Gov.’s Childcare “Endowment” Proposal is “Disingenuous.” – Sens. Somers & Harding

Sen. Heather Somers, Ranking Senator on the Appropriations Committee, and Sen. Stephen Harding today issued the following statement regarding the governor’s proposal to create a “Universal Childcare Endowment.”

“Republicans believe early child care is very important.

But this so-called ‘endowment’ is really an off-budget slush-fund.

It’s also a fiscal guardrail breaker and a future tax hike creator. CT’s top business and industry organization immediately panned the governor’s funding scheme.

And this is now a troubling pattern for Gov. Lamont.

He recently signed legislation creating yet another off-budget account that went around the guardrails.

Gov. Lamont says he wants to maintain fiscal discipline, but look at his actions. He is doing everything he can to violate the smart, bipartisan guardrails that have served our state so well.

Republicans would have been in full support of finding $30 million – within the confines of the budget – and putting it towards daycare and preschool spending. Early childhood supports are a critical CT workforce issue.

But it’s the way Gov. Lamont goes about it that is so disingenuous.

He is taking $300 million of taxpayer money and throwing it off-budget. The slush fund ‘endowment’ will gain maybe three or four percent interest, when we could be paying down our state credit card debt at seven or eight percent with that same exact money.

It makes a mockery of the fiscal guardrails and creates an off-budget account where only 10% is going to be used and the rest will sit there.

This is very alarming because this is exactly what happened before 2017 when we were in a very bad financial situation in the state of Connecticut. hen

When those funds just sit there, they can be swept and they do get swept.

Meanwhile, isn’t it interesting that the governor has nothing to say about the $611 million cash stash that the CT State University System has squirreled away under the arrogant leadership of Chancellor Terrence Cheng?

The bottom line is: Does this make sense to you? Is this how you would run your own household finances?“