Joseph P. Gresko

There has been a dramatic rise in prescription drug abuse, and it is something that affects each and every town in Connecticut as well as this country. The legislation that I co-sponsored and that was passed by the House this week I hope will stem the tide. For more on this issue, read this Courant news story.

For Representative Joe Gresko, protecting firefighters and making sure they're treated fairly is important. That is why he co-sponsored a bill that establishes a relief fund for wage replacements. The fund will be used for firefighters who are battling work-related cancer. House Bill 5262 provides compensation for current and former uniformed members of a paid or volunteer fire department who suffer from certain diseases as a result of performing their jobs.

Leading a memorial to his old friend and mentor, Rep. Joe Gresko praises the work of Terry Backer, who devoted much of his life to environmental causes and his Stratford constituents. Gresko and many of Backer's former colleagues gave tribute to the Soundkeeper Tuesday in the House of Representatives Chamber at the State Capitol. Video of the memorial.

Rep. Joe Gresko meets Beau, one of 12 therapy animals that visited the State Capitol with their handlers from three statewide organizations Tuesday to raise awareness of the importance of animals.

Representative Joe Gresko successfully completed Fire Ops 101, a half-day training exercise at the Hartford Fire Department Training Facility designed to give elected officials a first-hand glimpse of what a day in the life of a firefighter is like.

Representative Joe Gresko meets with members of Association of Retired Teachers of Connecticut, CEA-Retired and AFT Connecticut to discuss issues of importance during Retired Teachers’ Lobby Day at the State Capitol. For more, read this blog report.

The Ella T. Grasso Regional Center, regarded as one of the most ideal homes for the severely developmentally disabled when it opened in 1982, is scheduled to close in June. “Certainly the handwriting was on the wall,” Rep. Joe Gresko said. "They haven’t been taking in any new clients for some time.”

Rep. Joe Gresko joins his legislative colleagues representing Stratford in opposing the planned closure of the residential operations at the Ella T. Grasso Regional Center, which serves clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities.