Somers, Heather
18th District (R)
Chief Deputy Senate Republican Leader
Towns Represented
Griswold, Groton, North Stonington, Plainfield, Preston, Sterling, Stonington, Voluntown
Committees
Public Health (Ranking Member); Appropriations; Commerce; Executive and Legislative Nominations
Voting Record
Year | Vote Name | Score |
---|---|---|
2024 |
Teacher Certification, Mandated Reporters & more
HB 5436
Favorable vote indicates support for important changes to teacher certification, improvements to mandated reporter procedures, changes to EdTPA, supports for paraeducators, and more. |
|
2024 |
Professional Development & School Climate
HB 5437
Favorable vote indicates support for reviewing and updating PD requirements, improving school culture & climate, and more. |
|
2024 |
Behavior Notification & Assessment Audit
SB 154
Favorable vote indicates support for better student behavior notifications to parents, an standardized assessment audit, and more. |
|
2024 |
School Indoor Air Quality
HB 5524
Favorable vote indicates support for and expansion of the IAQ Grant program. |
|
2024 |
School Indoor Air Quality
SB 5
Favorable vote indicates support for an extension of the state IAQ Working Group. |
|
2024 |
Goodwin Magnet Teacher Rights
SB 14
Favorable vote indicates support for ensuring teacher rights are maintained at Goodwin Univ. Magnet School, among other things. |
|
2024 |
2024 Budget Implementer
HB 5523
Favorable vote indicates support for the budget implementer that included $550,000 to the Teachers Retirement Board for Retiree Healthcare and adding CEA to the Education Mandate Review Advisory Council. |
|
2023 |
CEA Policy Proposal Package
HB 6880
Favorable vote indicates support for play based learning, earlier kindergarten start date, elimination of teacher evaluation ratings, along with other actions aimed at addressing teacher recruitment and retention. |
|
2023 |
Safe Classrooms, Standardized Assessment & IAQ
SB 1
Favorable vote indicates support for addressing challenging student behavior/safe classrooms, taking steps to reduce standardized assessments, and continuing the works of the Indoor Air Quality work group, along with a number of other provisions. |
|
2023 |
Play-Based Learning
SB 2
Favorable vote indicates support for play based learning. |
|
2023 |
Standardized Assessment & Special Education
HB 6762
Favorable vote indicates support for taking steps to reduce standardized assessments in CT and the formation of a special education task force designed to examine case loads among other things. |
|
2023 |
2023 Budget
HB 6941
Favorable vote indicates support for the 2023 bi-partisan budget, including increases to ECS funding and $150 million for improved indoor air quality in schools. |
|
2023 |
Educator Tuition Assistance
HB 5441
Favorable vote indicates support for tuition assistance for educators in certain districts. |
|
2023 |
Protecting Teachers' Personal Information
SB 1157
Favorable vote indicates support for protecting teachers' personal information from Freedom of Information inquiries. |
|
2023 |
Kindergarten Start Age Waiver
HB 5003
Favorable vote indicates support for the final version of this bill that provides for waivers for students who are developmentally ready to begin kindergarten. |
|
2022 |
Special Education Funding in Appropriations Committee
SB 232
Favorable vote indicates support for a restructuring of how the state provides reimbursements for special education excess costs and increased state special education funding in the Appropriations Committee. |
|
2022 |
Charter School Funding Approval Process in Appropriations Committee
SB 229
Favorable vote indicates opposition to streamlining the approval process for new charter school funding (creating a one-stop-shop for charter school approvals at SDE circumventing the legislature) in the Appropriations Committee. |
|
2022 |
Student Mental & Behavioral Health
SB 2
Favorable vote indicates support for legislation addressing childhood depression, anxiety, and developmental delays through the expansion of support services, and critical preschool and mental & behavioral health services for children. |
|
2022 |
2022 Budget
SB 5506
Favorable vote indicates support for mid-term budget adjustments, including fully funding ECS, establishing a school Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) monitoring program, authorizing $150 million for school HVAC & IAQ, and doubling the retired teachers' healthcare subsidy. |
|
2022 |
Building Successful School Communities
SB 5001
