Yankee Institute has appointed Tim Anop as its new Director of External Affairs, overseeing the organization’s government affairs initiatives. “Tim is dedicated to fostering relationships with policymakers on a bipartisan basis to improve people’s lives […]
With Gov. Ned Lamont set to deliver his annual budget address to the General Assembly on Feb. 5, 2025, Yankee Institute is calling on him to protect the “fiscal guardrails,” bipartisan reforms that have stabilized […]
Connecticut’s fourth- and eighth-grade student performance in reading and mathematics still remains below their pre-pandemic scores, but fared slightly better than the rest of the country, according to a recent study by The Nation’s Report […]
Connecticut lawmakers are rolling out two new bills to create a so-called “Climate Change Superfund,” a scheme that lets the state go after businesses for financial damages over fossil fuel use, claiming they’ve “contributed significantly” […]
With the 2025 legislative session underway, among the top priorities for the Democratic and Republican caucuses is addressing Connecticut’s skyrocketing electric rates, which are some of the highest in the nation. Unsurprisingly, both parties […]
In Connecticut, where state employees already enjoy some of the nation’s most generous healthcare and retirements plans, the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC) is still demanding more. On their website, the union revealed they’ve […]
A new Yankee Institute and University of New Haven Liberty Initiative report, Tax-Credit Scholarships Across the US: A Roadmap for Connecticut to Follow, demonstrates that tax-credit scholarship (TCS) programs have measurable, academic benefits and improve […]
Former Rep Palm Get a New Job At the Jan. 7 Connecticut League of Conservation Voters (CTLCV) event, former Rep. Christine Palm (D-Chester) led a breakout session titled “Media and Communications During the Legislative Session.” […]
On Feb. 27, 1860, Abraham Lincoln rose to speak before a crowd of 1,500 — who trekked through the snow — at The Cooper Union, a newly established center for learning and civic discourse in […]
In his State of the State Address on Wednesday (Jan 8), Gov. Ned Lamont highlighted “affordability and opportunity” as top priorities. However, just three days later, freshman Rep. Nick Gauthier (D-Waterford) is already pushing to […]
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.