Gov. Lamont Signs 4 New Bills Into Law: What You Need To Know

CONNECTICUT — Gov. Ned Lamont on March 31 signed four bills into law that dealt with quickly approaching deadlines.

The state Legislature’s regular session runs until June 9 and there is still plenty of time for other bills to pass.

Here is a summary of the bills Lamont signed into law:

Police reform tweaks

Lamont signed a bill that will make some language changes to the large police reform law that was passed last year. It also delays some deadly force changes from April 1 to Jan. 1, 2022, to give police departments more time to train officers.

The bill also modified language about when police officers can use deadly force. One language change requires officers to reasonably determine no alternatives exist when making a decision to use deadly force, according to the state Office of Legislative Research. Previous language would have made officers exhaust all other alternatives first.

Officers are allowed to use deadly force to defend themselves or third parties from use or imminent use of deadly physical force. They can also use it to prevent the escape of a person from custody they reasonably believe has committed a felony that involved infliction of serious injuries.

Several police chiefs and police union officials submitted testimony in hearings asking for the modifications.

“Our concern is that the word 'exhausted' creates an expectation that a police officer will have to progress through other alternatives before they can move to the next alternative. That is not always possible,” said Police Officer Standards and Training Council Chairperson Keith Mello, who is also the police chief of the Milford Police Department.

The bill passed the state Senate 30-3, with three abstentions. It passed the House unanimously, with three abstentions.

Oversight of coronavirus relief funds

The law directs the governor to submit recommended allocations of federal coronavirus relief funds to legislators by April 26. The recommendations would then go through a committee and get a full vote in the General Assembly before being approved.

Outdoor dining rules extended

Lamont also signed another bipartisan bill that will extend the relaxation of outdoor dining and beverage service rules until March 31, 2022.

Lamont previously relaxed outdoor dining rules by executive order to give restaurants more flexibility to maximize outdoor dining space.

Public health and civil preparedness emergency extension

The law will extend Lamont’s emergency powers until May 20.

Senate Republicans offered an amendment that would’ve required legislative ratification of emergency declarations, but it failed along party lines.

Lamont issued executive orders throughout the pandemic on things ranging from the state’s mask mandate to relaxing outdoor dining rooms. He also used the executive orders to set capacity limits at businesses.

The orders were rapid fire in March and April 2020 as the pandemic quickly unfolded in Connecticut, but slowed down after that. He has issued five executive orders in 2021.