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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 7159
January Session, 2025
AN ACT CREATING YELLOW ENVELOPES TO PROMOTE
ACCOMMODATION AND COMMUNICATION BETWEEN FIRST
RESPONDERS AND PERSONS WITH COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENTS OR
PHYSICAL DISABILITIES AND INCREASING AWARENESS OF BLUE
AND YELLOW ENVELOPES AMONG FIRST RESPONDERS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) For the purposes of this 1
section, (1) "police officer" and "law enforcement unit" have the same 2
meanings as provided in section 7-294a of the general statutes; (2) 3
"emergency medical services personnel", "commercial ambulance 4
service", "rescue service", "ambulance service" and "paramedic intercept 5
service" have the same meanings as provided in section 19a-175 of the 6
general statutes; and (3) "firefighter" has the same meaning as provided 7
in section 7-323j of the general statutes, as amended by this act. 8
(b) Not later than January 1, 2026, the Commissioner of Motor 9
Vehicles, in consultation with the Commission on Women, Children, 10
Seniors, Equity and Opportunity, an association of police chiefs in the 11
state, an association of fire chiefs in the state, an association of 12
emergency medical services personnel in the state and at least one 13
organization that advocates for persons with cognitive impairments or 14
physical disabilities, shall: 15
(1) Design yellow envelopes that (A) provide written information and 16
guidance on the outside of the envelopes regarding ways to promote 17
accommodations and enhance effective interactions and 18 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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communication between a police officer, emergency medical services 19
personnel or firefighter and a person with cognitive impairments or 20
physical disabilities, and (B) are capable of holding a person's motor 21
vehicle operator's license, registration, insurance identification card and 22
other information or materials related to such person's cognitive 23
impairment or physical disability; 24
(2) Develop public awareness materials, including, but not limited to, 25
brochures about the yellow envelopes designed in accordance with 26
subdivision (1) of this subsection and blue envelopes designed in 27
accordance with section 14-11j of the general statutes, information cards 28
designed to fit inside a wallet, lanyards, seat belt covers, buttons, 29
ribbons, key chains, bracelets, stickers, window decals and magnets, 30
that contain information about ways to promote accommodations and 31
enhance effective interactions and communication with a person with 32
cognitive impairments, physical disabilities or autism spectrum 33
disorder; and 34
(3) Disseminate such yellow envelopes and public awareness 35
materials (A) at the main office and branch offices of the Department of 36
Motor Vehicles, law enforcement units, municipal and volunteer fire 37
departments, commercial ambulance services, commercial rescue 38
services, volunteer and municipal ambulance services, ambulance 39
services and paramedic intercept services operated and maintained by 40
a state agency, and (B) to emergency medical services personnel. 41
(c) Upon (1) receipt of such yellow envelopes and public awareness 42
materials, and (2) request by a person with a cognitive impairment or 43
physical disability or such person's parent, guardian, family member or 44
driver, such department, unit, service or emergency medical services 45
personnel shall provide a yellow envelope and any available public 46
awareness materials at no charge to such person, parent, guardian, 47
family member or driver. 48
Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 2-128 of the general statutes is 49
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from 50 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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passage): 51
(a) The Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and 52
Opportunity shall: 53
(1) Focus its efforts on the following quality of life desired results for 54
women, children and their families, seniors and members of the African-55
American, Asian Pacific-American and Latino and Puerto Rican 56
populations of the state: That all such persons are (A) healthy, safe and 57
achieve educational success; (B) free from poverty; and (C) free from 58
discrimination; 59
(2) With the advice of the executive committee of the commission, 60
make recommendations to the General Assembly and the Governor for 61
new or enhanced policies, programs and services that will foster 62
progress in achieving the desired results described in subdivision (1) of 63
this subsection. Such recommendations shall, when applicable, include, 64
but need not be limited to: (A) Systems innovations, model policies and 65
practices which embed two-generational practice in program, policy 66
and systems change on the state and local levels, in accordance with 67
section 17b-112l; (B) strategies for reducing family poverty, promoting 68
parent leadership and family civics; (C) the promotion of youth 69
leadership opportunities that keep youth engaged in the community; 70
and (D) strategies and programs that address equitable access, impede 71
bias, and narrow the opportunity gap for women, children and their 72
families, seniors and members of the African-American, Asian Pacific-73
American and Latino and Puerto Rican populations of the state. Such 74
recommendations may include other state and national best practices, 75
and recommendations on federal funding maximization; 76
(3) With the advice of the executive committee of the commission, 77
review and comment, as necessary, on any specific proposed state 78
legislation or recommendations that may affect women, children and 79
their families, seniors and members of the African-American, Asian 80
Pacific-American and Latino and Puerto Rican populations of the state 81
and provide copies of any such comments to members of the General 82 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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Assembly; 83
(4) With the advice of the executive committee of the commission, 84
advise the General Assembly concerning the coordination and 85
administration of state programs that affect women, children and their 86
families, seniors and members of the African-American, Asian Pacific-87
