Published February 19. 2021 5:03PM By
The Connecticut Port Authority has taken a lot of heat, and for good reason. The state legislature is debating everything from requiring it to file more frequent reports with greater transparency to dissolving it.
Meanwhile, ousting a road-salt distributor from State Pier in New London in the midst of this nasty winter to make way for redevelopment that remains uncertain and is not close to happening yet has been about as popular as Cruella de Vil’s approach to dalmatian puppies.
In the past, business was steered to folks with board connections and authority plastic used to charge some dubious expenses.
New London Members of the Connecticut Port Authority have sought opinions from the Connecticut Office of State Ethics in response to questions and a challenge issued by The Day Editorial Board about whether certain activities constitute a conflict of interest.
CPA board member John Johnson has asked for a ruling on whether his ownership of a commercial property near State Pier should prohibit him from voting on matters related to the pier. The quasi-public agency now owns and is managing the multi-million reconstruction of State Pier.
Day opinion columnist David Collins, in a recent column, argues Johnson “continues to participate in votes and discussion of State Pier while he stands to profit by industrial property he owns nearby.”
COVID is the theme of the 2021 Connecticut legislature
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Photo: Jessica Hill / Associated Press
The coronavirus pandemic, which abruptly canceled the 2020 session of the General Assembly, will continue to cast a shadow over the legislature’s new Zoom era. And this year, dozens of bills have been filed to shape Connecticut’s reaction to the crisis.
The new measures range from economic aid to public health initiatives to the future of mail-in voting and the extension of the governor’s emergency powers, which expire on Feb. 9. It’s all happening as lawmakers and citizens try to manage public discourse from homes and offices far from the State Capitol complex in Hartford.