Watchdog Group Honors West Hartford State Representative

WEST HARTFORD, CT - From the Connecticut General Assembly: State Representative Derek Slap (D-West Hartford) was recognized by the state’s leading environmental watchdog group, the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters (CTLCV), for being a 2017 Legislative Champion. The league specifically commended Rep. Slap for his leadership on public water supply issues.

“Consumers deserve better oversight of our water,” Rep. Slap said. “I'm pleased that the very first bill to pass both chambers last session and be signed into law was our MDC accountability bill - which establishes an independent consumer advocate. As a member of the Environment and Planning & Development committees I will remain vigilant when it comes to protecting our natural resources.”

The CTLCV, a bipartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting Connecticut’s environment by making it a priority for elected officials, is led by Executive Director Lori Brown.

“In his first year, Rep. Slap was a leader on the environment at the legislature,” Brown said. “He was an important voice for protecting our state's public waters, and pushed for legislation to ensure that Connecticut’s waters are protected for both the public and the ecological needs of our state. Water is the new ‘gold’ and is going to be fought over for the foreseeable future. With increased pressure to sell off our public water for profit, more frequent droughts, and the impact of global warming on our own water resources, we must have more leaders step up and bring our management of water to meet those challenges.”

The MDC accountability bill, House Bill 6008, establishes an independent consumer advocate who will have access to MDC policies and proceedings along with other substantive information dealing with water and sewer management of the MDC. The advocate, appointed by the Consumer Counsel, will keep the public and municipal officials aware of MCD matters impacting their towns and fellow residents. The legislation also establishes protections for towns in the event any member town fails to pay its portion of the ad valorem tax and additionally eliminates reserve payments, saving West Hartford approximately $2 million a year.

Rep. Slap helped to spearhead passage of the bill in the House, where it passed unanimously. The bill was signed into law May 16.

Next month, Rep. Slap will interview a member of Save Our Water, a non-partisan, citizen-led group working to protect Connecticut's waters, about their priorities for the next legislative session on his WHCTV show, Derek and the District. The show can be viewed on WHC-TV or on demand at wchtv.org.

CTLCV works with the state’s environmental advocacy groups to identify, highlight, and track important bills that affect Connecticut’s natural resources, including air, water, wildlife, open space, and health. CTLCV Scorecards dating back to 2000 can be found online at www.ctlcv.org.

Image via Connecticut General Assembly