04.06.18 Connecticut Legislative Status Report

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LEGISLATIVE STATUS REPORT
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Continued on Page 8
Bioscience
SB 195 Features changes to pharmacy and
drug control statutes including requiring
manufacturers to operate a system for
identifying and reporting suspicious
orders of controlled substances and
requiring manufacturers to provide
updated inventory records of controlled
substances every year instead of every
two years. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA monitoring.
SB 197 Adds biological products to
existing laws governing substitution
of generic drugs. This bill with certain
modifications (especially regarding mail
order delivery) would be beneficial for
patients and the industry. Awaiting
action Senate; CBIA evaluating.
SB 213 Creates a quasi-public state entity
to identify high-growth, high-demand
jobs in the state in fields including
finance, computer science, engineering,
manufacturing, healthcare, insurance,
and biomedicine. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA supports (with changes).
SB 266 Encourages the growth of
bioscience venture capital in the state
by exempting certain types of venture
capital firm partners’ income from the
state personal income tax. Awaiting
action Senate; CBIA supports.
SB 379 Limits when insurers can change
prescription drug formularies during
insurance policy terms. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA monitoring.
SB 442 Requires the state Department of
Economic and Community Development
to prepare an overview of its economic
development programs. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA monitoring.
SB 446 Requires Connecticut Innovation
and the Department of Economic and
Community Development to develop a
short and long-term strategic plan for
the state’s bioscience sector, along with
a marketing and promotional plan to
complement the strategic plan. Awaiting
HB 5273 Requires the commissioner of
to conduct an overview of issues relating
to economic development in the state.
Awaiting action House; CBIA monitoring.
HB 5275 Requires the Connecticut
Department of Economic and
Community Development to study
economic development issues related
to the state’s bioscience industry and
jobs pipeline. Awaiting action House;
CBIA monitoring.
HB 5280 Establishes a tax credit for
certain investments in specified biotech
businesses that qualify for incremental
research and experimental expenses tax
credits. Died in Finance, Revenue, and
Bonding; CBIA supports.
HB 5290 Makes statutory changes to
establish the Office of Health Strategy
as per 2017 state budgetary legislation.
HB 5384 Imposes additional disclosure
and reporting requirements on drug
manufacturers regarding rebates and
drug costs. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
Budgets (State & Local)
SB 6 Implements the governor’s budget
recommendations for general
government including imposition of a
new tax on employers to be used to pay
wages and benefits for employees of the
Connecticut Department of Labor. Also
allows the Connecticut Retirement
Security Board borrow up to $1 million
from the general fund to develop a
retirement plan to compete with the
private sector. Died in Appropriations;
CBIA opposes.
SB 10 Features proposed budget revisions.
Awaiting action Senate; CBIA evaluating.
SB 11 Features various provisions
addressing recent federal tax changes,
including decoupling state and federal
laws related to the depreciated value of
capital investments. This effectively
changes depreciation schedules, with
particular impact on manufacturers.
SB 367 Implements a review of the
employment and retirement benefits for
state employees and elected or appointed
officials to determine the long-term
impact on the state’s economy. Awaiting
SB 368 Requires the Commissioner of the
Department of Transportation to review
current funding of public transportation
projects to ensure they are funded by the
most cost-effective and efficient means.
Died in Appropriations; CBIA evaluating.
HB 5034 Implements the governor’s
budget recommendations. Awaiting
action House; CBIA monitoring.
HB 5035 Implements the governor’s
fiscal 2018-2019 budget revision
recommendations. Died in
Appropriations; CBIA monitoring.
HB 5068 Contains measures reducing
state government labor costs, including
increases in employee contributions to
pension plans. Died in Appropriations;
CBIA supports.
HB 5327 Reviews the process by which
appropriations are made from the
general fund in the state budget.
Awaiting action House; CBIA evaluating.

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8
Business Law & Liability
SB 193 Creates a mechanism by which the
Department of Consumer Protection may
process a consumer complaint made
against anyone in an area over which
DCP has jurisdiction. Bill was amended
to require the DCP to provide notice to
the person about whom the complaint
was made via certified mail and require
that person respond within 14 days or
be subject to a $250 fine. Fines may be
waived if respondent demonstrates good
cause for failure to respond. Awaiting
action Senate; CBIA opposes.
