HARTFORD, Conn — The 2024 legislative session has started in Connecticut’s Capitol with committees already hard at work. Since it’s an even numbered year, the session is a shorter one with a deadline to adjourn no later than midnight May 8.
So with just three months, rather than five, what should residents expect?
During the 2023 session, the state passed a $51.1 billion dollar budget: $25.1 billion dollars for this fiscal year, and $26 billion dollars for 2024-25. The bipartisan spending plan cut income tax rates for the first time in decades and boosted local school funding while still falling under the spending cap.
Will the budget change this session?
Yes, Connecticut has a biennial budget that’s now set for 2 years. However, the budget will certainly change.
Governor Ned Lamont proposes adjustments to the current budget, hence his State of the State address. Budget revisions are formally proposed the first day of session as well. Although, they are meant to be slight, timely tweaks and not massively changed spending plans.
So while the budget is largely set, there’s already a battle shaping up for more of the rare surplus funding. Nonprofits and social services, Connecticut’s college campuses, the childcare industry and more are all clambering for a drop of the historic rainy day fund citing post-pandemic pressures, costly inflation and staffing struggles. In many organizations’ cases, like University of Connecticut, temporary financial help from federal Covid relief is gone and with the strain on services, they expect the state to pay the difference.
The strict spending cap stands in the way though. Governor Lamont urging lawmakers once again this session to stick to the fiscal guardrails. So far the GOP agrees, while some Democratic leadership has signaled openness to slight flexibility or tweaks to the guardrails.
What are the fiscal guardrails?
Connecticut was in a year-after-year fiscal crisis, deep in budget deficits. In 2015, the legislature passed a massive tax hike of $859 million dollars to attempt to catch up. Despite the added revenue, the state still had to deal with enormous pension problems. In response, lawmakers continued to refinance debt and according to Comptroller Sean Scanlon, “kick the can down the road”.
But in 2017, the bipartisan budget included a spending cap, revenue cap and a volatility cap.
The spending cap wasn’t new, it was added to the state Constitution after the income tax was enacted. However, until 2017 the legislature hadn’t fully defined the boundary. It’s also new that the legislature is so closely abiding by the cap, especially with a rare, healthy surplus..
The revenue cap is known as the guardrail that forces ‘spending within our means’. It ensures a cushion between revenue collected and what can then be spent.
The volatility cap, which many legislative leaders have deemed the most critical in today’s economy, requires $3.15 billion dollars or more to pay down pension debt from specific ‘volatile’ types of revenue. The biggest example, estimated and final tax payments since these tend to fluctuate based on how well the stock market fares each year.
These fiscal guardrails have more than done their job in Connecticut’s financial turnaround: the state has paid down more than $7 billion dollars in pension debt and the rainy day fund is expected to reach $4 billion dollars by fall.
Who is leading the legislature this session?
When it comes to balance of power, Democrats have overwhelming majorities: 98-53 in the House, and 24-12 in the Senate.
With 187 lawmakers back in the chambers, you’ll hear plenty of names this session. Each senator and representative serving on multiple committees and getting legislation through to the floor, but who controls the agendas when they get there?
House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) and Senate President Pro Term Martin Looney (D-New Haven) are the leaders of their respective chambers.
Sen. Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) and Rep. Jason Rojas (D-East Hartford) are the Democratic majority leaders this session.
Rep. Vincent Candlora (R-North Branford) and Sen. Kevin Kelly (R-Stratford) are the Republican minority leaders.
And if there were to be a tied vote, Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz serves as the president of the Senate and has that power.
You can find your lawmakers here.
How do proposals become law in Connecticut?
All policy starts in committees. A legislator, or group of them, submit a bill to either the House or the Senate where leaders assign it to a relevant committee.
Unlike Capitol Hill, Connecticut has joint committees meaning both House and Senate are represented. All committees have a House co-chair and Senate co-chair along with ranking and general members.
Bills then have to be ‘raised’, meaning they’re moving forward and will get a public hearing. In Connecticut, no bill can come out of committee without the opportunity for testimony, but it’s on residents to log on or show up to share their opinions.
You can track a bill and find scheduled public hearings here. Anyone can submit public comments online or sign up to speak in person or on Zoom in the official hearing for the bill.
After a hearing, a committee can ‘kill’ a bill either with a negative vote or by just not taking further action. Bills that do get a favorable vote go to the House or Senate. Sometimes, they’re sent to another committee like a bill with budget needs will go through Appropriations.
The only way around the committee process is if both chambers’ leaders declare a bill ‘emergency-certified’.
If the legislation successfully passes in both the House and Senate, it goes to Governor Lamont’s desk where it will be signed or vetoed.
There’s a way around that too though. The legislature can override a veto with a two-thirds vote in both chambers.
Now, if you want to more generally share your opinion on a committee topic or challenge in your community, you can find and contact lawmakers here.
Emma Wulfhorst is a political reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at ewulfhorst@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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