Approved for Improvements to Connecticut’s Transportation System

New Transportation Bonding Unlocks up to $2.5 Billion in Federal Funds for Connectic Governor Ned Lamont announced that the Connecticut State Bond Commission today voted to approve more than $1.1 billion in state funding that will be used to perform various and widespread improvements to Connecticut’s transportation system.

Governor Lamont serves as chairman of the State Bond Commission and determines which projects get placed on its agenda for approval. The governor said he prioritized transportation projects at today’s meeting to leverage all federal matching dollars available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“The $1.1 billion in state bond funding we are releasing today positions our state to create the transportation network of the future, which will connect people to jobs, employment, and all our state has to offer,” Governor Lamont said. “This funding will help bring upgrades to a wide variety of improvements across our transportation network, including roads, bridges, and public transit. Notably, it will support our ongoing goal of putting the infrastructure in place that will help reduce travel times between New Haven and New York. By leveraging all federal dollars available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we can bring significant improvements to our state’s transportation system while lessening the burden on Connecticut taxpayers.”

“By advancing these funds, Governor Lamont and the State Bond Commission are ensuring Connecticut residents will see a substantial increase in projects that will improve transportation access, grow the economy, increase safety and reliability, and improve quality of life,” Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said. “This funding is setting the stage for the next ten years of needed projects that will transform our infrastructure with improved roads and bridges and a robust multimodal transportation network that is accessible to everyone.”

The funding includes more than $666 million for public transportation and more than $300 million for roads and bridges. Some of the specific projects approved for funding today include:

• Northeast Corridor (NEC) Match Program: $398.1 million for 13 projects aimed at upgrading outdated passenger rail infrastructure and improving transit efficiency, speed, and capacity. This allocation will provide a match for up to $2.1 billion in matching federal funding.
• Fix-it-First Bridge Repair: $98 million for rehabilitation, reconstruction, repair, or replacement of bridges on the state highway system, matching $40 million in federal funds. Some examples of projects include:
  • Middletown – replace bridge carrying I-91 over an unnamed brook
  • New Britain/Plainville – rehab/replace five bridges carrying Route 72
• I-91/1-691/Route 15 Interchange in Meriden: $31.7 million for interchange reconstruction and realignment on I-91 Northbound, I-691 Westbound, and Route 15 Northbound to address operational and safety concerns that will improve safety and decrease congestion, matching $223 million in federal funds.
• New Haven Union Station Improvements: $15 million for the design of three enhancement projects to the property, including a new multimodal hub, parking structure, and rental car facility in the West Lot; Transit Oriented Development (TOD) in the existing East Lot; and the realignment of Union Avenue near Union Station to enhance traffic, bicycle, and pedestrian safety.
• Stamford Station Parking Garage Demolition: $9 million for the demolition of the 1985 parking garage at Stamford Transportation Center, the busiest rail station in the state. Demolition of the old garage will allow the state to proceed with solicitation of Transit-Oriented Development projects adjacent to the station, which is the busiest rail station in the state.
• Local Transportation Capital Improvement Program (LOTCIP): $12.9 million for grants to provide funding to municipalities through the Councils of Government (COGs) to address regional transportation priorities through capital improvement projects.
• Installation of Advanced Wrong-Way Driving Technology: $12.4 million to support the implementation of wrong-way driver detection systems at 70 high-risk locations statewide. These systems will alert drivers of incorrect direction by flashing red lights and state police will be notified in real time through special alerts.
• Community Connectivity and Alternative Mobility Program: $12 million for an additional round of grant awards to local projects that improve safety for bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users in urban, suburban, and rural community centers, to be announced next month. To date, more than 100 projects have received grant funding totaling more than $38 million.
• Transportation Rural-Improvement Program (TRIP): $10 million for grants to provide funding to rural and small towns for infrastructure improvements. The first round of grants for this new program will be awarded over the next several months.
• State Local Bridge Program Improvements: $7.1 million for grants for local bridge projects across the state, to be matched by $7.1 million in local funds. Examples of projects include:
  • Burlington – Covey Road over Bunnell Brook
  • New Haven – Humphrey Street over Mill River
  • Washington – Rabbit Hill Road over Meeker Swamp Road
  • Windsor – Pleasant Valley Road over Podunk River
• New Haven Downtown Roadway Drainage Project: $5.8 million for the City of New Haven to improve drainage and reduce flooding on Union Avenue. This will provide a partial match for a $25 million federal FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Grant.
• Transit District Facility Improvements: $5 million to renovate the new headquarters facility for the Northwest Connecticut Transit District in Torrington.
• Groton/North Stonington Safety Improvements: $3 million for safety improvements and pavement rehabilitation from I-95 Exit 89 to the Rhode Island State Line, matching $54 million in federal funds.