American and Latino and Puerto Rican populations of the state; 88
(5) Gather and maintain, as necessary, current information regarding 89
women, children and their families, seniors and members of the African-90
American, Asian Pacific-American and Latino and Puerto Rican 91
populations of the state that can be used to better understand the status, 92
condition, and contributions of such groups. Such information, as 93
appropriate and pertinent to the desired results delineated in 94
subdivision (1) of this subsection, shall be included in the annual report 95
submitted in accordance with subsection (b) of this section and shall be 96
made available to legislators and other interested parties upon request; 97
(6) Maintain liaisons between women, children and their families, 98
seniors and members of the African-American, Asian Pacific-American 99
and Latino and Puerto Rican populations of the state and government 100
agencies, including the General Assembly; [and] 101
(7) Conduct educational and outreach activities intended to raise 102
awareness of and address critical issues for women, children and their 103
families, seniors and members of the African-American, Asian Pacific-104
American and Latino and Puerto Rican populations of the state; and 105
(8) Consult with (A) at least one organization that advocates for 106
persons with cognitive impairments, physical disabilities or autism 107
spectrum disorder and offers courses that are certified by the Police 108
Officer Standards and Training Council established under section 7-109
294b, (B) an association of police chiefs in the state, (C) an association of 110
fire chiefs in the state, and (D) an association of emergency medical 111
services personnel in the state, to coordinate and identify various 112
education and training programs for first responders concerning 113
techniques for handling incidents, promoting accommodations and 114 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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enhancing effective interactions and communication between a first 115
responder and a person with a cognitive impairment, physical disability 116
or autism spectrum disorder. 117
Sec. 3. Section 7-294h of the general statutes is repealed and the 118
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 119
On and after January 1, 2017: (1) Each police basic or field training 120
program conducted or administered by the Division of State Police 121
within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection 122
shall provide a minimum of twenty-seven hours of training relative to 123
the handling of juvenile matters which includes, but is not limited to, 124
the following: (A) Techniques for handling incidents involving 125
juveniles; (B) information relative to the processing and disposition of 126
juvenile matters; (C) applicable procedures in the prosecution of cases 127
involving juveniles; (D) information regarding resources of the juvenile 128
justice system in the state; (E) the use of graduated sanctions; (F) 129
techniques for handling trauma; (G) restorative justice practices; (H) 130
adolescent development; (I) risk-assessment and screening tools; (J) 131
emergency mobile psychiatric services; and (K) on and after January 1, 132
[2020,] 2026, information relative to the blue envelopes designed 133
pursuant to section 14-11j and yellow envelopes designed pursuant to 134
section 1 of this act and techniques for handling incidents, such as 135
wandering, that involve juveniles and adults with autism spectrum 136
disorder, cognitive impairment or nonverbal learning disorder, 137
provided the curriculum for such techniques is available at no cost to 138
the division from (i) institutions of higher education, health care 139
professionals or advocacy organizations that are concerned with 140
juveniles and adults with autism spectrum disorder, cognitive 141
impairment or nonverbal learning disorder, or (ii) a collaboration of 142
such institutions, professionals or organizations; (2) each police basic or 143
field training program conducted or administered by the Police Officer 144
Standards and Training Council established under section 7-294b or by 145
a municipal police department in the state shall provide a minimum of 146
fourteen hours of training relative to the handling of juvenile matters as 147
provided in subdivision (1) of this section; and (3) each police review 148 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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training program conducted or administered by the Division of State 149
Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public 150
Protection, by the Police Officer Standards and Training Council 151
established under section 7-294b or by a municipal police department in 152
the state shall provide a minimum of one hour of training relative to the 153
handling of juvenile matters as provided in subdivision (1) of this 154
section. 155
Sec. 4. Section 7-323l of the general statutes, as amended by section 3 156
of public act 24-136, is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 157
thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 158
(a) The commission shall: 159
(1) Recommend minimum standards of education and physical 160
condition for candidates for any firefighter position; 161
(2) Establish standards for fire service training and education 162
programs, and develop and conduct an examination program to certify 163
those fire service personnel who satisfactorily demonstrate their ability 164
to meet the requirements of the fire service training and education 165
program standards; 166
(3) Establish an optional fire service training and education program 167
[in the] that provides information relative to the blue envelopes 168
designed pursuant to section 14-11j and yellow envelopes designed 169
pursuant to section 1 of this act and techniques for handling of incidents, 170
such as wandering, that involve juveniles and adults with autism 171
spectrum disorder, cognitive impairment or nonverbal learning 172
disorder, provided the curriculum for such techniques is made available 173
at no cost from (A) institutions of higher education, health care 174
professionals or advocacy organizations that are concerned with 175
juveniles and adults with autism spectrum disorder, cognitive 176
impairment or nonverbal learning disorder, or (B) collaborations of such 177
