Connecticut Attorney General William Tong in his Hartford office in February. Photo by Michael Marciano/ALM

The creation of a civil rights division within the Office of the Connecticut Attorney General moved one step closer to reality this week when the state Legislature's Judiciary Committee approved the measure 24-15.

The state House and Senate are expected to sign off on the legislation, which Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont is expected to sign into law this session, which ends June 5.

More than 20 states, including New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts, have civil rights divisions within their attorney general's offices. Creating such an agency was a cornerstone of William Tong's campaign when he ran for attorney general last year. Now that he has won the job, Tong told the Connecticut Law Tribune Wednesday that such a division is needed more than ever.

“I think everyone understands that our civil rights are under attack in a profound and never-before-seen way, that people are continuing to suffer various forms of discrimination and violations of their civil rights, whether that be from violation of their civil rights, or from housing discrimination to gender, race, religion and gender identity,” Tong said. “There are so many people discriminated against on a daily basis at work and in their communities.”

The new division, which would expand the powers of the office of the attorney general, would work hand-in-hand with the state's Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, which receives discrimination complaints and investigates them.

But Tong said, “there is a huge enforcement gap.”

“We have strong civil rights laws here in Connecticut, but those rights do not mean anything if there is no remedy,” he said. “That's where I would come in. We would be stepping in with the enforcement muscle to vindicate the rights of people across Connecticut.”

Under House Bill 7222, the office would be able to proactively investigate and litigate in state and federal court when there are civil rights violations. The bill would also allow the office to bring civil suits on behalf of victims, and seek damages of up to $10,000 per violation.

The state would step in, Tong said, “when there is a clear interest to step in.”

“We will not be representing individuals as their lawyers, but rather asserting the interest of the state and protecting all of our citizens,” the attorney general said.

Most of those who spoke on the proposed legislation during a public hearing last month were in favor of the creation of the proposed civil rights division.

But opponents included the National Federation of Independent Business, which advocates on behalf of small and independent business owners.

“NFIB is concerned that the bill, as currently drafted, is too broad and could potentially result in costly new civil investigations, litigation, and/or enforcement actions being brought against small business owners by the Office of Attorney General for an allegation of violation of any state or federal law,” Andy Markowski, the group's state director in Connecticut, wrote. “After all, just one frivolous lawsuit can force a small business to close its doors forever.”

Tong disagrees, and said the venture would have the support of the business community.

“I believe small and large businesses across Connecticut support strong civil rights enforcement because civil rights violations and not respecting the civil rights of consumers and employees is inefficient and bad for business,” Tong said. “I'd think that all businesses would want to root out the bad actors.”

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