Like, Maybe They’ll Get Around To Voting

Advocates for the legalization and regulation of cannabis in Connecticut are pushing for the Board of Alders to move faster than the stereotypical stoner on a resolution in support of such efforts in the state.

Time is quickly winding down in this year’s short state legislative session — the session ends May 9 — and New Haven area legislators are doing a lot of heavy lifting to push through a bill that would regulate and tax marijuana. While Hartford’s City Council passed a resolution in support of cannabis legalization last year, New Haven has yet to take a stand.

Yale Alder Hacibey Catalbasoglu wants to change that. He introduced a resolution two months ago to his colleagues that is awaiting a joint hearing by the board’s Public Safety and Human Services committees.

On Monday, he and the Yale University Students For Sensible Drug Policy convened a meeting at the Hall of Records at 200 Orange St. to give people a chance to make their thoughts heard on legalization.

Catalbsoglu sought to hear both the pros and cons of the legalization debate, though he is on record in favor of such a move by the state. But none of the 30 people who showed up Monday night were against legalization. Everyone was in favor and worried about time slipping into the future.

Although 71 percent of people in Connecticut have said in a poll that they favor of legalization, it’s up to state legislators to open the door for legal marijuana use for adults. And for the second year in a row, Democrats with the support of a small number of Republicans, have pushed to make legalization a reality.

Joe LeChance, deputy director of pro-cannabis Connecticut NORML (aka ​“Joe The Weed Guy,” host of WNHH FM’s ​“Cannabis Corner” program), said if a bill doesn’t get out this year, it could be the last chance for the state. He noted that Republicans, the majority of whom have been against legalization beyond the state’s current medical marijuana program, stand a good chance of swinging power in their direction in the next election cycle and gaining a majority of the legislature. He also noted that a Republican might take the governor’s office.

But if the state doesn’t act, the federal government might make the decision for it.

LeChance pointed out that U.S. Sens. Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York and Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, are both pushing legalization and decriminalization of marijuana at the federal level.

LeChance said it’s important that cities like New Haven show their support for legalization with resolutions. A bill that would legalize the use of cannabis for all adults squeaked out of the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee, but it has yet to be called for a vote in the House of Representatives. He urged supporters to contact Speaker of the House Joe Aresimowicz, a Democrat who represents Berlin and Southington.

“Things like this, getting a city like New Haven to approve resolutions like the city of Hartford did is important,” he said. ​“It is important to let your legislators know that there is support from the public. We have about 18 days left in the session. It could be brought up to a vote if we get out there and start really hounding these legislators.

“We’re closer than we’ve ever been to regulating cannabis,” LeChance added. ​“And there are a few holdouts, but the main thing is to get the speaker of the House to even bring it to a vote.”

Kebra Smith-Bolden, a cannapreneur and lead for Women Grow Connecticut (and cohost of ​“Cannabis Corner”), encouraged Catalbsoglu to press his colleagues to think about how to carve out a piece of the legalization pie for New Haven and to put it in the resolution.

“I think you should help guide what regulation should be and you should say what you think New Haven should be getting,” she said. ​“I think that should be in the forefront of the aldermanic mind.”

Catalbsoglu said the alders’ hearing on that resolution has been stalled by some of the other work that the two committees and its members have been attending to including the civilian review board, the annual awarding of the community development block grants, and the ongoing deliberation on the city’s budget. But he said he hopes that by getting members of the public to share with alders their ideas and how they feel about the legalization will move his colleagues to take action.

The 2018 Agenda

Bill #	Status	Summary	Sponsors
HB 5001	In Committee Died on the Floor	To impose a fee on transactions involving virtual currency.	Pat Dillon
HB 5031 SB 4	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Passed Gov. Signed	To allow students to have equal access to institutional financial aid.	Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee
HB 5082	In Committee Committee Approved Died on the Floor	To provide state funds to assist hurricane victims from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands who are living in Connecticut.	Juan Candelaria
HB 5126	In Committee Died on the Floor	To increase funding to boards of education and family resource centers that provide assistance to students and families from Puerto Rico.	Juan Candelaria
HB 5112	In Committee Sent to the Floor Died on the Floor	To permit the retail sale of marijuana and tax such sale to raise revenue for the General Fund and to fund substance abuse treatment, prevention, education and awareness programs.	Juan R. Candelaria, Angel Arce, Josh Elliott, Steven J. Stafstrom, Jeff Currey, Susan M. Johnson, Chris Soto, Patricia A. Dillon, Roland J. Lemar, James M. Albis, Christopher Rosario, Kim Rose, Robyn A. Porter, Edwin Vargas, Matthew Lesser, Gregory Haddad, Joshua Malik Hall, Ezequiel Santiago, Diana S. Urban, Toni E. Walker, Robert Sanchez, Alphonse Paolillo
SB 1	In Committee Died on the Floor	To expand the sick leave program to provide earned family and medical leave to certain individuals employed in this state.	Martin M. Looney, Bob Duff, Timothy D. Larson, Steve Cassano, Beth Bye, Terry B. Gerratana, Gary A. Winfield, Ted Kennedy, Catherine A. Osten, Marilyn V. Moore, Edwin A. Gomes, Mae Flexer
SB 62	In Committee Died on the Floor	To provide tuition-free community college for Connecticut residents.	Martin M. Looney
HB 5182	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Died on the Floor	To require building officials in certain municipalities to establish and assess a fee for the commencement of certain work without a necessary permit.	Planning and Development Committee
HB 5210	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Passed	To (1) mandate insurance coverage of essential health benefits, (2) expand mandated health benefits for women, children and adolescents, and (3) expand mandated contraception benefits.	Insurance and Real Estate Committee
HB 5084	In Committee Died on the Floor	To encourage the recycling of nip bottles that otherwise frequently litter urban areas.	Roland J. Lemar and Juan R. Candelaria
HB 5350 HB 5537	In Committee Committee Denied Sent to the Floor Died on the Floor	To create a pilot program for shared solar facilities at municipal airports. The bill also would delete the provision that dictates the length of Tweed Airport’s runway.	Energy and Technology Committee
HB 5475	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Passed	To amend statutory provisions concerning a police officer’s viewing of a recording from body-worn recording equipment under certain circumstances.	Judiciary Committee
HB 5515	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Passed	To permit a zoning commission to regulate the brightness and illumination of advertising signs and billboards.	Judiciary Committee
HB 5540	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Died on the Floor	To ban guns without serial numbers and regulate those which are sold in a form requiring the purchaser to finish assembly or that are homemade and to permit local authorities to interview immediate family members as part of a determination of an applicant’s suitability.	Judiciary Committee
HB 5542	In Committee Committee Approved Sent to the Floor Passed	To ban the sale or transfer, possession, manufacturing or use of bump stocks or other accessories to increase the rate of fire of a firearm.	Judiciary Committee