2020 Press Releases

Page 8 of 18

• 7/31/2020 AG Tong Demands Answers From Eversource Following Rate Hikes

  Office of the Attorney General Serves Formal Interrogatories as Part of PURA Docket

• 1/29/2020 Attorney General Tong Opens Unfair and Deceptive Practices Investigation into Former Landlord

  Attorney General William Tong today announced his office has opened an investigation into former Clay Arsenal Renaissance Apartments landlord Emmanuel Ku and whether his actions as owner constituted unfair or deceptive acts or practices in violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act. Owned by Mr. Ku until last year, the 150-unit complex became notoriously unsafe, unsanitary, and virtually uninhabitable for its hundreds of residents.

• 1/16/2020 Connecticut Sues to Block Federal Plan to Eliminate Food Assistance for Nearly 700,000 Struggling Americans

  Attorney General William Tong today joined a group of 15 attorneys general and New York City in a lawsuit to stop the Trump administration from eliminating food assistance for nearly 700,000 Americans – including almost 26,000 people in Connecticut.

• 11/25/2020 A Thanksgiving Message from Attorney General William Tong

• 3/10/2020 Attorney General Tong Releases Guidance on Price Gouging Enforcement

  Attorney General William Tong today released the following statement and guidance on price gouging enforcement after Gov. Ned Lamont declared civil preparedness and public health emergencies.

• 9/21/2020 AG Tong Warns Connecticut Residents to be on Alert for Utility Scams

  Attorney General William Tong today urged Connecticut residents to be on alert for utility scams after multiple reports of consumers receiving calls purporting to be from Eversource and threatening imminent shut-off of electricity if a payment was not made.

• 2/3/2020 Attorney General Tong Announces $118 Million Agreement with Practice Fusion

  Attorney General William Tong announced that Connecticut and other states have reached a $118.6 million civil settlement agreement with Practice Fusion, Inc., resolving allegations that the company accepted payments from specific drug manufacturers in exchange for promoting the manufacturers' drugs to physicians using Practice Fusion's software.

• 4/29/2020 Attorney General Tong Continues Fight to Stop Public Charge Rule

  Attorney General William Tong joined New York, Vermont and New York City in filing a motion asking the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to temporarily halt implementation of the Trump Administration’s Public Charge Rule in light of the COVID-19 public health crisis.

• 5/6/2020 Connecticut Announces Joint State-Federal COVID-19 Fraud Task Force

  Attorney General William Tong, U.S. Attorney John Durham, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Chief State’s Attorney Richard Colangelo announced formation of a joint federal-state task force combatting COVID-19 related fraud in Connecticut. The task force will investigate and prosecute a wide range of misconduct related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including price gouging, healthcare and government program fraud, consumer and small business scams, lending scams, charities fraud, and cyber fraud. Violators may be subject to civil fines and penalties and/or state or federal criminal prosecution.

• 3/30/2020 Attorney General Tong Seeks Permanent Injunction to Protect National Guard Funds, Economy from Illegal Border Wall Diversion

  Attorney General William Tong and six attorneys general today filed a motion for partial summary judgment seeking to permanently block the Trump Administration from illegally diverting $3.8 billion in taxpayer funds to build an unnecessary and unwanted border wall. At a time when the entire nation is focused on responding to the COVID-19 crisis, the unlawful diversion adds unnecessary strain on already stressed state economies, and pulls funding from National Guard units on the front lines of the pandemic response.

• 1/2/2020 Attorney General Tong, Secretary of the State Merrill, DCP Commissioner Seagull, and Better Business Bureau Warn Businesses: Don’t Fall Victim to Fraudulent Mailings

  Attorney General William Tong, Secretary of the State Denise Merrill, Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Michelle H. Seagull, and the Better Business Bureau Serving Connecticut are urging residents to be wary of deceptive mailings that solicit Connecticut businesses, particularly small business owners, to purchase an unnecessary “certificate of legal existence.”

• 11/10/2020 Attorney General Tong Issues Statement Defending the Affordable Care Act Ahead of Oral Arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court

  Coalition of 20 states and D.C. will defend the ACA in U.S. Supreme Court on November 10, 2020

• 1/9/2020 Attorney General Tong Joins Amicus Brief in Support of State of Rhode Island in its Lawsuit to Hold Big Oil Accountable for Costs of Climate Change

  Attorney General William Tong joined a coalition of 13 states in filing an amicus brief supporting the State of Rhode Island in its lawsuit State of Rhode Island v. Shell Oil Products Co., LLC, et al., which seeks to hold oil and petroleum companies accountable for their actions contributing to climate change and the resulting harms, including from sea-level rise, changes to the hydrologic cycle, and increased air and ocean temperatures.

• 11/18/2020 Attorney General Tong Announces $113 Million Settlement with Apple over iPhone Throttling

  Attorney General William Tong joined a coalition of over 30 other attorneys general announcing a $113 million settlement with Apple, Inc. over iPhone throttling that the company engaged in in 2016 to address unexpected shutdowns in certain devices. Under the settlement, Apple will pay $1.8 million to Connecticut.

• 9/25/2020 Attorney General Tong Statement on the Peaceful Transition of Power

  Attorney General William Tong issued the following statement regarding the peaceful transition of power.