Feb. 23, 2009 (The Hartford Courant delivered by Newstex) -- The idea of merging the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security with the state police has been taken off the table.
"It is not happening," said Derek Slap, a spokesman for Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams, the highest-ranking senator. "Don has no intention of supporting that concept."
Some police chiefs, firefighters, and emergency responders around the state were strongly against the idea, and so were some legislators. The idea had been floating around the Capitol, but it has now been officially scuttled.
Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell has proposed numerous consolidations across state government, and many of them are under active consideration by the Democratic-controlled legislature.
"We are looking at mergers and consolidations, and it's possible some will be in Wednesday's plan, but Homeland Security will not be one of them," Slap said.
