Secretary of the State's Electronic Newsletter
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| Friday, June 26th 2009 |
Secretary of the State's Electronic Newsletter
Issue 40 June 26, 2009
SPECIAL ELECTIONS TO FILL
U.S. SENATE VACANCIES
IN CONNECTICUT IS NOW LAW!
A major victory for Connecticut voters was achieved today as Governor M. Jodi Rell signed into law Senate bill no. 913 which mandates that any U.S. Senate Vacancies in Connecticut be filled by Special Election. The law takes effect immediately and sets in place a special election to take place 150 days after a vacancy occurs. The law contains exceptions reserving a gubernatorial appointment in the event of 50 or more Senators perishing in a national catastrophe, or if the vacancy occurs during the final year of the Senator’s term. Despite her early reservations, Governor Rell has done the right thing by signing this long overdue election reform into law. This law places the critical decision of electing a U.S. Senator back in the hands of the voters where it has always belonged, and also provides a more than adequate timetable for parties to hold primaries and nominate candidates. By enacting this bill we avoid the kind of nepotism, cronyism and corruption seen in other states such as Illinois and Alaska when governors have misused their power to appoint Senators to vacant seats. This is a win-win for voters and for our state government, and I hope it serves as an example to other states. The enactment of this law is especially gratifying for me personally, since I have fought for its passage both as Secretary of the State and previously as a lawmaker. This new law restores our election statute concerning U.S. Senate vacancies in Connecticut to what it was prior to 1947 and makes Connecticut the 6th state to require special elections to fill U.S. Senate vacancies, the others are Alaska, Oregon, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin. U.S. House vacancies in Connecticut are filled by a special election within 60 days or 120 days in the case of a primary.
DELIVERING THE HEALTH CARE
REFORM WE NEED
On Tuesday June 24th I joined Senate President Pro Tem Don Williams, House Speaker Chris Donovan and a bi-partisan coalition of business leaders to deliver legislation to the Governor’s office that would enact the SustiNet health care plan and the Connecticut Health Care Partnership. I am hopeful that Governor Rell will sign both pieces of legislation as soon as possible. For far too long, our nation has delayed implementing health care reform and the cost is breaking our economy. In the Secretary of the State’s office, we have seen record numbers of businesses closing their doors over the last couple of years. It is no secret that in this time of economic uncertainty small business owners who get up every day, go to work, play by the rules, pay their taxes, and drive Connecticut’s economy are continuing the struggle to stay in business. And entrepreneurs from across Connecticut tell me every day that one of their highest costs is providing health insurance for themselves and their employees. In fact, they and their families may be one serious illness away from financial disaster. Through the Connecticut Health Care Partnership, the purchasing power of the state pool will be expanded, taxpayer dollars will be saved, and health care costs reduced for the small business community that is responsible for more than 90% of all new jobs in our state. Lowering health care costs is good for the economy, will help companies recruit and retain employees, and is in the best interests of taxpayers. A comprehensive and thoughtful approach to making health insurance more affordable for small businesses would drastically reduce the number of uninsured residents in the State of Connecticut. I applaud both the House of Representatives and the State Senate for passing this legislation. This not only a smart, simple, solution; it is the right thing to do and it just makes sense. I urge the Governor to sign these bills into law and make Connecticut a leader for the nation on health care reform.
REACHING OUT TO OUR FUTURE LEADERS
On June 22nd I had the privilege of addressing more than 300 high school juniors throughout Connecticut attending the 2009 American Legion Boys’ State program at Easter Connecticut State University in Willimantic. The weeklong program is formatted to educate students on how state and municipal governments operate. Participants set up and ran mock town, city, county and state elections. Students engaged in role-playing where towns were represented, mayors lobbied for bills, and representatives and senators debated and enacted legislation. Boys State provides highlights what good citizenship means and is an initiative that grooms future leaders on a local, state and national level. This is critical to getting young people to participate in Democracy early and often. In the past, voters age 18-29 were among the least likely to actually register to vote and cast ballots on Election Day. We definitely saw the beginnings of a reversal of that trend in the 2008 General Election. In Connecticut, more than 157,000 new young voters between the ages of 18-29 registered last year before Election Day. Nationally, 2008 saw the 2nd highest young voter turnout in the history of the United States, with over 24 million voters between the ages of 18 and 29 casting ballots! With the constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2008 to allow 17 year-olds to vote in primaries if they turn 18 before the General Election, we expect to see higher voter participation among young people in Connecticut than ever!
Secretary Bysiewicz speaks at a press conference June 23, 2009 urging the Governor to sign into law health care reforms that will save millions for small businesses and provide affordable, quality health coverage to thousands of Connecticut residents. The bills passed overwhelmingly in the State House and Senate. In her capacity as Secretary of the State, Bysiewicz hand delivered the bills to Governor M. Jodi Rell's office at the state Capitol in Hartford.
SOTS TRIVIA CORNER
Did You Know?:
Inventor and industrialist Eli Whitney procured his first Federal musket contract 210 years ago to produce 10,000 rifles within 2 years at a cost of $13.40 each. In his Haddam armory, Whitney produced high quality, machine made muskets with standard, interchangeable parts using unskilled labor. This was a major contribution to modern manufacturing processes. It took Whitney’s factories 8 years to produce the first federal order for 10,000 muskets. Nonetheless he won a second contract to manufacture 15,000 muskets for the federal government in 1811. Improvements in the manufacturing system led to the completion of the 2nd order within just two years.
To Learn More About The Secretary of the State's Office Visit:
http://www.swiftpage3.com/SpeClicks.aspx?X=2V0PICGYHQUEWMSG00VJWK
Contact Information:
Susan Bysiewicz
Secretary of the State
Susan.Bysiewicz@po.state.ct.us
210 Capitol Avenue
Suite 104
Hartford, CT 06106
(860) 509-6200
Secretary Bysiewicz swears in new officers of the Police Commissioners' Association of Connecticut on June 17, 2009. |
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