Twitter: @GovNedLamont

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President Biden has long believed that college should be a ticket to the middle class, not a burden that weighs on families. That’s why from day one, his Administration has taken unprecedented steps to fix the broken student loan system, make college more affordable, and bring the promise of higher education in reach for more Americans.

Marking a key step forward in that effort, President Biden is announcing that an additional 125,000 Americans have been approved for $9 billion in debt relief through fixes his Administration has made to income-driven repayment (IDR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and by cancelling debt for borrowers with total and permanent disabilities. Today’s announcement brings the total approved debt cancellation by the Biden-Harris Administration to $127 billion for nearly 3.6 million Americans.

The Biden-Harris Administration is announcing it has approved:

• $5.2 billion in additional debt relief for 53,000 borrowers under Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs.
• Nearly $2.8 billion in new debt relief for nearly 51,000 borrowers through fixes to income-driven repayment. These are borrowers who made 20 years or more of payments but never got the relief they were entitled to.
• $1.2 billion for nearly 22,000 borrowers who have a total or permanent disability who have been identified and approved for discharge through a data match with the Social Security Administration.

The Department of Education is also releasing state-by-state totals of debt relief approved under the Biden-Harris Administration through fixes to IDR and Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Visit this link to see the state-by-state breakdown.

Today’s announcement builds on all that the Biden-Harris Administration has done to make college more affordable and ensure that student loans aren’t a barrier to opportunity for students and families. The Biden-Harris Administration earlier this year launched the most affordable student loan repayment plan – SAVE – which makes many borrowers’ monthly payments as low as $0 and prevents balances from growing because of unpaid interest. The Administration secured the largest increase to Pell Grants in a decade, and finalized new rules to protect borrowers from career programs that leave graduates with unaffordable debts or insufficient earnings. And, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision on the Administration’s original student debt relief plan, President Biden announced his Administration was pursuing an alternative path to debt relief through negotiated rulemaking under the Higher Education Act.

The Administration took an important step forward in the negotiated rulemaking process last week as the Department of Education announced individuals who will serve on the negotiating committee and released an issue paper to guide the first negotiating session. The paper asks the committee to consider how the Administration can help borrowers, including borrowers whose balances are greater than what they originally borrowed, those who would be eligible for relief under existing repayment plans but have not applied, and borrowers who have experienced financial hardship on their loans that the current loan system doesn’t address.

To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has approved $127 billion in debt cancellation for nearly 3.6 million borrowers, including:

• Nearly $42 billion for almost 855,000 borrowers who are eligible for forgiveness through income-driven repayment by fixing historical inaccuracies in the count of payments that qualify toward forgiveness;
• Almost $51 billion for 715,000 public servants through Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs;
• $11.7 billion for almost 513,000 borrowers with a total and permanent disability; and
• $22.5 billion for more than 1.3 million borrowers who were cheated by their schools, saw their institutions precipitously close, or are covered by related court settlements. 

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(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he has received notification from Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) Commissioner James C. Rovella regarding his intention to retire from state service effective next month.

To ensure a smooth transition of leadership at this critical state agency, which consists of six divisions and is responsible for providing a broad range of the state’s public safety, emergency response, and homeland security services, Governor Lamont announced that he will be nominating Ronnell A. Higgins to succeed Commissioner Rovella in this leadership position immediately upon his retirement.

Additionally, Colonel Stavros Mellekas, deputy commissioner of DESPP and commanding officer of the Connecticut State Police, which is a division of DESPP, plans to step down from his service with the state. Higgins will identify a successor to serve in this role.

Commissioner Rovella has served as the head of DESPP throughout the duration of the Lamont administration, which began in January 2019. His spent his career in public safety, first starting as a patrol officer, then detective, with the Hartford Police Department. He then spent 12 years working for the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, where he oversaw cold case and other investigations. Following this, he returned to the Hartford Police Department to become its chief of police, and then was asked by Governor Lamont to serve in his current position with the state.

