Optimism reigns on opening day at CT Capitol; Lamont focuses on electricity, education, childcare

Hartford Courant – Wednesday, January 8, 2025
By Christopher Keating

As the Connecticut legislature opened its 2025 session on a day of optimism, Gov. Ned Lamont called Wednesday for controlling electricity prices and health care costs to solve vexing problems that have angered both consumers and businesses for years.

In his annual State of the State Address, Lamont told the crowd that he could not predict what will happen with state funding and the impact from the new administration of President Donald J. Trump that will start on Jan. 20.

While unable to control the federal agenda in Washington, Lamont said lawmakers need to focus at home on the high cost of electricity.

“This is a time of hope, sadness, and uncertainty,” Lamont said during his 28-minute speech. “Over the next month or two, we should have more insights into how the changing relationship with the new administration will affect our budget and our people, but today, let’s focus on what we can do here in Connecticut to build on the progress we’ve made over the last six years. As always, our north stars are affordability and opportunity, holding down costs of energy and healthcare and education, allowing you to keep more of what you earn and providing you the tools you need to earn more, buy a home, start a business.”

In front of a standing-room-only crowd in the historic Hall of the House chamber, Lamont cited his administration’s accomplishments as, he said, the state has been restored to fiscal health after years of deficits and tax increases. He noted that lawmakers have more time this session to tackle major issues, and he focused on the broad themes of affordability and opportunity.

Besides electricity, Lamont mentioned a wide variety of issues, including Medicaid, elementary and higher education, childcare, protecting abortion rights, and creating more affordable housing.

“OK, we have a longer legislative session this cycle, giving us an opportunity to get in the weeds, lift up the hood, not always arguing about more money, but better results – not just more, but better – delivering results that make a difference by reducing costs to you and expanding opportunity for all,” Lamont said. “Let’s start with the high price of electricity in our state. That has sparked a little discussion over the last six months. Two years ago from this same dais, I asked the energy and technology committee to work with us to evaluate how to best make electricity more affordable, by increasing supply and reducing demand. These high prices impact all of us – working families, seniors on a fixed income, small businesses, big manufacturers. Everyone was mad as hell looking at their bills following the hottest July in recorded history – and I can see why.”

Electricity is not going away as a problem, he said, because artificial intelligence, a key factor in the future, requires large amounts of electricity. He rejected various ideas that have been mentioned in the long-running electricity battle.

“Look, you can feel free to debate whether you want to shift electricity costs from the ratepayers to taxpayers, or you can move from three to five PURA commissioners, but these cosmetic changes aren’t going to make a dime’s worth of difference,” Lamont said. “What can make a difference, however, is increasing supply, especially low-carbon supply, starting with our investment in Revolution Wind, which is under construction right now, more commercial solar from Maine — you know, foggy Maine. Ironically, yes, since they have hundreds of acres of land for necessary commercial grade installations. And don’t forget hydro from Canada — our 51st state. These are really our only options for new [electrical] generation.”

Lamont’s speech marked the highlight of opening day ceremonies as lawmakers began the “long session” that ends on June 4. While laying out broad themes Wednesday, Lamont will provide more details next month with his annual budget address for a spending plan that will reach about $27 billion for the next fiscal year that starts in July.

No talk on guardrails

While Lamont covered many issues, he never once mentioned a key word: guardrails.

Guardrails is the Capitol nomenclature for a series of budgetary caps that have helped restore the state to fiscal health through spending, volatility and revenue restrictions. Passed in 2017 on a bipartisan basis by the legislature, the guardrails have been hailed for restoring the state to fiscal health by preventing spending above certain thresholds and instead redirecting the money to the long-underfunded pension funds.

But Republicans were stunned that Lamont never mentioned the guardrails at a time when some top Democrats want to tweak the rules in order to allow more spending on issues like special education and child care.

“There was no mention of fiscal guardrails. Is he punting on those already?” asked House Republican leader Vincent Candelora of North Branford. “I would have thought that should have been the first and foremost part of his speech. … I’m concerned that there was a white flag today being shown by not mentioning those guardrails.”

