Construction of New Rail Stations Set to Begin in 3 Connecticut Communities

The start of construction is imminent this fall for new rail stations in Wallingford, Meriden and Berlin as part of the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield (NHHS) Rail Program.  The new, expanded commuter service, to debut in 2016, will be branded the “Hartford Line,” as a key component of an increasingly robust multi-modal regional transportation system being developed in the state and region. Improvements at the three stations include high-level platforms on both sides of the track, overhead pedestrian bridge with new elevators and stair towers, platform snow melt systems, electric vehicle charging stations, ticket vending machines and passenger information display systems,  high-resolution video surveillance systems, increased parking capacity and roadway access improvements, improved accessibility and bicycle racks.

Funded through the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (PRIIA) created under President Barack Obama in 2008, and State of Connecticut bonds proceeds, the NHHS Rail Program is aimed at providing significant new regional passenger rail service options.  Existing stations on the Hartford line are in New Haven, Wallingford, Meriden, Berlin, Hartford, Windsor Locks and Springfield.  Plans call for future stations in North Haven, Newington, West Hartford and Enfield. 

Officials point out that one of the primary objectives of the NHHS program is to serve as a catalyst for transit-oriented development (TOD) around the stations. The state Department of Transportation is working with towns to help leverage the investment in railroad infrastructure to capture local development benefits. TOD, in the form of compact, mixed-use districts, is pedestrian-friendly and contributes to vibrant and active communities. By promoting the use of transit, TOD also reduces reliance on automobiles, resulting in energy cost savings and improved air quality.

In June, officials from the U. S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) toured parts of the NHHS Rail corridor, and state officials recently visited a proposed rail station site in Enfield.

The new NHHS rail service is expected to operate at speeds up to 110 mph, cutting travel time between Springfield and New Haven to as short as 79 minutes. Travelers  will be able to board trains every 45 minutes during the morning and evening peak hours and every 90 minutes during off-peak periods when the new system is operational.

A year ago, a West Haven rail station was added to the New Haven line.  Located midway between Milford and New Haven stations, West Haven was the first new station to open on the New Haven Line since Fairfield Metro Station was added in 2011. West Haven Station was designed by Vanasse Hangen Brustlin and built by a Connecticut company, Manafort Brothers of Plainville.

A New York City-based construction firm, Judlau Construction, has been awarded the $58.8 million contract to build the new railroad stations in Berlin, Meriden and Wallingford, the New Haven Register reported last month.  The firm specializes in large public works projects and design-build services, and currently ranks #132 on Engineering News Record’s list of the Top 400 Contractors, as well as #32 among Top Domestic Heavy Contractors. (In 2011, the company ranked #113 on the Top 400 list and #33 on the Top Domestic Heavy Contractors list.)

In June, the Chicago Tribune reported that the company was being awarded a $64 million construction contract by Illinois Tollway as low bidder for construction of new highway entrance ramps.  The Tribune also reported that Judlau “admitted improper hiring practices and paid a $7.5 million penalty in connection with an alleged minority hiring scheme” in New York, which the company said it had “self-reported” to the U.S. Attorney’s office.  The Tribune reported that “according to a 2012 civil lawsuit settlement with the U.S. attorney's office, Judlau and its partner in a Metropolitan Transportation Authority tunnel project admitted engaging in improper hiring practices involving minority- and women-owned businesses, otherwise known as disadvantaged business enterprises, or DBEs.”

Connecticut Ranks #6 in USA in Energy Efficiency, Continuing Top Ten Streak

Connecticut ranks as the #6 state in the nation in energy efficiency, according to an analysis by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).  A new report by the Council found that Massachusetts continues to edge out California as the most energy-efficient state in the nation for the fourth year in a row.  Connecticut has been a steady top-ten state since the annual survey began eight years ago, but dropped one slot this year. Rounding out the top 10 are Rhode Island  (the state’s first time in top five), Oregon, and Vermont (all tied for #3); Connecticut (#6); New York (#7); Washington (#8); Maryland (#9); and Minnesota (#10).

Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Kentucky, and Wisconsin are the four most improved energy-efficiency states for 2014. Indiana and Ohio fell the furthest in the rankings due to decisions by legislators in both states to roll back energy savings targets.  They were among 23 states that dropped in the state-by-state rankings.  At the bottom of the rankings, the five states most in need of improvement on energy efficiency in 2014 are North Dakota, Wyoming, South Dakota, Mississippi, and Alaska.

Overall, states are ramping up their commitments to energy efficiency, the report indicated, as governors and lawmakers in state capitals across the nation continue to take major steps to lower energy costs, reduce pollution, and save consumers money by increasing their states’ energy efficiency.  Sixteen states rose in the rankings this year, in the 8th annual edition of the State Energy Efficiency Scorecard.

Connecticut was ranked fifth a year ago, and sixth the previous year.  In 2011, the state ranked #9 and in 2010, ranked #8.  State officials noted that Connecticut continues to be a leader in the nation, and the strong ranking is likely to improve in the coming year as increased funding for energy efficiency programs, not fully reflected in this year's survey, have an impact. Also noted was the state's decision to invest in infrastructure, such as charging stations throughout the state for vehicles, which was not an area of focus for the report but will be beneficial for Connecticut consumers.

The State Energy Efficiency Scorecard benchmarks states across six policy areas – utility policies and programs, transportation initiatives, building energy codes, combined heat and power development, state government-led initiatives, and state-level appliance standards. In total, states are scored on more than 30 individual metrics. Data is collected from publicly available sources and vetted by state energy offices and public utility commissions, according to the Council.  The 2014 report found that nationwide, total budgets for electricity efficiency programs in 2013 reached $6.3 billion. Adding that to natural gas program budgets of $1.4 billion, total efficiency program budgets were estimated to be more than $7.7 billion in 2013.

The leading states in utility-sector energy efficiency programs and policies were Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Vermont, and the leading state in building energy codes and compliance was California. California and New York led the way in energy-efficient transportation policies.

Maggie Molina, director of ACEEE’s Utilities, State, and Local Policy program, said: “Smart energy efficiency choices maintain the same comfort, convenience, and quality of life that consumers want and expect. Energy efficiency is also good for business. State action on energy efficiency improves bottom lines, drives investment across all sectors of the economy, creates jobs, and offsets the environmental harms created by the energy production system.”

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors.

Innovation and Impact of Manufacturing Companies in CT Is Focus of New CPTV Documentary

With Election Day less than two weeks away amid intensifying discussion of job growth in Connecticut, CPTV zeroes in on modern manufacturing and the role of innovation in companies. The CPTV Original documentary Made in Connecticut premieres Thursday, Oct. 23 at 8 p.m. on CPTV. Twelve businesses that exemplify the diversity of successful manufacturing “located and thriving right here in Connecticut” are featured in the program.

The documentary is part of a three-year, multi-platform initiative by Connecticut Public Broadcasting that celebrates Connecticut’s manufacturing future, from high-tech to hand-made.  The initiative includes additional special programming airing on CPTV and WNPR/Connecticut Public Radio.

Against the backdrop of such timely issues as outsourcing and a global economy, the Made in Connecticut documentary explores topics including:

• the value that manufacturing provides to the state’s economy;
• how the manufacturing sector is contributing to the creation of jobs in Connecticut;
• how advances in technology have changed the nature of manufacturing and the skills needed to work successfully in the manufacturing environment; and
• how science, technology and innovation are transforming manufacturing endeavors around the world, the nation and the state.

Featured in the documentary are:

• Barnes Group headquartered  in Bristol, which started as a spring company in 1857 to supply the clock industry and has now exploded into a global leader in industrial and aerospace manufacturing;
• Curtis Packaging in Sandy Hook, a nearly 170-year-old family-owned company that has reinvented itself as a world leader in luxury packaging and environmental stewardship;
• Ola! Granola in Norwalk, where a mother of three produces hand-made granola in mouth-watering flavors such as vanilla almond, cranberry orange pecan and chocolate banana-chip;
• Oxford Performance Materials in South Windsor, a plastics company on the edge of science fiction-like technology, using 3-D printing to create cranial implants for people who have suffered traumatic brain injury;
• Pratt &Whitney in East Hartford, the industry leader in aerospace, creating breakthrough technology with its PurePower jet engine that will revolutionize air travel;
• Protein Sciences in Meriden, which has a game-changing flu vaccine that takes just weeks to mass produce to fight pandemics worldwide;
• Severance Foods in Hartford, a snack food company founded by three friends who invested in a tortilla-making machine in the 1980s, and now employs more than 85 people to produce 40,000 pounds of tortilla chips a day;
• Tucci Lumber, which makes baseball bats in South Norwalk and was founded by a former Major leaguer.

