Category: Local News

(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced that he has signed into law legislation that improves access to higher education opportunities for Connecticut residents by allowing the children of undocumented immigrants to attend state institutions of higher education and pay the in-state tuition rate if the student has attended a Connecticut high school for at least two years and has graduated from a Connecticut high school.  Under prior law, students were required to attend a Connecticut high school for at least four years.

 

“By making in-state tuition available to more students and expanding access to college, we will be bolstering Connecticut’s labor market by adding new, professional workers to our workforce – the type of residents that attract employers who are looking to fill the high-skilled, good-paying jobs that are needed compete in a 21^stCentury economy,” Governor Malloy said.  “Expanding education opportunities and delivering more access to a degree will ultimately support our overall economy, and again show employers that Connecticut has some of the best trained, best educated workers in the nation.”

(State of Connecticut Press Release)

Gobernador Dannel P. Malloy anunció hoy que ha firmado en la legislación ley que mejora el acceso a las oportunidades de educación superior para los residentes de Connecticut al permitir que los hijos de inmigrantes indocumentados asistir a instituciones estatales de educación superior y pagar la tasa de matrícula estatal si el estudiante tiene asistido a una escuela secundaria de Connecticut durante al menos dos años y se ha graduado de una escuela secundaria de Connecticut. Bajo la ley anterior, se requiere que los estudiantes a asistir a una escuela secundaria de Connecticut durante al menos cuatro años.
“Al hacer la matrícula estatal disponible para más estudiantes y ampliar el acceso a la universidad, vamos a reforzar el mercado laboral de Connecticut añadiendo nuevos, trabajadores profesionales para nuestra fuerza de trabajo – el tipo de residentes que atraen a los empleadores que buscan llenar la alta cualificación , bien remunerados puestos de trabajo que se necesitan competir en una economía del siglo 21 “, dijo el gobernador Malloy. “La expansión de las oportunidades de educación y la entrega de un mayor acceso a un grado en última instancia, apoyar nuestra economía en general, y de nuevo mostrar a los empresarios que Connecticut tiene algunos de los mejores capacitados, trabajadores mejor educados de la nación.”
(Estado de Connecticut Comunicado de prensa)

Under a new law passed during the 2015 Legislative Session, municipalities and local residents will no longer have to foot the bill to hold a public information meeting on a proposed cell tower – the applicant will.

Sen. Tony Hwang (R-28), a leading proponent of greater local control, accountability and transparency in cell tower decisions, was a co-sponsor of the legislation (Public Act No. 15-186).

 

“It is absolutely essential that residents who live near a proposed cell tower are engaged in the process early and in a meaningful way that is open, inclusive and respectful,” Sen. Hwang said. “I am thankful this law provides a funding mechanism that helps achieve that for our neighborhoods without placing a financial burden on our already tight municipal budgets.”

 

The Connecticut Siting Council, a quasi-governmental agency, has sole jurisdiction in these matters. And while the Council painstakingly reviews proposals to ensure they meet a strict set of legal criteria, of the last 146 cell tower applications received, 113 were approved, 12 were denied, and 21 were withdrawn. In other words, three out of four cell tower applications are approved.

“That’s why it is essential to have stakeholders – both the applicant and the public – come together to address any potential issues and work together prior to the submission of an application,” Sen. Hwang said. “We need to employ a proactive approach.”

 

Indeed, a groundswell of grassroots involvement led to coordinated community efforts that helped thwart at least two cell tower proposals within the past year – one in the Green’s Farms section of Westport and another near the branch public library in Fairfield. While the Fairfield proposal was withdrawn, the one in Green’s Farms is still, unfortunately, an ongoing possibility, Sen. Hwang noted.

 

“I believe we all recognize the need for cell phone companies to increase their capacity to meet growing demand, but we must work together to create an equitable balance between their needs as businesses and our rights and responsibilities as citizens to ensure the health and safety of people and our environment,” Sen. Hwang said. “Once again, I’m confident that this new law puts us further down that path.”

 

The new law builds on one Sen. Hwang co-sponsored in 2012, when he was a state Representative. That law, Public Act 12-165, expands the factors the Siting Council must consider when approving cell towers; prohibits the Council from approving a telecommunications tower’s installation within 250 feet of a school or commercial child day care center; and requires telecommunications tower developers to consult with municipalities that may be affected by the location of a tower at least 90 days before applying to the Council.