New CT Laws Address 'New Normal' Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

CONNECTICUT — How we live, breathe, play, work, learn and socialize have all been affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Lawmakers in Hartford have taken notice, and much of the "new normal" has influenced or trickled into some bills only recently signed into law by Gov. Ned Lamont.

The new learn- and work-from-home realities jump-started by the pandemic have made access to reliable internet connectivity as vital as running water for many families in Connecticut. Nowhere is that new normal reflected more clearly than in the sweeping shakeup to the state's broadband industry mandated in the legislation signed on July 12.

Along with other provisions, the new law requires broadband providers to refund customers for service outages that last more the 24 hours, allows towns to use grants from the Local Capital Improvement Program to build out their own broadband network, and requires property owners to disclose, upon request, their property's internet speeds when they publicly list it for sale or rent. The state will also be establishing its own way to score broadband speed metrics, and the powers of the state's Public Utilities Regulatory Authority have been expanded to give it some sway over the broadband industry.

Another law arising from lessons learned the hard way during the pandemic will require long-term care facilities such as nursing homes to employ a full-time infection and prevention control specialist. The facility must also participate in developing the local emergency operations plan for its town, keep a stockpile of personal protective equipment, and allow residents to keep a phone or tablet in their rooms, so they can maintain contact with their family.

What effect has the coronavirus pandemic had on various racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups, and what were the causes? Determining those will be the mission of a 26-member Commission on the Disparate Impact of COVID-19, to be formed now that House Bill 5614 has been signed into law. The new commission will report back to its handlers in the legislature annually, beginning January 2022.

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If you lost your job during the pandemic, the state is mandating that you be first in line if that same job becomes available again. A new law requires private-sector employers with at least five employees to notify laid-off employees about available positions for which the laid-off employee is qualified and offer the positions first to those who previously held the same or a similar position, then to those who can qualify for the position with the same training as a new employee. If more than one is entitled to preference for a position, the employer must offer it to the employee with the most seniority at the employment site. The regulations apply to workers laid off between March 10, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2024.

Unemployment insurance benefits in the state also got a bit of a re-jiggering in the last legislative session. Among other provisions, the minimum weekly benefit has been increased from $15 to $40 and will be annually adjusted for inflation. But the new law also increases the minimum earnings claimants need to qualify for the minimum benefit from $600 to $1,600, again, adjusted annually for inflation. The law also eliminates an exception that allows certain claimants to receive unemployment benefits during a week for which they received severance pay. It all goes into effect Jan. 1, 2022.

Public Act 176 requires the Department of Social Services to extend eligibility for medical assistance to children under age 9, and women for 12 months after giving birth, regardless of their legal immigration status. The new law also amends the Children's Health Insurance Program state plan to provide medical assistance for prenatal care through the "unborn child option." This allows states to consider an unborn child a low-income child eligible for prenatal care coverage if other CHIP eligibility requirements are met. The law goes into effect the first day of 2022.

Is it a "tax" or a "fee"? It'll all be just semantics, as of Jan. 1, 2023, when the "Act Concerning a Highway Use Fee" goes into effect. The usage tax is based on a vehicle's weight and the number of miles driven on public roads statewide. Operators of certain heavy, multi-unit trucks will pay from 2.5 cents per mile for trucks weighing 26,000-28,000 pounds to 17.5 cents per mile for vehicles weighing more than 80,000 lbs. Revenue from the tax will be calculated and remitted monthly, and directed to the Special Transportation Fund.

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Expect to see a "CT-Grown" sticker on your kale and corn if you buy from local farmers, now that House Bill 6385 has been signed. Among the other "enhancements to certain agricultural programs" the new law triggers is the use of Connecticut farmers' market women's, infants and children's nutrition program vouchers for the purchase of eggs.

Living organ donors will soon be equal to everyone else in the eyes of insurance companies in Connecticut. As of Jan. 1, 2022, residents can no longer find their insurance options curtailed or declined solely on the basis of their decision to be a prospective donor.

House Bill 6412 requires heating oil sold in the state to be a low-carbon fuel blend, increasing the biodiesel component in steps over the next 13 years. Minimum biodiesel percentage requirements take effect on the following schedule, each July 1: 5% in 2022, 10% in 2025, 15% in 2030, 20% in 2034, and 50% in 2035.

Buckle up: One of the provisions in Public Act 175 requires everyone riding in a motor vehicle to wear a seat belt, not just the driver, front seat passengers or youths. The new law became immediately effective upon its signing on July 12.

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The state is also requiring, as of Oct. 1, the owners of single-family homes built before Oct. 1, 1978, to have smoke detectors installed, or face a fine between $200 and $1,000, imprisonment up to six months, or both.

Another new law amps up the resume requirements for anyone who wants to sit for the state's written real estate licensure exam. As of Jan. 1, 2022, an applicant must have been actively engaged as a licensed real estate salesperson under the supervision of a Connecticut-licensed real estate broker for at least 1,500 hours, instead of at least two years as current law requires, and represented a seller, buyer, lessor, or lessee in at least four closed real estate transactions.