Excellent fiscal news for Connecticut

January 18, 2021

While the COVID-19 pandemic has hit all states extraordinarily hard financially, it's important to recognize glimmers of hope when we see them. I am excited to share some excellent news about Connecticut's fiscal picture!

Fiscal news

Thanks to responsible state budget practices and increased revenue estimates, state budget analysts predict a $70 million budget surplus in Fiscal Year 2021. This is a positive change as analysts previously projected a deficit of more than $850 million. In addition, the projected deficits for fiscal years 2022 and 2023 were both cut in half.

The projected improvement to our fiscal health also impacts the state’s bond cap, which functions as the state’s credit card limit. Under previous estimates, the state would been able to bond approximately $200 million next fiscal year. Now, our bond cap is closer to $2 billion. This gives Connecticut the flexibility to bond for infrastructure improvements and efforts focused on helping people get back to work.

Connecticut is in much better shape than other states such as Massachusetts and Texas which are facing billion dollar deficits. We are not out of the woods yet and our state still faces significant challenges, but this is a step in the direction of progress as we work towards recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This welcome news is only possible through the smart choices and decisions made across government in past years to prepare us for potential emergencies and hardships. The benefits of those decisions are now coming to pass.