New CT Laws: How They Will Affect Cops, Same-Sex Parents in 2022

CONNECTICUT — Only a handful of the bills signed into law during the previous busy legislative session in Hartford went into effect immediately. Many kicked in Oct. 1, and more still become active at the start of the new year.

Beginning Jan. 1, a new law limits the conditions under which a law enforcement officer may use chokeholds or deadly physical force. Legislators carved the provisions out in 2020 following the death of George Floyd, but the implementation was delayed until 2022 to allow police departments to receive more training. Among the provisions is one requiring officers to have reasonably determined that no reasonable alternatives to the use of deadly force exists, if using deadly force when making an arrest or preventing escape; and establishing the condition that the escaping person poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to others, among other requirements.

Under Public Act No. 19-25, Connecticut employees will be able to earn family and medical leave benefits. The new law provides eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of benefits over a 12-month period. The program also provides two additional weeks of benefits for a serious health condition that results in incapacitation during pregnancy.

Residents eligible for benefits are those who earned at least $2,325 during their highest earning quarter within their base period, are private-sector employees or certain "covered public employees," were employed in the previous 12 weeks by a covered employer, or are sole proprietors or self-employed people who voluntarily enroll in the program.

Employee contributions fuel the program, and collections begin in January.

Certain rights for same-sex, unmarried and nonbiological parents have been established in another new law going into effect Jan. 1. The law affords children equal access to the legal benefits of a parent-child relationship regardless of the circumstances of their birth, including assisted reproduction, or the marital status, gender, or sexual orientation of their parents.

Connecticut had been the only New England state without protections or paths to parentage for non-biological parents to establish their legal relationship with their children, according to Yale Law School. The state also has the second-highest rate of births through assisted reproduction in the country, and 37 percent of children born here are to unmarried parents, according to Rep. Jeff Currey, who was the lead sponsor of the bill.

More New 2022 Laws: These Are The New Laws Affecting Your Health In Connecticut

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It'll be easier to build those garage apartments, in-law suites, "granny pods" and other such accessory living spaces come Jan. 1. A new zoning enabling act makes it legal to build and rent to family or other tenants in residential and single-family areas. Municipalities are allowed to opt-out of the new law following a two-thirds vote from the zoning commission and local legislators.

Public Act 19-86, effective Jan. 1, establishes a state corporation business and insurance premium tax credit for an employer that makes eligible education loan payments on a qualified employee's behalf. The new law effectively gives a tax break to employers who make eligible education loan payments on a behalf of an employee. The maximum credit per employee per income year is $2,625.

Connecticut will be the home of savvier real estate agents after Jan. 1. Public Ac 21-167 increases the minimum prior work experience required to apply for a real estate broker’s license. Principally, it requires applicants to have a minimum number of hours worked and real estate transactions closed in the prior three years.