Connecticut’s unemployment rate dropped to 6.4 percent last month as nonfarm jobs reached a new recovery high point. The unemployment rate last month was the lowest it has been in the state since November 2008, according to a state Department of Labor report.  The employment gain of 11,500 jobs in September is the largest since April 1994, the seventh monthly nonfarm employment gain this year and a "vigorous bounce-back" from the revised decline of 1,200 jobs in August, the Department of Labor said.  As the state takes proactive steps to ensure people are trained for manufacturing jobs, employment numbers are simultaneously rising. In the most recent data, manufacturing jobs increased from 163,500 last year to 164,100 this year, Fairfield County Business Journal reported.  The manufacturing industry plays a crucial role throughout Connecticut communities, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy's office pointed out recently, noting that Connecticut’s 4,602 manufacturers account for 10.2% of the state’s jobs and 87% of the state’s total exports.

To prepare future workers, Manchester Community College will lead the state's 12 community colleges and Charter Oak State College in a federally funded effort to expand manufacturing education in the state as part of a $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, announced this month.  The grant  will support an expansion of the Connecticut Advanced Manufacturing Initiative, which trains students for jobs in the field. The grant will pay for equipment to provide hands-on training, new teachers and educational assistants and the development of registered apprenticeship programs for high-demand manufacturing occupations, among other investments.

“In recent years, technological advances, as well as human innovation and creativity, have put Connecticut on the forefront of a manufacturing revolution. This revolution is not only exciting, it’s important to the local economy, as it’s helping to create jobs. Manufacturing has always been an important part of Connecticut’s culture and economy,” said Jerry Franklin, President and CEO of CPBN, who is to be honored next week by Hartford Business Journal with the publication’s Lifetime Achievement Award for his leadership in the broadcast industry.

The documentary Made in Connecticut is produced and hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Christina DeFranco. Funding was made possible by Founding Sponsor, KBE Building Corporation. KBE Building Corporation is a full-service, single-source commercial construction company strategically positioned to serve the Eastern and Mid-Atlantic, with offices in Connecticut and Maryland.

“We’re passionate about fostering innovation in Connecticut’s manufacturing and technology spaces, and we just happen to have built more technical high schools around the state than anyone else.  We’re thrilled to shine light on this critical aspect of the state’s current and future economy,” said Mike Kolakowski, KBE Building Corporation’s President and Principal Owner.

See preview on You Tube.   

CT Ranked #20 in U.S. in Commuters Driving Alone; Average Commute is 25 Minutes

In Connecticut, 78.6 percent of commuters drove alone in their own car, truck or van, ranking the state #20 in the nation.  Data compiled by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics of the U.S. Department of Transportation also indicated that 8.2 percent carpooled, 3 percent of the state’s commuters walk to work, 4.8 percent use public transportation, and 4.1 percent worked from home. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) included the data in State Transportation Statistics 2014, a statistical profile of transportation in the 50 states. The data was included in the 12th annual edition of the report, a companion document to the National Transportation Statistics (NTS), which is updated quarterly on the BTS website.

Nationally, in comparison, 76.3 percent of Americans drove alone; 9.7 percent carpooled; 5 percent rode transit; 2.8 percent walked; 4.4 percent worked at home; and 1.8 percent used other modes.

The daily commute to work takes 24.8 minutes on average, for Connecticut residents.  The national average was 25.7 minutes using data compiled in 2012, the most recent year available. 

The smallest percentage driving along in their vehicle?  Alaska (66.2%), Hawaii (65.2%), Oregon (71.2%), Massachusetts (71.9%), and Washington (72.2%).  The highest?  Alabama (85.3%), Tennessee (83.6%), Mississippi (83.5%), Ohio (83.3%), South Carolina (82.9%), and Kentucky (82.7%).

Only seven states had a mean travel time to work of less than 20 minutes:  Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.  South Dakota’s 16.7 minutes was the quickest commute.

