Lamont Calls For Special CT Legislative Session To Extend Powers

CONNECTICUT — Gov. Ned Lamont has called upon the Connecticut General Assembly to meet in a special session to extend his emergency powers, issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lamont is specifically asking lawmakers to continue 12 orders, through Feb. 15, 2022.

Most notable on the list is the order that allows commissioners of Education and Early Childhood, in consultation with the commissioner of Public Health, to extend rules related to mandatory masking and social distancing in schools.

Also extended would be the mandate requiring unvaccinated persons to wear a mask when indoors, and all state employees, as well as school and health care workers, to be vaccinated.

The DPH commissioner could continue to order mask wearing in facilities, venues, and other locations that she deems necessary, and municipal leaders would still be cleared to issue their own mask orders for indoor settings within their jurisdiction. All the mandates could stay in place regardless of a resident's vaccination status.

An extension of the governor's emergency powers would also allow commuter parking facilities to be commandeered for mass COVID-19 testing and vaccination sites, and provide a tenant with 30 rather than 3 days to cure from a notice. The eviction process would continue to be extended by 30 days, so long as either party applies to UniteCT for relief after the proceedings begin.

Lamont's emergency powers permit DPH to disclose a person’s vaccination status to a person’s health care provider, school nurse, or local health director. They also permit school nurses and local health directors to access a resident's vaccination status, and grant the DPH commissioner the authority to set rules for how and when this vaccination information will be released and for what purpose.

The current order also reduces the cost of extended unemployment insurance benefits for individual employers.

“By virtue of his position the governor holds the biggest microphone, and that’s allowed him to craft and promote a narrative which suits him—that the vote next week is simply to allow him to extend his pandemic-focused policies he believes protect and make life easier for Connecticut residents. While there’s an element of truth in that, the governor’s version of what’s happening ignores the very basic facts," said House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora, who represents the 86th District serving residents of North Branford, Guilford, Durham and Wallingford. "This vote is about extending his broad emergency powers that have and will continue to allow him to make those policies as he sees fit, circumventing both the legislature and any meaningful public scrutiny. Our state should do what many others have done, including every New England state but Rhode Island, and end the governor’s extraordinary powers. Only then can we restore the legislature as a co-equal branch of government which provides residents opportunities to weigh in on decisions that have great impact on their lives."

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Among the "prudent and responsible" reasons the governor cited to legislators for the extension is "a prolonged surge in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths" as a result of the coronavirus delta variant.

Hospitalizations for COVID-19 in Connecticut continued to drop overnight, by 25 beds. There are now 269 residents having their COVID-19 treated within health care facilities in Connecticut, down from 332 less than a week ago. Of those newly hospitalized, 33.8 percent are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.

"Still, without our ongoing vaccination campaign, the damage from this highly contagious strain of the disease would have been much worse, and further increasing vaccination rates, along with continued use of masks and other protective measures, holds the best hope of preventing or reducing the effects of another surge" of the delta variant, Lamont wrote in his letter to lawmakers.

The daily coronavirus positivity rate fell 0.68 percent overnight, t0 2.15 percent, according to the latest data from the Connecticut Department of Public Health. That's on the basis of 490 new cases of COVID-19 reported on Wednesday, after 22,743 tests.

As of Thursday, the coronavirus death toll in Connecticut is 8,447.