OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS
Legislative Office Building, Room 5200
Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200
http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa
sHB-6817
AN ACT CONCERNING A TEMPORARY PERMIT TO CARRY A
PISTOL OR REVOLVER, A RESPONSE PLAN FOR A MASS
SHOOTING EVENT, AND THE POSTING OF A PERSON'S RIGHTS
ASSOCIATED WITH OWNING, POSSESSING AND CARRYING A
FIREARM.
Primary Analyst: RP 4/17/23
Contributing Analyst(s): RDP, BP
Reviewer: ME
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $
Department of Emergency
Services and Public Protection
GF - Cost 83,100 -
166,200
80,053 -
160,106
State Comptroller - Fringe
Benefits
1
GF - Cost 33,442 -
66,884
34,278 -
68,556
Emergency Services and Public
Protection, Dept.; State
Comptroller - Fringe Benefits
GF - Potential
Cost
See Below See Below
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill makes changes to the state’s response to mass shooting
events, resulting in a cost of $116,542 to $233,084 in FY 24 and $114,331
to $228,662 in FY 25 to the Department of Emergency Services and
Public Protection (DESPP) and the Office of the State Comptroller, as
well as potential costs depending on the number of such events. The bill
also makes changes affecting handgun carry permits and police notices
of certain firearm-related rights which are not anticipated to result in a
fiscal impact to the state or municipalities.
1
The fringe benefit costs for most state employees are budgeted centrally in accounts
administered by the Comptroller. The estimated active employee fringe benefit cost
associated with most personnel changes is 42.82% of payroll in FY 24. 2023HB-06817-R000635-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 2
The bill requires DESPP's civil preparedness plan to include a
response plan for mass shooting events, requiring DESPP to hire one to
two Emergency Management Program Specialists to develop and
disseminate plans and coordinate with other state and local agencies.
The starting salary of this position is $78,100, with associated fringe
benefits costing $33,442. There is also an estimated one-time cost of
$5,000 to $10,000 in FY 24 for equipment and training.
The bill also requires DESPP to coordinate, in collaboration with the
office of the Chief State’s Attorney, an investigation into each mass
shooting event, resulting in potential overtime costs to DESPP's State
Police averaging $79 per hour per trooper. It is anticipated that the office
of the Chief State’s Attorney will be able to comply with this
requirement with existing staff. In 2022, there were three qualifying
events, and in 2021, there were two.
Finally, the bill requires DESPP to coordinate with the Department of
Public Health (DPH) to deploy grief counselors and mental health
professionals after a mass shooting event to the affected community,
expected to result in no fiscal impact to either agency.
2,3
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to the number of mass shooting events
and inflation.
Sources: Department of Administrative Services website
Gun Violence Archive https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/reports
2
DPH can provide DESPP with information on the CT Association of School Based
Health Centers (SBHCs) that it supports. DPH funds a portion of Connecticut’s
SBHCs, some of which provide mental health services to youth. The association
includes 132 comprehensive sites and 152 expanded school health sites in
Connecticut for a total of 284 sites. DPH funds a total of 90 sites: 78 comprehensive
sites for medical and mental health services, and 12 expanded sites for medical or
mental health services.
3
DPH also licenses Professional Counselors, but it does not contract with them for the
provision of grief counseling or mental health services.