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 […]
Connecticut’s long-term debt grew $8.4 billion between 2019 and 2020 due to increased liabilities for Connecticut’s retirement systems, according to the newly released Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Connecticut’s unfunded pension and OPEB liabilities increased from […]
Gov. Ned Lamont labeled his proposed budget “Connecticut’s Comeback” and that may be true in regard to Connecticut surviving the fiscal impact of the pandemic better than expected, but, according to the governor’s economic report, […]
Gov. Ned Lamont released his biennial budget proposal to close a $2.5 billion deficit, which relies on a mix of federal aid, a continued delay of sales tax revenue for municipal grants and maintaining some […]
As Connecticut’s legislature is sworn in, lawmakers and the governor will enter into the 2021 legislative session with a hefty Rainy Day fund but, because of the pandemic, also face lower revenue, budget deficits and […]
The new year will bring another round of wage increases for state employees and a new payroll deduction for everyone else, and House Republicans are calling of Gov. Ned Lamont to suspend both in light […]
Gov. Ned Lamont submitted a budget proposal on October 1 that draws down Connecticut’s Rainy Day Fund by $1.8 billion, maintains the corporate surcharge tax and implements a hiring freeze to bridge a projected $2 […]
UConn Health Center is facing $114 million loss in revenue after the coronavirus pandemic emptied beds and ended a large number of medical procedures, according to the budget presentation given to the UConn Board of […]
The University of Connecticut is facing an estimated $50 million budget shortfall due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is having to furlough managers and cut its athletics department to make up for the deficit. Although […]
Connecticut union activists are planning a drive-by rally outside the homes of Connecticut’s wealthiest individuals in Greenwich on Thursday, May 21, calling for increasing taxes on the rich to plug an estimated $7 billion budget […]
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.