WICC The Voice of Connecticut

Host Paul Pacelli spent some time on Tuesday's "Connecticut Today" talking about a controversial bill at the Capitol that would impose new state-level rules on the use of supermarket self-checkout stations (00:40). CT State Republican Party Chairman Ben Proto dropped by to talk about a controversial State Democratic Party social media post criticizing a top GOP gubernatorial candidate (15:15). Yankee Institute blogger Meghan Portfolio talked about the hours of public testimony she's watching during the current session of the General Assembly (22:05)

Ahead of a public hearing in front of the Planning and Development Committee, we spoke with Kathryn Braun, a member of CT169Strong, an attorney and member of the Fairfield TPZ. The hearing will cover several bills, including H.B. No. 5502 ("An Act Concerning Housing Development on Certain Lots Zoned for Industrial or Previously Zoned for Residential Use"), and HB 5507 (An Act Concerning Accessory Dwelling Units).

For more information: https://ct169strong.org/

This week, there is a public hearing in front of the Environment Committee to cover more than a dozen pieces of legislation, including SB 457, An Act Concerning the State’s Bottle Bill. But apparently, it’s different from the bottle bill that passed in the emergency certified omnibus bill earlier this session. We got a breakdown from State Representative Joe Gresko, former House Environment Committee Chair.

This week, the Judiciary Committee looked at several bills including ones focused on privacy protections. We did a deeper dive into House Bill 5449, An Act Concerning Automatic License Plate Reader Systems with Chelsea-Infinity Gonzalez, Director of Policy and Advocacy for the ACLU-CT.

To read the full legislation: https://www.cga.ct.gov/2026/TOB/H/PDF/2026HB-05449-R00-HB.PDF

All of the sudden, Connecticut had a real winter and now students have a bit of a problem…being in school later in the year than we expected. Westport schools immediately jumped on finding a solution and not cutting into summertime. We got the details from superintendent of Westport schools, Tom Scarice.

Host Paul Pacelli started a new week on "Connecticut Today" by warning listeners about what many see as a dangerous proposal connected to legal marijuana use (00:43). Wallingford/Middlefield GOP State Rep. Craig Fishbein filled us in on this week's upcoming public hearings at the State Capitol (15:19). Connecticut-based Gasoline and Automotive Service Dealers of America head Mike Fox talked about rising gas prices connected to the war in Iran (23:42), while CBS News White House reporter Olivia Rinaldi talked about any anticipated political fallout from those higher gasoline prices (30:39)

The debate surrounding armed officers in schools across Connecticut continues at the local level. For example, in Milford, hiring retired officers to man all the elementary schools are included in the proposed school budget for next year. A lot of districts are having these conversations. But a new bill is taking things one step further for schools looking to hire retired officers. It looks to clarify the hiring standards in the state's armed school officer law looking track records of misconduct. We talked to Gary MacNamara about it.

Image Courtesy of Melissa Sheketoff

Reversing course: PURA made a tentative approval for the proposed merger between the Aquarion Water Co. and the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority. The ruling said, in part, that some of the concerns from opponents of the sale, fall outside the jurisdiction of PURA. We spoke about this with with Senate Minority Leader Steve Harding.

Image Courtesy Of The Senate Republicans And Steve Harding

Mark Bradley officially announced his run for probate judge in Bridgeport. He is running against Paul Ganim and shared why the time to run is right now.

For more information: Markforprobatect.com

Melissa welcomed Josh Shuart, Ph.D and the Sport Management Department Chair at Sacred Heart University's Jack Welch College of Business & Technology, to the program to talk about the business side of March Madness and why a career in sport management is an exciting path.

The clocks are springing forward; how can we properly prep our bodies for the change? More than that, how can we address our sleep habits and make improvements long term? We asked Director of Sleep Medicine at Stamford Health, Dr. Dominic Roca.

We got an update on the Bridgeport school budget for the 2026-27 school year. Find out from Dr. Royce Avery, interim superintendent of Bridgeport schools, why the state could make or break the budget.

During the legislative session, there’s more pressure from lawmakers to partner with DCF and improve systemic problems. We talked about the latest efforts with Senator Jason Perillo, ranking member for the Committee on Children.

New research from Yale School of Medicine revealed how exercise can slow the growth of tumors. We spoke with Dr. Rachel Perry, the author of this study, shared key takeaways and easy ways to incorporate more movement in your day.