SB 327 Establishes Connecticut as a
Continuing Professional Education
reciprocity state with respect to CPA
license renewal requirements. Awaiting
HB 5191 Allows post-sale warranty work
reimbursements to power equipment
dealers. Awaiting action House;
CBIA opposes.
HB 5251 Allows for the establishment
of benefit limited liability companies.
Awaiting action House; CBIA supports.
HB 5252 Allows indirect purchasers of
products to pursue economic damages
for antitrust violations. Awaiting action
House; CBIA supports.
HB 5258 Modernizes and streamlines
arbitration procedures by adopting the
Revised Uniform Arbitration Act.
HB 5412 Allows additional time for a
limited liability company or foreign LLC
to file its annual report by extending the
time frame from April to July 1st of the
year in which the LLC was formed or
the foreign LLC registered to conduct
business in the state. Awaiting action
House; CBIA supports.
HB 5467 Sets a burdensome and high
standard for a business’s retention of
video surveillance footage, and demands
a higher standard of proof by defendant
in objecting to production of surveillance
in premises liability claims. Awaiting
action House; CBIA opposes.
HB 5491 Significantly and unfairly
expands upon a myriad of exemptions
currently used to shield money from a
bank execution after an individual fails
to pay a court-ordered judgment.
Awaiting action House; CBIA opposes.
Campaign Finance & Ethics
SB 499 Requires the disclosure of the
name, home address, occupation, and
employer of anyone who gives any size
contribution to any candidate, political
party, or political committee. Awaiting
SB 500 Allows legislative candidates to
use the name of a statewide candidate
in their campaign ads without it being
deemed a campaign contribution to
that candidate in most circumstances.
HB 5173 Suppresses speech by prohibiting
the use of public voter registration
information for any personal, private,
or commercial use by private entities,
including for grassroots issue advocacy.
HB 5522 Redefines “coordination” to
the point that many activities that
nonprofits and other groups engage in
would be deemed campaign activity.
HB 5526 Requires overly burdensome
secondary levels of campaign
contribution disclosures and listing
of campaign expenditure vendor’s
sub-vendors. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
Commerce/Economic
Development
HB 5273 Requires the commissioner of
to conduct an overview of issues relating
to economic development in the state.
Education & Workforce
Development
SB 51 Aligns curriculum guidelines
among the state Board of Education,
Office of Higher Education, Board of
Regents for Higher Education, and Board
of Education of the University of
Connecticut, in cooperation with the
Connecticut Preschool through Twenty
and Workforce Information Network. In
addition, the assessment of the state’s
workforce training programs in Section 3
clarifies the roles and missions of the
myriad agencies, boards, and
associations that support workforce
training Awaiting action Senate; CBIA
supports.
SB 352 Extends by two more years
the ability of the state’s independent
colleges and universities to create new
and modified programs without approval
from the Office of Higher Education,
as long as specific financial and
accreditation guidelines are met.
Awaiting action Senate; CBIA supports.
SB 369 Requires the Department of
and Department of Labor to review job
development and training programs
and recommend revisions to make the
programs more effective. Awaiting
Continued on Page 9

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LEGISLATIVE STATUS REPORT
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Education & Workforce
Development (continued)
SB 444 Provides funding for advanced
manufacturing training programs
administered by the regional workforce
development boards; makes space
available on the campus of Three
Rivers Community College for plastics
manufacturing training; and requires
the Commissioner of Economic and
Community Development to conduct
a comprehensive review of the capital
needs of the submarine industry every
three years. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA supports.
SB 455 Modernizes the process for
educators to obtain professional
certification by eliminating obstacles,
and increasing competitiveness with
other states. Also requires Office of
Higher Education to recommend
performance-based standards for future
exemptions. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA supports.
SB 536 Requires the University of
Connecticut to undertake a variety of
initiatives to better realign its objectives
and focus with creating and fostering
innovation and entrepreneurship in the
state and establishing itself as a leading
institution of higher education in those
areas. Awaiting action Senate; CBIA
evaluating.
SB 537 Requires the Secretary of the
Office of Policy and Management to
conduct a study of the economic
development and workforce training
needs of the state and related bonding.
Energy & Technology
SB 7 Implements recommendations
from the Governor’s Council on Climate
Change, including further incorporating
climate change concerns into local,
regional, and state planning documents.
It also changes the current requirement
for a Comprehensive Energy Strategy
every three years to a Comprehensive
Climate and Energy Strategy every
four years. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 9 Implements the Department of
Energy and Environmental Protection’s
revised Comprehensive Energy Strategy.
