Today at The Wheelhouse Digest, there's a lot of talk of shutting down and tightening up. Maybe it's the cooler weather, or maybe it's a new mentality pushing us to block things from happening. In that vein, there's an effort at hand to consider the Associated Press's request to release 911 recordings in the wake of the Newtown shooting last year. Read about that and more in today's digest.
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CONNECTICUT PREPARES FOR POSSIBLE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN
The state budget office plans to be ready if federal funding abruptly ends.
Ben Barnes, Office of Policy and Management Secretary, wrote a letter Tuesday to state agency heads warning of a significant impact on federally-funded programs -- particularly Medicaid -- and staff if Congress can't reach a budget agreement. Barnes wrote, “The governor and I are both deeply concerned that the United States Congress, particularly the House, may take reckless actions in the coming weeks that will undermine the improvement that we have seen, and threaten our fiscal condition in the months to come.” Barnes asked agency chiefs to provide an assessment of potential impacts and contingency plans by October 1.
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SECURITY TIGHTENS AT CONNECTICUT BASES
Navy and Coast Guard bases are requiring advance approval of visitors.
Connecticut's Navy and Coast Guard bases are tightening security following the fatal shootings at the Washington Navy Yard. Jennifer McDermott reports the Coast Guard is requiring that base visitors be approved in advance, in writing, by a security officer. Spokesman Lieutenant Jeff Janaro said the Coast Guard was already tightening security as part of an annual review, but procedures were evaluated again after a gunman fatally shot 12 people in Washington earlier this month.
Read more at The Day.
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STATE FOI COMMISSION MEETS TO CONSIDER RELEASING 911 CALLS
The state claims releasing the Newtown 911 calls could jeopardize an investigation.
Connecticut's Freedom of Information Commission meets Wednesday to consider a request by the Associated Press to release recordings of 911 calls from the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. An issue at stake is how law enforcement responded to the shooting. A commission attorney recommended the recordings be released, but a state's attorney says making the calls public could jeopardize an ongoing investigation.
