Malloy Signs Budget, Expands Heroin Treatment; Vetoes Glass Eel Fishing

May 30--HARTFORD -- Gov. Dannel P. Malloy Friday signed 41 bills into law, including the state's $19 billion budget for fiscal 2014-15 and a bill that expands access to a heroin reversal drug used to combat the effects of an overdose.

Glass eel fishing and drug abuse treatment programs provided Malloy's first two vetoes of 2014.

The drug measure grants immunity to anyone who administers the antidote naloxne, also known by the brand name "Narcan", to someone who has overdosed on heroin. The legislation takes effect Oct. 1 and supporters say it will allow members of law enforcement to carry the drug.

Earlier this year, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder called on states throughout the country to expand access to Narcan and to allow members of law enforcement to carry it, responding to what he described as a nationwide heroin epidemic that he said was a "public health crisis." A spike in heroin overdose deaths in this state -- and throughout New England -- led local lawmakers to act.

Currently, paramedics in Connecticut carry Narcan, but police do not. Hartford Police Deputy Chief Brian Foley earlier this year spoke out in support of the legislation, which he said would shield members of his department from prosecution and protect them from civil suits if, for example, they administer the drug but are unable to save the person who overdosed. Fear of costly lawsuits, he said, prevents police departments from having their officers carry the antidote.

Narcan is available both in the form of an injection, like an EpiPen used to treat allergies, and as a nasal spray. It puts the body into acute withdrawal. The judicial committee earlier this year heard unanimous testimony in support of the measure.

The budget that Malloy signed postpones three tax breaks for shoppers and retired teachers because the state's projected surplus evaporated in a still-sluggish Connecticut economy. Democrats have hailed the package for providing funding for public education, housing, after-school programs, social service needs and transportation infrastructure to improve roads and bridges.

But Republicans have blasted it as an unrealistic, gimmick-filled document that includes $75 million in additional tax-collection projections that were not revealed until hours before the legislature voted on the bill. Nearly all Democrats voted in favor of the bill in both chambers, while all Republicans voted against it.

A major factor in the budget was the collapse of the state surplus as revenues were down after the April 15 tax deadline by more than $450 million. That prompted Malloy to drop his plans for tax rebates of $55 for individuals and $110 for couples that would have arrived in the mail less than two months before this fall's gubernatorial election.

The budget, which increases spending by 2.5 percent, calls for postponing three tax breaks because the state cannot afford them sooner. Malloy called in February for exempting a portion of the pensions of retired teachers from the state's personal income tax, but now that idea will be stretched over three years. The retired teachers must live in Connecticut, and they would be entitled to an exemption of 10 percent starting in January 2015. They could deduct 25 percent of their pension from the personal income tax in 2016 and then 50 percent in 2017.

For shoppers, the budget says they will no longer pay the 6.35 percent state sales tax on clothing and footwear items that cost less than $50, starting on July 1 when the new fiscal year starts.

The legislature also called for eliminating the sales tax on nonprescription drugs, including dietary supplements, antacids and antiseptics, starting on April 1, 2015. The sales-tax exemption will not apply for over-the-counter items like mouthwash, soaps and hair-care products.

The sales tax had not been collected on those items for 26 years, but the tax was enacted in 2011 when Malloy and the Democratic-controlled legislature raised taxes on most of the major revenue categories in the state, including personal income, retail sales, corporate profits, estates, alcohol, cigars and cigarettes.

The General Assembly only rarely overturns a governor's veto. In order to override a veto, there would need to be two-thirds majority votes in both the House of Representatives and Senate, which are both controlled by Democrats.

Glass eels are actually the juvenile version of the American eel. These almost-transparent immature creatures are about the length of a human finger and are considered a great delicacy in sushi-loving places like Japan, where they can sell for as much as $800 a pound.

Some Connecticut fishermen hoped to cash in on the global glass-eel bonanza by convincing the state to legalize a glass eel fishing season in this state's rivers and streams.

In his veto message, Malloy noted that, "A review is currently being undertaken by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to determine whether American eels are a threatened species." He said various Connecticut environmentalists told him they have "serious concerns" about the glass eel legislation. Malloy said it would be "premature" to take such action before that federal study is completed.

Malloy said he couldn't sign any legislation creating a glass eel fishing season "until and unless it is determined that the American eel will not be on the brink of extinction in the near future..."

Only two states on the East Coast, <location value="LS/us.me" idsrc="xmltag.org">Maine and South Carolina, currently have fishing seasons for glass eels.

The bill to authorize a glass eel fishing season was approved by the General Assembly in the final hours of the 2014 session. The House voted 92-52 for the legislation, and the Senate passed it on a 36-0 vote.

Under the bill, Connecticut's current $250 fine for taking glass eels in state waters would be eliminated, and state environmental officials would be required to create regulations by 2016 for a new glass eel fishing season.

The other legislation vetoed by Malloy this week was a bill to require managed health care organizations and insurance companies to report on drug abuse treatments. The governor said he supports the concept behind the measure, but felt compelled to veto it anyway.

The bill won unanimous General Assembly approval in the closing days of the 2013 session. Malloy said he is worried the reporting requirements are vague and that other problems could lead to consumer confusion about what kind of drug abuse treatments they can get from which organizations.

This bill was only the second vetoed by Malloy in 2014. (The other involved creation of a fishing season for glass eels.) The legislature can overturn a veto by a two-thirds majority vote in the House and the Senate.

Managed health care organizations and insurance companies would be required under the legislation to report to the state on the numbers and ages of people who were treated for substance abuse and the types of covered treatment offered and received.

The governor said "a significant number of people," possibly because of the stigma attached to substance abuse, prefer to have health care facilities list their drug-related treatment under such descriptions as depression, anxiety or other mental health illnesses.

The result, Malloy said in his veto message, was that the data sent to the state "could provide an inaccurate picture on the accessibility and availability of substance use treatment in the state."

He also warned that "ambiguity in reporting requirements" could result in different insurance carriers to report differently about some services offered.

That, said Malloy, "could lead to consumer confusion and misconceptions about the different levels of substance use treatment available from each provider."

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