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PLATFORM
“It is the utmost honor to serve as State Representative for Danbury's 138th District. I'm proud of the progress achieved in just a short time, but there is much work to be done. With your support, I will continue being the hardworking, bipartisan leader we need in the State House - working to hold the line on any new or increased taxes or fees, advocating for our children and our schools, and making the safety and prosperity of our community my number one priority.”
LIST OF ISSUES
AFFORDABILITY
While there is still much work to be done at the State level, I am proud of the progress and accomplishments achieved through bipartisanship during my first term, including passage of an historic State Income Tax Cut, expected to benefit one million filers. We also started to ease the fiscal cliff on pension benefits. I proposed, and will do so again if re-elected, to eliminate the qualifying income thresholds for the personal income tax deductions for Social Security benefits and pension or annuity income. I also supported an effort to repeal the Highway Use Tax, a mileage fee that in turn drives the end cost higher for the consumer on everyday necessities, but it was not supported by the majority party. With inflation making the cost of goods higher, this is something we should address next session.
When I learned that vendor participation in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) was waning due to rising costs on businesses, I proposed a bill in my first year as a legislator to establish a more fair reimbursement system that ultimately passed by way of the biennium budget.
HEALTH CARE
I am proud of the progress we made over the last two years to make it easier and more affordable to obtain health care. I supported a bill that allowed Connecticut to join other states in a prescription discount program known as ArrayRx. It’s free to join and the card is accepted at 98% of CT pharmacies. This digital discount card can be used instead of insurance or Medicare if your insurance does not cover a medication, or if it has a better price than your insurance or Medicare plan.
I also co-sponsored two bills to have Connecticut join licensure compacts with other states so that nurses and social workers licensed in member states can practice here. We also made permanent certain pandemic-era telehealth service delivery and insurance coverage.
PUBLIC SAFETY
I supported law enforcement officers and their families by cosponsoring several pieces of legislation this year, which have been signed into law. One bill expands the time period when the death of an officer is considered in the line of duty to include 24 hours after training or engaging in duties, another establishes a Fallen Officer Fund for the family of an officer killed in the line of duty, and a third requires restitution to a law enforcement unit when a police animal is injured or killed. I want to work to change the culture in the legislature and ensure that officers have the tools they need to do their job effectively and safely, so pieces of legislation like those aren’t necessary
EDUCATION
We made great strides in improving the climate for our schools over the last two years, including accelerating the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) formula (meaning a boost in ECS money for Danbury and full funding by 2026 rather than 2028), creating a working group to look at unfunded mandates, helping disconnected youth, and making changes to certain teacher certifications to ease workforce shortages.
During the 2024 legislative session, I was part of a small, bipartisan group tasked with crafting legislation to bolster the early childcare sector. HB 5002 passed unanimously in both the House and Senate and was signed into law by the Governor. This was truly a labor of love. The legislation will have an immense impact across the board and ultimately lead to an overall thriving economy to the benefit of all Connecticut residents. Most importantly, this will have long lasting impacts on a child’s life and future success.
ENVIRONMENT
Protecting water quality on Candlewood Lake is not only important for the vitality of the lake itself, but for the people who enjoy it as a recreational resource. Last year, the General Assembly had to take up a bill to fix issues with the 2019 Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Stamp bill because it was in violation of federal law. The 2023 fix in HB 6811 decouples the fee collection from the boat registration process and eliminates the two-tiered fee (based on state residency) system.
During each of my two years in office the legislature also addressed management of solid waste and the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA), a waste-to-energy plant that closed in 2022. Connecticut needs a way forward to help the environment and the hauling industry to cut down on the tons of material exported out of state by truck to be landfilled. The bills were aimed at reducing the amount of materials in the solid waste stream.
VETERANS
Helping our veterans is very important to me. They have given so much of themselves for our country and we should give back to them in any way we can. I supported a bill creating a new property tax exemption for veterans who have a permanent and total disability rating from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Many veterans continue their service to our country by volunteering in their communities. We also made it easier for active duty military members or veterans experienced in fire truck operation to help protect our communities by waiving the needed Q driver’s license endorsement. Legislation I supported also expands eligibility for Military Relief Fund grants.