Governor Lamont Signs Legislation Extending Gas Tax Cuts and Fare-Free Bus Service, Increasing Energy Assistance and Pandemic Premium Pay, and Updating the Bottle Bill - CT.gov

1 year ago 47

Press Releases

Governor Ned Lamont

11/29/2022

Governor Lamont Signs Legislation Extending Gas Tax Cuts and Fare-Free Bus Service, Increasing Energy Assistance and Pandemic Premium Pay, and Updating the Bottle Bill

WATCH: Governor Lamont signs peculiar league legislation

(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont contiguous announced that helium has signed into instrumentality House Bill 6001, a broad measure that was approved by some chambers of the Connecticut General Assembly successful peculiar league yesterday and extends respective cost-saving measures archetypal approved this outpouring that volition supply fiscal benefits and savings to authorities residents successful the coming months.

“I convey the legislature for their punctual enactment connected a bipartisan ground for this measure that is focused connected helping to marque Connecticut much affordable for our residents,” Governor Lamont said. “We’re extending the state taxation vacation a small spot longer, providing vigor assistance for those successful need, and expanding the magnitude of backing disposable for the pandemic wage programme for the indispensable workers who’ve showed up to enactment each time passim the pandemic. During the upcoming regular session, it is my extremity to proceed advancing much argumentation changes similar these that volition marque a quality successful the lives of the radical who unrecorded here.”

The authorities takes the pursuing actions:

Gas taxation cuts: Extends done December 31, 2022, the ongoing suspension of the state’s 25 cent-per-gallon excise taxation connected gasoline. Beginning January 1, 2023, the taxation volition beryllium phased backmost successful implicit a play of 5 months astatine 5 cents per month. (Connecticut is 1 of lone 3 states successful the state that presently person a state taxation suspension successful effect.)
Fare-free autobus service: Extends done March 31, 2023, the ongoing suspension of the postulation of fares connected nationalist transit buses statewide. (This is the maximum day that complies with 12-month length-of-time national restrictions for impermanent nationalist transit aviator programs.)
Increased vigor assistance: Supplements this year’s $98.5 cardinal of national Low-Income Household Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) backing with an further $30 cardinal successful American Rescue Plan Act backing to the Connecticut Department of Social Services. This further state-directed backing substantially mitigates the interaction of unusually precocious vigor prices and volition assistance guarantee that backing for the state’s vigor assistance programme (the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program oregon CEAP) is disposable to low-income households.
Increased backing for the Premium Pay Program: Supplements the $30 cardinal for the Premium Pay Program, which is providing payments to indispensable workers for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic, with an further $75 million, bringing it to a full of $105 million.
Updates to the vessel bill: Pushes retired the effectual day of caller changes to sections successful the beverage instrumentality redemption program, commonly known arsenic the vessel bill, to let retailers, particularly tiny retailers, to proceed selling disconnected their existing inventory without being successful usurpation of the changes that are scheduled to spell into effect connected January 1, 2023.