State has issued 42 fines for virus travel violations
Connecticut penalties total $44,800; North Carolina, Florida top list
Connecticut has imposed 42 fines for violations of the state’s COVID-19 travel advisory totaling $44,800 — with more than half of those travelers coming from North Carolina and Florida — according to data from the office of Gov. Ned Lamont.
Fines for failing to wear masks or observe distancing guidelines are issued at the municipal level, but local leaders say they have been reluctant to begin imposing them.
Underthetravel advisory, travelers fromstates with high levels of coronavirus must fill out a form indicating their arrival, then quarantine for 14 days unless they have recently tested negative. After initially declining to enforce the advisory, Lamont later announced fines for those whodidn’t complete the form or who declined to quarantine.
Of the 42 individuals whohavebeenfinedas of Sept. 29, most were charged either $1,000 or $2,000, though a few were penalized as little as $100, according to a list provided to the Courant. Nearly all of the violators lived in Connecticut — anywhere from Greenwich to Bloomfield to Putnam — while two lived out of state.
Thirteen of the 42hadtraveled from North Carolina, while 10 had come from Florida. Overall, the travelers had arrived from 12 different states, plus Puerto Rico.
Max Reiss, a spokesperson for Lamont, said the fines, which beganin August, have resulted fromindividuals reporting people around them for violations.
“It’s mainly just through whistle-blowers as of now,” Reiss said.
Fines for travel advisory violations are imposed after aninves