1999 NEWS RELEASES AND SPEECHES

June 14, 1999

TULISANO RENEWS CALL FOR BAN ON HUMAN CLONING

State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-Rocky Hill) today reissued his call for legislation that would outlaw human
cloning in Connecticut.

"I have introduced legislation in the past two session of the General Assembly and I do not believe it has been given
serious consideration because many did not believe the problem was imminent," Tulisano said. "Unfortunately, news
reports today indicate that man is prepared to abuse his God-given intelligence to try to emulate his creator.

"Just because we are able to do something doesn't mean we should do it," Tulisano said.

The idea, no matter how laudatory the goal, that humans could begin to harvest potential humans for their parts is not only
offensive, but portends more offensive actions in the future, Tulisano said.

Tulisano is once urging the appropriate legislative committees' leadership to investigate what is happening regarding
cloning in the state, and propose legislation to restrict the activity.

June 14, 1999

TULISANO OBTAIN STATE $$ FOR ROCKY HILL SCHOOL IMPROVEMENTS

State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-Rocky Hill) has obtained state bonding funds to partially reimburse the
town of Rocky Hill for safety improvements at Myrtle H. Stevens School, by correcting an oversight that could have cost
the town hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The school has undergone asbestos abatement and replacement work in the past year, and had electrical and fire alarm
upgrades completed. Through an oversight, the electrical/fire alarm portion of the improvements was not reviewed by the
School Facilities Unit, which prevented the state reimbursement. Superintendent of Schools Dr. J.A..Camille Vautour
requested that Tulisano submit special legislation to allow for the reimbursement.

"These safety improvements are Myrtle H. Stevens School were certainly necessary and in order, so I worked to include
the legislation into this year's session," Tulisano said. "This will allow Rocky Hill to receive 45 percent reimbursement for
a project that costs several hundred thousand dollars."

Tulisano said it is always difficult to take care of last-minute procedural errors, but he was able to get the legislation
through in the final days of the legislative session.

April 29, 1999

MORATORIUM "YES"

Last November, in Chicago, we witnessed the effects of state-sanctioned homicide. Gathered were 25 survivors of
attempted homicide by the state -- individuals falsely convicted and sentenced to death. Last month, we saw the narrow
escape of Anthony Porter, whose execution was averted by a last-minute revelation by a witness who failed at the original
trial to disclose the true killer.

Being human, errors will, and do, occur. We will never know how many of the individuals we execute are innocent. Even
House Judiciary Chairman Henry Hyde has said: "We have enormous protections…but we are never going to have a
system that will never execute an innocent person."

We may have protections, but these are being slowly eroded. The federal government has curtailed courts' power to
review capital cases and eliminated funding for attorneys aiding Death Row inmates' appeals. No money, no justice!

We will never appropriate sufficient funds for defense as we do for prosecution. In pursuing a death penalty case, the
resources of the government -- including the police, state's attorneys' offices and investigators -- arrayed against the
limited budget available for in-depth defense. Most accused do not have the assets of an O.J. Simpson or a Claus Von
Bulow.

That errors do occur, and may increase, due to state policy lends credibility and urgency to the American and the
Connecticut Bar Association's call for a moratorium on imposition of the death penalty. We should continue the
moratorium until we not only study, but also ensure that those sentenced to the ultimate penalty have a law that provides
them with appropriate safeguards to ensure their sentences are not applied in an unfair or discriminatory manner.

The American Bar Association and pending state legislation I have introduced call for the following: "to ensure that death
penalty cases are administered fairly and impartially in accordance with due process and to minimize the risk that innocent
persons may be executed by:

(1) implementing American Bar Association guidelines and policies intended to encourage competency of counsel in
capital cases; (2) preserving, enhancing and streamlining the state court's authority and responsibility to exercise
independent judgment on the merits of constitutional claims in state post-conviction proceedings; (3) striving to eliminate
discrimination in capital sentencing on the basis of the race of either the victim or the defendant, and (4) preventing the
execution of mentally retarded persons." I would add that those who are mentally ill should also be protected.

As a longtime opponent of state-sanctioned homicide, I believe that our support for the death penalty brutalizes those of
us who survive, and reduces our capacity to forgive and heal.

But the politically correct positions today in our country and state are to impose the penalty, even to extend its scope and
reduce safeguards established over the years. It is the public's perception that safeguards only postpone the inevitable,
and even allow some to escape their just deserts.

