Connecticut legislature extends gasoline tax cut, free buses around state, premium pay for essential workers

The state legislature voted overwhelmingly Monday to extend the gasoline tax cut and free public buses — saying that cash-strapped consumers need extra spending money into 2023.

On a bipartisan vote of 134 to 7, the state House of Representatives said they were providing relief to taxpayers from the highest inflation in the past four decades. Seven conservative Republicans opposed the measure during the lame-duck special session as many departing lawmakers cast the final vote of their careers before the new legislature takes over in January.

More than four hours later, the Senate voted 33-0 with three senators absent - Dennis Bradley of Bridgeport, Doug McCrory of Hartford, and Rob Sampson of Wolcott.

Gov. Ned Lamont and Democratic lawmakers recently crafted the final deal on the 28-page bill, saying that compromises were needed because they were cognizant of the costs of the measure. The entire package Monday was worth more than $200 million, including an additional $90 million in savings for motorists through the gasoline tax, nearly $11 million for free buses, $75 million for bonuses for essential workers during the pandemic, and $30 million for heating oil assistance programs during the coming cold months.

The Senate voted after 9 p.m. Monday after the upper chamber had spent multiple hours bidding farewell to eight senators — with detailed speeches on both sides of the aisle.

Under the bill, the temporary cut in the gasoline tax of 25 cents per gallon will now be extended through Dec. 31, rather than ending on Dec. 1. The tax will be phased back in over five months in increments of five cents per gallon.

This means that the tax cut will be reduced to 20 cents per gallon on Jan. 1, 15 cents per gallon on Feb. 1, and then continuing until there is no tax cut at all. By early May, gasoline prices are expected to be up by 25 cents per gallon.

Republicans, though, said that the full 25-cent cut on the gasoline tax should be extended until the end of the fiscal year on June 30 because the projected surplus for the fiscal year is $2.8 billion — potentially the second highest in state history.

But House Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford said the voters have already spoken on the issue, re-electing Lamont over Republican Bob Stefanowski, who publicly pushed for extending the gasoline tax far longer than Lamont.

“We just kind of litigated this whole issue,’' Ritter told reporters Monday. “The voters had the chance to weigh in. The amendment today is ‘Let’s do the whole thing until June 30.’ Well, that was a platform that somebody ran on and got 42% of the vote. What the voters basically said is: ‘We like that you’re providing middle class tax relief, but you’re doing it in a sustainable way that’s not sacrificing the [special transportation fund] or the general fund for future generations. That’s the difference between reckless amendments that you can’t pay for.’’

Ritter, a Democrat, said additional tax cuts could be made in the future, depending on the state’s budget situation and the state of the economy. Lamont is scheduled to unveil his new, two-year budget in February.

“We’re not ruling out further action, but we think this is the right action for now,’' he said.

Republicans argued that consumers need more relief immediately.

Rep. Holly Cheeseman of East Lyme, the ranking House Republican on the tax-writing committee, said she was “stunned’' when she recently saw that her home heating oil plan had jumped from “$325 to $580 a month — almost doubling.’'

House Republican leader Vincent Candelora of North Branford said the state needs to provide additional money for fuel assistance as consumers are scrambling to fill their oil tanks with the cold weather approaching in the coming months.

“It’s going to be like throwing bread into a duck pond the way they’ve set this up,” Candelora said. “They’ve only given one loaf of bread for about 5,000 ducks.’'

Premium pay

The legislature also awarded one-time bonuses as high as $1,000 for “essential’' workers during the COVID pandemic, including grocery store clerks, delivery drivers, day care employees, nurses, and caregivers who were deemed as “heroes’' on the front lines at the height of the pandemic. They were declared as “essential’' and could not work from home as some other workers did. The measure, known as House Bill 6001, does not cover state workers as many of them received bonuses of $3,500 earlier this year that were approved by the Lamont administration in a negotiation.

“As we single out one group, are we shortchanging another?’' Cheeseman asked. “Is that really the program we want?’'

Overall, 155,730 workers have been deemed to be eligible after their eligibility was verified, but the application process was closed on Oct. 1 and no additional workers can sign up, lawmakers said. About 66,000 workers will receive the maximum of $1,000.

Workers will receive bonuses that are based on their income — with those at higher levels receiving lower amounts.

