David Michel

Climate change is wreaking havoc off our coast. Rising sea levels and coastal erosion threaten the environment, the critical diversity of marine life off our shores as well as our most vulnerable communities.

Almost 20 Fairfield County towns are meeting next week to consider important questions about housing, land use, and zoning. Bethel's Planning and Zoning Commission will consider several amendments to the town's zoning regulations, including whether to opt out of Public Act 21-29, which allows accessory dwelling units in all zoning districts.

In the past week, we've seen numerous headlines indicating deteriorating environmental conditions happening across the globe. This cannot become normal.

The application period for the 2022-2023 winter season of the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program (CEAP) is now open! This program provides crucial support to vulnerable Connecticut  homeowners and renters with the costs of heating their homes.

The last day to order FREE COVID-19 tests by mail will be Friday, September 2. The Free COVID Test by Mail program will be suspended on Friday because Congress has not provided additional funding to replenish the nation's stockpile of tests.

Keep an eye out! More than $78 million in state child tax credit checks have gone out to eligible families in Connecticut! About 178,000 checks have been sent, with another 20,000 applications are being processed.

I want to alert you about a recent communication from the Connecticut Department of Labor (CTDOL) on a series of text scams that include links to fake webpages resembling CTDOL unemployment pages, including the unemployment benefits login page.

President Biden announced he will sign an executive order which will forgive up to $10,000 of student loan debt for individuals making less than $125,000 per year (and couples earning less than $250,000). Borrowers who received a Pell Grant may be eligible to receive up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness.