WICC The Voice of Connecticut

"Connecticut Today" host Paul Pacelli started Tuesday's show looking at a demand from the Connecticut ACLU that local license plate scanners be turned off until legal safeguards are put in place regarding the use of any data collected by those units (00:46). Alexis Harrison joined us from CT169Strong to chat about latest "affordable housing" bill from the General Assembly (14:54). Yankee Institute blogger Meghan Portfolio briefed us on the State of Connecticut's bid to possibly buy some failing hospitals (21:22). Finally, CBS News reporter Taurean Small joined us from Washington, D.C. to talk about progress in Congress to end the government...

A new survey from Retirement Living shows Connecticut is considered one of the worst states to retire in. The report sites cost of living, healthcare disparity, taxation and quality of life. We spoke with Senator Tony Hwang, ranking senator on the Aging Committee.

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A state auditors’ report just revealed more purchasing card (P-Card) noncompliance instances in the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system. What can be done to fix this ongoing problem? We asked Ranking Member on the Higher Education Committee, Senator Henri Martin.

To read the full report: https://wp.cga.ct.gov/apa/wp-content/cgacustom/reports/Southern%20Connecticut%20State%20University_20251105_FY2021,2022.pdf

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Since House Bill 5002 was vetoed by the governor, a new housing bill has been crafted and will be voted on during the special session this week. What are the key differences between the two pieces of legislation and why is there more support this time around? We spoke with Joe DeLong, Executive Director and CEO of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities.

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Maybe the workplace isn’t on fire all the time, but it is sometimes…
Not according to Gen-Z workers, according to a recent Washington Post article. We talked about it with career strategist, Julie Bauke.

For information on new tech internships for college students in the tristate: https://starteryou.com/

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Melissa Sheketoff and Gary MacNamara demo podcast series on crime prevention

"Connecticut Today" host Paul Pacelli kicked off a new week with news of a tentative agreement to end an ongoing federal government shutdown that, essentially, gives some angry Democrats very little back in legislative leverage (00:42). CBS News reporter Olivia Rinaldi joined us from D.C. to talk about that tentative deal (14:56), while CTNewsJunkie.com columnist and Substack.com blogger Terry Cowgill weighed in on this year's municipal elections (19:16)

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There’s a lot of drama in the beach area of Fairfield for university students and police are dumping a lot of resources into supporting the community and investigate claims of break-in’s. We spoke with former Fairfield Police Chief Gary MacNamara about the importance of being a “good witness” and reporting effectively.

Image Credit: Melissa Sheketoff

This week, lawmakers are expected in Hartford for a two-day special session. One of the biggest items to focus on will be affordable housing. Friday afternoon, the governor announced that all lawmakers would get a copy of the proposed legislation ahead of the session. Sources say the document is nearly 100 pages long. We welcome back Senator Jeff Gordon, Ranking Senator on the Planning and Development Committee.

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A Waterbury man claims he was held captive for 20 years. His stepmother, Kimberly Sullivan, is facing charges in the case. Recently, there have been a lot of new motions in court, so we checked in with Sullivan’s attorney, Ioannis Kaloidis.

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We spoke with News 8’s political reporter Mike Cerulli about the governor’s announcement to run for a third term in office. We also talked about the upcoming special session and his thoughts on the new house bill.

To read the bill in full: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UVidpGnEwCAbtGIYfU5q1bpaXEkEArgT/view?fbclid=IwY2xjawN-Ez5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFJeE9nWUxRV21pSDkxWXRoc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHq-Mf2yPGuNdA2uEuB8VN136MP2bJcu3JA_U2jH6gYOBKo6V3moIwtE0nD9l_aem_XAgbR33BzHW0vg_O4Q-y_w

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We met Andy and Sam, students at Chapel Haven, about their experience climbing Mount Kilimanjaro We also learned more about Chapel Haven, a non-profit in New Haven, helping adults with disabilities live independently. 
For more information: https://www.chapelhaven.org/
IMAGE CREDIT: Melissa Sheketoff

The Attorney General has been very busy this week. He is investigating high grocery prices, expanding a lawsuit against Optimum, demanding improvements for continuous increases in energy costs and opposing the proposed Sale of Aquarion Water Company to Regional Water Authority with calls to reject the deal. We talked to the Attorney General about it all.

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We spoke with Connecticut political strategist, Jimmy Tickey, who is calling for more people to get into politics and potentially run for office. He wrote a book Organizing to Win: The Art & Science of Running for Office addressing this.

To pre-order the book: www.OrganizingtoWin.com

Image Courtesy of Jimmy Tickey

Host Paul Pacelli got Thursday's "Connecticut Today" underway wondering why a revised controversial housing bill - HB-5002 - was being re-tooled and written in secret (00:48). Southern Connecticut State University Political Science and Urban Affairs Professor Dr. Jonathan Wharton looked at what happened this past Election Day Tuesday (16:17), as did former Bridgeport Democratic State Rep. Chris Caruso (26:03). We also welcomed Michael Pack, producer of, "The Last 600 Meters: The Battles of Najaf and Fallujah," debuting this coming Monday night on PBS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxuOYHiocqY (35:46)

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We spoke with Renee Dobos, CEO of Connecticut Housing Partners, about the mystery housing legislation being discussed at next week’s special session. Apparently, not many people, including housing experts, have read the document yet…that’s a problem!

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The state legislature will be meeting next week in a special session.  Governor Ned Lamont says the session will be to finalize housing legislation – and potentially create a 500-million-dollar contingency fund to help cover possible losses of federal funding. But we focused on the housing bill which remains a mystery. We asked Senator Jeff Gordon, Ranking Senator on the Planning and Development Committee.

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There's been a dramatic surge in colorectal cancer in young people, not just in the U.S., but globally.  Health experts say what we drink and eat is contributing to the trend.  That includes consumption of red meat, processed meat, alcohol, sweetened beverages and ultra-processed foods. We spoke with Dr. Browne of Griffin Health about how diet is only one component to reversing the trend and that includes genetic testing.

Image Courtesy of Griffin Health

It was arguably one of the biggest upsets in local election results across Connecticut. Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti was not re-elected to his seat. Voters overwhelmingly voted in Frank Tyszka as the mayor-elect. We got his reaction to the election results and heard his plans for Ansonia.

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Host Paul Pacelli cranked up a post-Election Day edition of "Connecticut Today" on Wednesday chatting about various local races and the landslide election of Zohran Mamdani as New York City's next Mayor (00:45). Hearst Connecticut Media Senior Columnist and Editor Dan Haar also weighed in on Tuesday's elections (14:24). CBS News Washington reporter Aaron Navarro updated us on the White House reaction to last night's election results (20:23). Finally, Fiona Firine from the non-profit organization "For Cameron," talked about an upcoming fundraiser (22:51)

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Host Paul Pacelli ushered in a new week on "Connecticut Today" wondering if the present-day Democratic Party is straying too far from the common sense principles and message that anchored it for so many decades (00:28). Yankee Institute blogger Meghan Portfolio joined us to chat about her latest column highlighting large amounts of self-approved overtime being worked by a Connecticut State Police Lieutenant (15:11)

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November is National Veterans Month; a time to honor both the service of veterans and the sacrifices of their families. Recently, I was introduced to Walter Schuppe, who is the founder of Faces of Freedom. This project preserves and archives the personal histories and images of U.S. military veterans and Holocaust survivors.

For more information: https://www.facesoffreedom.us/

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We knew last year when Mayor Harry Rilling would not run for reelection, Norwalk’s mayoral race and seeing an open seat for the first time in a long time was a race to watch. Based on unofficial results, Barbara Smyth is the mayor-elect for the city of Norwalk. We learned more about her vision for Norwalk.

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It was a bit of a no-brainer in Stamford. Voters re-elected Mayor Caroline Simmons for another term in office. According to unofficial results, Mayor Simmons captured just over two-thirds of the vote. We spoke with her about her win and continued plans for the city.

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A major flip from Republican leadership to Democratic leadership happened in the city of Milford. We spoke with Mayor-elect Rich Smith about his win and plans for the city.

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It is arguably one of the biggest upsets in Connecticut’s local elections: the Stratford mayoral race. We spoke with Mayor-elect David Chess after his victory and learned his vision for Stratford.

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Following Election Day 2025, we spoke with Monroe First Selectman Terry Rooney, winning his reelection bid serving his 2nd term in office.

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Following Election Day 2025, we spoke with Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti, winning his reelection bid serving his 18th term in office!

