U.S. Senator Chris Murphy, D-Conn., is hoping the third time is the charm for a piece of legislation he is re-introducing to help attract more investors for start-up companies.

Murphy will re-introduce his HALOS legislation in the U.S. Senate today. The acronym stands for Helping Angels Lead Our Startups and refers to so-called “angel” investors.

An angel investor is defined as someone who lends money to small startups and entrepreneurs at more favorable terms than other investors. In many cases, angel investors are members of an entrepreneur’s family or their friends.

“Every bill that I’ve gotten passed has taken multiple tries,” Murphy said in interview Wednesday. “The good news that the House has already passed the exact same bill, so if the Senate were to pass, it would go to President Trump for his signature.”

The HALOS Bill would make it easier for angel investors to interact with entrepreneurs at events in which new business models are showcased before those who might invest. Current regulations governing investor showcases “burdens organizers of these events with having to decide who gets in and who does not,” Murphy said.

“Connecticut has growing entrepreneurial culture, with Yale and New Haven at the epicenter,” he said. “We need to provide ways for entrepreneurs and investors to be side by side and this bill make sure there is more interaction between the two groups.”

Bruce Carlson, president and chief executive officer of the Connecticut Technology Council, said the state has made great strides in becoming a more attractive environment for angel investors.

“We were a little behind compared to other areas, but the 25 percent (state) tax credit made Connecticut start-ups more attractive to angel investors,” Carlson said.

Connecticut started offering tax credits to angel investors in 2010 and then lowered the threshold for getting them from $100,000 to $25,000 in 2012. That resulted in investment pledges growing from $2.4 million in 9 companies to $8.6 million in 23 companies.

“Angel investors find Connecticut an attractive place to do business because we have a broad array of start-up companies for them to invest in.”