Apprenticeship, Small Business Reforms Among Commerce Committee Wins

The General Assembly’s Commerce Committee addressed several key policy areas important to Connecticut employers and economic growth this legislative session.

One of the hot button issues was the state’s broken apprenticeship hiring ratio mandate for the skilled trades.

Several construction-oriented organizations, small business owners, apprentices, and aspiring apprentices formed a coalition to bring more awareness to the issue and highlight a growing workforce development bottleneck.

Current law in Connecticut mandates a 1:1 jobsite ratio, requiring one journeyperson or contractor on-site for each apprentice across the vast majority of registered apprenticeship trades. 

However, the electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, piping and sheet metal occupations are held to a 3:1 ratio, severely limiting their ability to expand their workforce, and in turn support the state’s housing, infrastructure, and electric grid improvement needs.

Reform Measure

The reform measure follows several years of efforts by the skilled trades industry to overhaul the burdensome ratio requirements. 

The original concept, introduced in the Commerce Committee by Rep. Jill Barry (D-Glastonbury) and sponsored by a bipartisan group of legislators, received overwhelming support from businesses, apprentices and aspiring apprentices, journeymen, parents, legislators, and construction groups.

Barry and Rep. Tim Ackert (R-Coventry), a small electrical company business owner, testified in support of the bill. 

The reform measure follows several years of efforts by the skilled trades industry to overhaul the burdensome ratio requirements. 

Organizations such as CBIA, Homebuilders and Remodelers Association of Connecticut, Independent Electrical Contractors of New England, Connecticut Heating and Cooling Contractors Association, and Associated Builders and Contractors of Connecticut testified in support of the bill.

Rep. Stephen Meskers (D-Greenwich) and Sen. Joan Hartley (D-Waterbury) took a lead role in drafting the initial legislation, focusing on ensuring the adjustment to the apprenticeship hiring ratio was grounded in safety and through data-driven analysis.

The General Law Committee also released similar legislation, with Sen. Paul Cicarella (R-North Branford) leading bipartisan support for SB 1465, which won unanimous committee approval before passing both the Senate and House.

Contractors can now submit a waiver to DCP that provides basic entity information and proof of the need to hire additional apprentices. DCP is then required to respond to the request within 10 days.

Small Business Regulations

The legislature also adopted another Commerce Committee measure, SB 1402, which addresses how proposed agency regulations impact small businesses.

SB 1402 requires state agencies to provide a more detailed analysis of proposed regulations and the impact they might have on daily operations, costs, and hiring.

The bill was a priority for the Connecticut Manufacturers’ Collaborative and passed both the House and Senate with unanimous votes.

SB 1402 requires state agencies to provide a more detailed analysis of proposed small business regulations.

The committee also addressed Department of Labor reporting requirements for employers.

Currently, employers must submit quarterly forms supplied by the department that list wage information, including the name of each employee, Social Security numbers, and the amount of wages paid.

SB 1455 allows employers to request a waiver, which the agency may grant if it is determined that there would be undue hardship for the employer to submit the quarterly form. 

Makerspace Program

Another committee bill that received overwhelming support in the Senate and won unanimous passage in the House was SB 1179, which establishes the Connecticut Community Makerspace Initiative Pilot Program.

The program supports entrepreneurship by promoting and expanding access to industrial-grade tools, resources, and training.

The program supports entrepreneurship by promoting and expanding access to industrial-grade tools, resources, and training.

It will be funded with $1 million from the Manufacturing Innovation Fund, as existing makerspace programs are significantly geared towards advanced manufacturing workforce development and training. 

“Commerce Committee leadership on both sides of the aisle worked relentlessly throughout the session to address several policy areas important to the business community,” said CBIA’s Paul Amarone.

“From workforce development in the trades, to addressing regulatory issues for small businesses, the committee’s willingness to work directly with the business community produced sound, meaningful bipartisan policy.”

---

For more information, contact CBIA’s Paul Amarone (860.244.1978).