“Commissioner Rovella is a valued and well-respected member of my administration and Connecticut’s law enforcement community, and throughout his career he has provided the people of Hartford and the residents of our entire state with service that has improved the safety of our neighborhoods while focusing on efforts that reduce recidivism and build stronger communities,” Governor Lamont said. “He is incredibly hardworking and has made many sacrifices to make himself available day and night in this critical role for longer than nearly any other commissioner in the past fifty years. I applaud his service to Connecticut and the people of our state, and I wish him nothing but the very best on this well-earned new chapter in his life.”

“I truly appreciate the opportunity to serve the people of Connecticut, as well as all of the many dedicated professionals who work across each division of DESPP,” Commissioner Rovella said. “I am immensely proud of our team and respect their passionate work and loyalty to ensure the safety and protection of the people of our state. Connecticut’s public safety and emergency response services and those who provide them are among the best, and I am thankful to have had this opportunity to serve as commissioner overseeing these operations.”

Higgins currently serves with Yale University in the position of associate vice president for public safety and community engagement, which he has held since June 2022. Immediately prior to being appointed to that position, he served as Yale’s chief of police beginning in 2011, and concurrently served as director of public safety beginning in 2015. He first joined Yale’s police department in 1997 as a police officer and served the department in several ranks, including as sergeant, patrol commander, and lieutenant. Prior to joining Yale, Higgins worked as a correction officer with the Connecticut Department of Correction at the Bridgeport Correctional Center from 1994 to 1997.

“Ronnell Higgins has been a member of Connecticut’s law enforcement community for nearly thirty years, including service as a correction officer before becoming a police officer and being promoted to several ranks that eventually led him to becoming a police chief, in which he oversaw public safety and emergency management operations at one of our state’s largest police departments,” Governor Lamont said. “He is respected locally and nationally for his knowledge, service, and aptitude, and his experience makes him more than capable of leading this critical, multi-division state agency. I appreciate his willingness to join state service and I look forward to his leadership in this role.”

“I am truly honored at the opportunity to serve as the next commissioner of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection for the State of Connecticut,” Higgins said. “I am looking forward to applying my experiences, as well as listening, learning, and leading this important, six-division agency.”

In his current position, Higgins is responsible for developing relationships and partnerships among those in the Yale community with the goal of listening to every voice and ensuring those throughout the community have access and resources to the public safety resources they need. He also serves as a key liaison to the broader New Haven community by identifying points of intersection among campus safety, community safety, and community engagement. He is the first person to serve in the role.

During his tenure as police chief and director of public safety, Higgins was instrumental insignificantly reducing crime on campus, reducing UCR crimes to their lowest levels since Yale began reporting in 1985. He spearheaded numerous programs supporting excellence in on-campus safety, community policing, and deep collaborations with stakeholders, leaders, and members of both the university and the City of New Haven communities, while at the same time ensuring leading-edge focus on efforts to prepare for, respond to, and recover from state, national and global threats.

He has been an active member of several government and community groups, including the Connecticut Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparities, the Connecticut Police Officers Standards and Training Council, the Boys and Girls Club of New Haven, the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association, and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives for Connecticut. He was recently named among the "Most Influential People in Security" by Security magazine and named one of the "100 Most Influential Black People in Connecticut" by the Connecticut NAACP.

He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in law enforcement from the University of New Haven, and earned a Master of Arts degree in security studies from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

The Office of the Governor will forward Higgins’s nomination to the Connecticut General Assembly for its advice and consent upon the start of the 2024 regular legislative session. During the time prior to his confirmation by the legislature, Higgins will serve as interim commissioner.

DESPP is comprised of the following six divisions: the Commission on Fire Prevention and Control; the Connecticut State Police; the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security; the Police Officers Standards and Training Council; the Division of Scientific Services; and the Division of Statewide Emergency Telecommunications

The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association

Baltimore police say multiple people shot near Morgan State University

The university and officials have urged people to shelter in place.

The story is developing.. more updates later

BPD and MSU officials are asking concerned family members to avoid the campus area. They may report to the Safeway parking lot at 4401 Harford Road. A BPD Officer will be available at that location. pic.twitter.com/qu1PiREYBP

— Morgan State University (@MorganStateU) October 4, 2023