Connecticut 2019 Regular Session

Connecticut Senate Bill SB00192 Compare Versions

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7	7		General Assembly Committee Bill No. 192
8	8		January Session, 2019
9	9		LCO No. 6161
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12	12		Referred to Committee on COMMERCE
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14	14
15	15		Introduced by:
16	16		(CE)
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20	20		AN ACT CONCERNING TH E REOPENING OF CONNECT ICUT'S
21	21		VISITOR WELCOME CENT ERS USING VOLUNTEER STAFFING.
22	22		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
23	23		Assembly convened:
24	24
25	25		Section 1. Section 10-399 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
26	26		following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 2
27	27		(a) As used in this section: "Visitor welcome center" means the 3
28	28		welcome centers, visitor centers and tourist information centers 4
29	29		located in West Willington, Greenwich, Danbury, Darien, North 5
30	30		Stonington and Westbrook, which have been established to distribute 6
31	31		information to persons traveling in the state for the purpose of 7
32	32		influencing such persons' level of satisfaction with the state and 8
33	33		expenditures in the state and their planning for present and future 9
34	34		trips to the state. 10
35	35		(b) Within available appropriations, the following measures shall be 11
36	36		implemented to enhance the operation of visitor welcome centers: 12
37	37		(1) Each center shall make available space for listing events and 13
38		-	promoting attractions, by invitation to the Connecticut tourism 14 Committee Bill No. 192
	38	+	promoting attractions, by invitation to the Connecticut tourism 14
	39	+	Committee Bill No. 192
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45	44		industry, including tourism districts, chambers of commerce and any 15
46	45		other tourism entities involved in Connecticut tourism promotion; 16
47	46		(2) The Department of Economic and Community Development, in 17
48	47		consultation with the Department of Transportation, shall develop 18
49	48		plans for (A) consistent signage for the visitor welcome centers, and (B) 19
50	49		highway signage regulations for privately operated centers; 20
51	50		(3) The Department of Transportation and the Department of 21
52	51		Economic and Community Development shall establish an "Adopt A 22
53	52		Visitor Welcome Center" program, under which local civic 23
54	53		organizations may provide maintenance, gardening, including 24
55	54		wildflowers, and complimentary refreshments or any other type of 25
56	55		service at a visitor welcome center to enhance the operation of the 26
57	56		center; 27
58	57		(4) The Department of Economic and Community Development 28
59	58		shall place a full-time year-round supervisor and a part-time assistant 29
60	59		supervisor at the Danbury, Darien, North Stonington and West 30
61	60		Willington centers. The responsibilities of each supervisor shall 31
62	61		include, but not be limited to: (A) Maintaining a sufficient inventory of 32
63	62		up-to-date brochures for dissemination to visitors, (B) scheduling staff 33
64	63		so as to assure coverage at all times, (C) training staff, (D) compiling 34
65	64		and maintaining statistics on center usage, (E) serving as liaison 35
66	65		between the department, the Department of Transportation, the 36
67	66		tourism district in which the center is located and businesses in such 37
68	67		district, (F) maintaining quality tourism services, (G) rotating displays, 38
69	68		(H) evaluating staff, (I) problem-solving, and (J) computing travel 39
70	69		reimbursements for volunteer staff; 40
71	70		(5) Subject to available funds, the Department of Economic and 41
72	71		Community Development shall place a seasonal full-time supervisor 42
73	72		and a seasonal part-time assistant supervisor at the Greenwich and 43
74	73		Westbrook centers. The department shall discontinue staffing at the 44
75	74		Middletown, Plainfield and Wallingford centers, and shall, in 45
76		-	conjunction with the tourism industry, seek contract workers to 46 Committee Bill No. 192
	75	+	conjunction with the tourism industry, seek contract workers to 46
	76	+	Committee Bill No. 192
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83	81		provide tourism services at the Westbrook center when not staffed by 47
84	82		the state; 48
85	83		(6) Subject to available funds, the Department of Economic and 49
86	84		Community Development, in conjunction with the tourism industry, 50
87	85		shall develop and implement initial staff training and conduct periodic 51
88	86		training of full-time and part-time supervisors. 52
89	87		(c) The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development 53
90	88		shall, in consultation with local chambers of commerce, develop a plan 54
91	89		to recruit local volunteers to staff the state's visitor welcome centers 55
92	90		and to reopen any closed visitor welcome centers. Not later than 56
93	91		February 1, 2020, the commissioner shall submit such plan to the joint 57
94	92		standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of 58
95	93		matters relating to commerce, in accordance with the provisions of 59
96	94		section 11-4a. 60
97	95		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
98	96		sections:
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100	98		Section 1 from passage 10-399
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102		-	CE Joint Favorable
	100	+	Statement of Purpose:
	101	+	To require the Commissioner of Economic and Community
	102	+	Development to submit a plan regarding the reopening of the state's
	103	+	visitor welcome centers using volunteer staffing.
	104	+	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
	105	+	except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
	106	+	not underlined.]
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	108	+	Co-Sponsors: SEN. SOMERS, 18th Dist.; REP. BOLINSKY, 106th Dist.
	109	+	REP. ROSE, 118th Dist.
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	111	+	S.B. 192
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