David Michel

The holiday season truly is a special time for bringing people together and spreading joy. Whether it's celebrating traditions with family or creating new memories with friends, it's a time filled with warmth and togetherness. Wishing you and everyone around you abundant cheer, peace, and joy this holiday season!

Several new laws impacting early voting, hospice care, online privacy, and so much more take effect on January 1. Please read below for a full list of what to expect in 2024.

And, relief is coming for low income residents who are struggling to pay off their energy bills. I will explain how the governor's office is stepping in ahead of the holidays.

Here are the sections in today's email:

• New Laws Effective January 1, 2024 ⚖️
• Help with Energy Bill
• Happy Holidays & Happy New Year! 

As we prepare to ring in the new year, there are some laws taking effect January 1 addressing key issues including early voting, health and mental health, as well as online privacy and data protection.

There will also be an increase in the minimum wage effective January 1 from $15.00 to $15.69 made possible through legislation passed in 2019, which implemented five incremental increases in the minimum wage followed by future adjustments that are tied to the percentage change in the federal employment cost index.

Although extensive, below I share some highlights, and a link to the complete list of new laws. Please share and reach out to my office if you would like more detail on any of the new laws.

 
Establishes a framework for early, in-person voting requiring a 14-day early voting period for general elections, a seven-day period for most primaries, and a four-day early voting period for special elections and presidential preference primaries.
 

 
Sets a timeframe within which the court must hold a hearing on temporary financial support in divorce, legal separation, annulment, and custody proceedings.
 

Includes the creation of a Hospice Hospital at Home pilot program to provide in-home hospice care to patients through in-person visits and telehealth.
 

Establishes a new license category for freestanding birth centers, an Infant Mortality Relief Program to review medical records and other data on infant deaths and a midwifery working group to study and make recommendations on advancing choices for community birth care.
 

Makes various changes to laws on data privacy and related issues, including provisions on consumer health data, minors’ social media accounts and online services, online dating operators, and a task force on internet crimes against children.
 

Among many supportive measures, creates a plan to establish a Transitional Life Skills College program to support certain people with IDD who are transitioning out of high school or to independent living.
 

Expands eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits for post-traumatic stress injuries to all employees covered by the workers’ compensation law.

The Governor’s office is stepping in to provide relief on energy bills for low-income residents. $10.7 million in American Rescue Plan Act and Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative funding will go to energy efficiency programs that help provide weatherization, energy retrofits, and rebates. Connecticut’s utility-administered efficiency programs have a track record of reducing energy costs for consumers and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

One of the state’s energy efficiency programs, Home Energy Solutions (HES), provides home energy audits and core weatherization measures, such as air and duct sealing. Through this program, certain income-qualified customers may even qualify for a no-cost energy assessment.

• Expansion of Husky to everyone regardless of immigration status. (It’s the right thing to do and saves money for all)
• More and better training for the healthcare workers
• Passing "Just Cause" for evictions
• Urgent Improvement to climate laws, environmental justice laws, and offshore wind standards

I am dedicated to helping in all of those efforts as well as trying to ban certain cruel practices targeting animals. Here is to a better year and to cheerful times with your loved ones. See you in 2024!!

Je voudrais souhaiter à tous de joyeuses fêtes et une meilleure et plus heureuse année pour vous et vos familles! Pour beaucoup, ces dernières années ont été difficiles et il semble que cela devient plus difficile. Je ferai de mon mieux lors de cette prochaine session législative pour aider à fournir des logements abordables afin que nos résidents à faible revenu et nos retraités puissent rester chez eux. Le sans-abrisme est une crise dans notre État. Nous devons l'aborder de front, en plus de prendre en charge la santé comportementale.

Voici quelques autres priorités législatives pour 2024:

• Extension du programme Husky à tout le monde, indépendamment du statut d'immigration. (C'est la bonne chose à faire et cela économise de l'argent pour tous)
• Davantage et une meilleure formation pour les professionnels de la santé
• Adoption de la loi sur les "Causes Justes" pour les expulsions
• Améliorations urgentes des lois climatiques, des lois sur la justice environnementale et des normes d'énergie éolienne en mer

Je suis déterminé à contribuer à tous ces efforts ainsi qu'à essayer d'interdire certaines pratiques cruelles visant les animaux. Voici pour une meilleure année et des moments joyeux avec vos proches. À bientôt en 2024!

Mwen ta renmen swete chak moun yon bon fèt ak yon ane nouvo pi bon ak pi kontan pou ou ak fanmi ou! Pou anpil moun, dènyè ane yo te difisil, epi sanble sa ap vin pi difisil. Mwen pral fè tout sa mwen kapab nan sesyon legal sa a pou ede ak lojman ki aseyab, pou rezidan ki gen tijan ki ba ak moun ki pral pran retrete a ka rete nan kay yo. Senpòvri ak moun ki pa gen kay se yon kriz nan leta nou an. Nou bezwen chache yon solisyon pou sa, epi fòk nou okipe sante mantal tou.

Men kèk lòt priyorite legal pou 2024:

• Ekspansyon Husky pou tout moun, san konsidere estati imigrasyon yo. (Se bagay ki kòrèk pou fè epi sa fè ekonomi pou tout moun)
• Plis fòmasyon pi bon pou moun ki travay nan sèvis sante.
• Pase lwa "Just Cause" pou fè moun kite lakay yo.
• Amelyorasyon urjans nan lwa klima, lwa jistis pou lòtè ak estanda pwodiksyon enèji eòl of-shor.

Mwen detèmine pou ede nan tout efò sa yo, tankou eseye pase lwa ki va anpeche kèk pratik kwoke ki kruyèl sou bèt. Men yon ane pi bon ak moman plezi avèk fanmi ou. Nou wè nou an 2024!