HARTFORD, Conn. — Gov. Ned Lamont is proposing a revised state budget that includes tax cuts and more funding for mental health services.
He's calling it Connecticut's Comeback budget, noting Wednesday that the state is in better fiscal shape than three years ago when he first took office.
The governor, who is seeking reelection, gave a rosy assessment of the state, which he said has earned the right to no longer have a statewide mask mandate in schools.
His State of the State address came after legislators opened the 2022 legislative session with hopes of returning the state back to a resemblance of normal following two years of grappling with the pandemic.
It was only moments from the time Lamont ended his State of the State address before the first reactions to the speech started appearing in media inboxes.
Labor unions called for the governor and the legislature to step up on hazard pay for private sector workers deemed essential during the early days of the pandemic. Lamont has proposed doubling the hazard pay fund, but it's only targeted to state workers.
"Governor Lamont deemed them essential with the stroke of a pen. And yet they showed up to work every day despite their fear. Now, as Connecticut is flush with federal grants and a robust Rainy Day Fund, it is time to show up for them by providing pandemic hazard pay," said Ed Hawthorne, President of the Connecticut AFL-CIO. "Will this be it enough to show our appreciation for their sacrifice? Absolutely not. But it is far more respectful than ignoring the role essential workers played in caring for our communities and keeping the economy running.”
The Connecticut Conference on Municipalities applauded the proposal to double the number of families who can claim the property tax credit.
"We’re also going cut taxes on automobiles so no one is struggling to pay more for a Honda in Hartford than a Hummer in Harwinton," Lamont said. "That’s going to reduce car tax bills in more than 100 towns, often by hundreds of dollars per car!"
CCM also asked leaders to protect funding for the new Tiered-PILOT program for local governments with large amounts of tax-exempt property; and boost municipal aid programs that are funded at less than the 100 percent-intended level.
A group representing smaller municipalities, Connecticut Council of Small Towns, was happy with the proposals increasing funding for broadband in rural communities. On the subject of the property tax credit, the group said they were troubled.
“We sincerely appreciate that Governor Lamont’s car tax cap includes provisions to keep towns whole. However, given the state’s track record of reneging on promises to keep towns whole when enacting property tax caps or exemptions, we have serious concerns,” Connecticut Council of Small Towns said.
RELATED: Activists push for end of prison solitary confinements on first day of state legislative session
One man who wants the to replace the governor, Republican Bob Stefanowski, had harsh words.
“Governor Lamont has completely lost touch with the issues facing the residents of Connecticut. Optimism is important, but it also needs to be based in reality,” said Stefanowski. “The Governor touts budget surpluses while he fails to even scratch the surface of offering relief to families, residents and small businesses."
Stefanowski also criticized Lamont's efforts to fight violence in the state.
"The Governor’s words about public safety and the crime crisis in our communities do not match the fact that he’s ignored the voices of victim’s, local leaders, parents and educators who have begged him to take this on for months.”
"At a time when the majority of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, Governor Lamont is playing a high stakes shell game and proposing a drastic spending increase and abandoning the very protections that turned our state's financial health around. It’s clear this budget does not provide immediate tax relief now," said Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly and Senate Republican Leader Pro Tempore Paul Formica in a joint statement.
They also were critical of proposals to get around the state's spending limits. They said circumventing the spending cap could create a situation farther down the road for an end to services that people had come to depend on.
"It puts our future in jeopardy and will make our state more unaffordable for working- and middle- class families," Kelly and Formica added.
Connecticut Working Families called for the state to give stability to workers with hazard pay, universal health care regardless of their documentation status, and segregation and exclusionary zoning.
Doug Stewart is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dstewart@fox61.com.
Have a story idea or something on your mind you want to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at newsteam@fox61.com
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
Steam Live on FIRE TV: Search ‘FOX61’ and click ‘Get’ to download.