“No, not every worker was promised $1,000,’' said state Rep. Sean Scanlon, a Guilford Democrat who will become state comptroller next year. “Anybody making less than $50,000 is going to get $1,000. ... Between $100,000 and $149,000, each of those people is getting $100.’'

But Rep. Gale Mastrofrancesco, a conservative Republican from Wolcott, raised questions about the bonuses.

“Every worker is essential. Every job is essential,’' she said. ’'Here we are rewarding them. They just did their job that they signed up to do. ... Not that our health care workers aren’t heroes. Of course, they are. ... But I don’t believe the role of government is to provide premium pay.’'

During the Senate debate, Sen. Julie Kushner, a Danbury Democrat, said many nurses were required to work mandatory overtime during the coronavirus pandemic “and many of those nurses still suffer’' from post traumatic stress from seeing the illnesses and death caused by the virus.

At the same time that the gasoline tax is extended, free public bus service will be extended through March 31, rather than ending on Dec. 1. Some rides had been $1.75 each way, and ridership has increased beyond pre-pandemic levels on some routes.

Senate Republican leader Kevin Kelly of Stratford said that the 25 cents-per-gallon cut should be extended through the end of the current fiscal year on June 30, 2023. Both Kelly and Candelora have pushed back sharply on aspects of Lamont’s plans.

“The family in Derby that talked about getting $600 isn’t going to get any more,’' Kelly said of heating assistance. “That’s not fair to tell people in the state of Connecticut that help is on the way when in reality it’s not. ... For today, we’ll take what is being offered. It’s better than what we have. ... Let’s do better.’'

With the largest rainy day fund in state history last year at $4.3 billion and another general fund surplus projected at nearly $2.8 billion for the current fiscal year, Republicans said the state has more than enough money to pay for the tax cut at a time of the highest inflation in the past four decades.

With the state budget surplus hitting record-breaking levels, Connecticut legislators voted unanimously in March to temporarily suspend the tax as of April 1 because already rising gasoline prices had skyrocketed even further after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The tax-cutting action was taken in an election year when the average price was $4.32 per gallon. Prices have dipped since then, but they are still volatile and subject to further increases. The average price on Monday was $3.54 per gallon nationally and $3.65 per gallon in Connecticut.

Connecticut is among three states currently suspending their gasoline tax. The tax relief is expected to end in Georgia on Dec. 11 and in New York on Dec. 31.

“There’s nothing in this bill for the middle class,’' said state Rep. Harry Arora, a Greenwich Republican who was likely making his final floor speech because he will be leaving the legislature in January after losing recently in his race for state treasurer to New Haven attorney Erick A. Russell. “It’s called showmanship. Is that a technical term? ... Showmanship in the midst of an energy crisis.’'

State Rep. Toni Walker, a New Haven Democrat who is the longtime co-chairwoman of the budget-writing appropriations committee, said the state has major needs, such as public education, that must be funded and state officials must remain cautious in spending and granting tax cuts.

During the Senate debate on Monday night, Sen. Ryan Fazio of Greenwich said that Connecticut has the third highest electricity costs in the nation, behind only New Hampshire and Hawaii. Connecticut has lost a higher percentage of manufacturing jobs than nationally, he said, partly due to electricity costs.

Fazio called for extending the gasoline tax cut until June 30, drawing support from his fellow Republicans.

“Let’s do something here where we’re going to help the taxpayers,’' said Sen. Dan Champagne, a Vernon Republican who did not seek re-election and will be leaving the chamber in January 2023. “We have plenty of money now. We have so much money, I don’t know why we’re taxing anybody.’'

Champagne said he was at the gasoline station recently and saw someone arrive with a jar of change to pay for a tank of gasoline.

“I think this was all for show today,’' Champagne said on the Senate floor.

Bottle bill

The state’s long-running bottle bill is being expanded on Jan. 1, 2023, as there will now be a required deposit on iced tea, sports drinks, hard cider, plant water, and other beverages that were never charged a deposit in the past. Bottles printed without a label will still be sold under the bill through a grandfather clause until the inventory is sold off. At that point, bottles with the proper labeling would be available.

“They don’t have to do anything,’' Scanlon said of retailers. “They simply proceed as normal. ... This means they don’t have to go back retroactively and fix labels.’'

Christopher Keating can be reached at ckeating@courant.com.