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CT governor's proposed $55.2B budget includes income tax cut, early childhood development

CT governor's proposed $55.2B budget includes income tax cut, early childhood development

Yahoo10-02-2025

Gov. Ned Lamont unveiled a $55.2 billion biennial budget Wednesday that would loosen Connecticut's fiscal 'guardrails,' launch a major early childhood development initiative, provide a $50 income tax cut and restructure hospital taxes to secure more federal aid.
Thanks to a controversial maneuver that shifts about $300 million outside of the budget, the governor's proposal falls a razor-thin $1.8 million under the spending cap in the first year and a more comfortable $261 million under the limit in 2026-27.
Lamont's blueprint begins what's anticipated to be a four-month-long debate with lawmakers over Connecticut's fiscal priorities. The General Assembly, which will offer its own budget recommendations in late April, is expected to adopt a compromise plan with the governor in early June.
Here what Lamont's budget proposal would mean for several areas of state funding.
The governor's budget included some increases in general operating grants and special education for K-12 schools — though not as much as educators and advocates were seeking.
And it left the state's higher education institutions, the University of Connecticut and Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, bracing for cutbacks as they would have to absorb the loss of more than $200 million in expiring federal pandemic funding that legislators have used to keep them afloat since 2021.
Without that federal aid, both UConn and CSCU officials will be forced to draw down reserves and look to cut spending, unless they can convince legislators to pony up more state funds than Lamont would.
For the state's K-12 schools, a$54 million investment in special education, announced earlier this week, was allocated in the second year of the governor's biennial budget. But districts had called for about $90 million more from the state to cover growing costs — funding many say can't wait.
Increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates, restructuring hospital taxes and reining in pharmaceutical costs topped Lamont's list of health care priorities in his proposed budget.
The proposal includes an increase of $35.4 million in state funding for Medicaid reimbursement to providers over the biennium, including $10.4 million in FY 2026 and $25 million in FY 2027.
Legislators and physicians for years have been sounding the alarm that the prevailing reimbursement rates were too low, making it unaffordable for health care providers to treat patients with Medicaid coverage.
Additionally, Lamont wants hospitals to pay an extra $140 million in the second year of the new budget but also would increase payments back to the industry by a matching amount. The administration estimates this arrangement would qualify Connecticut for an additional $94 million in federal Medicaid reimbursement.
The arrangement would help to dig the Medicaid program out of its fiscal deficit, projected to be $290 million in FY 2025. But, it also essentially asks hospitals again to trust that increased taxes won't lead to fiscal abuses by the state down the road.
Lamont's budget also includes several provisions aimed at tackling the high cost of prescription drugs.
The budget would allow the purchase of out-of-pocket and out-of-network prescription drugs to count toward consumers' health plan deductibles, provided they pay a lower price for those drugs than they would at an in-network pharmacy with insurance.
And the governor pitched adding funds for oversight of hospitals and home care programs following news of Prospect Medical Holdings filing for bankruptcy. The company owns three Connecticut hospitals — in Waterbury, Manchester and Vernon.
Investments in child care that Gov. Ned Lamont hopes will eventually allow Connecticut to establish a universal preschool program formed the signature piece of his proposal for spending on human services in the coming biennium.
Lamont's proposal would invest $300 million of the state's surplus fund for fiscal year 2025 into a new Universal Preschool Endowment. Each subsequent year, certain surplus funding could be transferred into the endowment, with the state treasurer investing the money to increase profit.
But the proposal does not fully address the needs of othernonprofits who provide a slew of state services including food assistance, shelter for the homeless, therapeutic services, and aid for people with disabilities.
The governor's budget includes an additional $157 million over the next two years for nonprofit service providers. Nonprofits would receive $31 million the first year, with a boost of $126 million coming the following year.
But providers received $50 million in one-time federal COVID relief dollars for this fiscal year, which will not be renewed. That means in fiscal year 2026, when they receive an additional $31 million, they'll actually see a net loss in funding ahead of another increase in fiscal year 2027.
Compiled by Gabby DeBenedictis and Kat Struhar. Copyright 2025 © The Connecticut Mirror (https://ctmirror.org).
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Gov. Lamont's CT budget proposal has income tax cut, education funding

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Cuts to Medicaid for Ohioans with disabilities could take away home care and job help
Cuts to Medicaid for Ohioans with disabilities could take away home care and job help

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Cuts to Medicaid for Ohioans with disabilities could take away home care and job help