The Connecticut Bar Association joins the American Bar Association in calling for a moratorium to express concern as to
whether there is a disproportionate use of capital charges in cases involving minority accused. Unfortunately, the United
States Supreme Court has allowed imposition of death penalties, despite evidence that black defendants and killers of
white victims are more likely to be sentenced to die.

Just because the U.S. Supreme Court may allow unfair treatment does not make it right or just.

The public must demand, whether supporters or opponents of the death penalty, that it be administered fairly and in a
non-discriminatory manner.

So long as the perception of unfairness exists and questions have been raised by competent and concerned segments of
our society, a moratorium must be adopted. Anyone who believes a moratorium would allow offenders to escape their
just penalty should understand that both punishment and public safety are preserved when we substitute life imprisonment
without early release or parole.

April 15, 1999

TULISANO SAYS GOVERNOR'S CUTS TO ROCKY HILL RESTORED

State Representative Richard Tulisano (D-Rocky Hill) said the General Assembly's Appropriations Committee, of which
he is a member, proposed a budget today that will restore nearly $270,000 in cuts in state funding for Rocky Hill that
were proposed in Governor John G. Rowland's budget.

Tulisano said the funding cuts proposed by the governor would have reduced Rocky Hill's share of education funding and
Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT), funding that goes to towns and cities for colleges, hospitals and other state-owned
property, which is exempt from local property taxes.

The Appropriations Committee budget would restore that funding, and may even increase funding under the Education
Cost Sharing formula, which determines state education aid to municipalities. Tulisano cautioned that the budget will still
go through many changes before it is adopted by the House and the Senate, but said the committee's budget takes into
account the problems faced by towns and cities.

"It's irresponsible to make cuts that could jeopardize education and potentially raise property taxes," Tulisano said. "If
anything, the state needs to increase its commitment to our towns and cities, not pull back. I am pleased that if this
proposal is eventually adopted, Rocky Hill will not have to worry about losing money from the state."

March 17, 1999

TULISANO CALLS FOR ARBITRATION REFORM

"Shocked" is the way State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-29th district) described his reaction to a report in
today's Hartford Courant that employers may circumvent state and federal law by arbitrarily imposing as conditions of
employment requirements that prospective employees must give up their "rights" in order to become employed. The
article described policies in some corporations that force employees to give up their right to bring suit in cases of age
discrimination, racial discrimination, sexual harassment and violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"In my opinion the public policy of a state, designed to protect individuals who as employees are limited in their
bargaining power, is thwarted when employers impose such prior restraints. Even more frightening is the thought that our
courts are failing to protect individuals," Tulisano said. "As we research the theory expressed by the courts in failing to
protect individuals, I will ask that the General Assembly consider amending legislation now before it in order to protect
individual and give teeth to our laws, which seem to be flouted by business interests.

"We have passed and developed laws in the past to help business. If we are to continue to grow economically we must
have an environment not only friendly to business, but also to workers. Such acts by business interests smack not only of
unfair treatment but also of disregard for the same government they often turn to for help. I have often endorsed
alternative dispute resolution procedures on a voluntary basis, but I see nothing voluntary when employees are forced to
sign this condition of employment.

"We cannot allow to continue the purposeful violation of the rights and liberties of individuals established by law to be
circumvented by private action, corporate or otherwise," Tulisano said.

January 22, 1999

TULISANO APPOINTED TO LEADERSHIP POSITION, KEY COMMITTEES

State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-Rocky Hill) has been appointed Majority Whip-At-Large by newly elected
House Majority Leader David Pudlin (D-New Britain).

Pudlin announced Tulisano's appointment to the new leadership team on the opening day of the 1999 legislative session.

"Richard Tulisano is an institution in this chamber with a memory of legislative history that extends for more than 24
years," said Pudlin, who remembered seeing Tulisano make a speech on the House floor during his first visit to the state
capitol.

"Known for his keen and passionate advocacy of civil rights and his attention to legislative detail, Rep. Tulisano will serve,
I know, simultaneously as our conscience, our historian, our parliamentarian, and our muse," Pudlin said.

Tulisano has also received key committee assignments. He will serve on the budget-writing Appropriations Committee,
where he will chair the subcommittee on collective bargaining.

Tulisano will also serve on the Labor and Public Employees Committee, which deals with workers' compensation,
unemployment insurance, wages and hours, occupational health and safety, labor unions, labor disputes and matters
related to state and municipal employees.

