Good morning! The UConn men’s basketball team might win the NCAA championship, but all bets are off. Connecticut is one of the few states, as well as New York, that prohibits residents from betting on in-state college teams.
Despite high profit potential, college sports betting is discouraged due to the pressure it could put on college athletes and how it may intensify gambling culture on campuses. Another bill was introduced this year that would prohibit universities from receiving profit from any company that markets gambling products or practices to students.
This year, Connecticut rolled out professional sports betting, with the state receiving $136.5 million in February, and $167.7 million in January in profit.
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we are hearing:
New York ended a polio vaccine campaign after receiving complaints that the campaign was antisemitic. Last week, the state Department of Health sent a truck with a billboard — “Polio is spreading in Israel. Get immunized now” — to predominantly Jewish neighborhoods, expecting many residents to travel to Israel once Passover begins. The campaign ad was pulled on Tuesday with the department ensuring residents that they condemn antisemitism and remain committed to serving New York’s diverse communities.
A bald eagle died in New Haven after consuming rodents that were poisoned. The death of the national bird has caused wildlife advocates to push for two bills that would ban the use of “second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides.” Advocates said the ban would help restore declining eagle and other raptor populations, while pest management businesses need the poison to control rodent populations.
A key legislative committee raised Suffolk County’s Child Protective Service workers annual pay, and reduced the caseload for workers. According to the county’s Seniors and Human Services Committee, CPS employees were previously overworked, handling as many as 15 cases at a time, causing stress and work quality to worsen. Now, workers should average up to 12 cases or fewer at a time.
Connecticut lawmakers have advanced a bill that would address gun violence in the state. Proposed by Governor Ned Lamont, the bill would increase the age to purchase guns to 21, ban the open carrying of firearms in public, prohibit the manufacture of a firearm without obtaining and engraving a serial number from the state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, and increase education requirements for firearm licenses, among other provisions. The state Judiciary Committee approved this bill a day after six people including three children were killed in a Nashville shooting on Monday.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will spend $130 million to reduce pollution from congestion pricing in the Bronx and other neighborhoods. This mitigation package will shift from diesel to electric powered trucks, improve parks and green spaces, install air filtration units in high schools near highways, and expand off-hours truck deliveries to encourage overnight shipments. This plan, which was sent to federal authorities to review, is expected to take place over five years.
New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli will follow up on a 2022 audit that revealed the state undercounted COVID-19 related nursing home deaths. The audit revealed the state Department of Health understated the exact number of COVID-19 related deaths in nursing homes by 50%. The audit recommends the department expand nursing home survey data, improve coordination with localities on the collecting of infection control-related data, and improve how it responds to outbreaks.
Gosman’s Dock in Montauk is back on the market for $45 million. According to Marcus & Millichap, the property includes four restaurants, six retail stores, a wholesale lobster and fish business, four staff housing properties, a 330-car parking lot and some vacant land. The dock has been in the Gosman family since 1950 and became a popular tourist destination, with over 125,000 people visiting the location on average every summer.
