Should the State DOT sell surplus lumber from tree trimming to generate revenue for road repairs instead of just chipping it up for mulch?

Should state municipalities be able to establish donation funds to supplement their social services efforts?

Should lawmakers be permitted to remove state department heads?

Should Connecticut officials be required to explain violations to local businesses before levying fines for certain statutory violations?

These are just a few questions that could be answered if Republican State Representative Dan Carter is successful in seeing a number of his proposed bills in the current legislative session become law. Rep Carter, whose Second statehouse district overlaps several neighborhoods in western Newtown, has his eye on a number of far-reaching proposals, as well as a number of ideas that, if successful, would have some impact locally.

First and foremost, he is going after state spending practices.

“While the priority remains pressuring the majority to stop spending like a bunch of drunken sailors — no offense to sailors — there are a few priorities worth mentioning,” Rep Carter said in an e-mail providing The Newtown Bee with a spreadsheet of all his proposed bills for the session.

“As far as the budget goes, we are close to $3 billion in the hole on the next budget,” he said. “We have to concentrate on reducing spending [by shifting] many state responsibilities to nonprofits and encourage nonprofits to streamline to avoid duplication of efforts.”

Rep Carter is also proposing a number of bills he hopes will relieve both some of the tensions and costs shouldered by state residents who are engaged in divorce actions.

“Unfortunately, about half the folks in my district who have been married have had that marriage end in a divorce,” Rep Carter continued. “For many of these couples, the family court system has proven to create an even more adversarial relationship that has resulted in financial ruin for many of our friends and neighbors.”

The Bethel lawmaker observed that “entire college tuitions are sent down the drain, while the $5 billon divorce industry wreaks havoc.”

“I am introducing multiple concepts this year in an attempt to reform the court system into a system that works for families by reducing conflict and creating a more efficient process,” he said.

There are many other proposals as well, he said, including shifting the maintenance for state roads (non-interstate and non-parkway) to towns with the corresponding increase in road aid.

“This would allow us to shrink DOT,” he said.

The following proposals are among the many Rep Carter is working on currently:

*An Act Concerning Pharmacists And Abuse-Deterrent Opioid Prescriptions — to prohibit pharmacists from making substitutions when an abuse-deterrent opioid is prescribed, unless the pharmacist receives written permission from the prescribing health care provider.

*An Act Permitting The Removal Of Department Heads By The General Assembly — to permit the General Assembly to remove a department head by a majority vote of the membership of each chamber.

*An Act Providing Credit For Existing Affordable Housing — to allow municipalities to count existing affordable housing stock toward the threshold value of affordable housing necessary for exemption from the affordable housing land use appeals process. Statement of Purpose: To allow municipalities to receive credit for existing affordable housing stock.

*An Act Concerning Expedited Court Enforcement Of Premarital Agreements — to provide that, when a court conducts a hearing on the enforceability of a premarital agreement, the court shall issue a decision on the enforceability of such agreement not later than 30 days after the date on which the hearing occurred. Statement of Purpose: To provide for a more expeditious court process in matters involving the enforceability of a premarital agreement.

Rep Carter says that “premarital agreements should be heard right away, instead of soaking people out of thousands of dollars.”

*An Act Concerning Municipal Social Services Funds to allow each municipality to establish a Social Services Fund to be overseen by municipal officials with responsibility for social services and funded by donations, including, but not limited to, those made by taxpayers who check a box on motor vehicle tax bills to donate not more than ten dollars.

Rep Carter says the proposal, if passed, “allows towns to form a fund and then allows people to voluntarily donate when they pay car tax.”

*An Act Concerning The Sale Of Surplus Timber By The Department Of Transportation — to direct the Department of Transportation to create a process by which surplus wood produced from tree-cutting along rights-of-way is sold instead of chipped. The department may determine an amount of wood allowed per worker, and shall establish a penalty for unlawful resale.

Rep Carter says, “Right now the DOT grinds up timber. Perhaps we could sell it and put it towards transportation projects.”

*An Act Expanding The Research And Development Tax Credit For Bioscience Companies — to (1) increase the research and development tax credit for bioscience companies, and (2) authorize the Commissioner of Economic and Community Development to redeem bioscience companies’ unused research and development tax credits from previous years. Purpose: To encourage research and development and support the bioscience industry in Connecticut.

*An Act Requiring State Agencies To Explain Violations Prior To Imposing Fines — to (1) require a state agency to provide, in writing, the cite to the specific regulation or statute violated prior to imposing a fine on any person for such violation and an explanation of how the violation can be corrected, and (2) provide that failure to provide such explanation shall make the fine null and void.

Regarding this proposal, Rep Carter says the “state fines businesses and then doesn’t tell them exactly why and how to fix. Crazy, but it happens. It’s like having thugs hit people up for protection money.”

*An Act Concerning Expeditious Rulings By The Court In Child Custody Cases — to provide that not later than 15 days following the date of a hearing on a child custody matter, the court shall enter custody and visitation orders for such matter, and that in the absence of such an order by the court with the 15-day period, the parties shall share equally in the custody and parenting time of the child. To ensure that child custody hearings are promptly decided by the court.

*An Act Concerning Pursuit Outside Of Precincts By Police Officers — to provide that sworn members of any local police department, outside of their respective precincts, may arrest, without previous complaint and warrant, any person for any offense when the person is taken or apprehended in the act or on the speedy information of others, and that whenever such sworn member of a local police department makes any such arrest, such sworn member shall immediately notify the local police department or state police troop having jurisdiction over the precinct in which the arrest was effected.

*An Act Concerning Parents And Guardians Of Crime Victims And Unemployment Benefits — to allow a parent or guardian, who must leave a job to take care of a child who is a victim of a crime, to receive unemployment benefits during the period when they are unable to work.

*An Act Concerning Private Contributions To Public Works Projects And The Prevailing Wage Standard — to exempt any funding contributed by a private source from the calculation used to determine whether a public works project must abide by prevailing wage laws. To ensure that the prevailing wage threshold does not include costs defrayed by funds by a private source.

Rep Carter describes this proposal as, “An awesome bill — encourages people to donate to municipalities by reducing the costs of the projects.”

*An Act Concerning The Zero Tolerance Environment Act. This bill, co-sponsored by the entire Newtown delegation including Senator Tony Hwang, would provide for a zero tolerance environment in which the penalty for making a threat of violence against a school is increased to a felony with a mandatory fine, provided if the person charged is deemed to suffer from mental illness, the courts shall make mental health assistance available.

In addition, Rep Carter has proposed these bills; no collateral information was provided at press time:

*An Act Requiring The Safe Storage Of Firearms

*An Act Creating A Database Of Individuals Who Are Prohibited From Purchasing Or Possessing A Firearm Due To Psychiatric Or Psychological Disorder

*An Act Concerning Security In Child Day Care Facilities

*An Act Legalizing Industrial Hemp

*An Act Establishing A Task Force To Study The Department Of Children And Families

*An Act Requiring Health Care Providers To Be Vaccinated Against Influenza