(iStock / Getty Images Plus) As the Ohio Senate moves forward with its budget proposal, advocates for Medicaid are hoping changes can be made to avoid significant impacts to low income residents, elderly Ohioans, and people with disabilities. Funding from Medicaid allows 3 million Ohioans access to health care services, including more than 770,000 who receive them through the Medicaid expansion program instituted in 2014. That expansion program allows people who weren't eligible for the traditional Medicaid programs but were still in categories of need to access health care. The existence of that program dropped the uninsured rate in Ohio to historic levels, according to the Health Policy Institute of Ohio. Along with health care, Medicaid dollars help with services that aren't necessarily connected to medical treatment, like home care, employment help, transportation, and a direct care provider who helps with all of those things. 'In many cases, if there wasn't Medicaid dollars behind it, I know of many people whose ability to live outside of a hospital or in the community would be threatened,' said Jules Patalita, a disability rights advocate for Sylvania-based The Ability Center. So advocates were disappointed to see the Ohio Senate maintain a provision from both the Ohio House's and Gov. Mike DeWine's budget proposals that would eliminate the Medicaid expansion group if the federal government reduces their level of support (currently at 90%) by even 1%. 'This would be a substantial loss for many working Ohioans,' said Kathryn Poe, researcher for the think tank Policy Matters Ohio. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Also included in the Senate's budget proposal is the elimination of a Medicaid waiver that 'would have provided continuous coverage for kids up to age 3,' Poe said, and a separate section of the budget that would 'allow the state to pause, eliminate or change other funds related to all other federal grants, should Congress adjust or eliminate funding for that program.' Poe did praise the Senate proposal for removing a House-submitted provision limiting Medicaid reimbursement for doulas to only six Ohio counties. 'This will ensure that Ohio parents continue to have access to culturally appropriate birthing resources and management,' Poe said. Concerns about loss of access don't just extend to physical health concerns or daily home services, but also to behavioral health services, on which 47% of Ohio adults on Medicaid rely, according to Kerstin Sjoberg, president and CEO of Disability Rights Ohio. 'If you don't have access to some sort of insurance like Medicaid, it's going to be almost impossible to get those services,' Sjoberg said. The state-level discussions come as federal budget reconciliation also touches on Medicaid funding as the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress attempt to slash federal spending by $880 billion over the next decade, particularly from public assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and other leaders have talked about 'abuse' or 'fraud' as sources of revenue loss for the country in public programs, something those who engage with users of programs like Medicaid push back on. 'In reality, Medicaid is one of the most cost-effective and widely used safety nets in the country,' said the advocacy group Innovation Ohio in a call-to-action email over the congressional budget proposals. 'If this bill becomes law, the result will be fewer people with health care, more families pushed into poverty and deeper inequality. Rural hospitals could shut down.' According to a study by the Commonwealth Fund, Ohio could be one of the hardest hit economies if Medicaid cuts at the federal level come to fruition, cuts that could mean 29% more Medicaid spending by states or cuts to other programs, like education, to offset the Medicaid losses. One thing that will have to be addressed whether or not the cuts are realized in the state and federal budgets is the workforce that helps those who use Medicaid for home care and other services. Patalita said the word 'crisis' has been used in talking about the shortage of direct care providers, similar to the shortage of child care workers needed to provide adequate access to that service. 'We've talked to people who have had to wait weeks to be able to receive services in the home, because there just aren't enough providers out there,' Patalita said. The Ability Center did a study after the previous state budget increased the reimbursement rate for direct care providers under the state Medicaid program. That study showed that while reimbursements rates and, for that matter, provider wages should go up, the solution to the shortage problem wouldn't come with just one answer. 'The direct care crisis is too complex of an issue for a single action to remedy,' The Ability Center found. The study identified three 'major elements' of the shortage: high turnover rates, low hourly wages (lower than 'many entry level positions in retail and food service,' according to the study), and a lack of consistency in benefits. 'This failure by agencies to provide benefits adds to the worker shortage and forces those requiring home care to carry the burden of decreased access to care, especially those in rural areas,' the study found. Eliminating Medicaid funding, including the expansion group, will make life harder for those Ohioans who need the services, Sjoberg said, 'but it will also make it necessary that the direct care workforce is supported in other ways.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE

US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits
US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits

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time27 minutes ago

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US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits

