Connecticut

Looks like red light cameras are coming to CT. Here’s what the fines will be.

Published

2 years ago

June 7, 2023

Looks like red light cameras are coming to CT. Here’s what the fines will be.

Connecticut moved Tuesday night towards automated traffic enforcement with the Senate voting 27-9 for a bill that would give municipalities a local option to use cameras to issue tickets for speeding and running red lights.

To win final passage in the last 24 hours of the 2023 session, proponents had to overcome concerns raised by the ACLU and NAACP about potential abuses and discriminatory enforcement.

Parents beware: Thousands of teens have lost their lives driving between Memorial Day and Labor Day

“It’s something that has become a little bit contentious and controversial. And because of that, the Transportation Committee membership has really taken a hard look at what automated enforcement should look like in the state of Connecticut,” said Sen. Christine Cohen, D-Guilford, the committee co-chair.

Automated enforcement zones would have to be clearly marked, and fines would be capped at $50 for a first offense and $75 for a second offense regardless of a violator’s recorded speed. Speeders would have to be going at least 10 miles per hour over the limit to get an automated ticket.

The speed limit and red light cameras would be limited to school zones, defined pedestrian safety zones and other locations chosen by local officials and approved by the Office of State Traffic Administration. Violations would be handled like a parking ticket, with no points assessed to a driver’s license.

Red light and speed trap cameras across CT? 104 lawmakers say yes.

“I am concerned about Big Brother,” said Sen. John Kissel, R-Enfield, one of eight Republicans to oppose the bill. “What we’re doing by this bill is we’re giving government yet one more tool to monitor our behavior.”

Sen. Saud Anwar of South Windsor was the only Democrat opposed.

Members of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus, who had been lobbied by the NAACP to oppose the bill, said minorities often are disproportionately affected by law enforcement but also by uncontrolled speeding in urban neighborhoods.

Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, said he lives near an accident-prone intersection with frequent accidents, including one that left a car on his lawn and another that resulted in a near miss as he returned home with his young twins.

“We all have seen it and lived it,” said Sen. Jorge Cabrera, D-Hamden. “We have to do something.”

Last year was the deadliest on Connecticut roadways in decades, with the deaths of 239 drivers and passengers and 75 pedestrians in 2022.

Camera locations would have to get approved by the DOT every three years, and the local legislative body would have to authorize their use.

Sen. Herron Gaston, D-Bridgeport, said he has been assured by DOT officials they will work with civil rights groups to ensure the automated cameras are not used in a discriminatory fashion.

Gov. Ned Lamont is expected to sign the bill.

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Connecticut

Man shot, killed in New Haven

Published

42 minutes ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

A man has died after he was shot in the Elm City Tuesday night.

While details remain limited, police say the shooting happened on Edgewood Avenue.

No arrests have been made at this time and police are only tentatively identifying the man as a 43-year-old New Haven resident.

Anyone with any information is being asked to contact New Haven Police.

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Connecticut

Lawmakers split over CT Medicaid funding spend, ahead of legislative session

Published

11 hours ago

December 24, 2024

Press Room

Lawmakers split over CT Medicaid funding spend, ahead of legislative session

President-elect Donald Trump, a longtime opponent to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), has the backing of a soon-to-be controlled Republican House and Senate to make changes to the ACA.

The proposed changes could result in how Medicaid is financed in Connecticut and across the U.S. Well over a half of Medicaid spending by states is financed by the federal government, with Connecticut receiving 63.4% of its Medicaid spending share in fiscal year 2023, according to KFF.

State lawmakers, however, are not overly concerned just yet.

“There have been some worrisome noises, but nothing to date that’s concrete,” State Sen. Matt Lesser, co-chair of the Human Services Committee, said.

Lesser said lawmakers are paying close attention since federal changes to Medicaid would significantly impact “over almost half of the kids in the state, pregnant women, [and] retirees.”

The state-funded Medicaid program, known as HUSKY in Connecticut, provides coverage to undocumented children. On July 1, the cap was raised to include undocumented young people up to age 15.

Medicaid cost overruns could put access for low-income patients at risk

State finances will be central to Connecticut lawmakers’ discussions in the upcoming legislative session Jan. 8, with the potential expansion of Medicaid eligibility among undocumented immigrants.

Connecticut’s Medicaid program experienced cost overruns in the hundreds of millions of dollars at the start of the current fiscal year. The Connecticut Mirror reported that the Department of Social Services (DSS) is tallying usage and cost for the program, which has had a much higher interest in enrollments than expected, according to the DSS. The total cost is expected to be out before Gov. Ned Lamont releases his budget in February.

State minority leaders have proposed to tighten the Medicaid fiscal belt.

Stephen Harding, Senate Republican Leader, and Vincent Candelora, House Republican Leader, said in a statement that the state should “suspend this policy immediately with the goal of eliminating it in the next budget cycle.”

The passage of the proposal would need the full approval of the state General Assembly.

But Democrat lawmakers seek to further expand the age cap for Medicaid eligibility among undocumented people.

State Rep. Jillian Gilchrest, co-chair of the Human Services Committee, is among lawmakers and advocates who hope to push the cap higher this session – to 18 years.

Gilchrest said lack of access to health care would mean that “their need is going to be heightened down the road, and we’re going to have to cover the cost of higher cost health care.”

And that would also apply to other Connecticut residents enrolled in Medicaid, she said.

“We need to have conversations about what access to care looks like for a population that continues to increase in our state because they are experiencing economic inequality,” Gilchrest said.

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Connecticut

Connecticut viral Christmas tree illusion is 'through the roof'

Published

20 hours ago

December 24, 2024

Press Room

Connecticut viral Christmas tree illusion is 'through the roof'

FAIRFIELD, Connecticut (WABC) — A homeowner in Connecticut took his Christmas tree to the next level this holiday season, refusing to let the ceiling limit him… literally!

The house in Fairfield has gone viral for installing a Christmas tree that from the outside appears to be smashing through the roof.

But fear not – the homeowner won’t be paying thousands of dollars in home repairs for this holiday display. It’s simply an optical illusion.

Storyful video shows the captivating display.

There’s a truncated Christmas tree indoors, and the top of another that’s resting on the roof, creating the illusion of a single 20-foot tree bursting through the roof.

The interior designer who masterminded the display said the installation took two days.

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