Senate Republican leader Stephen Harding of Brookfield had a similar view on Lamont’s speech.

“There was very minimal substance to it,” Harding said. “The governor is a nice guy, and he said some nice platitudes. But really, I would have liked to have heard more substance. Part of being governor is leadership and showing your vision for the people of this state. I think there was nothing really in the speech that showed that. … The fact that he didn’t even mention guardrails would indicate to me that he’s moving back potentially from his position that he’s been taking for a year consistently.”

But Lamont’s press office said he has not changed his position on the guardrails and does not have to mention the topic in every speech. Lamont has consistently reiterated his view recently, noting that the legislature re-approved the guardrails last year by extending them for another five years with an option for an additional five years.

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney agreed, saying that the guardrails can be discussed more during Lamont’s budget speech next month and in the negotiations in the coming months.

Legislators

Before Lamont’s speech, both the state House of Representatives and Senate formally elected their leaders for the two-year term and passed the joint rules for the new session.

In the House, Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford was sworn in for his third term as speaker, which is unusual in the chamber. The previous two speakers who served three terms were Ritter’s father, Tom, who started in 1993 and then Moira Lyons of Stamford. Since then, Speakers have served for two terms.

In the Senate, President Pro Tempore Martin Looney of New Haven was unanimously reelected by acclamation to serve another term as the highest-ranking senator.

Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff of Norwalk noted that Looney has maintained his enthusiasm through the decades and was “as excited to come to the state Capitol today to be sworn in as any of our new members.”

In a spirt of bipartisanship, Senate Republican leader Stephen Harding of Brookfield seconded Looney’s nomination and agreed with Duff about their colleague’s enthusiasm.

As legislators celebrated their first day back at the Capitol after their election victories in November, two members were not sworn in on Wednesday. Former Senate Republican leader Kevin Kelly of Stratford is leaving the chamber to become a Superior Court judge, while Rep. Christine Conley of Groton will be nominated as a workers’ compensation commissioner. They both officially submitted their resignations to the office of the Secretary of the State, who is the state’s chief elections official.

Opening Day

The new session marks the opportunity for thousands of bills that will be debated by more than 25 different committees on issues ranging from spending and taxes to education, energy, and the environment.

Like opening day at Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium, the start of the session is a time of great optimism, bipartisanship and backslapping before Republicans and Democrats begin clashing over major issues like taxes and education spending.

Even after 17 years in the legislature, House Majority Leader Jason Rojas of East Hartford said it never gets old to walk into the historic Hall of the House at the state Capitol.

“I’m in awe of the grandness of the room,” Rojas told his colleagues. “When I come in this room, the first thing I do is look up and wonder how I got here.”

With a fulltime job as chief of staff to the president of Trinity College in Hartford, Rojas juggles multiple responsibilities on a daily basis. Like others, he thanked his family for making it possible to work at the Capitol.

“As parents, we miss a lot of time in our children’s lives,” said Rojas, who had a difficult personal year in 2024 as his mother died in July. “For all you parents, life comes at you really, really fast. … I put 110% into anything I do. Thanks to my colleagues for this incredible honor of being majority leader.”

Bingo card

On a day of speeches and backslapping, Candelora told his colleagues to remain humble.

“When you get elected and go up to Hartford, you’re going to think that you’re the most important person in the world,” Candelora said. “And then you go home to your spouse, who reminds you that you’re not.”

Toward the end of his speech, Lamont pointed to the tourism office that has promoted Connecticut on a constant basis. He mentioned a state employee as predicted in Mike Cerulli’s Capitol Report “State of the State Bingo Card,” which listed Lamont mannerisms to watch for.

“OK, we can always spend more money promoting tourism, but a little creative juice goes a long way,” Lamont said. “Let me give a shout out to Anthony Anthony, our chief marketing officer. Bingo! His immodest road signs declaring Connecticut the “pizza capital,” “submarine capital,” and “basketball capital of the world” attracted over six billion media impressions. That’s free publicity money can’t buy.”

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