For more information: Precancer exercise capacity and metabolism during tumor development coordinate the skeletal muscle–tumor metabolic competition | PNAS

Thursday's "Connecticut Today" featured host Paul Pacelli looking at the first version of a bill at the State Capitol that would lay out more specific rules and regulations for thousands of homeschooled students in Connecticut (00:33). That bill is already generating a lot of opposition. Former Bridgeport Democratic State Rep. Chris Caruso (15:46) and former GOP State Senate Leader John McKinney (22:48) weighed in on recent line-item vetoes from Gov. Ned Lamont

According to national data, leukemia remains is the most common cancer in children under 15, over 90% of cases occur in adults. A new Yale study has identified a new class of drug to better target cases of aggressive leukemia. We spoke with Ruifeng Sun, the lead author on this study.

For the full study: Yale Study Identifies a New Class of Drug Targets for Aggressive Leukemia | Yale Cancer Center

Lawmakers are considering an increase to education funding for the first time since 2013.  More than 300 people signed up to speak in front of the Education Committee on Wednesday.  Some of those advocating for the increase included mayors, superintendents, educators and students. We got local perspective about the backlash local leaders face because there’s a lack of action in Hartford. Here’s our chat with Monroe First Selectman Terry Rooney.

Image Credit: Melissa Sheketoff

A new study shows OpenAI's chatbot called ChatGPT Health is underestimating the seriousness of certain medical emergencies. For the study published in the journal Nature Medicine, ChatGPT Health was given 60 medical situations, and the responses were compared to the responses of three doctors. Researchers concluded that a little over half of emergency cases, ChatGPT recommended seeing a doctor within 48 hours in contrast to the opinion of doctors saying ChatGPT Health should have advised the emergency room instead. We talked about this with Dr. Fred Browne of Griffin Health.

Image Credit: Dr. Fred Browne / Griffin Health

Sacred Heart University recently shared new data through new sports gambling poll. We looked at some of the key takeaways with Professor Andrew Miller, director of Sacred Heart’s sports communication and media graduate program.

Poll results: https://www.sacredheart.edu/media/shu-media/press-room-2026/SHU-2026-Nationwide-Sports-Gambling-Poll-Report-ADA.pdf

Host Paul Pacelli opened Wednesday's edition of "Connecticut Today" looking at the start of the "YIGBY" - or - "Yes In God's Back Yard" campaign in Connecticut, a push to make it easier for Churches and other houses of worship to build affordable housing  on property they already own (00:45). Greenwich/Stamford GOP State Rep. Tina Courpas joined us the talk about that so-called "YIGBY" housing initiative (16:40). Hearst Connecticut Media Senior Columnist and Editor Dan Haar weighed in on the latest corruption allegations at the State Capitol (24:07), while CBS News contributor Courtney Kealy briefed us on the U.S.-Israel military a...

The clock is ticking; PURA needs to make a decision later this month regarding the proposed $2.4 billion sale of Aquarion Water Company. Today, regional municipal leaders and a bipartisan group of Connecticut state legislators are addressing recent developments in the proposed deal and why lawmakers in Hartford need to act fast! Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti is one of the speakers being featured in the event and spoke with us before the event.

Global oil and gas prices jumped on Tuesday since the attack on Iran halted energy exports from the ​Middle East. Here in Connecticut, there are constant concerns around energy and gas prices. To make sense of it all, we talked to Bryson Hull, Deputy Northeast Director for Consumer Energy Alliance.

Image Credit: Justin Kingsley

Norwalk resident, Chris Dwyer, announced his intention to run for state Senate and to primary the 20-year incumbent, Bob Duff. We got to know Dwyer, his political intentions for the state and his outlook on the current Democratic party in Connecticut.

For more information: https://chrisdwyerct.com/

Image Credit: Eric Urbanowicz

There’s a constant focus in our state about supporting our military. According to state reports, CT has 130,000 veterans and only 50,000 use the VA healthcare system. That’s why major healthcare networks are stepping up to do their part. We spoke with Sherri Vogt, Hartford Healthcare Veteran's Liaison, about the upcoming Veteran’s Suicide Prevention Conference.
To register and attend the event (virtually): Veteran's Suicide Prevention Conference 2026 - Hartford HealthCare - Continuing Education (CE) - Veteran's Suicide Prevention Conference 2026
HHC Center for Healthy Aging: 877-424-4641

Host Paul Pacelli got Tuesday's "Connecticut Today" underway with word that a law change at the State Capitol might give Connecticut restaurants and bars the ability to sell cannabis-infused beverages alongside alcohol (00:58). Connecticut Energy Marketers Association President Chris Herb explained how crude oil and gasoline prices might be affected by unrest in the Middle East. Chris also offered a look at the possible consumer costs of a potential state-level climate "superfund" (10:58). State House GOP leader Vin Candelora dropped by to talk about a threatened line-item veto from Gov. Ned Lamont (19:37). Yankee Institute blogger Meghan Portfolio broke down some key bills...

