Preview: hot topics on tap for legislative session

Hartford, Conn. (WTNH) - Raising the minimum wage, red light cameras and repealing the death penalty are just some of the hot button issues Connecticut lawmakers will debate in the new legislative session.

The Governor says he is proposing no changes in tax policy, but there are many other major issues confronting this year's assembly session.
       
The Governor's address on Wednesday is expected to focus almost entirely on the education reforms he has been pushing for the past several weeks.

Some proposals include the plan for the state takeover of 25 poorly performing schools around the state, tougher standards for teachers, early childhood education, and removing the red tape to empower local school districts.

He is also going to push for a complete re-write of the state's liquor laws which would allow Sunday sales and bars and restaurants to serve until 2 am every night.

Malloy plans to allocate millions of dollars to rehabilitate the state's neglected public housing stock, which he says will create thousands of construction jobs.

Additionally, he wants to establish a set of standards and benchmarks for restoring power after big storms with penalties for the power companies if they don't meet them.

The Governor has also given the green light for a proposal to allow the cities and towns to place cameras at intersections that will snap and mail a picture of plates that run red lights.

Advocates for the repeal of the death penalty feel they have a better chance this year now that the Cheshire home invasion trials are over, and Malloy says he would sign a death penalty repeal bill.

Also, the laws about voting could change in time for the primaries in August. A bill to allow on-line voter registration, same day registration, and early voting is on this year's agenda.  

Finally, the Speaker of the House, who is running for Congress in the 5th District, is pushing for a 75 cent per hour increase in the minimum wage, an idea that has received a cool reception from the Governor.
 
The legislative session is set to start Wednesday, February 8.