CT's Captive Insurance Program Ranks #2 in US

The Connecticut Insurance Department’s Captive Insurance Program has been ranked the #2 program in the nation by an industry trade publication in only its third year of operations.   A captive insurer is an insurance company that is organized and owned by a parent firm or association to manage the owners’ risk and control costs. Captive insurance has become an increasingly important tool used by companies to manage their business risk and promote strategic initiatives.  Captives are best described as a form of self-insurance, but with all the advantages of traditional insurance. Once an alternative to the commercial insurance market, captives have evolved into strategic financial vehicles used for many different enterprises, such as manufacturing and health care, officials explain.

Earlier this fall, the Connecticut Captive Insurance Association, along with the state Insurance Department and prominent industry sponsors, held the 2014 Symposium on Captive Insurance in Stamford.  The conference, “Captives Done Right:  Revolutionary Strategies for Optimizing Capital,” included sessions on risk mitigation strategies, corporate governance, risk retention and healthcare captives.  Participants included the chief financial officer of Frontier Communications, director of finance of the Archdiocese of Hartford, Chief Scientist Emeritus at Pitney Bowes, Senior Legal Counsel at Swiss Re America Holdings, and president & CEO of JANUS Associates.

According to the symposium’s website, the advantages of captive insurance include the opportunity to earn an underwriting profit, improved risk management and loss control, coverage for unusual or hard to place risks, direct access to reinsurance, and potential tax savings.

One of 37 states and U.S. territories that allow captives, Connecticut was ranked the second leading domicile by Captive Review, behind Vermont, in the magazine’s U.S. Captive Service Awards announced this week.  The annual awards recognize captive industry professionals who have demonstrated the highest levels of excellence over the past year.With 5,660 companies registered in captive domiciles across the world, according to the publication, the captive insurance sector remains a vital alternative risk transfer (ART) option and a significant part of the insurance sector.  Delaware was top-ranked a year ago.

Connecticut currently has four licensed captive insurers and several more applications pending.

“Connecticut is taking a unique approach to the captive market,” said Connecticut Insurance Department Captive Unit Manager John Thomson. “We are working beyond a pure regulatory regime and are focusing on helping captive owners create sustainable risk financing vehicles. It is not about the number of licensed captives but about an informed professional regulatory response.”

CT’s Regional Planning Agencies Consolidate, Realign and Disappear

As the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency (CCRPA) prepares to go out of existence, the newly formed Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments is advertising for an Executive Director.  It’s all part of a major shake-up of regional planning agencies in central Connecticut, prompted by the state legislature’s decision to reduce the number of regional planning agencies in the state from 15 to 9, as of January 1.  Among the by-products:  Bristol and New Britain are parting company. The realignment is breaking up long-term relationships going back decades, and forcing municipalities to decide on new partners.  Regional planning agencies deal with a range of issues, but generally focus on transportation, land use, brownfield cleanup and environmental projects. For communities between two large cities that serve as anchors of regional planning agencies, it often comes down to deciding it they’d like to align to the east or the west.

The Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency (CCRPA), for example, has been the regional and metropolitan planning organization for the cities of Bristol and New Britain and the towns of Berlin, Burlington, Plainville, Plymouth, and Southington. For over 45 years, CCRPA has worked with government, business, and the public to develop a vision for the region and resolve its challenges.  It will cease to exist at the end of the year.

The newly formed Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG) will replace the Council of Governments of Central Naugatuck Valley and the Valley Council of Governments plus add two towns from the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency – Bristol and Plymouth.

The other CCRPA towns, including New Britain, are headed elsewhere. Most of the towns in the CCRPA have opted to join with Hartford area municipalities in the Capitol Region Council of Governments, but Bristol officials decided to join the Waterbury agency instead.  New Britain is one of eight municipalities to join CRCOG in recent months, as part of the CCRPA break-up.

CRCOG will have grown to 38 member municipalities, with a total population of just under one million, and 1,047 square miles, the largest of the state’s regional planning agencies.  Joining CRCOG since July 1 are Berlin, Columbia, Coventry, Mansfield, Plainville, Southington, Willington and New Britain.  The new Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments will represent 19 towns and cities with a population of 448,738, over 420 square miles.