Favorable vote indicates support for increased teacher voice in behavioral interventions and requiring districts to complete student trauma needs-assessments to help identify needed resources. |
|
2022 |
Building Successful School Communities in Appropriations Committee
SB 1
Favorable vote indicates support for critical mental and physical health services in schools, minimum staffing ratios for certified support staff, a task force on teacher recruitment and retention, prohibiting dual instruction, and guaranteeing 30 minutes per day of duty-free lunch in the Appropriations Committee. |
|
2022 |
Building Successful School Communities
SB 1
Favorable vote indicates support for critical mental and physical health services in schools, minimum staffing ratios for certified support staff, a task force on teacher recruitment and retention, prohibiting dual instruction, and guaranteeing 30 minutes per day of duty-free lunch. |
|
2021 |
Housing Vouchers for Open Choice Students
HB 6436
Favorable vote indicates support for the expansion of the Open Choice program and a pilot program to provide families of Open Choice students with housing vouchers to live in the town where the student is enrolled. |
|
2021 |
Teachers' Retirement System
SB 1081
Favorable vote indicates support for increasing the amount the retirees' cost of living adustments (COLAs) can be increased based on the revised rate of return for the pension fund. |
|
2021 |
Minority Teacher Recruitment
SB 1034
Favorable vote indicates support for increased funding and procedures to promote the recruitment and retention of educators of color. |
|
2021 |
IAQ in Public Health Committee
SB 288
Favorable vote indicates support for strengthening protocols for reporting and addressing poor school indoor air quality in the Public Health Committee. |
|
2021 |
2021 Budget
HB 6689
Favorable vote indicates support for the budget which increased ECS funds and held districts with declining enrollments harmless. |
|
2021 |
Divisive Concepts Amendment
SB 1073 - Sen. Amendment B
Favorable vote indicates opposition to a Senate amendment which sought to prohibit the teaching of "divisive concepts" like race and gender. |
|
2021 |
Virtual Learning & SEL Enhancements
HB 6621
Favorable vote indicates support for SEL supports for students, and task forces inclusive of educators to review slpecial education funding and virtual earning. |
|
2021 |
JANUS
SB 908
Favorable vote indicates support for legislation that safeguarded CEA member rights and unhindered access to union representations in response to the JANUS Supreme Court decision. |
|
2019 |
2019 Budget
HB 7424
Favorable vote indicates support for the budget which increased ECS funds, excluded a proposal to shift the teacher pension costs to municipalities, and restructured the unfunded liability of the Teachers' Retirement Fund. |
|
2019 |
Teachers' Retirement System
SB 873
Favorable vote indicates support for a proposal to stabilize the Teachers' Retirement Fund with revenues of the Connecticut Lottery. |
|
2019 |
Classroom Safety in Appropriations Committee
HB 7110
Favorable vote indicates support in the Appropriations Committee on a procedural vote to keep a CEA proposed concept to address classroom safety alive. |
|
2019 |
Minority Teacher Recruitment In Appropriations Committee
SB 1022
Favorable vote indicates support in the Appropriation Committee for SDE's development and implementation of strategies and use of existing resources to hire and employ minority teachers. |
|
2019 |
Minority Teacher Recruitment
SB 1022
Favorable vote indicates support for SDE's development and implementation of strategies and use of existing resources to hire and employ minority teachers. |
|
2019 |
Black and Latino Studies
HB 7082
Favorable vote indicates support for the inclusion of Black and Latino studies in the public school curriculum. |
|
2019 |
School Climate
HB 7215
Favorable vote indicates support for the development of a statewide school climate survey,addressing social-emotional learning, and taking steps to make schools safer by expanding the definition of bullying to acts causing physical or emotional harm on any individual in a school, including staff. |
|
2019 |
Magnet School Funding In Appropriations Committee
HB 7109
Favorable vote indicates support in the Appropriations Committee for increasing funding to interdistrict magnet school programs. |
|
2019 |
School Play
HB 7250
Favorable vote indicates support for inclusion of additional time for undirected play in the school day. |
