On May 6, 2026, HB 5509 was added to the Connecticut Senate consent calendar and passed the Senate! This was the final day of the legislative session, so we were on the edge of our seats.
JPus is very grateful to all of the JPs who took the time to submit written and oral testimony to the legislators and help them understand why this legislation was necessary. We’re also very grateful for the leadership of Representative Eleni Kavros Degraw, who chairs the Planning and Development Committee and introduced and ushered the bill through the session. Also, Representative Cristin McCarthy Vahey, whose cosponsorship and behind the scenes negotiations moved mountains. And importantly, none of this would have happened without Secretary of State Stephanie Thomas, who first heard our pleas to improve the civil officiant system, turning JPus’ white paper into the initial 2023 legislation.
Related Links
- The Justice of the Peace Association’s white paper
- The legislative backstory.
- In addition to testifying live before the Planning and Development Committee, in 2026 JPus submitted written testimony. We did this in 2025 as well, and in 2023. Each is a little different, but they all summarizes the problems.