Gov. Lamont predicts Connecticut lawmakers will pass tolls, marijuana and sports betting this year
Gov. Ned Lamont predicted Tuesday that electronic highway tolls, recreational marijuana and sports betting will all be passed by the state legislature this year.
“Yeah, I do,” Lamont told reporters at the Capitol complex. “I do because I think it’s the right thing for the state. I think it’s time. I think our neighboring states are doing something like this. I’m working in collaboration with them. There are a lot of moving parts in politics, and I’ve got to bring some folks together to get this done. But I think it’s the right thing for the state, and that’s why I’m going to support it, and put my shoulder to the wheel to get it done.”
Bills to establish tolls and legalize sports betting passed legislative committees last month and have been sent to the House and Senate for consideration. One marijuana bill has also passed at the committee level, and several others are still pending.
For months, Lamont has been saying that his administration has been engaged in talks with the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes regarding the legalization of sports betting. Prior to Lamont’s inauguration, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was talking to the tribes even after the state attorney general rejected the tribes’ position that they have the exclusive rights to sports betting.
Read more: https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-pol-lamont-tolls-marijuana-sports-betting-20190402-our6mtcto5fcjd2sxph5cqvik4-story.html