State of the State: 2025 vs 2026
Governor Ned Lamont -- comparing priorities year over year
From Aspiration to Defense: Connecticut's Shifting Priorities Under Federal Pressure
Governor Lamont's 2025 State of the State was a forward-looking, optimistic address centered on affordability and opportunity — a domestic agenda focused on reducing electricity costs, controlling healthcare spending, improving education, and spurring entrepreneurship. The speech was delivered with cautious awareness of the incoming Trump administration but largely focused on Connecticut's own policy levers. By 2026, the tone had shifted dramatically: the address opened with Thomas Paine's "these are the times that try men's souls" and was significantly shaped by federal antagonism, with Lamont devoting major portions of the speech to backfilling federal cuts, defending immigrant communities against ICE operations, and positioning Connecticut as a bulwark against what he characterized as chaos and cruelty from Washington.
On fiscal policy, the 2025 speech highlighted six consecutive balanced budgets and paying down legacy pension costs. By 2026, Lamont touted a seventh balanced budget, a $4 billion rainy day fund, and a $313 million emergency reserve specifically created to backfill unanticipated federal cuts. He proposed an approximately $400 energy rebate per family funded by volatile capital gains revenue from "Magnificent Seven" AI stocks. The governor explicitly warned legislators against $500 million in proposed tax cuts or credits that would create future deficits. The pension system moved from 35% funded to nearly 65% funded, which Lamont highlighted as a major achievement.
Healthcare remained a priority in both years, but the approach evolved significantly. In 2025, Lamont discussed tying generic drug price increases to inflation and expanding Access Health CT to small businesses. By 2026, the conversation had become more urgent and concrete: he cited a specific example of saving $15 million in year one (projected $50 million by year three) by switching a single brand-name psoriasis drug to generic, and unveiled the "Connecticut Option" — a plan offering state employees, retirees, and small businesses healthcare with no co-pays or deductibles if they choose high-value hospitals. He also emphasized that Connecticut was absorbing federal cuts to exchange subsidies and Medicaid, backstopping food assistance, and increasing funding for FQHCs and Planned Parenthood.
On housing, what was a brief committee directive in 2025 became a centerpiece in 2026, with Lamont citing that home values were up 40% in five years, highlighting New London's housing boom, Naugatuck Valley's transit-oriented development, and Hartford being named one of Zillow's hottest housing markets. On education, the 2025 speech focused on reducing absenteeism and teacher recruitment; the 2026 address announced a Blue Ribbon Commission on K-12 Education examining funding formulas, special education reforms ($80 million in new funding), and consolidation of overhead across 207 school districts. The 2026 speech also proposed free school breakfasts for all students and eliminating licensing fees for nurses and tradespeople. Perhaps most strikingly, the 2026 address contained an extended, emotionally charged section on immigration enforcement and ICE operations, directly confronting federal policy in a way entirely absent from 2025.
New Priorities in 2026
- +Creation of a $313 million emergency reserve fund to backfill federal cuts, with a request to extend it through the next fiscal year
- +Proposed approximately $400 per family energy rebate funded by capital gains revenue from AI-related stocks
- +The 'Connecticut Option' healthcare plan offering no co-pays or deductibles for state employees, retirees, and small businesses who choose high-value hospitals
- +Free school breakfasts for all students, framed as eliminating shame and stigma around food insecurity
- +A Blue Ribbon Commission on K-12 Education focused on funding reform, special education efficiency, and consolidation of overhead across 207 school districts
- +Elimination of licensing fees for nurses and tradespeople
- +Extensive defense of immigrant communities against ICE enforcement, with direct condemnation of federal immigration raids near schools and courthouses
- +Explicit policy on data centers — requiring new data centers to add their own generation capacity before connecting to the grid
- +Backfilling federal cuts to health insurance exchange subsidies and food assistance (SNAP), plus additional funding for FQHCs and Planned Parenthood
- +Strengthened stance on utility rate scrutiny — ensuring ratepayers no longer cover charitable, legal, advertising, and lobbying expenses of utilities
- +Continued investment in a childcare endowment moving toward universal early childhood education
- +Transit-oriented housing development as an explicit strategy, citing Naugatuck Valley and New London as models
Dropped from 2025
- −The 'opportunity centers' concept of upgrading social service centers to include job training and childcare enrollment alongside Medicaid and food assistance
- −The Connecticut Boost Fund for small business startups, including solar installation companies and home-based childcare centers
