Connecticut 2026 Session Status: In Committee 3 D cosponsors

SB 438 — AN ACT REGULATING SELF-CHECKOUT STATIONS IN GROCERY STORES.

Last action — IMMEDIATE TRANSMITTAL TO COMMITTEE

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 05, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 20% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 3 sponsors

    3 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (3 D).

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

99 added · 7 removed

Plain-language change summary

The latest version of Bill SB 438 now includes a formal statement from the Labor and Public Employees Committee, indicating that they recommend the bill pass. This change is significant because it shows there is committee support for the bill, which can help influence other lawmakers' decisions. Additionally, language regarding fiscal impacts has been added to provide clarity about potential financial effects on state funds in the upcoming fiscal years. This information will help legislators better understand the bill's economic implications as discussions move forward.

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No.
Senate General Assembly File No.
438 February Session, 2026 AN ACT REGULATING SELF-CHECKOUT STATIONS IN GROCERY STORES.
474 February Session, 2026 Substitute Senate Bill No.
438 Senate, April 7, 2026 The Committee on Labor and Public Employees reported through SEN.
KUSHNER of the 24th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill ought to pass.
AN ACT REGULATING SELF-CHECKOUT STATIONS IN GROCERY STORES.
(3) "Manual checkout station" means a checkout station in which there isanemployee toprovideassistance to customersby scanning and bagging items purchased by customers and taking payment for such customers' purchases;
(3) "Manual checkout station" means a checkout station in which there isanemployee toprovideassistance to customersby scanning and bagging items purchased by customers and taking payment for such sSB438 / File No.
474 1 sSB438 File No.
474 customers' purchases;
LCO 1 of 3 Substitute Bill No.
(1) Provide not fewer than one manual checkout station for every two self-checkout stations offered at a location;
438 (1) Provide not fewer than one manual checkout station for every two self-checkout stations offered at a location;
(h) The commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, to implement the provisions of this section.
(h) The commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance with the sSB438 / File No.
474 2 sSB438 File No.
474 provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, to implement the provisions of this section.
An employee or customer who believes a grocery store violated the provisions of this LCO 2 of 3 Substitute Bill No.
An employee or customer who believes a grocery store violated the provisions of this subsection may bring a civil action in the Superior Court to recover damages and such injunctive relief as the court deems appropriate.
438 subsection may bring a civil action in the Superior Court to recover damages and such injunctive relief as the court deems appropriate.
-LCO LCO 3 of 3
-LCO sSB438 / File No.
474 3 sSB438 File No.
474 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.
In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.
Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $ Labor Dept.
GF - Potential See Below See Below Revenue Gain Note:
GF=General Fund Municipal Impact:
None Explanation The bill establishes requirements for grocery store self-checkout stations and allows employees or customers to file complaints 1 regarding violations with the Department of Labor (DOL).
This results in a potential revenue gain for the DOL to the extent that grocery stores fail to take corrective actions upon found violations and therefore subject to civil penalties .
The billalso prohibitsretaliationagainst employeesor customersthat file complaints to the DOL and allows aggravated parties to bring civil action in Superior Court.
This does not result in a fiscal impact to the Judicial Department.
The court system disposes of over 250,000 cases annually and the number of cases is not anticipated to be great enough to need additional resources.
The Out Years The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would 1It is expected the agency can accommodate any potential workload increases within available resources.
2The penalty is equal to a full day of wages, based on the highest wage paid to a retail clerk at such grocery store, for each day the violation continues.
sSB438 / File No.
474 4 sSB438 File No.
474 continue into the future subject to the occurrence of violations and the collection of associated penalties.
sSB438 / File No.
474 5 sSB438 File No.
474 OLR Bill Analysis sSB 438 AN ACT REGULATING SELF-CHECKOUT STATIONS IN GROCERY STORES.
SUMMARY This bill requires grocery stores with self-checkout stations to have at least one manual checkout station for every two self-checkout stations, and at least one employee monitoring every two self-checkout stations.
It prohibits the stores from (1) assigning employees to any other duties while they are monitoring the self-checkout stations and (2) offering more than eight self-checkout stations at a location.
The bill allows employees or customers to file a complaint about a violation of the bill with the labor commissioner.
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Upon receiving a complaint, the commissioner must promptly investigate and immediately notify the store if she finds evidence of a violation.
Under the bill, if the grocery store does not correct the violation within 30 days after receiving the notice, it may be liable to the labor department for a civil penalty equal to a full day of wages for the store’s highest paid retail clerk for each day that the violation continues.
(The bill does not further specify what a “full day” or “retail clerk” is for determining this penalty.) The bill also prohibits grocery stores from discharging, or discriminating or retaliating against, an employee or customer who makes a good faith complaint under the bill.
It allows an employee or customer who believes that a store did so to sue in Superior Court for damages and injunctive relief.
Lastly, the bill allows the labor commissioner to adopt regulations to implement the bill’s provisions.
sSB438 / File No.
474 6 sSB438 File No.
474 EFFECTIVE DATE:
October 1, 2026 GROCERY STORES & CHECKOUT STATIONS Under the bill, a “grocery store” is any store that derives most of its retail sales from “groceries,” which include (1) any raw or processed food or beverage intended for human consumption and (2) when sold by a retailerthat also sellsfoodandbeverages,(a)prescriptionandover- the-counter drugs, (b) personal care and hygiene items, and (c) household maintenance items.
“Groceries” do not include alcoholic beverages and cannabis products.
A “manual checkout station” is a checkout station with an employee to help customers by scanning and bagging their purchased items and taking payment for their purchases.
A “self-checkout station” is an automated checkout station where a customer can scan, bag, and pay for their purchased items without employee assistance.
COMMITTEE ACTION Labor and Public Employees Committee Joint Favorable Yea 9 Nay 4 (03/19/2026) sSB438 / File No.
474 7
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Action History

  1. IMMEDIATE TRANSMITTAL TO COMMITTEE

  2. REF. BY SEN. TO COMM. ON Judiciary

  3. FILE NO. 474

  4. SENATE CALENDAR NUMBER 286

  5. FAV. RPT., TAB. FOR CAL., SEN.

  6. RPTD. OUT OF LCO

  7. REFERRED TO Office of Legislative Research AND Office of Fiscal Analysis 04/07/26

  8. FILED WITH LCO

  9. Joint Favorable

  10. PUBLIC HEARING 0310

  11. REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Labor and Public Employees

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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3 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 184 not signed on

Sponsors (3)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (184)

184 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 184 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety labor
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Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors SB 438?
SB 438 is sponsored by Sarah Keitt (Democratic), Nicholas Menapace (Democratic), and Nick Gauthier (Democratic).
What is the current status of SB 438?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 05, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SB 438?
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