Gov. Ned Lamont and legislative leaders said Tuesday they agreed on a compromise that would deliver $40 million in special education funding and $2.88 million in grants to Planned Parenthood and LGBTQ groups without a veto-override battle Wednesday.
The governor’s office opened talks Monday immediately after Lamont used his line-item veto power to strip the funding out of two omnibus bills the General Assembly passed during his absence from Connecticut last week, employing emergency rules that bypass the normal vetting by committees and public hearing.
The compromise addresses one of Lamont’s concerns in that it identifies a funding source: interest on unspent federal pandemic aid. But that is the same money Lamont wants to use on a $300 million endowment to fund universal early childhood education, meaning his plan likely would have to shrink.
But Lamont indicated Tuesday afternoon he was satisfied with the deal.
“I’m glad that we could reach an agreement between my office and legislative leaders on increasing funding for special education and nonprofits during this current fiscal year, provided we maintain our surplus,” he said in a statement.
A deal would save the Democratic governor from the first override of a veto by a legislature with solid Democratic majorities since he took office six years ago. The special education funding passed with veto-proof margins: 34-0 in the Senate and 140-5 in the House.
But the measure offering grants of $800,000 to Planned Parenthood and lesser amounts to other non-profits, most serving an LGBTQ clientele, had no Republican support in the House and opposition from two of the 102 Democrats. A veto override requires 101 votes.
“The reality is we could only override the special-education veto,” said House Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford.
In his veto message, Lamont had said the unvetted spending and the ad hoc nature of choosing the grant recipients “not only undermines the transparency of our fiscal process but sets a precedent for bypassing budgetary controls.”
The compromise calls for legislative leaders to shelve override votes and instead pass two new bills that that would go forward with the $43 million in spending Lamont had vetoed as bumping against the state’s spending cap.
Those funds now first would be shifted into an off-budget account and outside the purview of the spending cap, an accounting maneuver that has been employed by past governors but the type of move Lamont had decried prior to this year.
Ritter called the new legislation “a clarification” of the funding source. While lawmakers got the funding they wanted, Lamont chose to characterize the new approach as maintaining a more orderly way to provide the funds and stay within the spending cap.
“Ahead of budget negotiations, I look forward to maintaining the financial discipline, open dialogue, and shared values that have allowed us to turn our state around economically and even have a surplus to invest at all,” Lamont said.
Lamont had objected to the previous version as taking money from an operating surplus without offsetting cuts. Under the deal, funding would come from interest generated by unspent pandemic relief from ARPA, the federal American Rescue Plan of 2021, according to Ritter and an administration spokesman.
“Ahead of budget negotiations, I look forward to maintaining the financial discipline, open dialogue, and shared values that have allowed us to turn our state around economically and even have a surplus to invest at all,” he said.
House Minority Leader Vincent J. Candelora, R-North Branford, said he had yet to be briefed.
“I don’t have the details yet,” Candelora said. “Essentially, I think it’s going to be a do-over. To the extent it’s a do-over, I think it will get Republican support.”
He was referring only to the $40 million to help local school districts meet the rising costs of special eduction in the current fiscal year. He offered one caveat: “I’m concerned there are going to be gimmicks, something we won’t support.”
Senate President Pro Tem Martin M. Looney of New Haven and Senate Majority Bob Duff of Norwalk, the top Senate leaders, issued a statement Tuesday indicating they were prepared to deliver the disputed funds with or without a deal.
“After speaking with our caucus last night, tomorrow the Senate Democrats are prepared to override both line-item vetoes or pass legislation to once again appropriate this funding for nonprofits and special education,” they said. “The funding exists to address these immediate needs, and we are prepared to protect organizations that are under attack by the Trump administration and support our students, teachers, and local education.”
This story was originally published by the Connecticut Mirror.
