O F F I C E O F L E G I S L A T I V E R E S E A R C H
P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
Page 1
PA 21-7—SB 817
Aging Committee
AN ACT CONCERNING SE NIOR CENTERS AND SEN IOR CRIME
PREVENTION EDUCATION
SUMMARY: This act establishes a 14-member statewide senior center working
group to develop a coordinated plan for senior centers and municipal services for
seniors. It also requires the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity,
and Opportunity, within available appropriations, to assist senior centers and
assign or appoint necessary personnel to do so.
By law, municipalities must appoint a municipal agent for the elderly to help
seniors learn about community resources and file for benefits. The act expands the
list of potential appointees to include senior center staff members. Prior law
limited potential appointees to (1) members of a municipal agency that serves the
elderly or (2) municipal residents with a demonstrated interest in the elderly or
who have been involved in aging programs.
The act also authorizes any one or more municipalities, or private
organizations that serve older adults and are designated to act as agents of one or
more municipalities, to establish a “multipurpose senior center,” which is a
community facility that organizes and provides a broad spectrum of senior
services, including recreational activities and health (including mental and
behavioral health), social, nutritional, and educational services (42 U.S.C. §
3002).
Additionally, the act expands the scope of the state’s Community Response
Education Program to include resources for community programs and education
on senior sexual assault and abuse safety, prevention, and risk reduction. This
program, within available appropriations, offers certain resources to
neighborhoods and municipalities that are notified that a registered sex offender is
living there or plans to do so.
Lastly, the act makes technical changes.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2021, except the provision on the Community
Response Education Program takes effect July 1, 2021.
§ 4 — STATEWIDE SENIOR CENTER WORKGROUP
Membership
The act establishes a 14-member statewide senior center working group to
develop a coordinated plan for senior centers and municipal services for older
adults. The group’s members must include:
1. the aging and disability services and social services commissioners, or
their designees; O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
Page 2 of 4
2. the executive director of the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors,
Equity and Opportunity;
3. two representatives of the Connecticut Association of Senior Center
Personnel, appointed by the Senate majority leader, who may be
legislators;
4. one representative of the Connecticut Association of Municipal Agents for
the Elderly, appointed by the governor;
5. one representative of the Connecticut Local Administrators of Social
Services, appointed by the House minority leader and who may be a
legislator;
6. five representatives of senior centers, with one each from the state’s five
elderly planning and services areas, two each appointed by the House
speaker and Senate president, and one appointed by the House majority
leader, all of whom may be legislators;
7. one representative of a nonprofit senior center, appointed by the governor;
and
8. one representative, who may be a legislator, from a National Institute of
Senior Centers (NISC)-accredited senior center, appointed by the Senate
minority leader.
Appointing authorities must make initial appointments by October 31, 2021,
and fill any vacancies. The commission’s executive director serves as the working
group’s chairperson and must hold the first meeting by November 30, 2021.
The commission’s administrative staff serve as the working group’s
administrative staff.
Duties
The act requires the working group to:
1. develop an annual plan to support and develop senior centers and
municipal services for older adults, including identifying training needs
and coordinating existing resources;
2. evaluate the feasibility of implementing standards for delivering core
services and make recommendations for these standards, including those
allowing for parity of core services across municipalities while
maintaining service delivery flexibility;
3. consult with the five area agencies on aging and other agencies;
4. facilitate coordination and communication among senior centers and
municipal services for older adults with executive branch departments,
including the departments of aging and disability services, housing, mental
health and addiction services, public health, social services, and
transportation, as well as with community agencies and initiatives
impacting older adults;
5. develop and provide access to best practices and procedures for senior
centers and municipal services for older adults; and
6. recommend any necessary appropriations or legislative changes to the
legislature’s Aging, Housing, Human Services, Planning and O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
Page 3 of 4
Development, Public Health, and Transportation committees.
Report
By January 1, 2023, the working group must report its findings and
recommendations to the Aging, Housing, Human Services, Planning and
Development, Public Health, and Transportation committees. The working group
terminates when it submits the report or January 1, 2023, whichever is later.
§ 3 — COMMISSION ASSISTANC E TO SENIOR CENTERS
The act requires the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and
Opportunity, within available appropriations, to provide assistance to senior
centers and assign or appoint necessary personnel to do so. Assistance may
include:
1. establishing and maintaining a list of senior centers and municipal services
for older adults, as well as a list of resources for their staff;
2. developing technical assistance for the staff, directly or by referral to
experts;
3. communicating regularly with the staff about local, state, and federal
support and services that interest them; and
4. facilitating the statewide senior center working group, as described above.
§ 2 — MULTIPURPOSE SENIOR CENTERS
Under the act, a multi-purpose senior center may provide the following
services:
1. nutrition services,
2. health and wellness programs,
3. employment assistance,
4. intergenerational initiatives,
5. community service and civic engagement opportunities,
6. public benefits counseling,
7. socialization and educational opportunities,
8. transportation,
9. peer counseling,
10. financial and retirement counseling,
11. arts and recreation programs, and
12. case management services.
§ 5 — COMMUNITY RESPONSE E DUCATION PROGRAM
The act expands the allowable scope of the state’s Community Response
Education Program to include resources for:
1. police departments and municipal officials to provide programs on senior
citizen sexual assault and abuse safety, prevention, and risk reduction and O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
Page 4 of 4
2. educating seniors, in addition to families and children as under current
law, on preventing and avoiding sexual abuse and assault.
Under existing law, the Court Support Services Division (in conjunction with
experts in related fields) administers the program, within available appropriations,
to help neighborhoods, parents, and children learn how to better protect
themselves from sexual assault and sexual abuse. The act specifies that
neighborhoods include senior centers or other facilities serving or housing
seniors.