CT lawmakers pass bills on no-fault absentee ballots, solar energy in final hours of session

As the Connecticut legislature wraps up its session on Wednesday, the House and Senate passed bills on absentee voting and solar farms.

Connecticut voters will now be able to request no-fault absentee ballots, starting this year. Voters in the state already approved a change to the state’s constitution to allow for the no-fault absentee ballots in 2024.

The bill passed on partisan lines in the Senate, 25-11, and will now head to Gov. Ned Lamont’s office for a signature.

Previously, Connecticut voters had to meet one of the state’s five criteria to vote by absentee ballot. This included whether the voter was on active military service, out of town, ill, held religious beliefs, or serving as an elected official.

Now, with the change to the state’s constitution, absentee voting will be eligible for all voters.

The passage of the bill comes as the federal government is pushing its own voting bill called the SAVE Act. Trump has said the bill is needed to crack down on voter fraud, including keeping noncitizens from voting. Studies have found that it is incredibly rare to begin with. 

“The SAVE Act is the functional equivalent of shooting yourself in the face to pop a pimple,” Rep. Matt Blumenthal (D-Stamford) said back in March. “It would be illegal. It would be unconstitutional. 

“I think it’s really important,” said Lamont about the bill. “They’re casting clouds on elections again, and I gotta make sure people know they can vote.”

But some Republicans remain skeptical, having voted against the bill.

“Photo identification for both in-person and absentee voting,” said Sen. Rob Sampson (R-Wolcott). “We should clean up our vote rolls. We should have a mechanism to determine who is actually sending out these absentee ballot applications.”

The bill modifies the requirements for mailing unsolicited absentee ballot applications and requires the Secretary of the State to develop and implement absentee ballot tracking software.

It also outlines penalties for tampering with absentee ballot drop boxes.

You can read the full bill here.

Senate Democrats also voted to extend the state’s renewable energy program. Democrats said the bill keeps costs down with targets for energy purchases and tighter caps on solar panel subsidies.

This solar bill is another step in the right direction,” said Sen. Norm Needleman (D-Essex). “And builds on the success of our current programs while maintaining our dedication to lowering the cost of all these programs for ratepayers.”

But Republicans said it would still raise energy prices.

“No matter where you go, all across our state, people feel pain. They face difficulties,” said Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-Greenwich).

You can read the bill here.

But one of the most impassioned speeches came later in the day, over frustration with a bill that, among other things, removed words like “minority” from the names or descriptions of economic and community development grant programs after guidance from the Trump administration.

“I’m sick of compromising, and this bill says ‘compromise’ again,” said Sen. Doug McCrory (D-Hartford).

The bill did pass because the Department of Economic and Community Development expressed concern about losing more than $160 million in federal aid.

Some members of the Black and Puerto Rican caucus said they want to make sure those programs continue to help underprivileged communities.

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