institutions, professionals or organizations; 178
(4) Conduct fire fighting training and education programs designed 179 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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to assist firefighters in developing and maintaining their skills and 180
keeping abreast of technological advances in fire suppression, fire 181
protection, fire prevention and related fields; 182
(5) Recommend standards for promotion to the various ranks of fire 183
departments; 184
(6) Be authorized, with the approval of the Commissioner of 185
Emergency Services and Public Protection, to apply for, receive and 186
distribute any state, federal or private funds or contributions available 187
for training and education of fire fighting personnel; 188
(7) Recommend that the Commissioner of Emergency Services and 189
Public Protection approve or reject the establishment of, or, when 190
appropriate, suspend or revoke the approval of, regional fire schools in 191
accordance with section 7-323u; 192
(8) Advise the Division of Fire Services Administration within the 193
Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection on the 194
management of the Statewide Fire Service Disaster Response Plan; 195
(9) Implement the recommendations of the study of the fire service 196
authorized pursuant to subdivision (36) of subsection (b) of section 41 197
of public act 23-204; and 198
(10) Submit to the Governor, the joint standing committee of the 199
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public safety 200
and security, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, and the 201
Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection an annual 202
report (A) relating to the activities, recommendations and 203
accomplishments of the commission, and (B) making recommendations 204
on the funding necessary for the operation of, the maintenance of and 205
capital improvements to the state fire school and regional fire schools. 206
(b) The commission may recommend, and the Commissioner of 207
Emergency Services and Public Protection may adopt, regulations in 208
accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 as necessary to implement 209 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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the provisions of this section. 210
Sec. 5. Section 19a-179e of the general statutes is repealed and the 211
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 212
(a) Not later than June 30, 2020, and annually thereafter, the 213
Department of Public Health shall, within available appropriations, 214
compile a list of training programs that are available to members of 215
commercial ambulance services, commercial rescue services, volunteer 216
and municipal ambulance services, ambulance services and paramedic 217
intercept services operated and maintained by a state agency and 218
emergency medical services personnel, as defined in section 20-206jj. 219
Such training programs shall be approved by the Commissioner of 220
Public Health and include information relative to the blue envelopes 221
designed pursuant to section 14-11j and yellow envelopes designed 222
pursuant to section 1 of this act and techniques for handling incidents, 223
such as wandering, that involve juveniles and adults with autism 224
spectrum disorder, cognitive impairment and nonverbal learning 225
disorder. Such training programs may be offered by institutions of 226
higher education, health care professionals and advocacy organizations 227
that are concerned with juveniles and adults with autism spectrum 228
disorder, cognitive impairment or nonverbal learning disorder, and 229
collaborations of such institutions, professionals or organizations. The 230
department may accept private donations for the purposes of this 231
section. 232
(b) Not later than July 1, 2020, and annually thereafter, the 233
Department of Public Health shall make the list compiled pursuant to 234
subsection (a) of this section available to members of commercial 235
ambulance services, commercial rescue services, volunteer and 236
municipal ambulance services, ambulance services and paramedic 237
intercept services operated and maintained by any state agency and 238
emergency medical services personnel, as defined in section 20-206jj. 239
Sec. 6. Section 7-323j of the general statutes is repealed and the 240
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 241 Substitute Bill No. 7159
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As used in this part, "commission" means the Commission on Fire 242
Prevention and Control; "municipality" means town, city, consolidated 243
town and city, consolidated town and borough, borough, school district, 244
fire district, fire and sewer district, sewer district, lighting district or any 245
other municipal corporation or taxing district upon which is placed the 246
duty of, or which has itself assumed the duty of, protecting its 247
inhabitants from loss by fire; "fire fighting duties" means and includes 248
duties performed in connection with the suppression and prevention of 249
fires, fire training and rescue, fire investigation, arson investigation, 250
details and assignments to protect the public safety against fire and 251
other related work; ["firefighters"] "firefighter" means any person who 252
is regularly employed and paid by any municipality or by a contractor 253
which is a nonprofit corporation for the purpose of performing fire 254
fighting duties for a municipality on an average of not less than thirty-255
five hours per week or any volunteer who performs fire fighting duties. 256
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 from passage 2-128(a)
Sec. 3 January 1, 2026 7-294h
Sec. 4 January 1, 2026 7-323l
Sec. 5 January 1, 2026 19a-179e
Sec. 6 January 1, 2026 7-323j
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Section 1(b)(3), Subpara. designators were added for clarity; and in
Section 1(c), "the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles and each law
enforcement unit, municipal and volunteer fire department, commercial
ambulance service, commercial rescue service, volunteer and municipal
ambulance service and ambulance service and paramedic intercept
service operated and maintained by a state agency and emergency
medical services personnel" was changed to "such department, unit,
service or emergency medical services personnel" for clarity.
TRA Joint Favorable Subst.