2026 State Legislative Session Addresses Many of AARP Connecticut’s Priorities

AARP Connecticut works with lawmakers to advance policies that serve the best interests of residents and their families. The 2026 legislative session marked important progress on many key priorities, including improving affordability, strengthening consumer protections, and supporting family caregivers.

“AARP Connecticut is proud to have worked with lawmakers across party lines in support of policies and legislation that put residents first, including lowering costs, supporting caregivers, strengthening consumer protections, and expanding access to care and services,” said Nora Duncan, AARP Connecticut State Director. “AARP Connecticut will continue working with policymakers to build on this momentum and ensure all residents can live with greater financial security and independence.”

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AARP Connecticut’s 2026 legislative session priorities were to work with lawmakers on policies that keep more money in the pockets of residents and their families; address rising utility costs to ensure fair and affordable access to essential services such as electricity and high‑speed internet; expand voting options for all residents; support family caregivers and access to affordable, high‑quality health care for those receiving home care and in long‑term care settings; strengthen protections against consumer fraud; and create communities that help older adults live safely and independently as they age.

AARP Connecticut appreciates the bipartisan efforts that resulted in the passage of many key priorities during the 2026 Legislative Session, including the below highlights:

• Tax Credit for Family Caregiver Expenditures (Senate Bill 1, section 271)
  Family caregivers are the backbone of a broken long-term care system. In Connecticut, an estimated 710,000 caregivers of adults make tremendous financial, physical and emotional sacrifices so their loved ones can remain safely at home – and out of costly, taxpayer funded, nursing homes. According to AARP’s recent Valuing the Invaluable report, family caregivers in Connecticut provide 460 million hours of unpaid care each year — work that would be worth $10.7 billion annually if paid at the market rate of $23.45 per hour.
  AARP supported section 271 of the state budget legislation that creates a nonrefundable income tax credit of up to $2,000 for income-eligible family caregivers who incur eligible expenditures to care for and support an eligible family member.

• Gift Card Fraud (House Bill 5563, sections 1-4)
  Criminals increasingly target older adults using gift cards. According to the FTC, in 2024 consumers paid $212 million to scams using gift cards with victims losing an average of more than $5,150 per incident. This legislation provides robust oversight and enforcement related to gift card fraud, including strengthening Connecticut’s response to organized retail theft, creating new larceny offenses, and equipping law enforcement agencies with modern tools to fight fraud.

• Consumer Fraud and How to Protect Against It (House Bill 5208)
  With a constant barrage of bogus texts, emails and phone calls, fraud is epidemic today. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) estimated in a 2025 report to Congress that, when accounting for underreporting, as much as $195.9 billion was stolen from Americans via financial fraud in 2024 alone. Of that, as much as $81.5 billion was stolen from older adults.
  AARP supports the section of this legislation requiring the Banking Committee chairpersons to set up a 19-member working group to study consumer fraud and how to protect against it. AARP Connecticut looks forward to contributing towards offering tips and ways for people to stay informed and safe from fraud.

• Absentee Voting for All (House Bill 5001)
  In 2024, Connecticut voters overwhelmingly supported removing the need for an excuse to vote by absentee ballot. This legislation will eliminate restrictions on absentee voting and reform the process to ensure it is easy, convenient, and without onerous requirements.

• Energy Affordability and Accountability
  As utility costs continue to rise, AARP has been at the forefront of advocacy in support of policy and regulations that are in the best interest of Connecticut’s consumers of energy. With a focus around residential solar and energy storage systems, Senate Bill 233 will provide a variety of stronger consumer protections.
  In addition to supporting the legislation that passed, AARP Connecticut successfully opposed passage of House Bill 5245 that would have weakened any of the strong consumer protections in the third-party electric supplier market such as opt out “community choice aggregation” of electric supply.

• High Speed Internet
  Many Connecticut residents face a barrier to accessing affordable high-speed internet. Over 92,000 Connecticut households with a person 50+ were on the Federal Affordable Connectivity Program before congress let the funding run out. In 2025 the state legislature created the Net Equity Program, scheduled to begin in September 2026, to address the lack of affordable high-speed internet options. With support from AARP Connecticut, the legislature defended the new program from continued opposition by internet providers.

• Training for Homemaker-Companion Agency Employees (House Bill 5143)
  AARP Connecticut advocates for the needs of Connecticut’s most vulnerable residents and supports policy that ensures high-quality home and community-based services. This legislation will require homemaker-companion agencies to provide not less than ten hours of initial training to new employees, and continuing education to current employees.

• Preference for Smaller “Green House” Nursing Home Rooms (Senate Bill 288, section 1)
  AARP Connecticut is committed to ensuring individuals can live with dignity as they age and supports the section of this policy that gives preference to nontraditional, small-house style nursing homes whose goals are in keeping with the department’s long-term care strategic plan to address facility needs in priority census tracts.

• Aging-In-Place Grant Program (Senate Bill 1, section 343)
  AARP supports the section of this legislation that creates a grant program to aid certain homeowners with making accessibility modifications so they can remain in their primary residences. The bill requires the Department of Aging and Disability Services, in consultation with the Department of Housing, to create an aging-in-place program to give grants to eligible homeowners for making accessibility modifications that enable them to remain in their primary residences.

• Defending the Community First Choice Program
  AARP applauds the Legislature's protection of this important program, which helps seniors and people with disabilities live in the community with self-directed support, preventing unnecessary nursing home care.

• Supporting Microtransit Services (Senate Bill 9)
  This bill extends the state’s successful microtransit pilot program. Microtransit is an on-demand, flexible transportation service that uses small vehicles to provide rides where and when people need them. It can greatly support older adults by offering convenient, curb-to-curb mobility options that improve access to healthcare, social activities, and essential services.

• Volunteer Drivers and Insurance (Senate Bill 87, section 2)
  AARP Connecticut supports section 2 of this legislation that prohibits insurers from refusing to renew a motor vehicle policy or increasing the rate, including by assigning a surcharge on a premium, solely because the vehicle operator is a volunteer driver who provides services, such as transporting people or goods to nonprofit or charitable organizations without compensation above expenses.