October 14, 2010
Legislative Agenda
All towns and cities belong to some form of regional group. Some groups are centered around tourism, others around municipal services. One of the groups that Colchester belongs to, along with nearly twenty other towns, is the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments (SCCOG). The SCCOG has a legislative committee that is responsible for drafting and recommending a legislative agenda for the group to present to our representatives in the General Assembly. Last month, I was honored to be elected as chairman of this committee.
We are about to see a lot of change at the state level. We will have a new Governor, Secretary of the State, and Attorney General. There will be new faces in the General Assembly as well. As soon as they are elected, they will have to get to work on the enormous state budget deficit as well as the other issues we face.
In order to ensure that our opinions and concerns are being addressed, my committee is actively working on a legislative agenda that communicates our ideas and what we would like to see the state change. Items such as unfunded state mandates, promoting regionalism, streamlining state approval processes, and protecting the amount of state aid received by towns and schools will likely all be part of this agenda.
We are hopeful to have the agenda finalized within a couple of months so that we can present it to our representatives and begin the discussion on how best to tackle these important issues.
Dedication Ceremony
Last Friday, I was honored to be a part of the dedication ceremony for the 2010 State Register and Manual. The State Register and Manual is an annual publication by the Secretary of the State and includes the contact information of all state and local officials in one book.
Each year, the register is dedicated to a number of groups and individuals. This year, amongst other deserving people, the register was dedicated to the victims of the Kleen Energy explosion in Middletown. As you know, we lost former Board of Finance member Ron Crabb in that tragedy and it was very fitting that he and the other victims were honored by the Secretary of the State.
Myself, Rep. Orange, and other Colchester citizens all attended the event along with Ron’s wife, Jodi Thomas to take part in the ceremony. I conveyed the condolences of all of Colchester to Jodi and to the families of the other victims. Colchester will always remember Ron and his service to the town. His inclusion in the State Register will ensure that his contributions will be memorialized long into the future.
- Gregg Schuster
First Selectman
Previous Selectman Notes can be viewed at
| 