About Andrew

Andrew Roraback is serving his sixth term in the state Senate representing the 30th District communities of Brookfield, Canaan, Cornwall, Goshen, Kent, Litchfield, Morris, New Milford, North Canaan, Salisbury, Sharon, Torrington, Warren, Washington and Winchester.

Senator Roraback was elected Deputy Minority Leader Pro Tempore and Minority Caucus Chairman of the State Senate in June 2007 and is a ranking member on the General Assembly’s Environment Committee and Finance, Revenue & Bonding Committee. He also serves as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, a member of the Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee, and Chairman of the Regulation Review Committee.

Prior to his election to the State Senate, Senator Roraback served the people of the 64th Assembly District in the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1994 through 2000. During his 18 years in the General Assembly Senator Roraback has never missed a roll call vote, casting 8,929 consecutive votes. He is the only one out of 187 legislators who can claim this record.

As the Senate Ranking Member of the Legislature’s Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, Senator Roraback has been at the forefront of opposition to Governor Malloy’s overreliance on tax increases to balance the state budget. He has consistently fought to eliminate unnecessary government spending and to lower the tax burden, particularly on middle class workers and small businesses. Senator Roraback has also been the voice of fiscal responsibility on the State Bond Commission, consistently voting against borrowing to pay for non-essential “pet projects.”

Senator Roraback has been repeatedly recognized for his leadership on environmental issues. His environmental advocacy and stewardship has been recognized by the Connecticut Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Connecticut Farm Bureau Association, the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters, Audubon Connecticut, Working Lands Alliance, the Connecticut Greenways Council, and the Housatonic Valley Association.

Senator Roraback is also a leading advocate for Connecticut’s non-profit sector and was named the 2007 Family Legislator of the Year by the Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies. He was honored by the Connecticut Association of Nonprofits in 2005 “for his steadfast commitment and service to Connecticut’s nonprofit sector and for making a difference in the lives of the people of Connecticut.”

Senator Roraback received a GLADD Award (Government Leader Against Drunk Driving) from Mothers Against Drunk Driving in June of 2004 for his work improving Connecticut’s drunk driving laws by requiring first time offenders who are identified as chronic substance abusers to be referred to a treatment program rather than an education program.

He also successfully introduced legislation in 2003, which later became known as Stephanie’s Law, requiring drivers causing fatal accidents to submit to blood alcohol testing. He introduced the bill following the tragic death of 16-year-old Stephanie Raie Berry, who was killed by a drunken driver going the wrong way down Route 8.

Senator Roraback has also been recognized by the Connecticut Chapter of the National Alliance of the Mentally Ill for his advocacy on behalf of individuals with psychiatric disabilities.

Senator Roraback is a member of the Speaker’s Task Force on Domestic Violence. In 2007, he authored and passed legislation to strengthen protections for victims of domestic violence by allowing police to issue weekend restraining orders. His efforts have been recognized by the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Senator Roraback also worked with several of his constituents and animal welfare organizations to pass a law permitting judges to include a prohibition on harming or taking possession of a pet as a condition of a domestic violence restraining order.

In 2006, Senator Roraback was named to the Aspen-Rodel Fellowship in Public Leadership as one of the nation’s top young elected officials. Aspen Institute President Walter Isaacson said the 24 Rodel Fellows “represent the best hope for America’s future – upcoming leaders committed to working together for the common good.”

Born March 29, 1960, in Torrington, Senator Roraback attended public schools in Torrington and Litchfield. A graduate of the Hotchkiss School, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Yale University in 1983, and his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia Law School in 1987. He returned to Torrington in 1988 to work with his father, brother and sister at the family law firm of Roraback and Roraback, which was founded in 1883 by his great-grandfather.

Senator Roraback is married to Kara Dowling and they reside with their son Andrew Kevin in Goshen.