House Republicans are touting that their sweeping tax and spending cuts package would kick many 'illegal immigrants' off federal assistance, fulfilling one of President Donald Trump's top priorities. House Speaker Mike Johnson has repeatedly emphasized that the bill would stop 1.4 million 'illegal aliens' from accessing Medicaid. The tax portion of the package has a section on 'removing taxpayer benefits from illegal immigrants.' And the House Agriculture Committee crafted a provision to restrict food stamp eligibility for 'illegal aliens.' However, undocumented immigrants in the US won't be as heavily affected by the legislation since they already can't access nearly all federal government assistance programs, experts say. Those more in danger of losing some benefits are millions of legal immigrants, as well as children who are citizens but whose parents may be undocumented or have various legal statuses. 'It's part of a campaign of misinformation,' said Tanya Broder, senior counsel of health and economic justice at the National Immigration Law Center. 'This bill would deny eligibility to lawfully residing immigrants who have authorization to live and work in the US and who pay taxes that support the services that we all depend on.' The legislation, which is now in the Senate, where it may be changed, would greatly limit the categories of legal immigrants who can qualify for a variety of federal benefits, including the child tax credit, food stamps, Affordable Care Act subsidies and Medicare. It also takes aim at states that provide Medicaid-like coverage to undocumented immigrants with their own funds. Currently, immigrants' eligibility for federal benefits depends on their status, of which there are many categories. Among those authorized to be in the US, certain groups can qualify right away, others must wait several years. Some immigrant children and pregnant women can access Medicaid sooner if states opt to allow them. But immigrants with other legal statuses do not qualify for any public assistance. (All of them must also meet the other eligibility criteria for the benefit programs, including income limits.) Undocumented immigrants generally only qualify for what's known as Emergency Medicaid, which reimburses hospitals for the emergency care they are required to provide. These patients would have to be eligible for Medicaid were it not for their immigration status. Separately, some states provide health coverage to certain undocumented immigrants, most commonly children, using only state funds. At least one advocate for tighter controls on immigration thinks the House GOP bill misses the mark. Taking away benefits from immigrants already in the US does not address the underlying problem of illegal immigration, said Steven Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies. 'This bill nibbles around the edges,' said Camarota. 'Will it have that much of an effect? That's the question.' The proposed changes could have devastating consequences for vulnerable immigrant communities, particularly those who rely on public benefits to survive, said Beatriz Ortiz, a senior staff attorney at the International Rescue Committee. Prior to joining IRC, Ortiz worked at Ayuda, where she represented immigrants as a staff attorney. 'If you don't give people the possibility … the tools, they won't have a dignified life,' Ortiz said. One of the most consequential changes involves the child tax credit, which House Republicans want to temporarily boost to $2,500 per child, from $2,000. Under the bill, a child's parents would have to have Social Security numbers, in addition to the child. Currently, families can receive the credit if the parents file their tax returns with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, or ITIN, which is used by some legal and undocumented immigrants — as long as the child has a Social Security number. This provision could leave about 2 million children ineligible for the child tax credit, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation, which analyzed the bill. The Center for Migration Studies estimates the number is closer to 4.5 million children who are US citizens or lawful permanent residents, otherwise known as green card holders. 'It singles out and disadvantages US citizen children because of their parents' immigration status,' said Shelby Gonzales, vice president for immigration policy at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, noting that research shows the credit has a positive impact on children's health, educational attainment and, eventually, earnings. 'That's really alarming.' Similarly, the 'Trump accounts' that the legislation would create would require both parents to have Social Security numbers to be eligible to claim the $1,000 federal contribution for their US-born citizen babies. Fewer immigrants would be eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the formal name for food stamps, if the House bill becomes law. Refugees, people approved for asylum, domestic violence victims and survivors of labor or sex trafficking would no longer qualify. Only citizens, green card holders, certain Cuban parolees and migrants from certain Pacific Ocean island nations would be able to receive food stamps. Between 120,000 and 250,000 people would lose access to this food assistance over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Families with citizen children would also feel the pinch – even if the kids would continue to qualify, the household would receive less assistance each month if the parents are no longer eligible. Gloria, who fled gang violence in El Salvador in 2010 hoping for safety in the US, worries that she could lose a portion of the food stamps that she and her five children, who are citizens, depend on. The family receives a total of $900 a month in benefits. 'I'm about to have a baby; I'm a single mom. If this president decided to take it away, I would be very affected. I live off the SNAP benefits,' said Gloria, who lives in Washington DC and has a T-visa, a protection for trafficking survivors. Gloria, who asked that CNN not use her full name for fear of retribution, said she was trafficked by her own mother and aunt in Maryland — forced to work at a carpet factory, sleep on the floor and hand over all her wages under threats of deportation from her own family until she finally escaped. Gloria recently earned her GED, is studying to become a medical assistant and is also learning English. Still, she says she needs continued support to achieve her goals and become fully self-sufficient. One asylum recipient from Egypt, who asked to be identified only as H.E. so as not to jeopardize his immigration status, told CNN that he depends on food stamps. 'If I lose those benefits, it's going to be bad,' said H.E., who lives in a shelter in Virginia, is unemployed and has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The package would also block many legal immigrants from receiving Affordable Care Act premium subsidies and Medicare coverage, making it harder for them to obtain health coverage from both the government and private insurers. Under the bill, asylees, refugees, temporary protected status holders and victims of domestic violence or sex trafficking, among others, would no longer be eligible for Obamacare subsidies or Medicare, even if they worked in the US for the 10-plus years it takes for senior citizens to qualify for the latter program. One million more people would be uninsured in 2034 if these immigrants lost access to the Affordable Care Act subsidies, according to CBO estimates. As for Medicaid, which House Republicans have targeted for steep spending cuts, the bill would not alter immigrants' eligibility for the federal program. However, it would levy steep penalties on states that have opted to expand coverage that's similar to Medicaid to a broader array of non-citizens, including undocumented immigrants, using their own funds. Some 14 states plus the District of Columbia cover at least some undocumented residents through these initiatives. The House bill would cut the share of federal matching funds these states receive for covering low-income adults under Medicaid expansion to 80%, from 90%, which would double states' costs. How states would react would likely vary, but experts fear that many would have to limit or end their programs covering undocumented residents. The CBO expects this provision would result in 1.4 million more people being uninsured in 2034 – the figure that Johnson often cites, even though these folks are not enrolled in the federal Medicaid program. The penalty could also hit the states that cover immigrant children and pregnant women with certain legal statuses – including those with temporary protected status and student visas – through a separate state Children's Health Insurance Program. Some 21 states have opted to do so for children and six for pregnant women. But since the penalty only applies to states that have expanded Medicaid, Pennsylvania and West Virginia would be hit, for instance, but not Florida or Texas, said Leonardo Cuello, research professor for the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. Most states would not be able to afford to continue these optional programs. 'The states are going to have a huge incentive to drop their coverage because the alternative is a massive increase in spending,' he said.