Ed Edelson and Kurt Miller, the current chairmen of the two councils of governments that had been covering the Naugatuck Valley, which will be subsumed by the new Council, said recently that “although our two current organizations have done high-quality work over the past four decades, we recognize they each have had different strengths and areas of focus.”

Edelson, the Democrat first selectman of Southbury, and Miller, the Republican first selectman of Seymour, added “we believe this step to align the 19 cities and towns around the urban center of Waterbury provides the best opportunity for all of our communities to combine resources, and bring significant new investment and cost savings to each of our communities.”  NVCOG held its first organizational meeting in late summer, and launched their Executive Director search last week.

Bristol Mayor Ken Cockayne recently said he “looks forward to strengthening existing ties to neighbors and building new relationships and cooperation with communities that share many of Bristol’s priorities and challenges.”

They also said they “recognize the importance of our new region’s major cities — such as Waterbury, Bristol and Shelton — as the economic engines. Their economic and social future is critical to all of the surrounding towns. We are all dynamically linked.”

For those who may be interested in the Executive Director position, topping the list of characteristics for the “ideal candidate” – “honest, trustworthy, diplomatic and ethical.”  And leading the “opportunities and challenges” – managing the consolidation, “sensitive to the cultural differences” of bringing the 19 towns together as a new council of governments.

The next challenge for the state, according to Edelson and Miller, is the consolidation of the Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), which are the federal regions that plan transportation systems and jointly allocate federal funds for these projects with the Connecticut Department of Transportation. There currently are eight MPOs in Connecticut, and the aim is to have fewer MPOs with boundaries that coincide with the new councils of governments’ boundaries.

CT’s 40 Fastest Growing Tech Companies Achieve Statewide Recognition

Connecticut’s fasted growing technology companies will be the center of attention Thursday evening as the Connecticut Technology Council (CTC) and Marcum LLP spotlight the 2014 Marcum Tech Top 40. Now in its 7^th year, the annual list features privately and publicly held companies, including some newcomers to the top 40. The 2014 winners are predominantly privately held companies, but 12 public companies also made the list, including Rogers Corporation, Gartner Inc. and Alexion Pharmaceuticals. That’s a slight drop from a year ago, when 14 public companies made the list.

Geographically, Fairfield County is home to 16 winning companies this year, followed by Hartford County and New Haven County, both with ten companies. For Fairfield and New Haven counties, the count increased by two businesses from a year ago; for Hartford County, the number was unchanged from last year. 

The selected companies have at least $3 million in annual revenue and a demonstrated record of growth in each of the preceding four years.  Four of the businesses have over $1 billion in revenue.

The Marcum Tech Top 40 recognizes technology leaders in six industry sectors, including Advanced Manufacturing, Energy/Environmental, Life Sciences, New Media/Internet/Telecom, IT Services, and Software. This year’s winners range from newcomer VRSim, Inc., a creator of virtual reality training tools for industrial and manufacturing applications, to Priceline.com, a leader in mobile travel.

Bruce Carlson, CTC’s President and CEO added, “Connecticut is proud of its remarkable heritage of innovation and invention. Job growth in Connecticut is going to come from the technology sector and these Tech Top 40 companies are a great example of the range of technology companies that are growing substantially in Connecticut.”

Among the names on this year’s list:  Frontier Communications, based in Stamford, providing communications services to residential and business customers across the country (in the news this year for the proposed purchase of AT&T’s business in Connecticut); and Bolt Technology Corporation, based in Norwalk, the leading worldwide developer and manufacturer of seismic energy sources, synchronizers and underwater connectors used in offshore seismic exploration for oil and gas; and Fitlinxx, based in Shelton,  an industry leading provider of wellness applications, wireless activity monitors, and health tracking devices that motivate people to live active and healthy lifestyles.

The city with the largest number of companies on the Top 40 list this year is Stamford, with six, followed by Norwalk with four, Shelton with three, and Wallingford, South Windsor, Simsbury and New Haven, each with two businesses on the list.  Other towns with a top 40 high tech business are Torrington, Danbury, West Hartford, Cheshire, Guilford, Greenwich, Plainville, Middlebury, New London, Killingly, Middletown, Fairfield, Madison, Branford, Farmington, Glastonbury, Windsor, Orange and East Hartford.

