Nearly two years after the 2020 presidential election ignited a national firestorm of election fraud claims that culminated with the January 6 riot at the Capitol by protesters, the Connecticut Office of the Secretary of […]
The day before Connecticut officials announced consensus revenue estimates of a $2.2 billion surplus in the state’s finances, the Office of Policy and Management sent a letter to municipal leaders across the state informing them […]
The Connecticut Comptroller’s Office released its updated report on savings generated by Gov. Dannel Malloy’s 2017 agreement with the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, showing the that actual savings to the state were $200 million […]
Connecticut made a historic $1.6 billion payment toward its $40 billion pension debt thanks to the state’s volatility cap, and that payment is expected to achieve significant savings over the next four years, according to […]
Connecticut lawmakers and Gov. Ned Lamont bridged a $3.5 billion biannual budget deficit during the 2021 legislative session, largely using federal COVID relief funds combined with some revenue and accounting adjustments the state has employed […]
As Connecticut prepares to make a historic $1.6 billion payment toward its unfunded pensions, a new report shows Connecticut has the highest taxpayer debt of any state in the nation. According to Truth in Accounting’s […]
Language that would have given state department commissioners the ability to contract with other states was removed from the budget implementer by a voice vote in the House of Representatives. Section 221 of the implementer […]
Despite comments from Gov. Ned Lamont and Democratic legislative leaders saying the General Assembly would not take up the Transportation and Climate Initiative program this year, language in the budget implementer bill allowing state department […]
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong issued a formal opinion saying the proposed Connecticut Equitable Investment Fund proposed by Democrats on the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee “lacks the requisite standards and limits to survive to […]
The Moderate House Democratic Caucus said they stand with Gov. Ned Lamont in opposing tax increases on Connecticut’s wealthy residents proposed by their progressive counterparts as Democratic legislative leaders and the governor begin budget negotiations. […]
The Connecticut State Legislature will begin its 2023 session on January 4th and will adjourn on June 7th. The “long session,” as non-election years are called in Hartford, will be centered around the biennial budget. The Office of the State Comptroller reports that state government found a way to spend $47.11 billion in 2022 and, if trends continue, we can expect that number to grow even more going forward. Concerns over energy prices, inflation, and general cost of living continue to dominate the headlines and the threat of a recession hovers over economic forecasts.
What will our elected officials be working on to improve policy outcomes for Connecticut residents? What tax reform proposals will there be? What can be done to lower home heating bills? How will state and local budgets be affected by fewer federal resources? How will schools be implementing to curriculum requirements?
While we wait to see the thousands of individual and committee bills that while dominate the myriad policy debates this year, Yankee Institute is hard at work promoting free-market solutions to the problems we face from Stamford to Putnam and Mystic to Salisbury. To that end, we have produced a new edition of our Charter for Change. The Charter provides commonsense reforms to make Connecticut’s government work for its residents.
Though the list of reforms may be exhausting to review, it is far from exhaustive! And that’s why we want to work with you to build a broad-based coalition to encourage sound policy reforms to enable Connecticut residents to forge a better future for themselves and their families.
It’s also imperative that we do so. As we noted in a report and CT Mirror op-ed last year, the debate over whether we’re in a national recession really misses the point for Connecticut residents. We had more people employed in the private sector in 2007 than we do today. Our economy has grown at one of the slowest rates in the nation for the past decade, and we are getting outpaced year after year. We’re not attracting innovation and industry. We’re losing some of our best and brightest as they seek other parts of the country where it’s easier to make a living.
But together, we can reverse this trend.
At Yankee Institute, we know Connecticut is a state with boundless opportunity, and we intend to help make our state more than a place where people are just able to make ends meet! Connecticut should be a place where everyone can thrive – and with your help, it will be.