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Read. Follow. Verify.Connecticut bill caps grocery store self-checkout stations at eight and mandates staff-to-machine ratios starting October 1, 2026
Last action · April 15, 2026: Immediate TransmittalSponsors: Nick Gauthier and 2 others
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What This Bill Proposed
Grocery stores offering s are required to maintain a ratio of at least one and one dedicated monitoring employee for every two self-checkout stations, while capping total self-checkout stations at eight per location starting October 1, 2026.
Grocery store operations across the state must reconfigure their checkout layouts and staffing levels or face civil penalties, while customers gain statutory protections to file complaints and sue for retaliation.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
grocery stores
Grocery stores must limit self-checkout units to eight per location, install mandatory manual checkouts, adjust staff monitoring ratios, and comply with complaint and penalty provisions.
grocery store employees
Employees gain dedicated monitoring roles without overlapping duties, protections against retaliation for filing complaints, and the right to sue in Superior Court.
grocery store customers
Customers gain access to manual checkout options, the ability to file complaints with the Labor Commissioner, and protections against retaliation.
Labor Department
The department is tasked with investigating complaints, notifying violating stores, and collecting potential civil penalties.
Key Facts
- Grocery stores offering self-checkout must provide at least one manual checkout station for every two self-checkout stations.
- Grocery stores must have at least one employee monitoring every two self-checkout stations, with no other assigned duties.
- No grocery store may offer more than eight self-checkout stations at any single location at any time.
- Employees or customers can file complaints regarding violations with the Labor Commissioner, who must promptly investigate.
Show all 8 facts
- Stores failing to correct violations within 30 days of notice may be liable for a civil penalty equal to a full day of wages for the highest-paid retail clerk for each day the violation continues.
- Grocery stores are prohibited from discharging, discriminating, or retaliating against any employee or customer who makes a good-faith complaint.
- Individuals who face retaliation for filing a complaint may bring a civil action in Superior Court for damages and injunctive relief.
- The law defines groceries to include food, beverages, drugs, personal care items, and household maintenance items, excluding alcohol and cannabis.
Frequently Asked Questions
What stores are covered under this bill?
What happens if a grocery store fails to fix a violation within 30 days?
Can employees monitoring self-checkout stations perform other tasks?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in Senate committee.
Procedural history
11 actions- Apr 15, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyImmediate Transmittal
- Apr 15, 2026SenateReferred by Senate to Committee on Judiciary
- Apr 7, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyFile Number 474
- Apr 7, 2026SenateSenate Calendar Number 286
- Apr 7, 2026SenateFavorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate
- Apr 7, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyReported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office
Show 5 earlier actions
- Mar 30, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyReferred to Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis 04/07/26 12:00 PM
- Mar 19, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyFiled with Legislative Commissioners' Office
- Mar 19, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyJoint Favorable
- Mar 6, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyPublic Hearing 03/10
- Mar 5, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyCommitteeReferred to Joint Committee on Labor and Public Employees
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Introduction of Mandated Retail Staffing Ratios
The legislation moves away from unregulated retail automation by legally binding staff counts directly to the number of automated checkout units.
Connected Entities
Sources
cga.ct.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz45Current news / social attention level
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