“Technology companies have a set of shared challenges that range from capital-raising and complex revenue reporting to intellectual property management and international expansion.  Whether they are private enterprises or Fortune 500 companies, this year’s Marcum Tech Top 40 winners all demonstrate management excellence and market foresight,” said Alex Discepolo, a Tax Partner in Marcum’s New Haven office and Practice Leader of the Firm’s High Technology Services Group.

The October 2 awards program, being held at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, will include an exhibition featuring the Marcum Tech Top 40 companies. Six category winners will be announced, and one company will be named overall winner for demonstrating the greatest percentage growth in revenue across all the technology verticals.

The Connecticut Technology Council is a statewide association of technology oriented companies and institutions, providing leadership in areas of policy advocacy, community building and assistance for growing companies. Speaking for 2,500 companies that employ some 200,000 residents, the Connecticut Technology Council seeks to provide a strong and urgent voice in support of the creation of a culture of innovation.

 The Tech Top 40:

Advanced Manufacturing

• APS Technology Inc – Wallingford
• Bolt Technology Corporation – Norwalk
• Dymax Corporation – Torrington
• Revolution Lighting Technologies Inc. – Stamford
• Rogers Corporation – Rogers 

Energy/Environmental/Green Technology

• FuelCell Energy, Inc – Danbury
• Proton OnSite – Wallingford

 IT Services

• Cervalis LLC – Shelton
• Datto Inc. – Norwalk
• Gartner Inc. – Stamford
• Information Services Group Inc. – Stamford
• IT direct, LLC. – West Hartford
• VLink Inc. – South Windsor

Life Sciences

• Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – Cheshire
• Bio-Med Devices, Inc. – Guilford
• Metrum Research Group LLC. – Tariffville

 New Media/Internet/Telecom

• Chief Executive Group – Greenwich
• EasySeat, LLC – Plainville
• Frontier Communications – Stamford
• HealthPlanOne LLC – Shelton
• iSend, LLC – Middlebury
• Job Target, LLC – New London
• M2 Media Group – Stamford
• Priceline.com, Inc. – Norwalk
• Reality Interactive, LLC. – Middletown
• TVEyes Inc. – Fairfield

Software

• Clarity Software Solutions, Inc. – Madison
• Core Informatics, LLC – Branford
• Evariant, Inc. – Farmington
• Evolution1, Inc. – Simsbury
• Fitlinxx, Inc. – Shelton
• Higher One, Inc. – New Haven
• KenCast, Inc. – Norwalk
• Link Systems Inc. – Stamford
• Shoptech Corporation – Glastonbury
• Square 9 Softworks Inc. – New Haven
• SS&C Technologies Holdings Inc. – Windsor
• Tangoe Inc. – Orange
• TicketNetwork - South Windsor
• VRSim, Inc. – East Hartford

License Renewal of WTIC-AM on “Enforcement Hold” at FCC

The Federal Communications Commission has the pending license renewal of WTIC-AM radio on “enforcement hold,” nearly six months after the station’s broadcast license technically expired.  The station can continue broadcasting under the license that expired on April 1, 2014 until the FCC acts on its renewal application, which was filed last year on November 27, just days ahead of the renewal application deadline. In the wake of the corruption conviction earlier this month of former Governor and former WTIC talk show host John G. Rowland, questions have been raised about the radio station that employed Rowland.  Although FCC officials say that “while it is too late to file a formal Petition to Deny the license renewal,” because the renewal date has passed, “an informal objection can still be filed to the license renewal” at any time prior to action on the pending renewal application.

The FCC explains that an "informal objection," which is an official process, “may take the form of a letter signed by the objector” and should “contain sufficient information to establish any violation alleged.”   FCC officials indicate that no objections to the station’s renewal have been filed as of this week.  If the station’s license renewal is granted, it would be for an 8-year period.

There is no indication when the hold was placed on the renewal application by the FCC’s enforcement division, what the reason was, or when it might be lifted.  FCC officials indicate that most often enforcement holds are instituted due to a complaint being filed that requires investigation, but they would not confirm whether that was true in this instance.  That information is only made available to the licensee or their attorney, according to an FCC official. 

