Thumbs up, thumbs down

Thumbs up

to a push for automated traffic enforcement safety devices within work zones on highways. Workers made a plea before the Legislature’s Transportation Committee last week for measures that would improve safety, including cameras and other devices to keep track of speeding motorists in the vicinity of work zones. Since the start of 2018, there have been some 2,187 crashes in Connecticut work zones, with six motorists killed and 647 injuries. Other states, including Pennsylvania, Washington, Illinois and Maryland, have passed similar legislation, and Connecticut should do its part to help ensure worker safety on the highways.

Thumbs down

to Connecticut registrars of voters who have failed to comply to a fiveyear-old state law requiring them to receive training and certification. A Hearst Connecticut Media analysis revealed that one-third of state registrars are uncertified. Someone in this position not following the rules would be remarkable in any era, but is shocking at a time when cybersecurity regarding voting is so sensitive. The law gives registrars two years to complete 25 hours of training and complete an exam. Some of the offenders are still within a two-year window, but more than 20 have flatout blown the deadline. The state has been lenient, but at some point someone will have to be removed from office. The registrar of voters office is no place for vague laws.

Thumbs down

to nine more flu deaths being reported in Connecticut. While the traditional flu is lost in the spotlight dominated by the coronavirus, there have been 58 flu-associated deaths reported in the state this season. There is a decline in flu-related activity in the likes of emergency rooms, but there’s also still value in getting a flu shot to be safe.

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to the advancement of a bill to ban the use of expanded polystyrene, or Styrofoam, by schools, restaurants and caterers. The Environment Committee voted 20-8 last week to send the bill to the Senate for further consideration. While some legislators said they were concerned about the effect on businesses and school districts in terms of increased costs, the environmental benefits of such a measure are clear. While help for businesses in the short term to make the transition to new materials could be in order, the long-term gains of phasing out materials with harmful components that do not biodegrade will be valuable to the state.

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to a push for greater access to mental health care in the state, which advocates say needs to take as high a priority as physical health. Up to a quarter of state residents may be suffering from what could be diagnosed as mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder or substance abuse issues, among others, yet people with mental health issues are far more likely than others to need highercost, out-of-network care, if they even receive care at all. Legislators in Hartford are looking to change those numbers, and their efforts should be applauded.

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to Jim Calhoun, the longtime coach of the University of Connecticut men’s basketball team, who has taken his new school, Division III St. Joseph’s in West Hartford, to the NCAA tournament in only the program’s second year. He retired from UConn in 2012 and rather than relax decided to take on an even larger rebuilding project than the one he had undertaken in Storrs, where his teams won three national championships. He will try to add to that total when St. Joseph’s finds out its seeding in the coming Division III NCAA tournament.