Republicans Spend Seven Hours Discussing Their Commutes and Massachusetts Toll Booths as They Stalled Bipartisan Bill
Republicans used Connecticut’s tradition of unlimited Senate debate to stretch a bipartisan transportation bill into more than seven hours of floor discussion
Debate topics included one senator’s drive to the Capitol, Massachusetts toll booths and highway numbering systems, scheduled traffic lights in Manhattan, and homeless shelters in other states
After lengthy debate, the bill passed with bipartisan support, with seven Republican senators voting in favor
The Connecticut State Senate operates on a tradition of unlimited debate. Compared to other states where legislation can be called and acted upon quickly, bills on controversial subjects can see debate last hours, even overnight.
One day before the end of the legislative session, what does that debate look like? On Tuesday, May 5, Republican state senators filibustered a transportation bill for more than seven hours that would allow the state to purchase diesel-fueled transit buses, update electric vehicle charging standards and update state distracted driving laws. Here were some of their discussions:
Senator Tony Hwang spent two hours of discussion requiring Senator Christine Cohen, Senate Chair of the Transportation Committee, to meticulously detail every part of the 36-section, 101-page bill.
In discussing the bill’s effort to provide two weeks’ notice to any encampment located on state highway rights-of-way, Senator Henri Martin spoke for 12 straight minutes about homeless shelters and the lives of homeless people before returning the conversation to the legislation.
In discussing the bill’s introduction of flex lanes on Connecticut highways to ease traffic at peak times, Martin spoke for five minutes uninterrupted about highway tolls before asking whether flex lanes could someday be tolled.
Senator Jeff Gordon took ten minutes to discuss that Connecticut highways lead into Massachusetts and that changes in traffic depending on the population of an area. He spent another ten minutes describing his drive into the Capitol on Connecticut highways.
Gordon spent another 11 minutes discussing toll booths on the Mass Pike and the numbering systems on highways.
Senator Ryan Fazio spoke for 24 straight minutes on a long monologue, talking about scheduled traffic lights in Manhattan, offshore wind projects, his own campaigning for election to the State Senate, Connecticut’s energy grid, homelessness policies in New York City, and that cars becoming more expensive makes insurance policies on those cars more expensive.
Senator Rob Sampson spoke for just under 10 minutes straight about unrelated Insurance and Real Estate Committee bills regarding Uber drivers before asking Senator Cohen how the bill was developed.
The bill would ultimately pass after more than seven hours of debate. Seven Republican Senators voted for it, including Hwang and Martin.
By Joe O’Leary