In addition, he will serve on the Regulations Review Committee, which compares regulations written by state agencies
with the authorizing legislation to ensure that the regulations are consistent with state law.

January 15, 1999

TULISANO PROPOSES UNIVERSAL PUBLIC HIGHER EDUCATION

State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-Rocky Hill), Majority Whip-At-Large, is proposing legislation that would
take the original concept of universal public education in this country and adapt it to the next millenium -- by extending
public education in Connecticut through college.

"Three-quarters of a century ago, our predecessors became convinced of the need for a universal approach to education.
They created our public school system through high school, which held everyone to a simple standard," Tulisano said.
"Seventy-four years later, we need to change with the times. It is no longer good enough to have a high school diploma to
succeed in our economy."

Tulisano has proposed the Universal Public Higher Education bill (House Bill 5021) that will guarantee every high school
graduate the ability to enter a public state university system to work toward a four-year bachelor of arts degree or a post-
grad degree from a vocational-technical school.

Tulisano said he has received word from some fellow legislators in the House and the Senate that they would like to co-
sponsor the bill.

"I believe there is a realization out there that a high school degree doesn't qualify anyone for much more than low-wage
service jobs that have no future," Tulisano said. "There will always be people to fill those positions -- college kids, at-
home parents who want to work part-time, retirees. We need to ensure that the young adults who will become
Connecticut's future economic base are prepared for the high-skilled, high-wage jobs that our state needs to attract in
order to prosper through the next century."

Tulisano said the Legislature is currently awaiting the governor's budget address in early February to see if the governor
will continue his recent commitment higher education in the state.

January 7, 1999

TULISANO TO INTRODUCE LEGISLATION

REGULATING THE SALE OF LASER POINTERS

State Representative Richard D. Tulisano (D-29th district) today said he is proposing legislation which will prohibit the
sale of laser pointers to minors and make it clear that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers laser pointers
as capable of causing eye injuries.

"I am particularly concerned that children may not be aware that police are trained to respond to being "lit up", and that
they run a risk of substantial injury whenever a law enforcement officer believes he must defend himself," said Tulisano,
referring to the weapons that use laser light to target. According to a legislative report issued to Tulisano Tuesday, laser
pointers vary in size and cost, and even in the images they flash, although most are dots of light. Most are capable of
flashing from between 100 to 800 yards. They are increasing in popularity among young people, and are widely available
for purchase through the Internet, mail order catalogs and retail stores such as Wal-Mart.

Several cities have recently enacted ordinances prohibiting sales of laser pointers to minors, including New York City and
the city of Meriden, which also fines violators up to $99.

Tulisano said the FDA issued a warning in Dec. 1997 because of the risk of injury to children who use the pointers as
toys. It stated that the light energy that laser pointers can aim into the eye can be more damaging than staring at the sun.
Even if it is only momentary exposure, lasers can cause temporary flash blindness that can prove dangerous, such as to
those operating a motor vehicle.

Recently, a seventh-grade student in Kansas City suffered at least partial burn damage to the retina of one eye when a
friend shined a laser at this face.

Tulisano said he will submit legislation to be taken up this legislative session. To date, no other state has passed a law to
ban the laser pointers from minors.

June 11, 1999

THE KING

State Rep. Richard D. Tulisano, D-Rocky Hill, was frequently a lone voice this year opposing such popular initiatives as
increased gun control and a ban on video voyeurism. Going against the grain is nothing new for the 25-year House
veteran, who calls himself the Capitol's "curmudgeon."

But Tulisano used to have a different nickname. As the longtime House chairman of the legislature's judiciary committee,
he was known as "King Richard" for his iron-fisted style, in which he routinely snuffed out bills and terrorized lobbyists
and lawmakers alike. This year, Tulisano lamented the decline of the committee system and complained that top legislative
leaders have assumed an ever more prominent role in recent years. "There was a purposeful removal of people who were
strong committee chairs and people who would say 'no' to a speaker," he said. "Now, nobody says 'no' to anybody."

Senate President Pro Tern Kevin B. Sullivan, D-West Hartford, disputed that and said the committee system is alive and
well. But Sullivan said Tulisano was at least partially correct. "With all due respect, (his reputation) is probably why he's
not chairman of the judiciary committee," Sullivan said. "He ran roughshod over people."