STATE REPRESENTATIVE
Minnie Gonzalez
Serving the 3rd Assembly District
Legislative Office Building, Room 4039
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
Capitol: 800-842-8267
Minnie.Gonzalez@cga.ct.gov
HELPING OLDER WORKERS RE-ENTER THE WORKFORCE
To make it easier for older workers to re-enter the workforce, the Department of Labor and the Superintendent of the Connecticut Technical High School system will report information regarding traditional and adult students to the Education, Higher Education and Labor Committees annually. They will report collected data on all students, including completion rates and what courses were taken, and wage rates for the students before and after they graduated from these programs.
RENTERS REBATE PROGRAM
This measure will re-open the Renters Rebate Program to eligible seniors and individuals with permanent disabilities to receive partial reimbursements related to rental payments.
VETERANS SECURITY DEPOSIT GUARANTEES
The Veterans’ Housing Program allows the Commissioner of Housing to prioritize our state’s veterans’ in consideration of persons applying to receive a security deposit guarantee on behalf of the state. An enrollee in the program may receive a security deposit equal to two months’ rent.
STRENGTHENING THE SYSTEM REGULATING GUARDIANS AD LITEM AND ATTORNEYS FOR CHILDREN
This year the legislature heard from many concerned families about problems with the guardian ad litem system. A guardian ad litem (GAL) is a person appointed to represent a minor child in court or other legal proceedings. Families expressed concern with Connecticut’s GAL system including high fees, lack of oversight, lack of transparency, and lack of a process for requesting removal of a GAL. In response, we made several changes related to GALs and counsels for minor children.
MINIMUM WAGE INCREASED
Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 by 2017 will help thousands of struggling working families in our state, add hundreds of millions of dollars to our economy, and is the right thing to do. Connecticut led a national discussion just two years ago about getting to a $10 minimum wage, and we are proud to lead the way again, setting the stage for Congress to hopefully follow suit.