Connecticut’s Conference of Municipalities criticized Governor Ned Lamont’s proposed budget during a press conference on Thursday with a new campaign called “Do the Math.” The campaign highlights how the budget will hurt cities and towns in the state.
Several local leaders spoke on various issues, including educational funding and property taxes.
“We’re here to talk about the math. We don’t have enough money to educate our kids. The state often actively prevents us from thriving. We’re doing the heavy lifting while the governor sits on a pile of money. And our schools aren’t succeeding and state leadership wonders why,” New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said.
He said they have 46 guidance counselors for 19,000 students, which is a caseload of 408 students per counselor.
The group said that Education Cost Sharing funding has decreased by over $400 million in the last decade.
“In terms of PILOT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) funding, towns and cities lose over a billion dollars in revenue on property tax exemptions on state-owned and private college and hospital property. While PILOT funding has been increased in the last few years, it’s still underfunded by over 400 million dollars. In the governor’s proposed budget, he actually decreases PILOT funding slightly,” said Joe DeLong, executive director and CEO of CCM.
DeLong said they have seen more than $19 billion of taxable property taken off the municipal tax rolls in the last decade. He says none of that money has been replaced with other funding.
He said the property tax increases for residents are harmful.
“The property tax increases are unsustainable, crippling, incredibly regressive, [and] crushing our communities. They don’t come out of the decisions that are being made locally. We just can’t afford for the math to not add up any longer,” DeLong said.
CCM also said that not enough gambling revenue is going towards the Pequot-Mohegan Fund Grant, which gives money to municipalities. The share of revenue going towards the fund has decreased by five percent since 2016.
The General Assembly and Lamont are expected to reach an agreement for the budget in June.