Creates new, aggressive annually
increasing Renewable Portfolio Standard
requirements; reduces penalties for
non-compliance with RPS standards;
calls for additional charges on ratepayers
to fund clean energy and energy
efficiency programs. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA opposes.
HB 5456 Requires a municipal
representative be appointed for each
application before the Connecticut Siting
Council that concerns an electricity
distribution company and changes other
council notice procedures. Awaiting
Environment & Land Use
SB 109 Requires the Connecticut
Department of Energy and
Environmental Protection to report to
the legislature on the need to increase
fines for pollution. Awaiting action
SB 265 Requires DEEP to modify permit
application forms to provide an
indication if the application relates to
a new business, business expansion, or
new product line and to give priority
to such applications. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA supports.
SB 268 Extends the maximum loan
term under the targeted brownfield
development loan program from
20 to 30 years. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA supports.
SB 269 Directs the Connecticut
Environmental Protection to not assess
a fine or other penalty on a small
business for a minor, first-time violation
that is corrected within a reasonable
period of time not to exceed six months.
Awaiting action Senate; CBIA supports.
SB 343 Requires the updating of safety
plans for certain chemical facilities in
the state deemed to be at risk of flooding
and other events associated with climate.
SB 422 Provides tax incentives to
developers for the remediation of
brownfields. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 428 Requires plastic beverage bottles
sold in the state to contain 25% post-
consumer recycled content by 2025.
HB 5454 Changes current requirements
for 90-day permit processing at the
state Department of Energy and
Environmental Protection to a “best
efforts” standard. Awaiting action
House; CBIA evaluating.
HB 5457 Increases the handling fee paid
to bottle redemption centers. Awaiting
action House; CBIA evaluating.
Fiscal Stability Commission
HB 5587 Requires the Commission on
Fiscal Stability and Economic Growth to
refine the recommendations made in its
final report issued March 1, 2018. Died
in Finance, Revenue, and Bonding;
CBIA evaluating.
Continued on Page 10

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Healthcare
SB 16 Implements the governor’s budget
recommendations related to public
health, including: the Office of Health
Strategy’s operations; the administration
and collection of the hospital providers
tax; administration of the Tobacco and
Health Trust Fund; the funding,
planning, and administration of the all-
payer claims database; implementation
and administration of the state’s health
information technology strategy.
Awaiting action Senate; CBIA monitoring.
SB 208 Requires health insurance policies
that provide coverage for prescription
drugs to provide coverage for
intravenously administered drugs on
a basis no less favorable than orally
administered drugs. Awaiting action
SB 209 Decreases the time frame for
certain adverse determination review
requests from 72 to 48 hours. Typically,
the insurer is delayed in making a
determination while awaiting records
from the insured/patient physician.
Shortening the time allowed for the
insurer to act could have the reverse
effect and increase denials due to lack
of necessary information from any third
parties, including the patient’s physician.
Awaiting action Senate; CBIA opposes.
SB 211 Requires health carriers to bear the
burden of proving that certain healthcare
services under adverse determination or
utilization review are not medically
necessary. Died in Insurance and Real
Estate; CBIA opposes.
SB 380 Requires health insurers to cover
a prescribed drug during the duration of
grievance/review procedures. Awaiting
action Senate; CBIA opposes.
HB 5039 Preserves a number of elements
of the federal Affordable Care Act,
including the individual mandate.
Awaiting action House; CBIA supports
(with changes).
