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December 20, 2023

A few nights before Christmas, Lamont prefers to talk tax cuts

MARK PAZNIOKAS / CTMIRROR.ORG Gov. Ned Lamont taking questions Tuesday.
By Mark Pazniokas, CT Mirror

Gov. Ned Lamont’s holiday speech Tuesday to the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce, a staple of Connecticut politics, offered the smallish breakfast audience a few mild zingers, a reminder of a coming tax cut and a bit of personal news.

“I turn 70 and become a grandfather next year,” Lamont said.

Addressing the breakfast meeting remains a tradition for governors going back to the administration of Gov. William A. O’Neill in 1989. It has been used to look back, look ahead and, more than once, roast opponents and the press.

On Tuesday, Lamont tread lightly. He is planning an end-of-the-year news conference Wednesday before departing for a family vacation over Christmas and New Year’s. He is to return on Jan. 3, his 70th birthday.

Reminding voters of the income tax cut that will take effect in January was on the agenda Tuesday and will be again Wednesday.

“In about two weeks, we’re going to have the biggest tax cut in the history of the state,” Lamont told the chamber audience. “It sends a signal. I hope it sends a signal to you and the folks you do business with that Connecticut is back.”

The two-year budget Lamont signed in June cut the two lowest marginal income tax rates, increased the value of the earned-income tax credit and expanded the exemptions on certain retirement income.

Lamont made light of the scandal over the degree to which some State Police troopers falsified records over ticketing drivers, connecting it to complaints about speeding on state highways.

“You know, there are there’s a lot of guys driving around their streets right now like a bat out of hell,” Lamont said. “And you know, that’s what happens when you get the police to stop issuing those fake tickets. Things like that started happening.”

The audience laughed.

Zingers also were directed at the Democrats and Republicans in the General Assembly who balked at adopting regulations that would have implemented the phase-out of sales of most new gas-powered cars and trucks by 2035.

Lamont said some Democrats were too quick to stereotype EV drivers as rich and latte-sipping Tesla owners, while Republicans suffered from a form of automotive anxiety.

“It’s called range anxiety when it comes to the EVs, and I’m putting $300 million a year into mental health to make that range anxiety dissipate just a little bit, see if we can help out there,” Lamont said.

The breakfast is sponsored by Eversource, the electric utility whose executives have argued that regulators need to be more supportive of investments in the grid if Connecticut is to accommodate a car market dominated by EVs.

The top executives skipped the breakfast, a consequence of the storm that hit the region Monday, causing widespread blackouts. Power was restored to 145,000 customers, said Peg Morton, the Eversource government-affairs official who introduced the governor.

The Democratic majorities in the General Assembly are considering legislation that would keep Connecticut on the 2035 timetable, which has been endorsed by California, New York and Massachusetts, among other states that represent more than half the automotive market.

The Senate Democrats were holding their first caucus Tuesday on how to proceed. House Democrats have already met once and will do so again before the 2024 session opens in February.

Lamont told reporters he is waiting to hear from lawmakers.

“It’s up to them, first of all, and I think they’re serious about it. I think they’re not only talking about the EVs, but the hybrids out there,” Lamont said.

The messaging on the regulations aimed at moving the automotive market towards zero-emission vehicles has shifted, with Democrats emphasizing that plug-in hybrids that use gasoline as would be allowed under the 2035 regulations.

“They’re less than $30,000. You can even get a pink Cadillac as a hybrid. They go twice as far at half the cost,” Lamont said. “So there’s a lot of options to get us past 2035. That’s a long way out.”

The breakfast has changed over the years. For one thing, it no longer is held in Middlesex County. It was shifted to a Sheraton in Rocky Hill, a consequence of the closure of its former venue at a hotel in Cromwell.

And the humor is less edgy. Each year, Gov. John G. Rowland used to recite a parody of  “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” the poem popularly known as “The Night Before Christmas.” 

The last version came exactly 20 years ago, delivered by his wife, Patricia. It was an oddly timed attack on the press, coming shortly after Rowland admitted lying when denying Hartford Courant accounts of favors done for him by contractors.

Facing impeachment, Rowland resigned six months later.

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