Manufactured Emergencies (a Legislative Update)
- Tim Gabriele
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
The big news this week was that there was a gigantic bill pushed through by Democrats as a piece of “emergency legislation”. You can read more about it here. Of course, Republicans are up in arms about this. But if this sounds like them crying wolf, I’m not entirely sold on that being the case this time around.
In the past when legislative Dems have done this, it has been in response to rapidly developing federal changes which could have severe implications for the state. This latest “emergency” appears to be more a response to structural restrictions that make it difficult for legislators to pass all the bills they’d like within a given session. One limitation legislators face this year is the “short session”, which hinders the necessary time to sort through a deluge of bills each with their own legal and fiscal complications. The vast majority of the things the emergency legislation addresses went through the public hearing process last year and passed at least one legislative chamber, but never successfully made it to the Governor’s desk.
Lamont, in yet another case of siding with the Republicans, has threatened to use a line item veto of any earmarks he personally doesn’t like in the bill, which on the surface sounds like accountability but actually makes an only quasi-democratic process less democratic. Similarly, another limitation this bill is reacting to is the power of a single representative (*cough* Rob Sampson cough) to endlessly filibuster to prevent bills from getting their due time.Republicans do this every year, so they shouldn’t be surprised when Democrats try to find sneaky ways to avoid having to deal with their nonsense. It doesn’t justify it, but it’s very in keeping with the GOP ethos; create a crisis and then lament loudly about how folks respond to the mess you created.
Before I try to read you the tea leaves for next week, I should admit that I am only human and even people with their magnifying glasses on can’t catch everything. One thing I missed last week was SB-265, which would provide additional funding to a program called Care 4 Kids which helps low income families access child care, something that unfortunately needs additional resources given the Trump bragging at the State of the Union about starving people to death, er, “lifting” them off food stamps. Another is SB-268, which is the Comptroller’s plan to reign in wage theft by state contractors.
Public Hearings: Your chance to have your voice heard.
On Monday the 2nd, the judiciary committee will hear testimony about female genital mutilation with SB-259. Kind of incredible this still has to be criminalized (and no transphobic bigots, it doesn’t mean that). Tuesday will be a little busier with public hearings on HB-5046, which I mentioned last week, a bill co-sponsored by Cicarella and advanced by the Governor to recruit more police officers and firefighters. The committee on Children will hear SB-6, an omnibus bill addressing things like a child tax credit, school meals, homeschooling, and more. Another interesting one: SB-344, which would prohibit a child’s likeness from being used in marketing materials without affirmative parental consent, which seems more prescient every day in the advent of AI’s learning models.
Labor will hear the public speak on SB-353, which concerns workplace accommodations based on menopause, a far overlooked issue that most women or people who menstruate face in silence in our society. HB-5387 is another bill about wages disclosure on job descriptions, this time roping in benefits as well. Businesses don’t like being transparent in a competitive labor market, but it’s often very hard for job-seekers to plan their opportunities without some degree of clarity on what they’re getting themselves into. There’s also a big workforce development bill that I haven’t dived into yet- HB-5003. Hopefully there’s some substance there.
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