Bob Godfrey

We have made significant strides in supporting higher education and ensuring a brighter future with opportunities, support, and financial relief for our students.

It’s that time again where we start winding down the summer and begin back-to-school preparations; I want to share news and events that will ease that transition for the upcoming school year.

During session, we successfully passed legislation that protects and supports individuals in the state who are in the twilight years of their life. Unfortunately, as the elderly population steadily rises, scam attempts against that community also increases. To help shield our older residents from being victimized, we passed PA 23-161, AN ACT CONCERNING FINANCIAL EXPLOITATION OF SENIOR CITIZENS, a bill I was proud to cosponsor.

Did you know residents in every town in the state have applied for CT Paid Leave? Approximately 66,000 workers in Connecticut – including 2,043 in Danbury – in Connecticut have received over $375 million in benefits when they were unable to work due to qualifying health or family reasons.

A new law giving expecting mothers more access to high-quality maternal health services closer to home will take effect January 1, 2024. I had the honor of attending the bill signing for Public Act 23-147, An Act Protecting Maternal Health, which will license free-standing birth centers and allow them to operate in Connecticut.

A number of new laws that my colleagues and I worked on during the 2023 legislative session to implement meaningful change in our state will take effect in Connecticut on July 1.

I joined my colleagues to welcome David Vieira of VFW Post 149 in Danbury to the House of Representatives. David has led the effort to erect a memorial monument to those who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq, the first in Connecticut.

After months of negotiations, the House of Representatives delivered a state budget that includes the largest income tax cut in the state’s history and significant increases in funding for Danbury's public schools, also known as Education Cost Sharing (ECS) funds.