GOP says reopen the state Capitol; Dems say no
It has been closed to the public since March 2020
Despite the scheduled May 19 reopening of bars and restaurants, the State Capitol in Hartford will remain closed for at least the remainder of the legislative session, which ends at midnight on June 9.
Majority Democratic leaders of the House and Senate said Friday that there is no screening process for the public, and no public health assurances for lawmakers, who have been running committee meetings online and legislative sessions mostly masked, with social distancing and many lawmakers voting from their offices in th Capitol complex.
But Republicans think it’s time to ease restrictions, in the last three weeks of the budget-setting session.
“There are 1,000 people at Walmart, so I can’t see why we can’t have people in the Capitol,” House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, said Friday. “Obviously, I think as everything else is opening-up, we need to open-up too, in a policy way. As we see the vaccines working, we need to show that we believe in science.”
Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, and Speaker of the House Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, believe that lawmakers shouldn’t tamper with the system that has gotten the 2021 General Assembly to the last few weeks without infections.
“CDC guidance changed for the fully vaccinated and there is no realistic mechanism to ensure that only vaccinated people enter the Capitol complex,” said Todd Murphy, communications director for Ritter, on Friday. “It is critical we get through the legislative session and pass a state budget. That means taking extra care through June 9.”
Looney agrees, stressing that the bipartisan pre-session plan must stay in place, because there is a lot at-stake.
“We have to stay there,” Looney said in a Friday afternoon phone interview. “We have to be aware that if we have a situation where somebody tests positive, we’d have to shut down and quarantine, which could derail the remainder of the session. We have to be careful. Every day between now and June 9 is precious.”
Hundreds of bills await action in the House and Senate.
On Thursday, in announcing the CDC’s loosening up of mask restrictions, Gov. Ned Lamont said that since the General Assembly is in charge of the 14-acre Capitol complex, including the Legislative Office Building, it’s up to its leaders to decide on reopening protocols.
Lamont said that on June 1, state agencies that have direct contact with the public, including the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Department of Labor and the Department of Social Services, will reopen fully. On July 1, about 50 percent of the rest of the state labor force will return to offices, while agency heads try to reconfigure work spaces.
Looney said he and Ritter will soon discuss the return of legislative employees who have also mostly been working remotely for the last 14 months. “There won’t be any change during the month of June,” Looney said.
Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, said that keeping the Capitol closed is doing the taxpayers a disservice.
“It’s not consistent to have the governor opening up Connecticut,
“There are 1,000 people at Walmart, so I can’t see why we can’t have people in the Capitol.” House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford
saying we’re one of the most-vaccinated states in the country,” Kelly said in a phone interview Friday night. “We’re doing well handling the pandemic, yet when you walk under that Capitol dome, it’s like May 2020. The people’s voice needs to be at the table.”