Action on the license renewal application remains possible at any time.  Should an informal objection be filed, the FCC would, in most instances, need to deal with any issues raised in the objection before it would act on the license renewal application.

In April 2014, Rowland resigned as a WTIC-AM radio host as his drive-time talk show, with a federal indictment imminent related in part to Rowland’s relationship with the campaign of then-Congressional candidate Lisa Wilson-Foley. Rowland had remained on the air on WTIC, even after it was revealed that his relationship with the Wilson-Foley campaign had sparked a federal grand jury investigation.

During this month’s trial, according to published reports, a former campaign operative for Wilson-Foley described ways Rowland allegedly coordinated topics on his WTIC talk show with the messages he wanted the campaign to get out.

In May 2012, responding to a complaint filed that month by Kenneth James Krayeske to the FCC regarding Rowland’s unstated relationship with the Wilson-Foley campaign, Mark Berlin of the FCC’s Policy Division Media Bureau indicated that “the FCC has no control over who a station might employ either on-air or off the air, and there is no requirement that a station disclose any current or prior political relationship of its employees.”

“We accept Mr. Rowland’s decision to step down at this time," Jenneen Lee, the station's program director, said in a statement posted on the station's website soon after Rowland went off the air earlier this year, CT Mirror reported.  The Rev. Will Marotti, who was Rowland's spiritual adviser and served as his co-host when Rowland went on the air at the station in September 2010, took over as host of the weekday afternoon program and remains on the air.

Back in 2012, the Torrington Register-Citizen reported that “according to a WTIC-AM representative, former Gov. Rowland disclosed the fact that he was working with Republican Lisa Wilson-Foley’s campaign ‘months ago,’ but said the 5th congressional district race is avoided on air, intentionally. ‘He actually stays away from it on purpose,’ Jeneen Lee said. ‘To date, there’s been no conversation on the air about the campaign.’”  Editorials published in the months following the campaign-related revelations called for additional disclosure by WTIC.

Rowland, who resigned as Governor a decade ago in a corruption scandal and served 10 months in prison, was convicted this month of federal charges that he conspired to hide payment for work on two congressional campaigns, in 2010 and 2012, including the Wilson-Foley campaign.

WTIC is owned by CBS Radio.

CT Ranked #1 in Exceeding Goal in Year One of Affordable Care Act

An analysis of how states fared in the inaugural year of the Affordable Care Act, based on targets for enrollment developed by the Obama Administration, shows that Connecticut leads the list. According to the analysis published by the Wall Street Journal using data from the Department of Health and Human Services, Connecticut ranked #1, attaining 140 percent of the sign-up goal.  The only other states that did better than expected were Rhode Island (137%), New Hampshire (112%) and Florida (106%).

Rounding out the top dozen states, based on their performance compared with expectations, were Maine (92%), Idaho (90%), North Carolina (87%), Wisconsin (77%), Delaware (76%), New York (70%), Virginia (70%), New Jersey (69%), Michigan (69%).

The Journal reported that the lessons learned in the first roll-out of the health care program will be utilized when the next enrollment period begins on November 15.  The newspaper noted that more than eight million people got private insurance for 2014 through the law's insurance exchanges, which were plagued with technical problems when they opened in October 2013 but stabilized toward the end of the six-month sign-up period.

The next enrollment period runs through February 2015, and it is expected that marketing campaigns will stress testimonials from real people, more emphasis on deadlines, and an increased focus on in-person help.  Individuals can sign up at the federal website, healthcare.gov, to receive updates, focused by individual states.

Connecticut’s official health insurance marketplace, Access Health CT, is reminding state residents that Enrollment in Medicaid (HUSKY) and the Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) is open year round for eligible persons and families.

The website points out that individuals may also still be eligible to enroll in coverage throughout the year “if you or a member of your household has experienced a Special Enrollment Qualifying Life Event in the past 60 days or you will in the next 60 days.” Qualifying Life Events may include: child birth, adoption, death of a member of the household, marriage, loss of current health care coverage, loss or reduction in employer insurance contributions, new legal CT or U.S. residency, or U.S. lawful presence. Individuals that qualify may not need to wait until November to enroll, and can call 855-805-4325 for additional information.

