General Assembly Committee Bill No. 301
January Session, 2021 LCO No. 5581
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
AND ELECTIONS
Introduced by:
(GAE)
AN ACT CONCERNING BIPARTISAN REVIEW OF EMERGENCY
DECLARATIONS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
1 Section 1. Subsection (b) of section 19a-131a of the general statutes is
2 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1,
3 2021):
4 (b) (1) Any declaration issued pursuant to this section shall become
5 effective upon its filing with the Secretary of the State and with the
6 clerks of the House of Representatives and Senate. The declaration shall
7 state the nature of the public health emergency, the political
8 subdivisions or geographic area subject to the declaration, the
9 conditions that have brought about the public health emergency, the
10 duration of the public health emergency and the public health authority
11 responding to the emergency. Any such declaration issued by the
12 Governor may be disapproved and nullified by majority vote of a
13 committee consisting of the president pro tempore of the Senate, the
14 speaker of the House of Representatives, the majority and minority
15 leaders of both houses of the General Assembly, [and] the
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16 cochairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of
17 the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public
18 health and two additional members of the General Assembly, one
19 appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives and
20 one appointed by the minority leader of the Senate. Such disapproval
21 shall not be effective unless filed with the Secretary of the State not later
22 than seventy-two hours after the filing of the Governor's declaration
23 with the Secretary of the State.
24 (2) Any declaration issued pursuant to this section may be renewed
25 by the Governor upon its filing with the Secretary of the State and with
26 the clerks of the House of Representatives and Senate. The renewal
27 declaration shall state the nature of the continuing public health
28 emergency, the political subdivisions or geographic area subject to the
29 renewal, the conditions that have brought about the renewal
30 declaration, the duration of the renewal declaration and the public
31 health authority responding to the public health emergency. Any such
32 renewal declaration issued by the Governor may be disapproved and
33 nullified by majority vote of a committee consisting of the legislative
34 leaders and members specified in subsection (b) of this section. Such
35 disapproval shall not be effective unless filed with the Secretary of the
36 State not later than seventy-two hours after the filing of the Governor's
37 renewal declaration with the Secretary of the State.
38 (3) The Governor shall declare a public health emergency to be
39 terminated before the duration stated in the declaration, upon a finding,
40 after informing the legislative leaders and members specified in
41 subsection (b) of this section, that the circumstances that caused such
42 emergency to be declared no longer pose a substantial risk of a
43 significant number of human fatalities or incidents of permanent or
44 long-term disability.
45 Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 28-9 of the general statutes is repealed
46 and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2021):
47 (a) In the event of serious disaster, enemy attack, sabotage or other
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48 hostile action or in the event of the imminence thereof, the Governor
49 may proclaim that a state of civil preparedness emergency exists, in
50 which event the Governor may personally take direct operational
51 control of any or all parts of the civil preparedness forces and functions
52 in the state. Any such proclamation shall be effective upon filing with
53 the Secretary of the State. Any such proclamation, or order issued
54 pursuant thereto, issued by the Governor because of a disaster resulting
55 from man-made cause may be disapproved by majority vote of a joint
56 legislative committee consisting of the president pro tempore of the
57 Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives, [and] the majority
58 and minority leaders of both houses of the General Assembly and two
59 additional members of the General Assembly, one appointed by the
60 minority leader of the House of Representatives and one appointed by
61 the minority leader of the Senate, provided at least one of the minority
62 leaders votes for such disapproval. Such disapproval shall not be
63 effective unless filed with the Secretary of the State not later than
64 seventy-two hours after the filing of the Governor's proclamation with
65 the Secretary of the State. As soon as possible after such proclamation,
66 if the General Assembly is not then in session, the Governor shall meet
67 with the president pro tempore of the Senate, the speaker of the House
68 of Representatives, and the majority and minority leaders of both
69 houses of the General Assembly and shall confer with them on the
70 advisability of calling a special session of the General Assembly.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2021 19a-131a(b)
Sec. 2 July 1, 2021 28-9(a)
Statement of Purpose:
To allow for bipartisan review of emergency declarations.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]
Co-Sponsors: SEN. SAMPSON, 16th Dist.; REP. FISHBEIN, 90th Dist.
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REP. MASTROFRANCESCO, 80th Dist.
S.B. 301
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Statutes affected:
Committee Bill: 28-9