HB 5208 Creates caps on copayments for
patients accessing certain radiological
services. However, capping cost sharing
for any one service only means shifting
that cost into another insurance
payment, such as premiums,
deductibles, or coinsurance. Awaiting
Labor & Employment
SB 1 Establishes a new costly,
unsustainable paid FMLA mandate that
will apply to businesses with two or
more employees. The benefit itself is
funded by employee wage deductions,
but businesses will be required to
continue to provide nonwage benefits,
and taxpayers will be responsible for the
120-plus new state employees needed
to run the program. Further, it extends
the right to use paid FMLA to care for
extended family members including
siblings, grandparents, grandchildren,
and “anyone close to you that is related
by blood, or any whose close association
with the employee is equivalent to that
of a family member.” Awaiting action
SB 15 Prohibits employers from inquiring
about a prospective employee’s salary
history until a job offer with
compensation has been accepted by
the prospective employee, unless a
prospective employee has voluntarily
disclosed such information. Awaiting
SB 132 Expands Connecticut’s workplace
sexual harassment prevention training
requirements to businesses with as few
as three workers. The bill also removes
any affirmative defense available to an
employer. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 472 Among other things, prohibits
employers, other than financial
institutions, from using credit reports on
employees who have access to non-
financial assets—unless those assets are
library or museum collections, or
prescription drugs. Awaiting action
HB 5043 Expands current state law to
require all employees at businesses with
15 or more workers to undergo sexual
harassment prevention training every
five years while broadening the
definition of workplace harassment
to include that based on race, color,
religious creed, age, sex, gender identity
or expression, marital status, and
national origin. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
HB 5044 Expands the state’s paid sick
leave mandate to businesses with 20
or more employees—including
manufacturers and certain nonprofits,
which were previously exempt. All
employees, not just service workers,
would be provided up to five days of
leave annually to care for their own
or a child’s illness. Also broadens the
definition of a child from an individual
who is under 18 years old to one who
is under 26. Awaiting action House;
CBIA opposes.
HB 5386 Prohibits employers or third
parties from inquiring about prospective
employee salary histories, provides an
affirmative defense to employers subject
to gender based discrimination claims,
and modifies rules around seniority
systems to protect those out on medical
leave. Awaiting action House; CBIA
monitoring.
HB 5387 Establishes a new costly,
unsustainable paid FMLA mandate
that will apply to businesses with two
or more employees. The benefit is
funded by taking employee wages, but
businesses will be required to continue
to provide nonwage benefits to
employees on leave, and taxpayers will
be responsible for the 120-plus new state
employees needed to run the program.
Further, it extends the right to use paid

11
Continued on Page 12
FMLA to care for extended family
members—including siblings,
grandparents, grandchildren, or “anyone
close to you that is related by blood or
any whose close association with the
employee is equivalent to that of a
family member.” Awaiting action House;
CBIA opposes.
HB 5388 Adds to the cost of doing
business in the state by increasing the
minimum wage in steps to $15 per hour
by 2021, and then calling for automatic
annual increases beginning in 2023.
HB 5473 Prohibits employers from
requiring employee attendance at
meetings that may involve an employer’s
view on political matters, defined so
broadly that it includes legislation,
regulation, candidates for office,
or unionization of the workplace.
HB 5480 Makes long overdue
unemployment benefit reforms,
including: requiring employees earn
at least $2,000 per year to qualify for
benefits, freezing the maximum benefit
rate in any year in which the
Unemployment Trust Fund has not
attained 70% solvency, requiring
individuals to exhaust their severance
pay before receiving unemployment
benefits, and clarifying that one instance
of unexcused absence means one day
of no call, no show, not two consecutive
days. Awaiting action House;
CBIA supports.
Manufacturing
SB 10 See Budgets.
SB 11 See Budgets.
SB 51 See Education & Workforce
Development.
SB 213 See Education & Workforce
Development.
SB 261 Expands the scope of companies
that can take advantage of the
manufacturing apprenticeship tax
credit to pass-through entities. Awaiting
action Finance, Revenue, and Bonding;
CBIA supports.
SB 535 Establishes the Apprenticeship
Connecticut initiative to develop
workforce pipeline programs and provide
bond funding for such programs, and
dedicates economic development and
manufacturing bonds for capital
improvements to a facility located in
the state that is engaged in the design,
construction, and lifecycle support of
submarines for the United States Navy.
Awaiting action Senate ; CBIA supports
(with changes).
Regulatory Reform
SB 265 Requires DEEP to modify permit
application forms to provide an
indication if the application relates to
a new business, business expansion, or
new product line, and to give priority
to such applications. Awaiting action
SB 269 Directs the Connecticut
Environmental Protection to not assess a
fine or other penalty on a small business
for a minor, first-time violation that is
corrected within a reasonable period of
time not to exceed six months. Awaiting
HB 5264 Requires the attorney general to
issue opinions when requested by
businesses that have a dispute with a
state agency regarding its regulations.
HB 5266 Authorizes state agencies to
suspend any civil penalty assessed
against any business entity for certain
minor, first-time violations of any
regulation upon written request where
such violations are promptly corrected.
