Jennifer Leeper

Happy Friday! It's been nice to catch up on some rest since our legislative session ended, but it's been lovely to be back in the 132nd District. There is much to celebrate this time of year with the beginning to summer, the town's pride flag raising, the very exciting state championship victories of the Ludlowe softball team and the Warde baseball team, as well as both High Schools' graduations (despite the rain)! I’ll say a big congratulations to all of the graduating seniors and their families as they finish their high school careers and begin their next chapters. We are all rooting for you and so excited to see what you accomplish in the years to come.
 
And, we can’t forget, Father’s Day is this Sunday. Like Mother’s Day, this can sometimes be a challenging day for people who have lost their fathers or never had the chance to know them and for fathers mourning the loss of a child. I hope that however you choose to celebrate, it’s a peaceful day for you.

Below is a recap of the work we accomplished this session, updates on funds coming to Fairfield, and a list of great community events to attend this summer. You can use the helpful bullet points below to navigate between sections.

• Session Recap
• Community Highlights
• Fairfield Budget Funding
• Tax Cuts in the Budget
• Celebrating Juneteenth
• Sand Jam Movie Nights
• Summer Concert Series
• Fairfield Beach Stickers

• An income tax cut for the middle class that reduces the two lowest marginal rates. Specifically, the 3% rate on the first $10,000 earned by individuals and the first $20,000 by couples will decrease to 2%. The 5% rate on the next $40,000 earned by individuals and the next $80,000 by couples will decrease to 4.5%. These benefits will be capped at individual filers who earn $150,000 and couples who earn $300,000. It is estimated that one million tax filers will benefit from the rate cuts.
• An increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income workers from the current rate of 30.5% of the federal credit to 40%. The Earned Income Tax Credit is a refundable state income tax credit for low-income working individuals and families that mirrors the federal credit. This change will provide an additional $44.6 million in state tax credits to an estimated 211,000 low-income filers. This new 40% rate makes Connecticut among the top five states in the nation with the largest Earned Income Tax Credit rates.
• An expansion of existing exemptions on certain pension and annuity earnings to benefit seniors. Specifically, the budget eases the retirement income tax cliff by adding a phase-out for allowable pension and annuity and IRA distribution deductions against the personal income tax.

Click here to read more about the history of Juneteenth, and click here to find a Juneteenth celebration in your community.

You can read more about the beach stickers here, apply for a beach sticker here, and renew your beach sticker here.