Connecticut lawmakers gave final passage to a bill Thursday creating a state emergency relief fund. The fund will use up to $500 million in state budget reserve money, in response to what the bill calls “federal action or inaction that results in a reduction in resources.”
The bill gives the Lamont administration authority to resource affected programs such as home heating assistance and food and nutrition assistance, including WIC and SNAP. Child care (such as federally-funded Head Start), housing and health care also fall under the eligible programs.
Over the course of the two-day special session that began Wednesday some Republicans such as Rob Sampson (R-Wolcott) argued that there was “no emergency” or need for such a fund with the federal government shutdown over.
“It is not our place to undermine the decision of the federal government or to try and backfill what they decide they're not going to fund,” Sampson said in an interview before session began. “We're here to do Connecticut policy, not federal policy.”
Democrats strongly rebuked that sentiment during floor discussions.
“$500 million isn't enough,” State Sen. Gary Winfield (D-New Haven) said. “Folks are arguing against having that money, should we need it to feed people. They're arguing against having that money if we need it to make sure people are warm. They're arguing against having that money to protect the people of the state of Connecticut that we all say that we care about.”
The 43-day shutdown was centered around Congressional Democrats pushing to include enhanced premium subsidies in a funding deal before the end of the year, to keep health care premiums from skyrocketing for thousands of people on Affordable Care Act plans.
“I don't want to come across as uncaring about the people that are suffering. I would say that they ought to look to Democrats in Washington for their responsibility and culpability in the shutdown to begin with,” Sampson said.
During the shutdown, Connecticut was able to fill in gaps such as funding WIC assistance, and eventually funding SNAP payments during the limbo of whether the federal government would use contingency funds to give out the benefits.
Supporters of the effort said the goal of the fund is so the state has that ability to help before the next session.
“Even when the shutdown ends there will be fear," State Rep. Maria Horn (D-Salisbury) said Wednesday. “We are in a strong fiscal position to do something about that.”
What the bill does
The bill is a temporary adjustment, which allows the transfer of $500 million from the Budget Reserve Fund, exceeding its normal 18% cap allowed by state law. Usually any extra surplus would automatically go to paying down the pension debt. Currently the state has an over $4 billion budget reserve fund.
The bill outlines that the Office of Policy and Management secretary must notify the legislative leaders of both parties in the House and Senate, six total, who can block a move to use the money with a majority vote within 24 hours of being notified about the expenditure.
That could include using the money to fill more lapses in federal help. It’s a possibility several Democratic lawmakers voiced concern about during the session.
“I’m just not convinced we’re not going to have another shutdown in January.” State Sen. Cathy Osten (D-Norwich) told senators Thursday.
Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven) agreed.
“We don't know what the next flashpoint will be. We're pleased that at this point it looks like the SNAP will be funded, but the Affordable Care Act subsidies will go over a cliff, at the end of December,” Looney said.
The bill did have bipartisan support in both chambers, though some GOP critics characterized it as a “slush fund” and were concerned about spending the state reserves.
“There is nothing to ensure that we are actually meeting the needs, because the proponents are not explaining what the needs are, and how they add up to $500 million,” State Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-Greenwich) said.
All Democrats voted for the measure. Among the state’s Republicans, 8 senators and 20 state representatives voted against it.
If money from the fund is not spent by June 30, it will then go toward continuing to pay down pension debt.
So what’s next?
In terms of the programs that will immediately benefit from the fund, Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) said, “those will be conversations with the governor that we'll have.”
Sen. Looney says the half a billion dollar fund could potentially help fill the ACA subsidies set to expire at the end of the year.
“We're going to try and be the best backstop that we possibly can, but it will never be enough,” Duff said. “Because we don't have the resources of the federal government.”
As House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) said Monday when lawmakers announced the fund, conversations have been happening since the summer to respond to cuts the the Trump administration and Congress made under H.R. 1, also known as the “One Big Beautiful” bill.
“So that doesn't go away, and those conversations continue,” Ritter said.
Some of the changes under H.R. 1, such as to Medicaid and SNAP, are slated to take place in 2026 or later.
However, in the case of Planned Parenthood of Southern New England (PPSNE), patients coming to centers in Connecticut don’t have coverage through Medicaid under H.R. 1.
Gretchen Raffa, chief policy and advocacy officer at PPSNE, said they’re asking the governor to use part of the new $500 million fund to address the blocked federal money.
“To cover the cost of preventative health care, that includes cancer screenings, birth control, STI testing and treatment and other preventative health care,” Raffa said, adding that they’re losing $1 million a month to continue helping HUSKY patients, but it’s just not sustainable.
Also on Thursday, Coralys Santana was among the dozens of people with the advocacy group Connecticut Project Action Fund lobbying for the emergency relief bill (among other measures) at the Capitol. Santana is the group’s campaign manager, and said they wanted to ensure no one loses food or health care due to federal budget cuts.
“Things are already very expensive, unaffordable,” Santana said. “Folks are already cutting meals, and so the little bit of support they have to access health care or access food being under threat is really adding to the stress that families feel all across the state.”
Other groups like the Connecticut for All Coalition praised the new fund, but said that the state has more money to help people, with over 4 billion dollars in its rainy day fund.
The bill now heads to Gov. Ned Lamont for his signature.
It was among four measures considered in Connecticut legislature’s special session, from an effort restricting ICE arrests near courts, a revised version of a major housing bill that Lamont vetoed in June, and a deal that would help UConn Health purchase Waterbury hospital.