Earlier this month, Access Health CT CEO Kevin Counihan took his Connecticut experience to Washington, accepting a position overseeing the federal health exchange.  Counihan joined the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services team as Marketplace Chief Executive Officer, where he will lead the federal Marketplace, manage relationships with state marketplaces and run the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, which regulates health insurance at the federal level.  He'll be in position when the next enrollment period gets underway later this fall.

“We are proud of what we’ve accomplished here—we’re a national leader with more than 280,000 people enrolled in affordable health insurance,” said Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman, Chair of the Access Health CT Board.

At the other end of the spectrum, according to the analysis, the states that fared well below expectations were Massachusetts (-87%), Oregon (-71%), Kentucky (-62%), Nevada (-61%) and New Mexico (-61%).

Nation's First Black Astronaut in Space Calls for More Diversity in Science, Engineering Ranks

“A first class education is not just a requirement, it is a civil right,” America’s first African American astronaut, aerospace engineer Guion Bluford, told an attentive and appreciative audience at the University of Hartford, speaking as part of the university’s week-long “Empowering Change” initiative marking the 50^th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. Bluford, who flew on four space shuttle missions (in 1983, 1985, 1991 and 1992) and had a distinguished career with NASA and in private industry afterwards, told a standing-room-only audience of students, faculty and local residents that the caliber of the education at the high school he attended in Philadelphia has diminished to the point that area residents can’t imagine a graduate being  adequately prepared to pursue college-level engineering.

“Minorities of all kinds are seriously underrepresented in the science and engineering workforce of 5 million in this country.  Only 2.7 percent of African Americans and 2.2 percent of Hispanics have science or engineering degrees.  This disparity needs to be addressed,” Bluford said.

Bluford, 71, also noted that “534 astronauts have flown in space, but only 14 African Americans and 15 Hispanics have flown in space.  If America is going to maintain its scientific competitiveness, we must encourage more African Americans and Hispanics to pursue careers in science and technology.”

Bluford urged math and science at the high school level be mandatory with a focus on college preparation and career development, and called on colleges to “make an extra effort” to insure that minority students succeed, citing statistics indicating that approximately 60 percent of students who enter college majoring in STEM subjects end up graduating in a non-STEM field.

He called for greater collaboration between colleges, professional organizations and industry, and with associate-degree institutions and high schools to better prepare and support students in science and math for work at the college level, and into careers.

“Success in these programs will provide a more diverse workforce with the skills they need to meet the technical demands of the 21^st century,” Bluford said.  “America needs more underrepresented minorities in its talent pool if we are going to be competitive in tomorrow’s world.”

Bluford earned a bachelor of science degree in aerospace engineering from Pennsylvania State University in 1964; a master of science degree with distinction in aerospace engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1974; a doctor of philosophy in aerospace engineering with a minor in laser physics from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1978 and a master in business administration from the University of Houston. In addition to his 688 hours in space on shuttle missions, he has logged more than 5,200 hours jet flight time, including 1,300 hours as a T-38 instructor pilot. He also has an FAA commercial pilot license and is a certified scuba diver.

Describing his parents as role models, Bluford said he was fortunate not to have suffered the injustices suffered by many African Americans in the South, having been raised “in an environment where everything was possible. They taught me the importance of working hard, aiming high, chasing my dream, never giving up, and being true to myself.”  He emphasized that in attending public schools, he had “excellent teachers who set high standards for achievement – teachers that were willing to stay after school to help their students.  My teachers were demanding, my parents were relentless,” Bluford recalled.

Bluford said he “never thought he would be part of the space program,” but applied, and was selected, after witnessing with his generation the space program’s remarkable accomplishments in the 1960’s, including the first manned lunar landing.  He urged that interest in science be nurtured early in children – as early as kindergarten - and with after-school activities, such as traveling to "museums, scouting, summer camp, chemistry sets, robots... We need to close the education gap that exists between students attending schools in the poor  inner cities and students attending schools in the affluent suburbs," Bluford said.

“For African Americans growing up in the inner cities, a rich tapestry of activities focused on math and science is essential for success. Exposing these experiences to minority students gives them a feeling that they can also do it – be pilots, scientists, and even astronauts.”  As for the future, Bluford has no doubt that space exploration will continue, explaining that “curiosity will drive us to Mars and beyond.”