Would like to see more very public pressure on the budget priorities during last weeks of session. Feels like time better spent than courting entrenched DTCs.

Shiny new toys and ribbon cuttings will always be favored over maintenance of almost anything. See also school construction in the age of ECS cuts.

The first question to every witness and every nominee for anything in any congressional proceeding should be to ask if that image is racist. It's not a hard test to pass.

Right. But that's not what it says. There's a misconception that increase in value is a direct line to increase in taxes and it's just not true. The way this is framed reinforces that common misconception.

Why is a tax increase inevitable when values go up?

"Inevitable increase in taxes"? Can anyone please be literate in the relationship between mill rates and valuation. This framing is horrendous.

Shifting ed costs would also allow for economic diversity within towns and lower housing costs for seniors to age in place. You could do it without interfering with "local control" that gets so many worked up.

Even the mostly useless cost per pupil metric is tied to large lot sizes. High cost per pupil reduces state aid and raises property taxes even further.

That sure was a lot of words in that letter.

I think he gained points for a generally good initial covid response and most people assume that the absence of a four alarm fire (for them personally) equates to good governance despite the litany of policy failures. Two terms is plenty.

Couple that with paywalls and you get social media comments about pictures and headlines but not substance because most of the social media gutter doesn’t actually pay for journalism.

“Thing proposed to meet need” doesn’t generate outrage clicks and comments nearly as well as “people big mad about things that scares them.” As long as media is incentivized to drive clicks the race to the bottom will continue.

Not sure everyone should trust the part where the passport book is surrendered as part of the process.

Hartford sues Scarborough mansion family HARTFORD — A legal battle, with flavors of a TV sitcom, is underway in Hartford City Hall. The question at hand: does the government have the right to dec...

Same street that fought about the definition of family. www.fox61.com/article/news...

You mean to tell me apartments were built and home prices didn't crash? Weird.

I was warned there would be if Lamont signed the bill 😂

The Fairfield County left is dominated by a smug demand for progressive policy that makes them feel good without inconveniencing them at all. The second it impacts their life in the slightest.... See also school regionalism.

It's cowardice. Especially if you won't at least stand up and say "this bill is a problem because X and instead I'm going to insist that we reform local zoning, permit multifamily across residential zones, and dramatically reduce parking requirements. Because I believe in fixing the housing crisis."

NIMBY gonna NIMBY. An element of the timing of all of this is that municipal leaders who might otherwise be at least quietly supportive of this measure joined the veto chorus because it is advantageous in municipals and they'd rather win a local race than fix the problem.

Easton and Fairfield Officials Cheer Lamont’s Housing Bill Veto A bill concerning housing and the needs of homeless people has been “reluctantly” vetoed by Gov. Ned Lamont. “House Bill 5002 makes a really good start on a really important issue…

“Our town is committed to thoughtful, inclusive planning that meets housing needs while preserving environmental sustainability and local decision-making,” said Gerber. Of course no one expects any of these folks to say *how* they would meet the need. eastoncourier.news/2025/06/24/e...

Love how he says he tried to read it, doesn't understand it, but is dead convinced it must be bad.

Sadly, quite believable.

They've built an encampment atop Mt. Stupid.

COGs are great for allowing local pols to look like they’re doing something. The something seems to often be meeting about a plan to make a plan to prevent development.

In fairness, they want all everything somewhere else.

Well yes. That was a tone deaf regionalization effort. Looney’s probate map concept rightly sent people to the barricades and probably set back rational discussion a decade. Legislators I’ve talked to are all gun shy.

Compounded by postage stamp sized districts.

I took a prelaw class in college where the instructor posed the question "what would happen if a president just refused a court order? The court doesn't have an army or any way to enforce it." Think about that a lot these days. I liked that way better as a thought experiment than as current events.

I mean it does preserve them. For the wealthy.