- −Specific proposal to tie generic pharmaceutical price increases to the rate of inflation, described as saving '50 cents on the dollar overnight'
- −Expansion of Access Health CT benefits from the individual exchange to small businesses
- −The youth service corps proposal to give seventh graders internships and older siblings paying apprenticeships with neighborhood businesses
- −The LEAP outreach program for reducing school absenteeism through door-to-door engagement
- −DEI initiative to recruit more men into teaching to address disconnected male youth
- −Explicit mention of the Office of Workforce Strategy and classroom-to-workplace pipeline streamlining
- −Student debt reimbursement program for Connecticut college graduates who take jobs in-state
- −The 'lightning round' of specific committee directives including flood insurance gaps, Jones Act reform, and regulatory speed-up
- −Tourism marketing and the 'Pizza Capital' / 'Basketball Capital' road sign campaign credited with six billion media impressions
- −Specific mention of nuclear power expansion with federal government assistance and natural gas pipeline capacity constraints
Shifted Emphasis
- ↔Federal relations shifted from cautious uncertainty about Trump 2.0's budget impacts in 2025 to an actively adversarial posture in 2026, with Lamont directly condemning ICE operations, tariff chaos, and healthcare cuts
- ↔Balanced budgets evolved from a proud achievement (sixth in a row, 2025) to a pointed contrast with federal dysfunction (seventh in a row, 2026), with Lamont explicitly comparing Connecticut's fiscal discipline to Washington's shutdowns
- ↔Energy policy shifted from a supply-focused discussion of Revolution Wind, nuclear expansion, Canadian hydro, and natural gas pipelines in 2025 to a more defensive posture in 2026 emphasizing the Millstone nuclear contract returning $100 million to ratepayers and federal threats to Canadian energy and wind power
- ↔Healthcare affordability moved from general proposals about pharma pricing and Access Health CT expansion in 2025 to concrete examples of savings ($15 million from one generic drug switch) and the launch of the Connecticut Option plan in 2026
- ↔Housing shifted from a brief committee directive to speed up permitting in 2025 to a major policy section in 2026 with specific success stories (New London, Naugatuck Valley, Hartford's Zillow ranking) and a detailed strategy of retrofitting underused commercial properties
- ↔Education moved from teacher recruitment, apprenticeships, and smartphone restrictions in 2025 to a broader structural reform agenda in 2026 including a Blue Ribbon Commission, free school meals, and $80 million in special education funding
- ↔Childcare evolved from a committee directive to 'make a down payment on affordable, accessible early childcare' in 2025 to reporting progress on a childcare endowment moving toward universal early childhood education in 2026
- ↔Smartphone and social media restrictions escalated from celebrating phones out of classrooms in 2025 to proposing no phones 'bell to bell' in all schools and pursuing an interstate effort to ban dangerous apps for children under 18 without parental permission in 2026
- ↔The pension narrative shifted from emphasizing hundreds of millions freed up by paying down legacy costs in 2025 to citing specific progress from 35% to nearly 65% funded and crediting Treasurer Russell's investment returns in 2026
- ↔The minimum wage was mentioned in both years but reframed — in 2025 as evidence it wasn't a 'job killer,' in 2026 as helping essential workers who were earning $10 an hour rise to nearly $17
Policy Topics Addressed
Affordability
Governor Lamont proposed energy rebates of about $400 per family from the rainy day fund to help with heating bills during a harsh winter. He highlighted minimum wage increases to nearly $17/hour, a $400 million bipartisan middle-class income tax cut, eliminated licensing fees for nurses and trades, and eliminated income tax for most seniors. He noted electricity prices have been "among the highest in the country for the last generation" and emphasized diversifying energy sources. He proposed the Connecticut Option for healthcare to offer coverage with no co-pays or deductibles.
Economy & Jobs
Governor Lamont reported Connecticut has the fourth-highest economic growth in the country, with more new business startups and lower unemployment than most of the nation. He highlighted the minimum wage rising from about $10 to nearly $17 per hour during his time in office and proposed energy rebates of about $400 per family. He emphasized that six companies moved from Massachusetts to Connecticut in the past year, bringing 500 jobs.
Education
Governor Lamont highlighted Connecticut's top-ranked school system while announcing a Blue Ribbon Commission on K-12 Education to update the funding formula, build on special education reforms, and find efficiencies across 207 school districts. He proposed free school breakfasts for all students and called for a bell-to-bell phone ban in all schools, plus working with neighboring states to restrict children under 18 from accessing dangerous apps without parental permission.
