In This Issue:
From Paddi's Desk
CT Agency Corner
Municipal Roundup
Inside Scoop
This Day in CT History
|
|
|
A pin could drop at the Capitol this week
After the session closed legislators, for the most part, represented their towns as delegates at the statewide conventions to nominate their party leaders as candidates for the 2022 November Election. While there were some surprises as to each race's final candidates, for the most part, legislators running for re-election could use the time to shore up their own campaigns, since immediately following the adjournment of the two-day conventions they had to rush back to their districts to line up the local support needed for their nominations for their respective seats in the Connecticut legislature. Immediately after that, there was a flurry of fundraising through texts, emails and the occasional printed invitation to join them at a local setting to support their 2022 election run.
As you might know, as a lobbyist, we are limited to a $100 donation to any campaign for statewide office or the legislature. Even town committee events have tight restrictions on what a lobbyist can contribute, since often times the town committees will eventually support their locally endorsed candidates.
On a parallel track, most candidates were also hard at work locally to secure the necessary financial support needed from residents in their districts in order to secure public campaign funding. There were many spaghetti dinners, backyard BBQs and even the infamous pancake breakfasts happening the past couple weeks. As candidates secure the funds needed to qualify for applying for a state grant, the challengers are still at it, and looking to build a network to help them qualify.
It’s been more than ten years since public financing of legislative and statewide elections passed, and there’s definitely been a swing in candidates' opinions on the merits. Back then, a bunch of moderate and conservative elected officials felt that if they couldn’t raise the necessary funds from similar minded folks, maybe they shouldn’t run for office. On the other hand, many felt that raising the thousands of dollars necessary to mount an effective campaign if you weren’t the incumbent was difficult at best. But now, almost every candidate seeks public funding unless they can swing the personal investment themselves.
There’s also been a switch from the theory that only direct campaign expenses are accepted and anything that could be conceived to be a personal expense was not allowed. In fact several legislators got in trouble, with complaints drawn up and violations cited for use of campaign funds to spiff up a wardrobe, or hire a family member to do various campaign duties that one might think are personal in nature, such as providing child care services. But just recently, that was erased after many female candidates led a successful campaign, stating that it was almost impossible for a mom to run a successful campaign without the assistance to fund childcare.
Another BIG change this session was the increase of legislative and statewide office compensation. On Opening Day of the 2022 session, several well-respected legislators announced that they were unable to seek re-election due to family or business circumstances that were negatively impacted by the low salary that a legislator received. After the initial reaction, and as more and more veteran legislators announced their decision not to seek re-elections, the final days of session saw a bill pass that would raise salaries for all. The bill also upped the extra pay related to committee chairs or leadership roles in the chamber caucuses.
By the time it passed, with the tightness of the nominating schedule taken into account, many are unsure if it impacted at all the candidates seeking to run for a legislative or statewide office this cycle. It will be interesting to see what the makeup is for the Class of 2023, once all the campaign dust has settled.
One final interesting fact—for the third election cycle in a row BOTH candidates for Governor are self-funding their campaigns. In the past, gubernatorial elections saw candidates who already were in elected office working their way up the “career ladder,” either within the legislature or inside the mayors’ offices. Not any longer. Incumbent Governor Ned Lamont and two-time Republican challenger Bob Stefanowski both come from the business world and are looking for a “redo.”
So as the Capitol remains very quiet and residents are focused on graduations, summer plans for their children, family vacations and the cost of living in Connecticut—the candidates will be finalizing their funding and staffing needs, framing their messages and developing the winning strategy. Maybe one day in late June or July the sitting legislators will return to overturn Governor Lamont's vetoed bills. But so far there hasn’t been much pushback as he’s decided to cancel the legislature policy directions.
As June continues, candidates will be working the districts and hoping for an economy that turns around before Labor Day really gets voters tuned into what’s happening in state government.
|
|
List of Legislators not Seeking Re-Election
We would like to give a huge thanks to the following legislators that will not be seeking re-election this year for all they have done for Connecticut. We wish them all the best in their future endeavors!
