Democratic lawmakers say equity is missing from Gov. Ned Lamont’s new budget

Democrats from some of Connecticut’s largest cities ripped Gov. Ned Lamont’s proposed budget Thursday, saying the legislature needs to ensure that more money is allocated to the cities to help reduce racial inequities and provide more opportunities for minority residents.

Sen. Doug McCrory of Hartford tangled with Lamont’s budget director, saying he sees nothing in the budget that provides access to capital or leads to home ownership. McCrory and other members of the legislature’s Black and Puerto Rican Caucus said they want to see improvements in the two-year, $46 billion proposal as the plan is debated and eventually reaches a final vote in June.

“I’m going to talk about equity from the standpoint of those who’ve been harmed or impacted by the inequities in the systems that were present before COVID and now while we’re in COVID,” McCrory said during a public hearing Thursday. “When I looked at this budget, I saw nothing that talked about how we are going to deal with the equity issue. ... What we’re really talking about is people living in ghettos that were created by government and by policymakers.”

McCrory said it will be “very difficult” to legalize recreational marijuana this year because he said the legislation must have strong provisions for equity for communities that have been harmed in the past by the war on drugs.

Budget director Melissa McCaw pushed back hard, saying Lamont’s budget provides an additional $32 million next year for Hartford for an annual total of $312.7 million, along with $200 million to $300 million in bond funds for affordable housing statewide that would help underserved communities. McCaw told McCrory that she viewed his remarks as passionate, not disrespectful, and they agreed to discuss the best ways of achieving equity.

“It is not missing from this budget,” McCaw said. “To say there’s not a starting point of investment I don’t think is fair. ... This is about a frank discussion. It’s not an ending point. It’s a starting point.”

Noting that she is the first Black woman to lead the governor’s budget office, McCaw said she would not simply sit at the public hearing and “take shots” about equity without responding.

The money for affordable housing, she said, is “for the people in the projects to have a decent housing situation. OK?”

In the coming weeks and months, McCaw pledged to negotiate with McCrory and the entire budget-writing committee that heard her outline of Lamont’s proposals Thursday.

“The governor is open ears,” she said. “I have open ears. Let’s begin to frame what equity looks like, but let’s also recognize that we have some financial challenges.”

At a time of high unemployment when more than 600 restaurants have closed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the state is facing deficits of more than $1 billion in each of the next two years. Legislators, though, said those numbers could drop sharply if Wall Street remains on its record-breaking pace that has continued this week. Wall Street’s largesse leads to millions of dollars paid by millionaires and billionaires in Fairfield County when they generate capital gains by selling high-priced stocks in payments that are made through the state income tax.

In addition, Lamont and House Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford say a key factor will be the amount of money that Connecticut receives from President Joe Biden and the Democratic-controlled Congress under the $1.9 trillion stimulus package that is currently being negotiated in Washington. No final decisions have been made, but officials say that Connecticut could receive more than $2.5 billion in federal funds.

The federal funding has helped keep the state’s economy afloat for the past 11 months as the pandemic led to widespread unemployment when many “nonessential’' businesses were closed down. Since then, Connecticut has received $17 billion in overall federal funding, including $6.7 billion in forgivable loans for businesses under the Paycheck Protection Program and $3.25 billion for individuals in supplemental unemployment insurance payments of $600 per week that expired in late July. The stimulus checks of $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for married couples provided $2.7 billion into the pockets of Connecticut residents.

During the public hearing Thursday, McCaw was questioned about a wide variety of items in Lamont’s budget that covers everything from salaries for state employees to dental care for prison inmates.

Sen. Gary Winfield, a New Haven Democrat who co-chairs the legislature’s judiciary committee, told McCaw that he was concerned that the state is providing only $1 million per year to help subsidize telephone calls for prison inmates instead of allowing those calls to be made for free. Connecticut has one of the highest rates in the nation for inmate calls.

“We’re talking about equalizing things, which isn’t equity,” Winfield said. “It requires revenue, quite frankly, and what I’m seeing in this budget doesn’t look like equity to me, but we will have a long discussion.”

McCaw said that Lamont’s response on equity is “weaved throughout his policy proposals” in multiple ways, including education, workforce development, breaking the cycle of poverty and economic opportunity.

“Equity is baked throughout” the budget, McCaw told Winfield. “We look forward to hearing more ideas from you, senator, on what you believe equity looks like. I’m hoping you recognize some of the progress that’s in here.”

In New Haven, Mayor Justin Elicker is facing a deficit of $66 million in the next fiscal year, and he says that he would be forced to increase local property taxes if the city does not receive additional money from the state for tax-exempt properties under the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes program.

“This budget is a starting point, and while I am deeply disappointed that the governor chose not to include desperately needed revenue for our community through PILOT in his budget, I intend to work with our partners in the legislature to see that these dollars are secured,” he said. “They are essential for our residents’ well-being and preventing a significant property tax hike on some of our state’s poorest people.”

Later Thursday, Lamont said that his budget sets aside an additional $100 million for distressed municipalities that is on top of the money they already receive. Cities will also receive additional funding for public education, including money from the federal government.

“I’m pretty proud of the budget we put together,” Lamont said.

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