Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

February 11, 2025

Lawmakers consider bills to limit noncompete agreements, track sales of local news organizations

HBJ PHOTO | DAVID KRECHEVSKY The State Capitol in Hartford.
By David Krechevsky

State lawmakers will have disclosure on their minds on Tuesday.

The legislature’s Labor and Public Employees Committee will convene at 11 a.m. to consider two very different bills related to disclosure. The first, Senate Bill 1035, seeks to limit use of nondisclosure agreements (NDAs).

According to the bill’s statement of purpose, the intent is to “limit the misuse of nondisclosure agreements by adopting similar provisions from California, New Jersey and Washington law regarding limitations on the use of nondisclosure agreements.”

All three of those states have passed laws limiting or prohibiting the use of NDAs: 

  • A New Jersey law that became effective in March 2019 prohibits employers from enforcing NDAs relating to discrimination, harassment and retaliation claims against current or former employees. The law applies to nondisclosure provisions included in settlement agreements and any type of employment contract (except collective bargaining agreements).
  • Washington state passed a similar law in June 2022 that makes it illegal for employers in an agreement to prohibit employees from discussing conduct the employee reasonably believed to be an illegal act of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour violation, or sexual assault. 
  • California also has approved a law that requires nondisclosure agreements to meet certain legal requirements. The nondisclosure clause must be in writing, clearly define what is considered confidential information and establish the duration and scope of the agreement.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Mae Flexer (D-Willimantic) and Rep. Matt Blumenthal (D-Stamford), is scheduled to be considered among seven raised to be drafted as committee bills.

The committee is also scheduled to consider nine bills that could be reserved for a public hearing. Among them is House Bill 6418, which would require the disclosure of “certain sales of local news organizations.”

According to the bill’s statement of purpose, the intent is to ensure that “no owner of a news organization that primarily serves any community in this state shall sell such organization to any entity that is not incorporated in this state unless such owner provides at least 120-days' advance notice of such sale to such organization's employees and members of such community.”

Sponsored by Rep. Kevin Brown (D-Vernon), Rep. Kate Farrar (D-West Hartford) and Rep. Mary Fortier (D- Bristol), the bill follows the recent sale of the formerly locally owned Republican-American and Sunday Republican newspapers in Waterbury to Hearst Connecticut Media Group.

While Hearst Connecticut Media Group already owns daily newspapers in Stamford, Norwalk, Greenwich, Danbury, Bridgeport, New Haven, Middletown, Manchester and Meriden, its parent company, the Hearst Corp., is based in New York City.

The committee is expected to set a public hearing date for that and other bills on Thursday, Feb. 13, at 2:30 p.m. in Room 1B of the Legislative Office Building.

Sign up for Enews

Most Recent

Most Recent

0 Comments

Order a PDF