Joshua Hall

New State Laws Effective July 1

Several new laws that were passed during the 2025 legislative session take effect on Tuesday, July 1.  Our two-year, $55.8 billion budget takes effect on July 1. This budget reflects our shared values, marked by historic investments in children through expanded funding for special education and childcare. Our budget strengthens support for working families and ensures that the essential work of nonprofits is both valued and financially supported. We approved billions of dollars to be used for school construction, transportation infrastructure, housing assistance, and many more local initiatives through our annual bond funding package. Our students will soon learn about three essential topics in the classroom: civics, media literacy, and Asian American and Pacific Islander history. Under two bills passed in 2022 and 2023, students will gain an understanding of what it means to be an active and engaged citizen, how to analyze the modern media landscape, and the rich history of the AAPI community in our state and the entire country. Our elections will soon be more secure and transparent as video recording technology will be added to every absentee ballot drop box in our state. This new law will record the drop boxes from the first day that ballots are issued up through when the clerk retrieves the final ballots, and all of these recordings will be made available to the public.  A novel, landmark bill supporting public libraries struggling to afford the skyrocketing costs of e-books and digital audiobooks will go into effect on July 1. The bill bars libraries from entering into or renewing expensive contracts and licensing agreements with publishers. The measure positions Connecticut as a national leader in this arena and marks a significant step toward transparency, equity, and sustainability in how libraries acquire and provide digital resources to the public. Many more bills are going into effect on July 1, including one that reforms Connecticut's towing system, one that requires financial literacy instruction in school, and more. You can click the link below for the full list of laws going into effect, and please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. New Laws Effective July 1 As always, your calls, emails, and testimony at our public hearings directly influenced these new laws. Please continue to share your views and have your voice heard at the Capitol!