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Commerce committee moves six bills to consent calendar, debates tourism support and Mystic plan
Summary
The Commerce Committee moved six bills to the consent calendar — including tourism funding, a Greater Mystic economic-development plan, an energy/economic strategy and small-business concierge services — and left roll-call votes open until 3:30 p.m. after brief debate on tourism and local infrastructure.
The Connecticut Commerce Committee on March 17 moved six bills to the consent calendar for final action, including measures on tourism funding, economic development for the Greater Mystic area, a statewide economic-and-energy strategy, revisions to DECD assistance caps tied to H‑1B promissory notes, and creation of a small-business concierge within DECD. The clerk began a roll-call vote and the committee left votes open until 3:30 p.m.
The committee chair framed the tourism bill (SB 305, LCO 3352) as part of a recurring effort to bolster a sector that the chair said is underfunded compared with neighboring states. "We must move the needle on tourism," the chair said, arguing that the state needs mechanisms to reinvest tourism-generated revenue into local infrastructure and promotion. The chair described prior proposals to use the 1% meals tax to support tourism efforts.
Senator Summers, who identified themself as chair of the tourism caucus, asked to be appointed to the working group created in the bill and described the local fiscal impact of large events in Mystic. "This week, we have the Mystic Irish Parade where we welcome close to 50,000 people," Summers said, and added that policing for the event costs municipalities roughly $30,000. Summers urged state help to offset municipal costs and asked that local officials be included in planning.
Members also discussed SB 306, described as an economic development and comprehensive energy strategy. Representative Buckley said the bill belongs in Commerce but urged more explicit municipal involvement and stronger language so communities have "more say in" siting and local economic-development decisions as energy projects are planned. The chair acknowledged that the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection would be a lead agency but said DECD and local stakeholders would have a role at the table.
HB 5243, an act concerning economic development of the Greater Mystic area (LCO 3350), prompted discussion of executive-branch participation and local needs. The chair described plans to involve DECD, the Department of Transportation and OPM in a medium-to-long-term planning effort and said language may be refined; members raised the breakwater protecting Mystic’s commercial pier as an infrastructure priority. The Department of Agriculture’s role in supporting shellfisheries in the area was also noted.
Other items on the consent calendar included SB 131 (an act concerning manufacturing), HB 5244 (DECD financial-assistance caps and promissory-note exceptions related to H‑1B employees, LCO 3322) and HB 5467 (Office of Small Business Affairs, LCO 3323), which would formalize a concierge model to help small businesses navigate state permitting and resources. The chair said the HB 5244 substitute corrects a reference from a singular "fee" to plural "fees" and clarifies promissory-note language; members moved that bill without objection.
The clerk read the six consent items and called roll. Multiple members verbally recorded "yes" votes during the roll call; the chair said votes would remain open until 3:30 p.m., leaving the formal tallies pending. The committee announced it would caucus briefly during the meeting and hold a follow-up session later in the month.
The committee’s next procedural step is the completion of the roll-call votes on the consent calendar by 3:30 p.m.; if all move in the affirmative they will be reported to the floor as consent items.