- Rep. Cathy Abercrombie (D)
- Rep. Dave Arconti (D)
- Rep. Harry Arora (R)
- Rep. Whit Betts (R)
- Sen. Dan Champagne (R)
- Rep. Tony D'Amelio (R)
- Sen. Mary Daugherty-Abrams(D)
- Rep. Joe De La Cruz (D)
- Rep. Laura Devlin (R)
- Rep. Mike France (R)
- Sen. Paul Formica (R)
- Rep. Robin Green (R)
- Sen. Will Haskell (D)
- Rep. John Hampton (D)
- Rep. Brandon McGee (D)
- Sen. Craig Miner (R)
- Rep. Chris Perone (D)
- Rep. Bill Petit (R)
- Rep. Rosa Rebimbas (R)
- Rep. Emmett Riley (D)
- Rep. Sean Scanlon (D)
- Rep. Brian Smith (D)
- Rep. Charlie Stallworth (D)
- Rep. Stephanie Thomas (D)
- Rep. Dave Wilson (R)
- Rep. Mike Winkler (D)
- Sen. Kevin Witkos (R)
|
|
Can I Count on Your Support?
The State Elections Enforcement Commission deadline for either filing a petition to run, being on the ballot as an endorsed candidate or receiving enough votes in the convention to be on the ballot is next Tuesday and the field for both the primary and general election is shaping up!
By constitution, candidates for each party contend for a ballot spot during their general conventions in May for each elected position. If you are entered as a candidate, you start by working with the delegates of your convention to try and get their support for your candidacy. The rule of these conventions is that you need at least 50% +1 of the total convention votes to be nominated. If after two ballots there is not a consensus then only two candidates may be on the third ballot where a final vote is taken to decide the winner.
What many don’t realize though is even receiving 15% of the votes at a convention technically is enough to qualify as a primary candidate, however, your position on the ballot is beneath the endorsed candidate. Most recently, candidates have tried to either skip the convention completely or move to petition their way onto the ballot right away to try and qualify as an “outsider” candidate. We’ve seen some candidates begin that process this year but the most famous example of this was when Republican challenger for governor Bob Stefanowski petitioned his way onto the ballot and won a five-way primary race for governor in 2018.
After June 7, the primary field is finalized and leads to an election on August 9 where the winning candidates for each qualified party face off against each other in the November election. Connecticut does have an odd system though, where the state primaries are held in August and the municipal primaries are held in September. Many who run in August are fearful trying to turn out votes during the “dog days of summer” and with good reason.
If you are interested in learning more or want to throw your name on the ballot by petition here’s your chance!
|
|
Federal Funding Fiasco
As more and more municipal budgets come into clear view, there will be more information for us to read and learn from in terms of how each community has addressed federal ARPA fund projects, and successes and failures related to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). In Colchester, officials appointed a handful of local residents to a special committee and charged them with advising the town’s elected leaders on how to spend more than $4.6 million in federal stimulus funding from the American Rescue Plan Act. In recent months, several of those same committee members submitted applications to the town asking for a portion of that federal money, either for their businesses or for other organizations they run.
Those potential conflicts of interest have raised questions in the small community about whether local officials did enough to solicit input from town residents and why a select group of people got to determine how the public funds are spent. The federal rules for that funding give local leaders broad leeway in how to spend the money. The funds can be used on things like vaccination efforts, food programs, job training opportunities, financial aid to businesses, education assistance, affordable housing, water and sewer improvements and other public infrastructure projects.
Dave Koji, the committee’s chairman, is part owner of a local appliance shop that asked the town for $25,000 in federal funding to help replace the store’s heating and cooling system.
Greg Barden, another committee member, requested another $25,000 to pay for membership drives and local advertising campaigns for the Colchester Business Association, where he serves as the group’s treasurer.
And Jack Faski, another business owner on the committee, asked the town to allocate $25,000 to his realty company so that he can make improvements to the driveway, sidewalks, decking, lighting and landscaping at a historic building near the center of Colchester, which serves as an office, bed and breakfast and his personal residence.
Those members have suggested that they did disclosures and were open and transparent about their requests before taking the volunteer roles on the committee, but there are many residents in town that have vocally objected to these particular project requests. They recused themselves from any votes and maintain they have not done anything untoward.
