HB 6926 allocates $8 million from the General Fund for the Residential Energy Preparation Services program during fiscal year 2026 (July 1, 2025-June 30, 2026). The funding supports low-income households by helping them prepare for energy costs through the program administered by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. This bill directly affects qualifying low-income residents who receive energy assistance via the program. The key provision is a specific financial appropriation to maintain and operate the existing service program.
SB 1438 prohibits performing female genital mutilation (FGM) on anyone under 18 years old, making it a class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a $5,000 fine, or both. It directly affects minors under 18 and healthcare providers who perform non-medical procedures involving cutting or altering the labia or clitoris. The bill includes two key exceptions: medically necessary procedures by licensed physicians, or procedures during childbirth performed by licensed physicians, nurse-midwives, or trainees for birth-related medical purposes. Crucially, it explicitly states that procedures justified solely by cultural or ritual beliefs do not qualify as medical exceptions. The law takes effect October 1, 2025.
SB 1388 increases penalties for drivers who fail to move over for emergency vehicles and cause death. It reclassifies such violations as first-degree manslaughter (a class B felony) instead of a civil infraction, making it punishable by up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $15,000. This applies when a driver does not move over for an emergency vehicle (as required by Connecticut’s §14-283b) and that failure results in the death of the vehicle’s operator or occupant. The law takes effect October 1, 2025, and directly affects drivers whose negligence causes fatal collisions with emergency vehicles.
HB 6993 allows eligible special taxing districts in Connecticut to divide maintenance costs for beaches and private roads equally among all property owners, rather than using traditional tax assessments. It applies only to districts with 120 or fewer lots that maintain at least one beach/private road and include lots not accessible via district-maintained roads. To adopt this method, a district's board must first approve a resolution, hold a voter meeting within 30 days, and secure majority approval from attendees. This change directly affects property owners in qualifying districts (estimated at ~101 of Connecticut's 323 special taxing districts) by altering how they pay for shared infrastructure. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025, for assessments starting October 1, 2025.
SB 1508 grants patients and their authorized representatives (including attorneys) the right to request copies of medical records, including lab reports, imaging, and retained tissue samples, from licensed healthcare providers. The bill sets specific fee limits: providers may charge up to $10 for search/retrieval plus $5 per page for the first 10 pages for requests made by others (not the patient), with a total cap of $1,500 per request. It also prohibits charging more than $0.65 per page for standard records and requires annual fee adjustments based on the consumer price index. The law takes effect on January 1, 2026, directly affecting patients seeking access to their own health information.
SB 1494 requires Connecticut’s PFAS Task Force to identify funding for cleaning up municipally owned wells contaminated with toxic PFAS chemicals (above federal limits) by July 15, 2025, and to accelerate testing of all public drinking water systems - including municipal, private, and utility-owned supplies - based on its 2019 action plan. The bill directly affects water suppliers statewide by mandating faster testing and cleanup planning for PFAS pollution. It does not create new standards but speeds up existing testing schedules and funding efforts for contaminated wells. The task force must act under its 2019 plan, which prioritized vulnerable communities and high-risk sources like schools. Municipal water companies may face future costs for accelerated testing starting in fiscal year 2026.
SB 1538 requires hospitals with emergency departments to annually analyze and report specific data on patient volumes, admission wait times, and "boarding" (holding admitted patients in the emergency department while awaiting inpatient beds). It also directs the Probate Court Administrator and Social Services Commissioner to evaluate an expedited process for appointing conservators for patients lacking capacity to consent to care, aiming to ensure timely treatment and reduce boarding. Hospitals must submit reports by March 1 each year (through 2029) to the Public Health Committee and health officials, while the state agencies must report their feasibility study findings by January 1, 2026. These measures target reducing emergency department crowding by improving admission efficiency and addressing delays for vulnerable patients.
HB 6231 restricts the euthanization of feral cats to only public health dangers (like rabies) or severe injury requiring humane euthanasia by a licensed vet. It requires municipalities to create registration systems for feral cat keepers (people regularly feeding or housing feral cats), mandating rabies vaccinations and sterilization for those cats. The bill also prohibits individuals convicted of animal abuse from serving as animal control officers and establishes a working group to study how animal rescue organizations can assist municipal shelters, including reducing animal holding times and improving officer training. These changes directly affect cat keepers, animal control officers, and municipal animal control facilities.
HB 6240 requires Connecticut pet stores selling dogs or cats to provide a certificate of origin for each animal, detailing the breeder's and prior seller's name and address. This information must be posted visibly to customers, given to buyers at purchase, and filed with the state Department of Agriculture within seven days. The bill prohibits pet stores from purchasing animals from breeders or sellers with direct federal animal welfare violations or three or more health-related indirect violations in the past three years (extended from two years). Violations can result in fines up to $1,000 per day, with each day of noncompliance treated as a separate offense. The Department of Agriculture must annually report animal origins and violations to the Environment Committee by February 1.
HB 6812 changes how municipalities must publish legal notices (like public hearings or property sales). It allows towns, cities, and boroughs to use weekly newspapers for notices until June 2026, then requires them to choose either a newspaper meeting a 15% household readership standard (based on census data) or post notices online starting July 2027. Municipalities must annually verify newspaper circulation data and select one paper, or post notices on their website with a homepage link, 90-day retention, and filing copies with the clerk or regional council. The bill does not alter the required notice timing or content.
HB 7249 requires assisted living services agencies (ALSAs) serving residents in managed residential communities (MRCs) to establish emergency medical protocols by January 1, 2026. These protocols must cover specific treatments ALSA staff may provide - such as asthma care, fall first-aid, and hypoglycemia management (including glucose gel) - and clarify when staff should administer care versus calling 911 or arranging hospital transport. Agencies must also train staff on these protocols and best practices for emergency decision-making. The bill applies to for-profit or nonprofit MRCs housing primarily residents aged 55+, excluding state-funded congregate housing, with no fiscal impact on state or municipal budgets.
HB 7011 modifies statewide student assessment requirements in Connecticut public schools. It reduces the grades required to take core subject exams (from grades 3-8 to grades 4, 6, and 8 for reading/writing/math) and adjusts science assessment grades (from 5,8,10 to 5,8,11). The bill requires science exams for grades 5, 8, and 11 annually and mandates that college readiness tests for 11th graders be administered by approved external providers. It also includes protections for multilingual learners, prohibiting the use of their assessment scores in school accountability metrics and requiring exams in their native languages when available. The changes take effect July 1, 2025.
