Christine Palm

Budgeting is a complex process and requires advocacy and compromise in equal measure. I am very pleased to report that all of the four towns in the 36^th district saw increases in the two main line item sources of state funding: PILOT and ECS.

PILOT stands for Payment in Lieu of Taxes, and these are state funds that reimburse towns for untaxable land (such as that owned by the State of Connecticut, hospitals and colleges). In the budget we just passed (and which I voted for) we made revisions to PILOT that put new dollars into this underfunded program.

The total in PILOT funds for our four towns (combined) over the next two fiscal years is $200,720, which is an increase of $78,992 over the current year.  (Individual town “runs” are broken out below.)

ECS funds are Education Cost-Sharing dollars and are calculated based on a combination of factors including student population, economic need, a town’s Grand List of taxable property, and a history of under- (or over-) funding. ECS funds are the State's attempt to equalize the difference between what a town can afford to pay for its schools through property taxes, and what those schools actually cost the town. Although the Governor proposed flat-funding ECS (meaning there would have been no increases for our schools) the Legislature kept our promise to ensure towns get more of their entitlement over time (on a scheduled annual “step-up”).

This increase of ECS dollars means a total of nearly $10 million ($9,865,425) in education funding for our towns’ schools in FY ‘22 and FY ’23, which is an increase of $757,227 over the current year. 

All told, our towns each saw a substantial increase. The totals for PILOT and ECS for the towns (for the next two fiscal years) are:

Chester: $1,760,572 (an increase of $199,298)

Deep River: $3,382,422 (an increase of $32,854)

Essex: $302,844 (an increase of $74,206)

Haddam: $4,637,659 (an increase of $529,861).

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Here’s a town-by-town breakdown of funding, as contained in the biennial budget which passed this week. (Please keep in mind the discrepancy in the amount of increases is based, in part, on historic over- or under-funding, and that new calculations sought to equalize the formula.)

Additionally, our towns’ regional school districts were granted Adult Education and other aid, as follows:

Finally, our towns got a nominal fee from the Casino revenue (known as the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Fund) which shows no increase but is funded in FY ’22 and ’23 at the current level:

While no budget is perfect, this bi-partisan budget hit the high marks in several areas, and these “town runs” should be welcome news to everyone across the 36th General Assembly District. While it is my job to help ensure our towns get the funding they deserve, it is, of course, up to our municipal leaders to decide exactly how these funds will be spent. ECS is used primarily for public elementary and secondary school education (excluding school construction), while PILOT funds get placed in a town's general fund.

To see state funding only for the towns of Chester, Deep River, Essex and Haddam, click the button below.