The issue at hand, in many municipalities, is that with the broad definitions outlined in the use of those ARPA dollars, many municipalities have struggled to determine which projects should be funded over others which leads to these issues.
|
|
Helping Connecticut Families
During the legislative session this year, we heard a lot about workforce development and support for Connecticut’s employers and their employees' rebates. With a budget surplus, the rainy day fund jar overflowing, and an influx of federal American Rescue Plan dollars, direct injections of assistance to Connecticut’s hard working employees was a no-brainer. These initiatives took over the legislative session as stakeholders fought for line items in the budgets, only to be told that the tax cut package that would benefit hard working residents of the state touted by the Governor and leadership of the legislature trumped most every other priority. Recently, we saw the gas tax cut come into effect. We saw the car tax cut become a reality, and as of Wednesday of this past week, we saw relief for families and Connecticut workers. With inflation continuing to be an issue and an election just a few months away, these tax cuts and supports for Connecticut’s workforce are important heading into what feels like a different year of local campaigns. Let’s see just how much this would impact Connecticut families.
According to several economic studies across the country, American families spend north of $200 a month on gasoline to power their vehicles. For groceries, the average family spends $411 per month or around $5,000 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Families across the country are hurting and that is no surprise especially as the summer months approach and we hope to all get out for a vacation. In Connecticut, these costs impact our way of life but as of this week, some relief is on the way for those that qualify.
Of course, tax cuts for hard working families has always been the goal of most elected officials across the state over the years but as of Wednesday, families in Connecticut can apply for a benefit that has long been a topic of conversation. The child tax rebate plan went into effect this week allowing couples filing joint taxes for $200,000 or less in income to apply for direct payments of $250 for each child below age 18 and capped at $750 for three. For several officials, including the Commissioner of the state Department of Revenue Services Mark Boughton and Representative Sean Scanlon, this is a huge deal for Connecticut’s workforce and families. The state of Connecticut has estimated that this will impact north of 350,000 people across the state. As some elected officials would call it, a BFD.
Sharing this information has been a priority of just about every legislator across the street. It’s an expansive program that may benefit your employees or colleagues. Information around this program, if you know anyone that would like to apply, is in this link. As the youngest of three boys, I know this program would have been helpful for my family growing up. While we continue to see prices rise along all forms of consumer products, this type of relief isn’t just welcome, it’s necessary.
|
|
June 3: A Historic & Presidential Commencement at the Coast Guard Academy
While the commencement ceremonies at the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) are always filled with a dazzling degree of pomp and circumstance, the Academy’s 78th commencement, on June 3, 1964, was especially memorable. For the first time in history, the President of the United States delivered the commencement speech.
Plans had been made the year before to have President John F. Kennedy, a World War II veteran with an affinity for the Navy and Coast Guard service branches, speak to the graduating USCGA class of 1964. After Kennedy’s assassination in November 1963, newly sworn-in President Lyndon B. Johnson decided to honor his predecessor’s intentions and announced his commitment to delivering a commencement speech at the Academy.
On a sunny, beautiful spring day, Marine One (the helicopter carrying the President) touched down in New London, and President Johnson arrived on the Coast Guard Academy campus to a 21-gun salute. Standing on a podium in the center of the school’s football field in front of 5,000 spectators, Johnson delivered a speech that was somber and serious in tone, praising the resolve of United States servicemen while reminding them of the “dark realities” of the lingering threat of nuclear war with the Soviets. He concluded by declaring his hope that “this nation can someday, not too distant, lay aside its awesome power, and direct all its genius to the betterment of man.”
After his speech, Johnson administered the Officer’s Oath and handed out diplomas to all 109 members of the graduating class of 1964. In return, having obtained special permission from the Secret Service, Class President Robert Armacost presented the President with a customized class ring and officially declared him an honorary member of the Class of 1964.
Today, the President of the United States delivers commencement speeches to all four U.S. military service academies on a rotating basis. In 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson became the very first one to visit the Coast Guard Academy in New London, today in Connecticut history.
The original article from the CT Humanities Council can be found here.
|
|
Sullivan & LeShane, Inc.
www.ctlobby.com | (860) 560-0000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
