Committee to draft bill expanding emergency-contraception vending machines on campuses; proponents estimate $5,000–$7,000 startup per campus

Representative Farrar asked the committee to draft House Bill 6078 to expand access to emergency contraception on higher-education campuses by facilitating the use of vending machines and other startup support.

"The University of Connecticut just opened their first vending machine, just last week," Farrar said, and he told the committee proponents expect initial startup needs to be modest. "This would be in the range of, you know, 5 to $7,000 per campus to jump start this type of effort," Farrar said when asked about potential fiscal impacts.

Representative Weir and others said they were supportive of seeing more detail in the public hearing and fiscal note but expressed a preference for campus-led decisions where feasible. Weir asked whether a fiscal component was included; Farrar said officials expect a small one-time expense and that the Office of Fiscal Analysis (OFA) would provide a formal fiscal estimate during hearings.

The committee voted by roll call to draft HB 6078 and left the vote open until members from other hearings could return. The measure follows earlier bipartisan work requiring campuses to produce reproductive-health access plans and a separate law that allowed vending machines for certain products; proponents said HB 6078 would be a practical step to expand on-campus access.

What to watch: OFA's fiscal note and public testimony from campus health officials will be central to how the proposal is shaped and funded.