Gov. Ned Lamont has filed the first official plan to dip into the state’s new $500 million emergency reserve fund. That fund was created during a recent special legislative session and uses surplus dollars in response to federal funding cuts and delays to essential human services in the state.
According to the proposal released Thursday, Lamont wants to use almost $168 million of the fund that state lawmakers approved in the November special session.
Some investments the state already announced include helping residents afford health insurance as the Affordable Care Act subsidies remain in limbo, and funding to ensure people have access to critical housing services though the Continuum of Care program, after the Trump administration cut funding last month.
“We wanted to make sure that we had our people's backs and make sure that people weren't harmed by the unprecedented cuts that were going to be impacting people's lives,” Lamont said at a State Bond Commission meeting Thursday.
If a simple majority of Connecticut’s six bipartisan legislative leaders don’t challenge the plan within 24 hours of receipt, the following expenditures would get funded by the surplus dollars:
- $115 million to replace expiring federal health care subsidies to help people purchasing health insurance through the Access CT marketplace.
- $6.8 million to support expiring federal grants and vouchers to help house people who were experiencing homelessness.
- $24.5 million to fund community food banks and pantries through June 2027, in response to sweeping eligibility changes the Trump administration made to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the Congressional tax and spending bill (H.R. 1.)
- $5 million for supplemental payments to community health centers to ensure very low income residents can get primary and preventative health care
- $1.5 million for the state Department of Social Services to bolster operations as H.R. 1 changes to Medicaid and SNAP eligibility take effect through June 2027.
- $4.7 million for Connecticut’s 2-1-1 call center and Community Action Agencies, to increase their bandwidth and help SNAP recipients understand the new eligibility rules.
- $8.5 million for Planned Parenthood of Southern New England to cover the cost of Medicaid patients getting preventative care, since a provision in the Congressional tax and spending bill stopped reimbursing the centers.
“These are services that must continue to be supported, and here in Connecticut we will stand behind them and do what we can to ensure that this most basic assistance remains available,” Lamont said in a statement.
Office of Policy and Management Interim Secretary Joshua Wojcik noted, “we continue evaluating additional needs and addressing concerns within our communities.”
The Lamont administration said $332 million remains in the reserve. Those dollars can be spent until Feb. 4, the start of the legislative session.
Connecticut Public's Matt Dwyer contributed reporting.