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Following the most recent controversial decision by PURA to raise UI rates starting November 1st, GOP lawmakers are sounding the alarm about another major decision this month. The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority’s plans to issue a final decision on Nov. 19 on the proposed sale of Aquarion Water Company. We spoke with Senator Ryan Fazio, ranking senator on the Energy & Technology Committee, about this. 

If you oppose the plan, send an email to PURA.ExecutiveSecretary@ct.gov and reference Docket # 25-04-03 

Image Courtesy of Senator Ryan Fazio

According to a AAA analysis on data from the Connecticut Crash Data Repository, 5 to 6 p.m. just became increasingly dangerous now that the clocks rolled back an hour. That can feel like a real shock for people getting out of work and all of the sudden it looks like the middle of the night. We spoke with Jim Cameron of Talking Transportation about how to handle the bright lights now inundating drivers since the clocks changed.

For Jim's article: https://ctmirror.org/2025/11/02/blinded-by-the-head-light/

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Right now, North Haven Firefighters are investigating a deadly fire that claimed the life of an 8-year-old boy and an elderly relative. For good reason, we focus a lot on the family and community impact; but what about the first responders traumatized after responding to these events? We talked to Linda Ross with the Fairfield County Trauma Response Team. It is a nonprofit alliance of mental health professionals dedicated to helping first responders and the Connecticut community, heal from trauma, tragedy, and stress.

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

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The Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) released the results from the 2024–25 Next Generation Accountability System, which offers a comprehensive view of school and district performance across 12 indicators. We spoke with Ajit Gopalakrishnan, Chief Performance Officer for the Connecticut State Department of Education, about key takeaways from the report.

To read the report: https://portal.ct.gov/sde/press-room/press-releases/2025/students-continue-upward-trend-in-achievement

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The Wall Street Journal just highlighted the importance of having a code word. The article says criminals increasingly use generative AI to mimic real people’s voices and con their loved ones out of money. There’s a simple solution to this high-tech problem: a code word. We talked to crime prevention expert, Jim Perez, about the importance of code words and sharing that information with “your village.”

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In Glastonbury, voters are deciding on a referendum that proposes banning artificial turf fields from the town. If this measure passes, the current turf field at the high school wouldn’t be impacted. However, this would prohibit new turf fields from coming in. To get perspective on the impact of turf fields, we spoke with Glenn Lungarini, the executive director of the CIAC (Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference.)

For more information on turf fields: https://portal.ct.gov/dph/environmental-health/environmental-and-occupational-health-assessment/artificial-turf-fields?language=en_US

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Host Paul Pacelli opened Friday's edition of "Connecticut Today" with the latest developments on the possible loss of SNAP food benefits for thousands of state recipients (00:42). Former Bridgeport State Rep. Chris Caruso dropped by with his weekly wrap-up (12:58). Quinnipiac University journalism department Chair and Professor Ben Bogardus talked about big changes being announced at CBS News by its new leader (22:12), while we welcomed Hartford Courant sportswriter Dom Amore, co-author of, "More than a Game: How the UConn Basketball Dynasty Was Built On a Culture of Caring." (30:18)

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UI customers will see an increase in their bills starting this weekend. PURA approved a total revenue requirement of $450 million for the rate year. That amounts to about $10 more per month for customers using 750 kilowatt hours. As you can imagine, not too many people are happy about it, including AARP. We spoke with John Erlingheuser, AARP Connecticut Senior Advocacy Director, about the sudden news this week.
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Governor Lamont nominated Christina Ghio to serve as Connecticut’s child advocate. She is already the acting child advocate for the state but in February, the legislature will potentially approve her nomination where she would serve a five-year term in this role. We got to know Christina Ghio and her intentions for this role protecting kids better in Connecticut.
IMAGE CREDIT: David Bednarz / Office of Governor Lamont

The general election is next Tuesday. We checked in with Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas about some of the drama in certain municipalities during early voting periods and the latest news for Election Day.
For any voter information: https://myvote.ct.gov/
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There’s already a lot of controversy around the idea of having school resource officers. But have you heard that The Board of Education in Bristol is considering allowing armed security guards in schools? Law enforcement expert, Gary MacNamara, weighed in on the debate.
IMAGE CREDIT: Melissa Sheketoff