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Connecticut Legislature Will Hold Special Session For Unpassed Bills

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Connecticut Speaker of the House Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, pulls up his mask during session at the State Capitol, Monday, April 19, 2021.
Jessica Hill

Connecticut lawmakers are likely to end their regular legislative session tonight with unfinished business. That would require them to return for a special session. This year it’s not the budget that has lawmakers running down the clock.

Governor Ned Lamont said he’s pleased that the House approved a state budget before the end of the regular session on Wednesday.

“It’s a bold progressive budget and we do this without any tax increases. That is a promise I made early on and it's a promise we’ve kept,” Lamont said.

The $46 billion two-year budget had bipartisan support. But Republicans held up a vote on marijuana legalization in the House. Democratic Speaker Matt Ritter said legislative leaders have yet to determine when to hold a special session to get that done.

“We have made one decision. We will be voting in the next week on that bill. Could be today, could be tomorrow. It could be Friday. It could be Saturday. It could be Sunday. We will be getting that bill passed,” Ritter said.

The bill to implement the budget would also have to be voted on in a special session.

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As WSHU Public Radio’s award-winning senior political reporter, Ebong Udoma draws on his extensive tenure to delve deep into state politics during a major election year. In addition to providing long-form reports and features for WSHU, he regularly contributes spot news to NPR, and has worked at the NPR National News Desk as part of NPR’s diversity initiative.