Environment & Energy
Governor Lamont addressed energy affordability as a key priority, noting Connecticut's historically high electricity prices. He highlighted the Millstone nuclear agreement returning over $100 million to ratepayers, defended energy efficiency investments, and noted new supply from Québec Hydro and Revolution Wind. He criticized federal tariff threats on Canadian energy and stop-start policies on wind power, and emphasized that PURA must hold utilities accountable while ensuring ratepayers only cover infrastructure and energy costs, not charitable, legal, or lobbying expenses.
Government Reform
Governor Lamont emphasized delivering seven balanced budgets in a row, building a $4 billion rainy day fund, and paying down over $10 billion in pension debt. He proposed eliminating licensing fees for nurses and the trades, and announced plans for a Blue Ribbon Commission on K-12 Education to examine funding strategies, special education reforms, and reducing administrative overhead across 207 school districts.
Healthcare
Governor Lamont highlighted that Connecticut backstopped federal ACA subsidy cuts and maintained more insured citizens than the rest of the country. He proposed the 'Connecticut Option' to encourage state employees and small businesses to use high-value hospitals, offering healthcare with no co-pays or deductibles. He also emphasized accelerating healthcare cost control, noting savings of $15 million in year one just by switching one brand-name drug to its generic version.
Housing
Governor Lamont focused on housing as a key affordability strategy, noting Hartford was named one of the hottest housing markets by Zillow. He highlighted transit-oriented development in the Naugatuck Valley, retrofitting underused parking lots, empty mills, and suburban shopping malls for housing, and prioritizing mortgage and Time to Own subsidies for workers. He emphasized the need for more housing for seniors, nurses, teachers, and young people.
Immigration
Governor Lamont delivered some of the harshest rhetoric on ICE, stating "ICE, everywhere you go uninvited, violence follows. Go home. We are keeping Connecticut safe without you." He noted that Hispanic kids are scared to go to school and that ICE agents "hide behind a mask" and come to arrest people "often based upon the color of their skin." He committed to protecting schools and courthouses from federal immigration raids.
Infrastructure
Governor Lamont discussed energy infrastructure extensively, noting the state's overreliance on natural gas and efforts to diversify with Québec Hydro and Revolution Wind. He highlighted the Millstone nuclear contract returning over $100 million to ratepayers and emphasized the Naugatuck Valley as a poster child for transit-oriented development with more housing alongside more frequent rail service and new train stations.
Public Safety
Governor Lamont praised Connecticut State Police and municipal police, noting the state is one of the safest in the nation. He sharply criticized ICE operations, stating agents are 'barely trained at all' and that violence follows them. He declared Connecticut is 'keeping Connecticut safe without you' regarding ICE and committed to protecting schools and courthouses from civil immigration raids without judicial warrants.
Social Services
Governor Lamont described Connecticut as among the first states to backstop food support for working families after federal SNAP cuts, noting the state also covered most federal health insurance exchange cost increases. He highlighted growing the childcare endowment toward universal early childhood education, expanding the earned income tax credit to about $1,000, and proposing free school breakfasts for all students. He maintained a $313 million reserve to backfill unanticipated federal cuts.
Tax & Budget
Governor Lamont celebrated seven consecutive balanced budgets, a $4 billion rainy day fund, and paying down over $10 billion in pension debt. He proposed energy rebates of about $400 per family from capital gains revenue. He highlighted a $400 million bipartisan middle-class income tax cut, elimination of income tax for most seniors, expanded earned income tax credits, and licensing fee eliminations for nurses and trades. He maintained $313 million to backfill unanticipated federal cuts.
Technology
Governor Lamont expressed deep concern about social media's impact on children, calling for no phones bell-to-bell in schools and requiring parental permission for children under 18 to access dangerous apps. He proposed working with neighboring states on these restrictions. On energy technology, Lamont emphasized the Millstone nuclear contract returning over $100 million to ratepayers and cautioned against adding energy-consuming data centers without requiring additional generation capacity.
Veterans & Military
Governor Lamont noted that state employees, including veterans, have received wage increases every year of his administration. He mentioned that Connecticut eliminated the income tax for most seniors, which benefits military retirees. He praised state police and first responders, drawing a contrast with ICE operations.