Local lawmakers target early voting changes, tax relief plans

As the 2026 legislative session moves forward, State Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) and State Sen. Stephen Harding (R-30) are advancing distinct priorities they say will shape the direction of the state.

The regular session, which convened in Hartford on Feb. 4 and is set to adjourn May 6, comes amid uncertainty over federal funding, debate over housing policy and continued scrutiny of state spending.

Horn said one of her top priorities this session is to maintain “fiscal and program stability” in Connecticut in the face of rapidly changing federal policies.

“We are in a position to mitigate the chaos,” she said in a phone interview Friday, Feb. 27.

Horn is the chair of the legislature’s Finance Committee.

One item she is keeping an eye on is elections. Horn said that small-town first selectmen and registrars have complained that the 14 days of early voting requires too much effort and money for what amounts to a handful of voters taking advantage of the policy.

There is also a move in Connecticut to create “no-excuse” absentee voting, which would allow any registered voter to request a mail-in ballot without providing a specific reason — aligning the state with most others and potentially achieving the same access as extended early voting at a fraction of the cost.

Horn is also working on changes to Connecticut’s “bottle bill,” which raised the deposit on bottles and cans from five cents to 10 cents in 2024. However, because neighboring states such as New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island did not follow through on similar increases, some people have been bringing containers purchased out of state into Connecticut to redeem them at the higher rate. That practice has prompted lawmakers to pursue stricter enforcement and penalties to curb cross-border fraud, which has left beverage distributors absorbing the costs.

Horn said the state needs more redemption centers and better enforcement and accountability.

In a phone interview Feb. 27, Harding, who is the state Senate Minority Leader, said his top priority is to take advantage of a General Fund balance of some $4 billion to provide tax relief for residents.

Tax relief could come in the form of eliminating the car tax and reducing state income taxes for some taxpayers.

Harding said he and fellow members of his caucus are pushing back against what they describe as “statewide zoning” proposals. He argued that efforts to expand affordable housing — including measures that allow developers in certain cases to override local zoning — pose a threat to the open space that residents of the Northwest Corner value.

“Open spaces get eaten up by developers under the current rules,” he said.

While acknowledging the state faces an affordable housing shortage, Harding said solutions should not come at the expense of local control.

“I understand there’s a problem with affordable housing in the state, but we shouldn’t bypass local zoning,” he said, adding that housing policy is best addressed at the local rather than state level.

Harding said there is a problem with easements granted by the state Department of Agriculture in the past. The easements were written years — and sometimes decades — ago, and developers have learned how to exploit ambiguities in the legal language.

“Some of these easements are 30 or 40 years old, and they are not worded properly.”