There’s a constant focus in our state about supporting our military. According to state reports, CT has 130,000 veterans and only 50,000 use the VA healthcare system. That’s why major healthcare networks are stepping up to do their part. We spoke with Sherri Vogt, Hartford Healthcare Veteran's Liaison, about the upcoming Veteran’s Suicide Prevention Conference.

To register and attend the event (virtually): Veteran's Suicide Prevention Conference 2026 - Hartford HealthCare - Continuing Education (CE) - Veteran's Suicide Prevention Conference 2026

The Education Committee will hold a public hearing tomorrow covering 14 pieces of legislation. Specifically, the first piece of legislation is Senate Bill 7, is getting a lot of attention specifically from Bridgeport students, educators and city leaders (AN ACT CONCERNING EDUCATIONAL EQUITY) We spoke with Joe Sokolovic, Vice Chair of the Bridgeport Board of Education.

To see the list of bills and learn more: https://cga.ct.gov/2026/EDdata/pha/pdf/2026pha00304-R001100ED-pha.pdf

It’s no secret; health insurance is beyond expensive; some Connecticut residents have even opted to forgo having insurance. And after subsidies expired in December, Connecticut lawmakers are again trying to find affordability solutions. One idea that has come up in the last several legislative sessions involve association plans. We spoke with Grace Brangwynne, Policy Director covering healthcare and insurance for CBIA, about association plans prior to the public hearing today in front of the Insurance Committee. 

The Committee on Children is offering a public hearing today to discuss several bills, including ones to better support DCF. We spoke with Christina Ghio, Acting Child Advocate for the Connecticut Office of the Child Advocate, about some of the bills being proposed.

Monday's "Connecticut Today" kicked off a new week looking at the U.S.-Israeli joint attacks on Iran over the previous weekend. Paul offered his thoughts on the attacks (00:41), and we also welcomed back University of New Haven Professor of National Security Dr. Howard Stoffer to the show for his perspective (13:04). Landmark Legal Foundation Vice-President of Legal Affairs Mike O'Neill broke down oral arguments for a key U.S. Supreme Court case regarding gun ownership and marijuana use (23:53). Finally, GOP State Rep. Greg Howard had the latest from the State Capitol (30:27)

According to the World Health Organization: in 2019, about 528 million people worldwide were living with osteoarthritis, which was an increase of 113% since 1990.  It’s safe to say that osteoarthritis remains a very common joint disorder in the United States. That’s why a new treatment offered at Norwalk Hospital is such a big deal. We talked to Dr. Christine Chin about radiation therapy. Dr. Chin is a radiation oncologist and board-certified by the American Board of Radiology. 

For more information: https://www.nuvancehealth.org/health-tips-and-news/low-dose-radiation-for-osteoarthritis-a-non-invasive-option-for-lasting-joint

There were concerns over pension offset language in the emergency certified bill that passed the state House and Senate last month. We spoke with Pete Brown, President of the Uniformed Professional Firefighters Association of Connecticut, to understand the language better and its impact on firefighters across the state.

Today is Read Across America Day which is meant to foster a lifelong love of reading in children and to promote literacy. But should this day really focus on the kids? We spoke with Connecticut State Librarian, Deborah Schander, about the importance of parents falling in love with reading again.

Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas stopped in studio. We talked about election integrity funding in jeopardy and new provisions to election law recently passed during the legislative session.

To access the free Power of Civics Course: https://portal.ct.gov/sots/education/the-power-of-civics/the-power-of-civics---home

Image Credit: Eric Urbanowicz

What is the good and the bad following the sudden attack on Iran over the weekend? We asked Congressman Jim Himes; he serves as the Ranking Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The Intelligence Committee conducts oversight of the United States Intelligence Community, which includes the intelligence and intelligence-related activities of 17 elements of the US Government, and the Military Intelligence Program.

Image Courtesy of Congressman Jim Himes 

Tomorrow is election day for the 130th district Democratic Town Committee in Bridgeport! Meet the first line candidates and find out more about the role of the DTC in local elections!

Host Paul Pacelli updated listeners on Friday's "Connecticut Today" about an emerging proposal in Hartford to implement a possible state income tax surcharge on its richest residents, a plan that's already up and running in Massachusetts, with interesting results (00:46). Former Bridgeport Democratic state Rep. Chris Caruso offered his thoughts on a controversial "emergency" bill that passed in Hartford (16:12). Southern Connecticut State University Sports Communications and Sports Marketing Instructor Len Mead talked about "Problem Gambling Awareness Month" and the continued integration of legal wagering and mainstream sports programming (25:41)

Despite being denied by PURA this past fall, a potential sale of Aquarion Water Company may happen before the end of March! Find out in the podcast how this could affect your water bill and what is being done about it.