws below.

An expanded list of those that will take effect on July 1, along with summaries, can be accessed here. A summary of all major public acts passed this session is also available online.

A summary of some new laws include:

AN ACT STRENGTHENING THE PROTECTIONS AGAINST AND RESPONSE TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

This bill expands the Judicial…

The Office of Legislative Research has compiled its 2023 Major Public Acts report. This report details the action of the legislature in 2023, with brief summaries of major policy changes. These summaries include the recently approved state budget, tax relief, and various consumer protections.

More detailed summaries can be found at https://cga.ct.gov/olr/. OLR also produces a number of “Acts Affecting” reports highlighting legislation in various policy areas, which will be available online later…

I want to hear from you!

To find out where residents of Monroe, Easton, and Trumbull stand, I’m asking you to take this brief survey. It is important for me as an elected official to know what the constituents I represent think about different issues of the day.

Please complete my survey below:

Hartford—The House approved a two-year, $51 billion budget plan on a vote of 139-12. Among the highlights of this plan is a reduction of the income tax from 5% to 4.50% and 3% to 2%. The budget also increases the Earned Income Tax Credit for working families from 30.5% to 40%.

“I voted for this bipartisan budget because of the tax relief for families. We also fought for more funding for nonprofits. I’m pleased that the Democrats and the Governor chose to adopt the rate House Republicans proposed…

Hartford— A contentious zoning reform proposal calculating affordable housing needs was going to be mandated, but the bill narrowly approved in the early morning hours on Saturday turned it into a study. This bill was brought out shortly before midnight Friday as an amendment to an unrelated bill.

“For about two hours, I asked questions, expressed concerns, and relayed to my colleagues what was included in this bill. This has the state assessing the need for affordable housing, by town, for informational…

TRUMBULL– To honor Flag Day, State Reps. David Rutigliano (R-123), Ben McGorty (R-122) and Tony Scott (R-112) held an in-person flag collection as part of the month-long flag drive in cooperation with the Trumbull American Legion Post #141 for worn and tattered flags at the Middlebrook Elementary School last Saturday.

There are still drop-off boxes at both the Trumbull Public Library and the Fairchild Nichols Memorial Library branches for the collection of worn, faded and tattered American flags…