Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont has announced that his budget director, Jeff Beckham, is stepping down next month to become a Superior Court judge.
“You’ve delivered multiple honestly balanced budgets that credit rating agencies continue to say thank you for what you’ve done,” Lamont said, praising Beckham, whose official title is the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management.
Beckham helped oversee a dramatic turnaround in the state’s fiscal management during his tenure at OPM, resulting in budget surpluses and upgrades to the state's credit rating.
“I’m also grateful for the opportunity to continue service on the Superior Court with your nomination if the General Assembly concurs,” Beckham responded, thanking Lamont for the opportunity to serve as budget director for nearly four years.
Lamont plans to nominate Beckham to serve as a Superior Court judge in the coming weeks.
He has nominated Joshua Wojcik, the director of health care policy in the state Comptroller’s Office, to be his next budget director.
Lamont said Wojcik’s health care policy experience would be helpful in crafting future state budgets.
“So we can think about how we can continue or start to bring down the high cost of healthcare, which is really key to the economic future of what our state is all about,” Lamont said.
“My job is really to be able to continue that progress and continue that success. And that’s really what I intend on doing,” Wojcik said, pledging to continue prudent management of the state’s finances.
The State General Assembly will consider the nominations during next year’s session that begins in February.