US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits
US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits

CNN

time36 minutes ago

  • CNN

US citizens and legal immigrants would be swept up in GOP drive to keep ‘illegal aliens' from getting government benefits

House Republicans are touting that their sweeping tax and spending cuts package would kick many 'illegal immigrants' off federal assistance, fulfilling one of President Donald Trump's top priorities. House Speaker Mike Johnson has repeatedly emphasized that the bill would stop 1.4 million 'illegal aliens' from accessing Medicaid. The tax portion of the package has a section on 'removing taxpayer benefits from illegal immigrants.' And the House Agriculture Committee crafted a provision to restrict food stamp eligibility for 'illegal aliens.' However, undocumented immigrants in the US won't be as heavily affected by the legislation since they already can't access nearly all federal government assistance programs, experts say. Those more in danger of losing some benefits are millions of legal immigrants, as well as children who are citizens but whose parents may be undocumented or have various legal statuses. 'It's part of a campaign of misinformation,' said Tanya Broder, senior counsel of health and economic justice at the National Immigration Law Center. 'This bill would deny eligibility to lawfully residing immigrants who have authorization to live and work in the US and who pay taxes that support the services that we all depend on.' The legislation, which is now in the Senate, where it may be changed, would greatly limit the categories of legal immigrants who can qualify for a variety of federal benefits, including the child tax credit, food stamps, Affordable Care Act subsidies and Medicare. It also takes aim at states that provide Medicaid-like coverage to undocumented immigrants with their own funds. Currently, immigrants' eligibility for federal benefits depends on their status, of which there are many categories. Among those authorized to be in the US, certain groups can qualify right away, others must wait several years. Some immigrant children and pregnant women can access Medicaid sooner if states opt to allow them. But immigrants with other legal statuses do not qualify for any public assistance. (All of them must also meet the other eligibility criteria for the benefit programs, including income limits.) Undocumented immigrants generally only qualify for what's known as Emergency Medicaid, which reimburses hospitals for the emergency care they are required to provide. These patients would have to be eligible for Medicaid were it not for their immigration status. Separately, some states provide health coverage to certain undocumented immigrants, most commonly children, using only state funds. At least one advocate for tighter controls on immigration thinks the House GOP bill misses the mark. Taking away benefits from immigrants already in the US does not address the underlying problem of illegal immigration, said Steven Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies. 'This bill nibbles around the edges,' said Camarota. 'Will it have that much of an effect? That's the question.' The proposed changes could have devastating consequences for vulnerable immigrant communities, particularly those who rely on public benefits to survive, said Beatriz Ortiz, a senior staff attorney at the International Rescue Committee. Prior to joining IRC, Ortiz worked at Ayuda, where she represented immigrants as a staff attorney. 'If you don't give people the possibility … the tools, they won't have a dignified life,' Ortiz said. One of the most consequential changes involves the child tax credit, which House Republicans want to temporarily boost to $2,500 per child, from $2,000. Under the bill, a child's parents would have to have Social Security numbers, in addition to the child. Currently, families can receive the credit if the parents file their tax returns with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, or ITIN, which is used by some legal and undocumented immigrants — as long as the child has a Social Security number. This provision could leave about 2 million children ineligible for the child tax credit, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation, which analyzed the bill. The Center for Migration Studies estimates the number is closer to 4.5 million children who are US citizens or lawful permanent residents, otherwise known as green card holders. 'It singles out and disadvantages US citizen children because of their parents' immigration status,' said Shelby Gonzales, vice president for immigration policy at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, noting that research shows the credit has a positive impact on children's health, educational attainment and, eventually, earnings. 