Taxes (State & Local)
SB 528 Requires the Commissioner of
Revenue Services to study the tax
policies of the state. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA evaluating.
SB 529 Establishes a voluntary employer
compensation expense tax. Died in
Finance, Revenue, and Bonding;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 530 Provides for tax credits for cash
donations made by taxpayers to
approved statewide and municipal
community supporting organizations.
Died in Finance, Revenue, and Bonding;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 531 Assesses a fee on employers who
employ 500 or more people in the state
and whose employees’ hourly wages are
less than or equal to $15 an hour. Died
in Finance, Revenue, and Bonding;
CBIA opposes.
SB 533 Requires the Commissioner of
Revenue Services to study the revenue
policies of the state. Awaiting action
Senate; CBIA evaluating.
SB 538 Establishes an Office of Regional
Efficiency Development to identify and
improve the delivery of municipal
services on a regional basis. Died in
Finance, Revenue and Bonding;
CBIA evaluating.
SB 539 Delays the date the microbiome
working group is required to submit
a report and make a presentation on
such report. Awaiting action Senate;
CBIA supports.
SB 541 Establishes various initiatives to
promote innovation, entrepreneurship,
and intrapreneurship in the state and
specifies that Connecticut Innovations
shall constitute the subsidiary
corporation of CTNext. Awaiting action

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12
HB 5574 Allows certain persons to file
for a property tax exemption,
notwithstanding certain statutory
deadlines. Awaiting action House;
CBIA supports.
HB 5581 Allows bonus depreciation and
asset expensing deductions to be taken
over two years and to phase out the
capital stock tax over three years.
HB 5584 Establishes a tax credit for
employers who provide paid family and
medical leave benefits, and authorizes
the state treasurer to establish a family
and medical leave benefits account
program. Awaiting action House; CBIA
supports.
HB 5585 Requires the Commissioner of
to develop specific benchmarks to assess
enterprise zone benefits recipients,and
allows the commissioner to negotiate
certain property tax exemptions with a
business seeking enterprise zone benefits
and the chief elected official of the
municipality in which such enterprise
zone is located. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
HB 5586 Waives certain initial
occupational licensing fees for certain
individuals. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
HB 5588 Requires the Commissioner of
Revenue Services to analyze the revenue
streams of the state. Awaiting action
House; CBIA evaluating.
HB 5589 Requires the Commissioners of
and Revenue Services to study the
finance policies of surrounding states.
HB 5590 Delays the inclusion of certain
bond covenants for bonds issued during
certain time periods and excludes
refunding bonds and temporary
borrowings from the calculation of the
bond issuance cap. Awaiting action
House; CBIA opposes.
HB 5591 Diversifies municipal revenue
options and phases out the motor vehicle
property tax. Awaiting action House;
CBIA evaluating.
Transportation
SB 368 Requires the Commissioner of the
Department of Transportation to review
current funding of public transportation
projects to ensure they are funded by the
most cost-effective and efficient means.
Died in Appropriations; CBIA evaluating.
SB 389 Creates the Connecticut
Transportation Authority, a quasi-public
agency charged with implementing and
maintaining highway tolls. Awaiting
action Senate; CBIA monitoring.
HB 5046 Allows the Department of
Transportation to charge, collect, retain,
and fix the amount of all tolls on state
highways. Toll revenues will be used
for implementing and administering
electronic tolling and highway
maintenance, construction, and
administration costs, including debt
servicing. Awaiting action House;
CBIA monitoring.
HB 5309 Allows the Connecticut Port
Authority to make and enter into all
contracts and agreements necessary
to conduct business; enter into joint
ventures; invest in and participate with
any person or entity; receive and accept
from any source, aid, or contributions,
including money, property labor, and
other things of value; award grants and
subsidies, make loans, and provide other
forms of financial assistance; and charge
reasonable fees for its services. Awaiting
action House; CBIA supports.
HB 5391 Implements tolls on interstate
highways and parkways through a
two-step process, beginning with a
Department of Transportation study
on overhead gantry locations and
anticipated revenues. The department
then submits a report to the legislature
in the 2019 session. If the House and
Senate fail to act within 30 days of
receiving the report, tolls would be
deemed approved. Awaiting action
House; CBIA monitoring.
HB 5393 Creates the Connecticut
Transportation Finance Authority,
a quasi-public agency charged with
implementing and maintaining highway
tolls. Awaiting action House; CBIA
monitoring.
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