Connecticut lawmakers are expected to vote on the creation of a federal emergency relief fund during the special session slated to kick off this Wednesday. The plan, which a bipartisan group of legislative leaders announced Monday at the state Capitol, is primarily geared toward tackling further gaps in funding due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.
“The most timely things right now are related to the shutdown. That could be solved in 72 hours, it could be solved in 72 days,” Gov. Ned Lamont said.
Legislative leaders say $500 million state funding could buoy crucial human services funded by the federal government through the start of the legislative session in February. Those include covering the millions of dollars in benefits for critical nutrition programs like SNAP and WIC, along with LIHEAP home heating assistance.
This fund has bipartisan support: House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora (R-North Branford) voiced his support for the state’s use of surplus money, which is now at over $4 billion.
“Being a fiscal conservative, obviously you want to make sure that fund is healthy, and I'm glad it is,” Candelora said at the press conference. “But today is a day I think that we need to prop it up and create this federal fund, essentially, to help those individuals that are impacted by the government shutdown."
Candelora added that he supports the governor using the state money to mitigate the shutdown, noting that his caucus’ concerns are more about the surplus becoming “a long term slush fund,” which is a point State Sen. Stephen Harding (R-Brookfield) echoed in a statement to the press.
Harding, the Senate minority leader, said he supports helping vulnerable residents in a responsible way, but said if the government reopens soon, “we may not need to take this step to give Gov. Lamont a huge amount of power to control a half a billion taxpayer dollars.”
Looking to early 2026
Lamont said lawmakers will take a closer look at federal cuts to the state programs under the Trump administration during the regular session in February.
House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) said that state lawmakers had hoped at the end of the legislative session this summer that an emergency fund would address earlier cuts to social services that were part of President Donald Trump’s massive spending and tax package that passed earlier this year.
“But the shutdown happened, and you’ve got to respond to it,” Ritter said. “Everybody's got great ideas, until something like this happens, then you’ve got to address the immediate fire.”
Lamont is expected to issue a fiscal emergency declaration by mid-week. And when asked whether the money could supplement the expanded Affordable Care Act subsidies that are the center of the federal government shutdown, the governor said, “I think it's too early to say.”
If the insurance subsidies expire with no Congressional action before the end of 2025, health care premiums would skyrocket for people enrolled on state health care exchanges.
Ritter said that it would cost the state $350 million a year to fill in the cost of the subsidies in Connecticut.