'That's really alarming.' Similarly, the 'Trump accounts' that the legislation would create would require both parents to have Social Security numbers to be eligible to claim the $1,000 federal contribution for their US-born citizen babies. Fewer immigrants would be eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the formal name for food stamps, if the House bill becomes law. Refugees, people approved for asylum, domestic violence victims and survivors of labor or sex trafficking would no longer qualify. Only citizens, green card holders, certain Cuban parolees and migrants from certain Pacific Ocean island nations would be able to receive food stamps. Between 120,000 and 250,000 people would lose access to this food assistance over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Families with citizen children would also feel the pinch – even if the kids would continue to qualify, the household would receive less assistance each month if the parents are no longer eligible. Gloria, who fled gang violence in El Salvador in 2010 hoping for safety in the US, worries that she could lose a portion of the food stamps that she and her five children, who are citizens, depend on. The family receives a total of $900 a month in benefits. 'I'm about to have a baby; I'm a single mom. If this president decided to take it away, I would be very affected. I live off the SNAP benefits,' said Gloria, who lives in Washington DC and has a T-visa, a protection for trafficking survivors. Gloria, who asked that CNN not use her full name for fear of retribution, said she was trafficked by her own mother and aunt in Maryland — forced to work at a carpet factory, sleep on the floor and hand over all her wages under threats of deportation from her own family until she finally escaped. Gloria recently earned her GED, is studying to become a medical assistant and is also learning English. Still, she says she needs continued support to achieve her goals and become fully self-sufficient. One asylum recipient from Egypt, who asked to be identified only as H.E. so as not to jeopardize his immigration status, told CNN that he depends on food stamps. 'If I lose those benefits, it's going to be bad,' said H.E., who lives in a shelter in Virginia, is unemployed and has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The package would also block many legal immigrants from receiving Affordable Care Act premium subsidies and Medicare coverage, making it harder for them to obtain health coverage from both the government and private insurers. Under the bill, asylees, refugees, temporary protected status holders and victims of domestic violence or sex trafficking, among others, would no longer be eligible for Obamacare subsidies or Medicare, even if they worked in the US for the 10-plus years it takes for senior citizens to qualify for the latter program. One million more people would be uninsured in 2034 if these immigrants lost access to the Affordable Care Act subsidies, according to CBO estimates. As for Medicaid, which House Republicans have targeted for steep spending cuts, the bill would not alter immigrants' eligibility for the federal program. However, it would levy steep penalties on states that have opted to expand coverage that's similar to Medicaid to a broader array of non-citizens, including undocumented immigrants, using their own funds. Some 14 states plus the District of Columbia cover at least some undocumented residents through these initiatives. The House bill would cut the share of federal matching funds these states receive for covering low-income adults under Medicaid expansion to 80%, from 90%, which would double states' costs. How states would react would likely vary, but experts fear that many would have to limit or end their programs covering undocumented residents. The CBO expects this provision would result in 1.4 million more people being uninsured in 2034 – the figure that Johnson often cites, even though these folks are not enrolled in the federal Medicaid program. The penalty could also hit the states that cover immigrant children and pregnant women with certain legal statuses – including those with temporary protected status and student visas – through a separate state Children's Health Insurance Program. Some 21 states have opted to do so for children and six for pregnant women. But since the penalty only applies to states that have expanded Medicaid, Pennsylvania and West Virginia would be hit, for instance, but not Florida or Texas, said Leonardo Cuello, research professor for the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. Most states would not be able to afford to continue these optional programs. 'The states are going to have a huge incentive to drop their coverage because the alternative is a massive increase in spending,' he said.

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