|
2019 |
School Counselors
SB 956
Favorable vote indicates support for the development of guidelines for a comprehensive school counseling program for all students. |
|
2019 |
Cultural Responsiveness
SB 1020
Favorable vote indicates support for the inclusion of cultural responsiveness in training and professional development provided to teachers. |
|
2019 |
IEP Retaliation
HB 7353
Favorable vote indicates support for establishing protections to ensure educators who make recommendations in IEP's and PPT's are not retaliated against. |
|
2018 |
Classroom Safety
SB 453
Favorable vote indicates support for a bill providing greater teacher input and access to resources to address incidents where a student causes physical harm to others in the classroom. (Passed; Vetoed) |
|
2018 |
Veto Override on Classroom Safety
SB 453
Favorable vote supported a procedural action to permit a future vote to override the governor's veto of the Classroom Safety Bill. |
|
2018 |
Prohibition of Governor's Recissions
HB 5171
Favorable vote indicates support of a bill that would prevent the governor from unilaterally making mid-year reductions to the education cost sharing grant for cities and towns without legislative approval. (Passed; Vetoed) |
|
2018 |
Prohibition of Governor's Recissions in Education Committee
HB 5171
Favorable vote indicates support of a bill in the Education Committee that would prevent the governor from unilaterally making mid-year reductions to the education cost sharing grant for cities and towns without legislative approval. (Passed; Vetoed) |
|
2018 |
Veto Override of Prohibition of Governor's Recissions
HB 5171
Favorable vote indicates support of a bill in the Education Committee that would prevent the governor from unilaterall1 making mid-1ear reductions to the education cost sharing grant for cities and towns without legislative approval. (Passed; Vetoed) |
|
2018 |
Displaced Students from Puerto Rico
SB 456
Favorable vote indicates support of a bill in the Education Committee that would prevent the governor from unilaterall1 making mid-1ear reductions to the education cost sharing grant for cities and towns without legislative approval. (Passed; Vetoed) |
|
2018 |
Education Savings Accounts
HB 5340
Favorable vote indicated opposition to this bill in the Banking Committee, which would have required the state to study Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), a type of voucher plan for children to attend a private school. |
|
2018 |
2018 Budget Bill
HB 543
Favorable vote rejected governor's proposal to reduce ECS by $63m and Magnet School funding by $18.5m from FY19 enacted amounts. It restored $8.5m funding to teacher retiree health and $1.5m to TEAM. |
|
2018 |
DREAMERS
SB 4
Favorable vote indicates support for a bill that allows undocumented graduates of high schools in Connecticut aka ("Dreamers") be eligible for tuition assistance at public colleges and universities in the state. |
|
2018 |
Minority Teacher Recruitment
SB 455
Favorable vote supported a version of legislation that promoted minority teacher recruitment and retention without diminishing the value of teacher certification. Prior versions would have undermined the teacher evaluation system and awarded certification without adequate preparation. |
|
2018 |
School Security
SB 454
Favorable vote supported legislation to expand school security infrastructure grants, which help to make school facilities more secure. |
|
2017 |
October Budget and ECS
SB 1502
Favorable vote prevented deeper ECS cuts proposed by the governor and staved off efforts to undermine collective bargaining. Opposition (passed SB 1502) |
|
2017 |
Teacher Pension Increase
SB 1502
Favorable vote indicates opposition to increasing teachers contrubution to the TRF from 6% to 7%. (SB 1502) |
|
2017 |
September Budget
HB 7501
Favorable vote indicates opposition to provisions of this bill that: Increased Teacher Pension contribution to 8%; redistributed ECS to the detriment of needier districts; limited state employee collective bargaining; and undermined municipal collective bargaining. (Passed HB 7501; vetoed) |
|
2017 |
SEBAC
SR 51
Favorable vote indicated support of state employee collective bargaining. Opposition sought to undermine the collective bargaining process. (Passed; HR 202 & SR 51) |
|
2017 |
SEBAC - Appropriations Committee
SR 7
Favorable vote indicated support of state employee collective bargaining. Opposition sought to undermine the collective bargaining process. (Passed; HR 202 & SR 51) |