House Republican Press Release

January 18, 2007

Press Office: 860-240-8700

Rep. Labriola Receives Legislative Committee Assignments

Named to Education, Government Administration and Elections, and Judiciary Committees

State Representative David K. Labriola, R-131^st District, has been appointed to three of the Connecticut General Assembly’s most important legislative panels – the Education, Government Administration and Elections, and Judiciary committees, House Republican Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr. R-Norwalk, announced today.

“Representative Labriola, who will be serving as one of my assistant leaders for the 2007 – 2008 legislative sessions, was the House Ranking Member on the Education Committee for the past two years,” Representative Cafero said. “During his two years as our leader on this critical committee, he demonstrated an in-depth understanding of the issues facing our public schools, the ability to craft new proposals to address them, and the consensus-building skills to gain bipartisan support for our legislative initiatives. Dave Labriola is an effective voice for Connecticut students and their families. I was pleased to reappoint him to this important committee.”

“As a parent, a state legislator, and a product of Connecticut’s public schools, one of my top priorities at the General Assembly always has been to further strengthen a school system that is recognized as one of the country’s best,” Representative Labriola said. “However, despite the improved test scores that most Connecticut school systems have posted over the past few years, students in urban schools still lag behind their counterparts in the suburbs. The answer is not to continue to pour millions of dollars into our cities at the expense of smaller towns and suburban communities.”

“The Judiciary Committee is responsible for legislation that helps keep the people of Connecticut safe from violent criminals, drunk drivers, and individuals who prey on children and seniors,” Representative Labriola said. “As a member of this committee since 2003, I have helped draft laws that have made our streets and highways safer for responsible drivers and their families and protected our children from sex offenders. My goals for the next two years include enacting legislation that addresses the problem of gang violence in our cities, reckless driving on our highways, and security in our state’s public buildings and offices.”

“As a member of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, I will press for legislation to reform the state’s campaign finance law to reduce the costs it will impose on taxpayers,” Representative Labriola said. “As the deadline for making the full transition from mechanical to electronic voting machines draws near, my concern is whether the new machines will be reliable and secure. I will work to head off any problems with the new voting machines that could cause them to break down or malfunction and lead to doubts about the integrity of our elections.”