2023 Connecticut General Statutes › Title 19a - Public Health and Well-Being › Chapter 368a - Department of Public Health › Section 19a-112j. - Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention. Duties. Membership. Report.

(a) There is established a Commission on Community Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention to advise the Commissioner of Public Health on the development of evidence-based, evidenced-informed, community-centric gun programs and strategies to reduce community gun violence in the state. The commission shall be within the Department of Public Health for administrative purposes only.
(b) The commission shall be composed of the following members:
(1) Two appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a representative of the Connecticut Hospital Association and one of whom shall be a representative of Compass Youth Collaborative;
(2) Two appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of whom shall be a representative of the Connecticut Violence Intervention Program and one of whom shall be a representative of the Regional Youth Adult Social Action Partnership;
(3) Two appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a representative of Hartford Communities That Care, Inc. and one of whom shall be a representative of CT Against Gun Violence;
(4) Two appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, one of whom shall be a representative of Project Longevity and one of whom shall be a representative of Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center;
(5) One appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, who shall be a representative of Yale New Haven Hospital;
(6) One appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, who shall be a representative of Hartford Hospital;
(7) One appointed by the House chairperson of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public health, who shall be a representative of the Greater Bridgeport Area Prevention Program;
(8) One appointed by the Senate chairperson of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public health, who shall be a representative of a community gun violence reduction program;
(9) One appointed by the executive director of the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and Opportunity, who shall be a representative of the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention;
(10) Two appointed by the Commissioner of Public Health;
(11) Two appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be a member of the faculty at an academic institution and have experience in gun violence prevention and one of whom is an advocate for survivors of violent crime;
(12) One appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, who shall be employed as the highest-ranking professional police officer of an organized police department of a municipality within the state;
(13) One appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, who shall be a youth representative of a group that advocates on behalf of justice-involved youth;
(14) The Commissioner of Public Health;
(15) The Commissioner of Children and Families, or the commissioner's designee;
(16) The Commissioner of Social Services, or the commissioner's designee; and
(17) The executive director of the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and Opportunity, or the executive director's designee.
(c) The members of the community gun violence intervention and prevention advisory committee established under section 9 of public act 21-35* shall be deemed the initial appointments to the commission under subdivisions (1) to (10), inclusive, of subsection (b) of this section.
(d) In making appointments to the commission, the appointing authorities shall seek to select individuals for such appointments who are representative of the full geographic diversity of communities that experience community gun violence in the state.
(e) The first meeting of the commission shall be held not later than sixty days after the effective date of this section. The Commissioner of Public Health shall serve as the chairperson of the commission.
(f) A majority of the membership of the commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business and any decision shall be by a majority vote of those present at a meeting, except the commission may establish such subcommissions, advisory groups or other entities as it deems necessary to further the purposes of the commission.
(g) The members of the commission shall serve without compensation, but shall, within the limits of available funds, be reimbursed for expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of their duties.
(h) The commission shall advise the Department of Public Health regarding the development of criteria for any grant opportunities that arise through the program established pursuant to section 19a-112i.
(i) Not later than January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, the commission shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public health, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, and to the Commissioner of Public Health concerning the activities of the commission.
(P.A. 22-118, S. 81.)
*Note: Section 9 of public act 21-35 is special in nature and therefore has not been codified but remains in full force and effect according to its terms.
History: P.A. 22-118 effective May 7, 2022.