Greetings. I hope this note finds you and your family well.

The spread of COVID-19 has disrupted daily life across the entire United States, including our great city of Hartford. Clearly, we remain in the midst of an extremely serious and grave public health crisis. I want to thank and commend everyone on the front lines providing health care, ensuring public safety, supporting our children through school closures and volunteering their time to lend a hand to a fellow citizen. I also applaud those working at grocery stores, pharmacies and elsewhere who are providing essential services to all.

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Suspension of In-Person Open Meeting Requirements. Sections 1-206, 1-225, and 1- 226 of the Connecticut General Statutes, and any open meeting provision of any municipal charter, ordinance, or regulation that conflicts with this order, are suspended to the extent necessary to permit any public agency to meet and take such actions authorized by the law without permitting or requiring in-person, public access to such meetings, and to hold such meetings or proceedings remotely by conference call, videoconference or other technology, provided that: I) the public has the ability to view or listen to each meeting or proceeding in real time, by telephone, video, or other technology; 2) any such meeting or proceeding is recorded or transcribed, and such recording or transcript shall be posted on the agency's website within seven (7) days of the meeting or proceeding, and made available within a reasonable time in the agency's office; 3) the required notice and agenda for each meeting or proceeding is posted on the agency's website and shall include information about how the meeting will be conducted and how the public can access it; 4) any materials relevant to matters on the agenda, including but not limited to materials related to specific applications, if applicable, shall be submitted to the agency a minimum of twenty four (24) hours prior and posted to the agency's website for public inspection prior to, during, and after the meeting, and any exhibits to be submitted by members of the public shall, to the extent feasible, also be submitted to the agency a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours prior to the meeting and posted to the agency's website for public inspection prior to, during, and after the meeting; and 5) all speakers taking part in any such meeting or proceeding shall clearly state their name and title, if applicable, before speaking on each occasion that they speak.

Link: https://sidebar.ctbar.org/HigherLogic/System/DownloadDocumentFile.ashx?DocumentFileKey=8cc7c9ef-32f9-4fa7-9369-20cf8e3c5fb8&forceDialog=0

Contrary to what media reports may have us think, many defined benefit (DB) plan sponsors remain committed to maintaining their plans. Plan sponsors may have a perception that the cost and burden of maintaining their plans is too much, but DB plan administration requires fewer touchpoints than defined contribution (DC) plan administration, and sources argue that the cost to offload a pension is greater than the cost to maintain it. A survey of PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash readers found the vast majority think DB plans are the best source for guaranteed income in retirement. Some plan sponsors have turned to cash balance plans to satisfy the desire for DB plan income. The Pension Protection Act offered a way to convert to one without repercussions, and a cash balance plan design exists to ease asset/liability matching. The edition of PLANSPONSOR Weekend will offer a new way of looking at DB plans.

Protecting providers from competition is the enemy of efficiency and integrated mobility. It's an issue that New York City's congestion pricing will address.

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